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What’s Your Ideal Room Temperature?
1/5/2021 (Permalink)
Report: NFPA's "U.S. Structure Fires in Office Properties"
Author: Richard Campbell
Issued: August 2013
The battle over the coveted thermostat isn’t a fight just reserved for people’s homes. Heading into the thick of winter now offices across the Piedmont Triad will have to balance costs with worker productivity. Several studies have been conducted in the past decade surveying the effects of office temperature on employee productivity. Theorizing that room temperature does impact the productivity of a company’s employees.
Whether you own a building with hundreds of office workers or a small business with a dozen it’s impossible to satisfy everyone with the current thermostat setting. Therefore some of your employees will take it upon themselves to find a way to warm up during the working hour. One choice is the use of a space heater if your building permit permits it. While space heaters may be great for workers who prefer it to be warmer there is also a potential fire hazard as well.
Heating equipment was the cause of 11% of structural office fires from 2007-2011 according to the National Fire Protection Association. If employees are allowed to utilize a space heater in their office there are multiple fire safety and prevention tips you should be aware of to help keep everyone safe.
Information from the National Fire Protection Association(nfpa.org):
- Keep the space heater at least 3 feet away from anything that can burn, including people.
- Choose a heater with a thermostat and overheat protection.
- Place the heater on a solid, flat surface.
- Make sure your heater has an auto shut-off to turn the heater off if it tips over.
- Keep space heaters out of the way of foot traffic. Never block an exit.
- Plug the heater directly into the wall outlet. Never use an extension cord.
- Space heaters should be turned off and unplugged when you leave the room.
With over 20 years of experience in the fire cleanup and restoration industry mitigating the effects of commercial fires. We’ve acquired a great deal of information on how to prevent one from occurring whether you own or manage a retail space, restaurant, plant, factory, or warehouse. We regularly post content concerning fire safety and prevention on our website and social media platforms. Informing the local community on the dangers of fire from the smoke odor, soot, and the impact on furniture, appliances, and other items.
If your home or business is in need of our services whether for fire, water, flood, mold, or storm damage; perhaps even deep cleaning services, call the experts today – SERVPRO of Greensboro North, (336) 379-1772.
References
https://epic.uchicago.edu/news/hot-temperatures-decrease-worker-productivity-economic-output/