John Brooks Smith P.E., Global Platform Leader for Building Science for JM, recommends that "designers who wish to prevent sick building syndrome focus on the following principles:

• Design to ASHRAE 62.1-2004, Ventilation for Acceptable Indoor Air Quality in buildings.
• Design to reduce uncontrolled air infiltration through leaks in the building envelope.
• Limit the emissions of VOC's in buildings.
• Ensure the building envelope has a continuous water, air, and thermal barrier.
• Commission the building envelope."

When applied properly and integrated with mechanical systems, building materials, insulation, sheathings and coatings will provide mold resistance and facilitate the proper operation of well engineered ventilation systems.

LETTING IT BREATHE

Energy Codes
"Energy codes have lagged terribly in the United States, although ASHRAE recently upgraded code requirements for commercial buildings," said Lorraine Ross of Intech Consulting, a representative for PIMA - Polyisocyanurate Insulation Manufacturers Association. She recommends the support of the Energy Efficient Codes Coalition (EECC), which is a broad-based alliance of longstanding energy efficiency advocates who have adopted the goal of boosting residential energy efficiency by at least 30 percent over current model energy codes.

Not all states have adopted energy codes and as Lorraine Ross likes to remind architects, "Codes are a minimum. You can't build it worse than the building code." This year the U.S. Green Building Council LEED-NC^® rating system is requiring that all buildings must exceed AHSRAE 90.1, 2004 by at least 14 percent in order to achieve basic certification. To meet this requirement, architects are adding more insulation, increasing the thermal properties of roofs, floors and walls in new construction as well as in renovations of existing buildings.

Map of latest ASHRAE recommended code requirements for U.S. buildings. Provided by PIMA - Polyisocyanurate Insulation Manufactuers Association

The current building stock is over 300 billion sf and by the year 2030, over three quarters of the built environment in the United States will be either new or renovated.³ Many of these buildings are designed to previous, less stringent energy codes and are lacking insulation. Building owners hoping to reduce building operating costs, and reduce dependence on foreign oil are requesting more energy efficient buildings. Professionals have an unprecedented opportunity to reduce the energy use in buildings by adding insulation installed with moisture protection.