WELL-certification
WELL-certification
What does the WELL certification stand for? Attention to the importance of a healthy living and working environment is increasing. It is therefore expected that health and well-being will become important price-determining factors in the value of buildings.
Evidence based
WELL is an international evidence-based standard that focuses on human health and well-being. It is an evidence-based and performance-verified certification program co-developed by many international universities. Projects must prove that a space is not only designed for health, but also that this is lost in practice. Projects that meet the WELL certification have proven to support the health, happiness and productivity of users. The method is administered by the International WELL Building Institute (IWBI).
10 WELL concepts
WELL is based on ten concepts. A number of these concepts are mainly aimed at the operational side of the company (the operating costs), such as Nourishment, Mind and Community. Five other concepts: Air, Light, Movement, Thermal Comfort and Sound have a major impact on the building and investment costs and a limited impact on operating costs. The two remaining concepts Water and Materials influence both investment and operating costs.
Levels of the WELL certificate
A number of characteristic properties have been defined as items for each concept. Part of this is mandatory (preconditions) and part is freely selectable (optimizations). For each concept, a set minimum number of items must be achieved for certification. The level of certification, Bronze, Silver, Gold or Platinum, is determined by the number of completed items.
WELL certification covers two types of buildings:
• Own use property: buildings that are managed and largely used by the owner.
• WELL Core: Properties that are mainly rented out by the project owner, where at least 75% of the tenants implement the WELL elements.
Healthy buildings
A WELL certification is a method for converting health requirements into concrete issues for the design as well as the subsequent implementation and operation of the building. Within WELL, the emphasis is on validation by independent third parties, which means that more tests are carried out afterwards, which show that the ambitions and requirements that were set prior to development are demonstrably met. The WELL certificate is only issued when the building is completed, following successful performance testing and on-site visual inspections by an accredited and independent Performance Testing Agent. WELL and BREEAM complement each other well.
WELL AP
At Adamasgroup, we advise our customers about the possibilities of realizing a healthy building and we give advice about the steps to be taken towards WELL certification. For this it is important that we are involved at an early stage in the planning of the WELL registration and certification requirements. Our WELL APs (Accredited Professionals) have extensive experience in certifying healthy buildings in the Netherlands and Europe. We work efficiently and effectively and, together with the client and end user, focus on those aspects that provide added value for people and the environment.
