Chances are that the outdoor air quality near your office isn’t what’s causing respiratory illnesses this time of year – it’s more likely the indoor air quality of that stuffy cubicle den. With less fresh air circulating due to colder weather, your office building probably isn’t doing you any favors as far as your health goes.
A recent office construction was discovered to be negatively affecting about thirty workers, but it wasn’t due to contaminated construction materials or improper HVAC installation – it was because of perfluorinated chemicals (PFCs) applied to carpets and furniture upholstery to ward off stains and dirt!
Although there’s no certainty that trace amounts of PFCs in the body cause health problems, there’s mounting evidence that they might. But they’re not just found in cleaning materials. Fast-food wrappers, butter wrappers, and other non-stick packaging contain certain amounts of PFCs to keep grease from coming through the packaging.
Dander, dirt, hair, and dust from everyday use can get ground down deep in the fibers of carpet and furniture, which can bring down the overall air quality in the room, so regular deep-cleaning is recommended. However, calling up the cleaners or hiring a maid service isn’t going to cut it when you consider the cost of sick days, health insurance premiums, and loss in productivity due to respiratory problems. Mold, humidity, oxygen levels, and other airborne volatiles may also be present in office environments.
Regular, comprehensive indoor office air quality testing is the only way to head off air-related health issues for you and your employees. Waiting until an employee files a formal grievance with a regulatory agency won’t look good for your business, your management, or your employees’ overall outlook and general morale. At Hawk Environmental, we offer full-service indoor air quality testing and specialize in identifying and solving office environmental issues.
By testing a variety of locations within the office itself, we can isolate problem areas and find sources of pollutants so the problem can be solved quickly and effectively. We measure general environmental conditions such as temperature, relative humidity, carbon dioxide levels, and more. In addition, we can test for general toxicity and detect the following conditions: carbon monoxide, hydrogen sulfide, lower explosive limit of natural gas, oxygen, and total volatile organic compounds in the air.
Don’t let it wait another day – there’s nothing more important than the quality of your air. Contact Hawk Environmental and prevent further health problems for you and your employees.
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