Construction Law

All About the WELL Building Standard featured image

All About the WELL Building Standard

More and more, we are beginning to understand the correlation between the places we spend the most time and our overall health and well-being. Most people spend the bulk of their days at the office. If the office doesn’t contribute to good health, it may adversely affect workers over time. The statistics point to this reality. Companies lose $570 billion annually in lost productivity from absent or “present but sick” workers.

That’s a hefty number. With an emerging focus on health and wellness in all areas of our lives, including where we work, the WELL Building Standard was born. The WELL Building standard was developed by wellness real estate company Delos, who conducted seven years of research with wellness leaders, doctors and scientists. The WELL Building Standard is a system of measuring, monitoring, and certifying various factors in buildings that contribute positively or negatively to the health of its inhabitants. The standard is governed by the International WELL Building Institute™ (IWBI™) and can be applied to new construction projects as well as renovation projects. If you’re a contractor that has been hired to work on a WELL project, a Florida construction lawyer can ensure that your contract protects your interests in this complex venture.

To be WELL Building certified, companies must submit their buildings to earn points for 102 metrics in seven different categories. The categories are:

  • Air
  • Water
  • Nourishment
  • Light
  • Fitness
  • Comfort
  • Mind

Certification candidates are assigned WELL assessors who evaluate buildings based on metrics (known as preconditions) in these categories. To become certified, a building must have a passing score in each category. Their score on additional metrics, known as optimizations, determine if the building moves up among certification levels silver, gold and platinum.

As of the first part of 2017, there were over 200 projects registered in the WELL program with over 20 of these projects certified.

To request a consultation with one of our Florida construction lawyers, please call us today at 813.579.3278 or submit our contact request form.

Disclaimer: The information contained in this article is for general educational information only. This information does not constitute legal advice, is not intended to constitute legal advice, nor should it be relied upon as legal advice for your specific factual pattern or situation.