A field study on the effect of building automation on perceived comfort and control in institutional buildings.

Increasing building automation aims to replace manual controls with programmed systems to improve energy efficiency. However, limiting manual control may compromise occupant comfort. To this end, this paper presents a field study that explores the relationships between occupants' perceived control and comfort, and their preferences for building automation. In-office semi-structured interviews were conducted with 170 occupants in 23 institutional buildings at a Canadian university campus. All interviews entailed verbally administering a survey while photographs were systematically captured to document each occupants' workspace and the context of their interactions with their buildings. Occupants were generally dissatisfied with building automation and preferred more manual controls. Their perception of comfort was moderately correlated to their perception of control over their indoor environment. The findings of this research contribute to a broader debate within the research community about the appropriate level of building automation and the relationship between occupant comfort and control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]