Clothing insulation as a behavioral adaptation for thermal comfort in Indian office buildings
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Author
Guide
Date of Issue
Apr.2016
Type
Conference Paper
Guide
Subject Keywords
Barcode
Class number
Abstract
Regulating clothing is one of the most obvious behavioural responses to changing thermal conditions. The extent of clothing, in turn, affects thermal sensation and acceptability. A lack of extensive thermal comfort field studies in India has meant that there has been very limited data on clothing related occupant behaviour in Indian offices until now. This paper aims to understand clothing norms and practices in Indian offices using data gathered via an extensive field study of thermal comfort in India. It uses the office occupants� response to thermal sensation, acceptability and preference questions as experienced �right here, right now� from more than 6000 surveys together with simultaneous measurement of environmental conditions, clothing and metabolic activity. These surveys are administered in five climate zones across three seasons in air-conditioned, naturally ventilated and mixed mode buildings. The paper analyses clothing insulation as a behavioural response to changes in the environment. The variation in clothing insulation with observed indoor and outdoor temperature is analysed for different seasons, building types and cities. The study also examines the extent of behavioural regulation in clothing between the male and female office workers. The results suggest that women tend to wear lower clothing insulation on an average in summer compared to men. In naturally ventilated and mixed mode buildings, variability in clothing insulation was higher compared to air conditioned buildings, emphasizing the role of clothing as an adaptive measure.
Identifier URL
Pages
403-414p.
Faculty
Faculty of Technology
Citation
Source URL
Keywords
Clothing, Behavioural adaptation, Thermal comfort, Indian offices, Office users
DOI
ISBN
Place of Publication
Publication Year
Edition
Provider
ISSN Number
OTHER
Volume Number
Issue Number
Journal Name
Publication
Making Comfort Relevant: 9th International Windsor Conference