Inspiring confidence in indoor environments

Healthy buildings awareness can be traced back to the 1980s when indoor ventilation practices led to the first reports of sick building syndrome due to decreased indoor air quality.¹ Recently, the healthy buildings movement has formalized and accelerated following the COVID-19 pandemic, increased occupant demand for IAQ education and government policy changes. 

For example, the U.S. government announced nearly $200 billion in funding for educational buildings to improve building health through the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund (ESSER) and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), and released the Clean Air in Buildings Challenge to encourage companies to improve building health in other industries.² Further, a 2020 survey of international real estate investors, with about $6 trillion in assets under management (AUM), reported that 90% planned to enhance their portfolios’ health and wellness strategy.³ 

Today, the healthy buildings movement is a natural extension of the environmental, social and governance (ESG) movement, and Carrier estimates the market will be worth $10 billion by 2030. The movement is growing because it positively impacts occupants, companies and building owners alike. Healthy buildings can support occupant health by reducing absenteeism and sick days while increasing productivity and cognitive function, which positively impact a company’s bottom line and differentiates them versus competitors.⁴ Healthy buildings also benefit building owners. MIT’s Real Estate Innovation Lab found healthy-certified buildings pull in effective rents that are 4.4% to 7.7% higher per square foot than non-certified and non-registered peer buildings.⁵ 

Together with our global customers and consumers, Carrier is focused on prioritizing building health along with other priorities including sustainability, cost and energy efficiency. Healthy building solutions can benefit all stakeholders when balanced optimally with other considerations.

Carrier has led the way in providing healthy indoor environments for well over a century. Our founder, Willis Carrier, sold the first modern air conditioning system to Allegheny General Hospital, which was used to establish the first infant incubator room capable of providing a healthy and comfortable environment.

Today, Carrier’s commitment to healthy buildings continues and has evolved beyond offering healthy products, services and solutions alone. We have partnered, sponsored, collaborated and invested to become a thought leader in the healthy buildings movement. Carrier has proactively grown the movement by supporting continued education, developing thought leadership and building a showcase facility.

The most critical and valuable assets associated with any building are the people inside. Delivering an ideal occupant experience balances not only health outcomes, but also productivity, sustainability and more. Carrier has helped broaden understanding of the benefits and implications of healthy buildings by supporting groundbreaking research led by the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, called the COGfx (cognitive function) Study series. 

The COGfx Study series highlights the impact of built environments on occupants, employers and building owners considering health, productivity, operations and finances. In addition, the studies discuss ways buildings can balance health goals along with sustainability and budget goals.

Indoor environments have a major impact on the way people live. Each of us can take action to advocate for healthy indoor environments by considering “health” when we buy products, rent commercial space, choose an employer, decide on which causes to support and more. The continued growth of the healthy buildings movement is dependent on making indoor air quality and healthy building elements a priority, expectation and requirement for occupants, employers and building owners alike. 

To aid in the effort, Carrier has created a holistic set of solutions to support customers on their healthy buildings journeys from initial assessments, commissioning and certification to continuous monitoring and ongoing service. Our products, controls and services can be customized to serve the needs of individual buildings and full portfolios across building types and industries such as education, healthcare, commercial real estate, hospitality and retail.