Harnessing AI solutions for optimal indoor & outdoor air quality control

The quality of the air we breathe has a direct impact on our health and well-being. Poor air quality can cause a variety of respiratory problems, including asthma, bronchitis, and even heart disease. As a facility manager, you have a responsibility to reduce the risk of these issues in the space that you oversee, but this can be challenging without the right tools.

IoT (Internet of Things) technology can be used to monitor air quality in both indoor and outdoor environments to detect a wide variety of pollutants in the air and provide real-time data that can be used to identify trends and potential problems. Here's what to know about monitoring air quality with EPIC iO's dynamic, AI-based air quality management solutions.

The Importance of Good Indoor & Outdoor Air Quality

Indoor and outdoor air quality are both important to monitor. There are a variety of pollutants that can contaminate both indoor and outdoor air, including dust, pollen, mold spores, smoke, and chemical fumes. Consistent exposure to these elements can be detrimental.

Indoor Air Pollutants

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that the average person spends 90% of their time indoors, which means the quality of indoor air is vitally important to human health. Unfortunately, indoor air is often more polluted than outdoor air and can contain a variety of harmful contaminants like mold, dust mites, carbon monoxide, lead, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and radon.

These pollutants can come from a variety of sources, including building materials, cleaning products, off-gassing furniture and appliances, secondhand smoke, and more. Indoor air pollution can cause a variety of health problems like headaches, fatigue, dizziness, nausea, respiratory infections, and exacerbation of asthma and allergies. In some cases, it can even lead to cancer.

Outdoor Air Pollutants

Outdoor air pollution is also a major problem in the United States. MIT reports that outdoor air pollution contributes to approximately 200,000 premature deaths each year. The most common outdoor pollutants include ground-level ozone and smog, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen oxides. These pollutants come from a variety of sources, like power plants, automobiles, factories, construction activity, fires, and more.

Outdoor air pollution can cause a variety of health problems like respiratory infections, heart disease, lung cancer, aggravated asthma symptoms, and more. Even short-term exposure to high levels of outdoor pollutants can also result in emergency room visits or hospitalization.

Monitoring Air Quality With IoT

An internet-connected sensor can monitor various aspects of air quality, such as temperature, humidity, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), particulate matter, and carbon dioxide levels. The data collected by the sensors can then be used to understand trends over time and identify potential problems early on.

Common Air Quality Issues For Facility Managers

Indoor air quality in particular is often an issue for facility managers due to the presence of VOCs from building materials, cleaning products, and office equipment. Poor ventilation can also lead to high levels of CO2.

For example, in a high-traffic office, a conference room that is closed for meetings all day with multiple people will begin to have air quality issues, including reduced oxygen and too much carbon dioxide. Employees can start to feel tired, distracted, and fatigued, which at best makes learning and absorbing new information in the meeting difficult. At worst, it can lead to the above-mentioned health problems.

Air Quality Management With EPIC iO

Our approach to air quality management is simple but effective. We use multiple sensors to monitor both indoor and outdoor air quality so that you can be sure that your facility is as safe and healthy as possible for your employees. EPIC iO's indoor air quality sensors measure things like carbon dioxide, temperature, and humidity, while our outdoor air quality sensors measure pollutants like ozone, nitrogen dioxide, and particulate matter.

DeepInsights™ Technology

Our DeepInsights™ technology takes all of the data collected by our sensors and analyzes it to give you a clear picture of your facility's air quality now and in the future. DeepInsights™ can also alert you to potential problems that could come up if nothing changes, so you can take action before it's too late.

For example, in a high-traffic office, a conference room that is closed for meetings all day with multiple people will begin to have air quality issues, including reduced oxygen and too much carbon dioxide. Employees can start to feel tired, distracted, and fatigued, which at best makes learning and absorbing new information in the meeting difficult. At worst, it can lead to the above-mentioned health problems.

Contact EPIC iO

IoT technology is an advanced way to monitor air quality in both indoor and outdoor environments. By collecting data on important metrics like temperature, humidity, air circulation, and pollution levels, IoT devices can help facility managers identify and address air quality issues before they become a health hazard.

EPIC iO's multi-sensor approach and DeepInsights™ technology make it a leading solution for air quality management. Our products are designed to help facility managers quickly and easily identify air quality issues, so they can take steps to improve the air quality for everyone in their building.

Contact us today to learn more about how we can help you keep your facility safer and healthier.

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