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BEAM P
LUS
I
NTERIORS
C
OMMERCIAL
, R
ETAIL
A
ND
I
NSTITUTIONAL
M
ANAGEMENT
(MAN)
MAN 2 C
ONSTRUCTION
IAQ M
ANAGEMENT
Copyright © BEAM Society Limited. All rights reserved. Page 43
scheduling activities, source control, pathway interruption, protecting
installed HVAC&R systems and equipment, and good housekeeping.
S
CHEDULING
A
CTIVITIES
Construction work in occupied buildings that will generate emissions
and nuisance should be undertaken outside normal working hours or
in accordance with the host building fit-out requirements.
S
OURCE
C
ONTROL
M
EASURES
Source control means specifying finish materials, composite wood
products, sealants, etc. with low toxicity and off-gassing, as covered
in the IEQ section. Contractors will require instructions and close
monitoring to ensure that inferior products are not used in place of
specified materials.
P
ATHWAY
I
NTERRUPTION
All occupied areas, or areas that will become occupied, particularly
those adjacent to the project, should be isolated as far as practicable.
Measures such as erecting temporary hoarding, doors and screens to
inhibit dust and air movement, sealing of construction areas,
depressurising work areas to provide a pressure differential to
adjacent areas, and exhausting directly to the outside are
recommended.
HVAC&R E
QUIPMENT
AND
O
THER
B
UILDING
S
ERVICES
I
NSTALLATION
P
ROTECTION
Installed HVAC&R equipment shall be protected from ingress of dust
and other contaminants. Ducts and openings shall be sealed and
subsequently cleaned.
Where HVAC&R systems are required to operate during project work
activities it is important to protect the return air side of the ventilation
system. Temporary filters, to MERV 8 or better, shall be installed over
all openings. Care should be taken not to store material and other
products in ductwork or air-handler plant rooms. Upon completion of
the work, but in co-ordination with pre-occupancy flush out activities,
all filtration media should be replaced.
H
OUSEKEEPING
M
EASURES
Cleaning activities shall be arranged to control contaminants in
spaces under construction and prior to occupancy. Possible strategies
include high-efficiency filters, or using suitable wetting agents to
manage fine dust. Cleaning materials used should not themselves be
a source of toxic chemicals, pollutants, and should be applied under
appropriate guidelines.
MERV R
ATING
Filtration efficiency defines how well the filter cleans indoor air by
removing airborne particles. Low-efficiency filters, around 25%
efficiency for 3-10 micron particles, are typically used to keep lint and
dust from clogging HVAC&R system components. Medium- and high-
efficiency filters, up to 95% efficiency for 3-10 micron particles, are
typically used to remove mould, pollen, and fine particulate. High
Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filters are used when 99.97%
efficiency and above (for 0.3 micron particles) is required.
ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 52.2 [
4] measures the particle size
efficiency (PSE) of a filter. This indicates the ability to remove
particles of differing sizes between 0.3 and 10 micrometres in
diameter. A Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value (MERV), is assigned
to a filter based on a minimum PSE. A MERV 1 is least efficient, while
a MERV 16 is most efficient. HEPA and Ultra Low Penetration Air
(ULPA) filters have filtration efficiency that is higher than MERV 16
and are not measured by the ANSI/ASHRAE 52.2 test standard.
4
American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, Inc. (ASHRAE). ANSI/ASHRAE 52.2-
1999. Method of Testing General Ventilation Air-Cleaning Devices for Removal Efficiency by Particle Size.