Indoor Air Quality Market Boom Extends to Services

Due to the pandemic, demand is growing for UV air purifiers, ion generators, electric air cleaners, and other indoor air quality (IAQ) products for air filtration, humidification, dehumidification, and ventilation, as The Air Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration NEWS recently reported and as I wrote about back in June 2020. But beyond these hardware solutions, new services are emerging to address the growing need for clean indoor air.

Clean Air as a Service Offering Emerges

While amplifying interest in air quality, the pandemic has heavily impacted commercial and institutional customers’ financials by directly affecting revenues or sources of state support. Companies are tightening their belts and reconsidering planned CAPEX.

One solution addressing this issue is Onsite Utility Services Capital’s Clean Air as a Service offering, powered by Needlepoint Bipolar Ionization (NBI). As in other efficiency as a service contracts, customers do not have to spend CAPEX on the equipment. Instead, they receive it as a service, which means they do not own the asset but instead pay the vendor a fee out of their OPEX budget and realize savings on their energy bill.

By continuously cleaning the air, NBI reduces HVAC runtimes required to circulate outside air, resulting in up to 30% savings. The solution is a win for cash-strapped customers who need to address air quality in their buildings but do not want to make CAPEX investments in new technologies.

Air Quality Benchmarking Can Reassure Stakeholders

Schools, offices, retail, and other building segments are working to reassure customers, students, renters, and other stakeholders that it is safe to return to indoor spaces with appropriate precautions and technology. To meet this need, UK-based AirRated is providing customers with a global benchmark for IAQ to help companies gain confidence in their HVAC systems and provide peace of mind to renters and clients.

AirRated has developed a ranking system to assess each building on air quality performance after a robust 3-week testing process. AirRated monitors five air quality parameters, generating a comprehensive assessment of air quality in a building, then makes recommendations on strategies that can be used to improve performance. The air quality certificate is like other building assessment frameworks, such as LEED, that allow customers to market their buildings to renters and clients.

More Services On the Way

These services are just two examples of a growing market around IAQ improvement, monitoring, and verification. Additional services are likely to emerge in the coming months as building owners reconsider their facilities strategies to account for COVID-19 disruptions and changes in space use and requirements.