Centre of Excellence for Healthy Buildings

26.04.2021, 14:56

Centre of Excellence for Healthy Buildings

A global partnership between Johnson Controls and the International WELL Building Institute will create a new global centre of excellence for healthy buildings by promoting the WELL Building Standard.

The two organisations will work together to advance technology development, outcome-based planning and best practices that will improve the health and safety of people in buildings and communities, with Johnson Controls establishing a Healthy Buildings Centre of Excellence as part of its global network of OpenBlue Innovation Centres to consolidate the company’s comprehensive worldwide efforts to provide support for WELL.

By leveraging the Centre of Excellence, Johnson Controls is on track to achieve the WELL Health-Safety Rating at headquarter buildings in the United States and China by the third quarter of this fiscal year. In addition, the company will invest in the WELL AP programme with a goal of 500 employees achieving the WELL AP credential by the end of the year. As a Keystone member of IWBI, Johnson Controls also will support research and the advancement of healthy buildings.

Ganesh Ramaswamy, vice president and president, Global Services for Johnson Controls, explains: “We believe at the centre of a vision for a healthy world must be healthy buildings. It’s natural for us to grow our relationship with IWBI since we both believe that the spaces around us can improve operating efficiency, promote health and well-being as well as boost productivity and enhance sustainability.

“With our leadership around OpenBlue Healthy Buildings, Johnson Controls brings to IWBI in-depth understanding of the power of connected technologies. Through our partnership we will help advance the WELL Building Standard and explore areas such as continuous monitoring in support of healthy buildings around the world.”

“This is an important collaboration focused on putting health first to foster innovation, optimise for health and accelerate the opportunity for everyone, everywhere to benefit from WELL,” adds Rachel Hodgdon, President and CEO of IWBI. “We commend Johnson Controls for its leadership and we look forward to working more closely together to drive our shared goal of true market transformation.”

WELL is designed to work harmoniously with global building rating systems such as USGBC’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), the Living Building Challenge and other leading global green building standards. Johnson Controls ambitious and accelerated sustainability commitments address critical, global environmental needs such as carbon reduction, energy efficiency and water conservation. Partnering with IWBI to advance the WELL Building Standard supports broader action across building construction, facilities management and environmental wellbeing for all. Johnson Controls wide-reaching global presence supports the development of standards that take specific environmental factors into consideration. With nine Innovation Centres around the world, Johnson Controls is well suited to support standards development of healthy buildings needs in various climate types such as humid continental conditions in the Midwest United States, tropical settings in Singapore and other climate types worldwide. These centres accelerate the reinvention of the building landscape, supporting research and development of dynamic smart facilities that help businesses meet sustainability commitments, while delivering healthy places, enriched experiences and cost savings.

To read more about Johnson Controls commitment and accomplishments around sustainability, please visit: https://www.johnsoncontrols.com/corporate-sustainability/environment.