Please click on the Project Scenario A button to review the project scenario and answer the following question.
MILO DESIGN STUDIO - SHENZHEN, CHINA - PROJECT SCENARIO A
MILO is a small, multi-disciplinary design studio with 30 employees located in Shenzhen, Chin
a. Their
primary business is interior commercial fit-outs and they also offer sustainability consulting. Three of their employees have achieved their WELL AP credential.
They have recently leased one floor 21,528 ft.a (2 000 m2) in a building owned by another organization to use as their new studio office. This space includes floor to ceiling windows on all four exterior walls. While the windows are numerous, they are also highly tinted, with a visible light transmittance of approximately 0.35 (35%). They intend on installing several living plant walls and have included natural fibers and patterns in their finishings throughout.
Their building is located 984.25 ft. (300 m) from an underground train station and across the road (approx. 328.08 ft. (100 m)) from a large public park. While many employees have indicated that they bike to work on bike trails, the new building's landlord will not allow tenants to use the elevators to bring bicycles to their offices. Instead, their building has bike racks at the building entrance, an underground garage for bike storage, small rentable lockers and basic bike maintenance tools.
MILO considers itself a human-centric design firm and leads with a people-first approach through its
employee benefits and organizational policies. As an example, they offer a 50% discount on several
mindfulness apps and make guided meditation courses available twice per year to all employees on-site.
PROJECT SCOPE & GOALS
MILO has enrolled their office for WELL Certification to demonstrate their commitment to designing for well-being and employee health. They will be renovating and designing the entire fit-out themselves, including new space configurations that will prioritize natural light.
The space layout will include seating for 45 people in an open-plan office with hot-desking, three conference rooms and four individual phone booths. Additionally, they are planning to update lighting fixtures and purchase new office furniture. MILO do not provide any food or beverages on a daily basis except coffee and tea.
MILO is targeting WELL Certification at the Gold level or higher. This effort is being led by one of their inhouse WELL APs.
How many showers with changing facilities are required for MILO to meet Feature V04: Facilities for Active Occupants?
Answer : B
For Feature V04: Facilities for Active Occupants, WELL standards specify the need for shower facilities to accommodate the building occupants who engage in physical activity, such as biking to work. The requirement is typically based on the number of occupants and the scale of the building. Although the specific WELL standard metrics are not provided in the question, it's common for WELL standards to require at least one shower for every 30 male and 30 female regular occupants. Given MILO's size of 30 employees and their promotion of active commuting, at least one shower would be required. However, to ensure gender inclusivity and accessibility, providing two showers (one for each gender, or two unisex showers) would be more appropriate, ensuring that the facilities are adequately equipped to support the active lifestyles of MILO's employees.
According to Feature C01: Health and Wellness Promotion. Provide WELL Feature Guide, how frequently should a building manager send communications about health resources, programs, amenities and policies available to regular occupants?
Answer : D
Feature C01: Health and Wellness Awareness:Key to this feature is maintaining occupant awareness of the WELL features achieved and the available health and wellness resources within the building.
Communication Frequency:The WELL Building Standard specifies that communications focusing on available health education, resources, policies, etc. must be sent to regular occupants at least annually (every 12 months).
Rationale:Regular, but not overly frequent, communication helps occupants stay informed and encourages engagement with the health-promoting aspects of the building.
What is the value of performance verification in the certification process?
A food services company is trying to meet the health goals of the building owner by providing access to healthy foods, including fruits and vegetables. Which of the following strategies would support Feature N01: Fruits and Vegetables?
A team is seeking to satisfy Feature A01: Air Quality, Part 2: Meet Thresholds for Organic Gases through VOC monitoring for a 87.50O ft2 (8 120 m2) project What is the minimum number of volatile organic compound (VOC) sensors that the project owner must install?
Answer : C
For achieving compliance with WELL v2 Feature A01: Air Quality, Part 2, which focuses on monitoring and meeting thresholds for organic gases such as volatile organic compounds (VOCs), the requirement for the number of sensors is based on the area of the project. The correct choice for an 87,500 ft (8,120 m) project is:
C) 20 VOC sensors
Rationale Behind the Answer
Sensor Distribution Standard: The WELL v2 standard typically recommends installing one VOC sensor for every 5,000 square feet of project space to ensure adequate monitoring coverage and accuracy in detecting VOC levels throughout the space.
Calculating Sensor Needs: For an 87,500 ft area, dividing by the 5,000 ft coverage per sensor gives a requirement of 17.5 sensors. Rounding up to the nearest whole number, this would typically mean at least 18 sensors are necessary. However, to ensure comprehensive coverage and considering practical deployment strategies (such as additional sensors for high-risk areas like kitchens or print rooms), the minimum practical number could rise to the next available option, which is 20 sensors.
Importance in Context
Ensuring Comprehensive Coverage: Adequate sensor placement is crucial for real-time monitoring and ensuring all areas of the project meet air quality standards consistently. This is especially important in larger spaces where air quality can vary significantly from one area to another.
Health and Compliance Implications: By meeting the minimum required number of sensors, the project not only adheres to WELL standards but also protects occupant health by enabling prompt identification and mitigation of poor air quality events, particularly those related to VOC emissions from building materials, furnishings, and equipment.
This approach aligns with WELL's overarching goal of fostering environments that support occupant health through proactive management of building air quality. The focus on sufficient and strategic sensor deployment is a critical component of ensuring that indoor environments remain safe and healthy for all users.
The WELL Building Standard (WELL) requires a project team to limit the use of pesticides to those with which Hazard Tier ranking?
Answer : C
Tier 3 pesticides are the least hazardous pesticides according to the City of San Francisco Pesticide Hazard Screening Protocol, which is one of the reference standards used by WELL v2 to evaluate pesticide safety. WELL v2 requires projects to use outdoor pesticides with a Hazard Tier ranking of 3, except in cases of emergency, and to implement an Integrated Pest Management plan to minimize pesticide use.
Which of the following hazardous materials is known to impair the intellectual development of children and the unborn during pregnancy?
Answer : C
Mercury exposure during pregnancy can cause a range of problems in developing babies, including intellectual and developmental disabilities, cerebral palsy, vision and hearing problems, and microcephaly (a condition in which the baby's head is smaller than expected).
Here's a more detailed explanation:
Mercury is a heavy metal that can be found in the environment in a number of forms, including elemental mercury (liquid mercury), inorganic mercury (e.g., mercury salts), and organic mercury (e.g., methylmercury).
Pregnant women can be exposed to mercury through a number of ways, including eating contaminated fish, inhaling mercury vapor, or having skin contact with mercury.
Methylmercury is the form of mercury that is most easily absorbed by the body and can cross the placenta to the developing baby.
Even low levels of mercury exposure can be harmful to a developing baby's brain and nervous system.
If you are pregnant or planning to become pregnant, it is important to be aware of the risks of mercury exposure. You can reduce your risk of exposure by:
Avoiding certain types of fish, such as shark, swordfish, king mackerel, and tilefish.
Limiting your consumption of other types of fish to no more than 6 ounces per week.
Having good ventilation in your home if you are using products that contain mercury, such as thermometers or fluorescent light bulbs.
Avoiding skin contact with mercury.