How to ‘cure’ a ‘sick building’

ACTUAL treating of mold at the ceiling of an office

How do you rate the “health” of your work environment? Is your workplace making you sick? Perhaps you have complained about mysterious itching, irritation of eyes, nose, and throat, or even asthma. And it’s not just in your office that you encounter these problems. Sometimes, when you stay in hospitals or even libraries, you experience sudden headache, tiredness, shortness of breath, wheezing, dizziness and loss of concentration.

If so, chances are you may be suffering from sick building syndrome—used to describe situations in which building occupants experience acute health and comfort effects that appear to be linked to time spent in a building, but no specific illness or cause can be identified.

Complaints usually involve buildings or establishments where windows are sealed shut and fresh air is scarce. In the United States alone, so many cases have been reported that the Environmental Protection Agency states that one out of four new or renovated buildings may be classified as “sick buildings.” These building-related illnesses have already cost billions in lost productivity every year due to absenteeism after workers have fallen sick.

The US National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health has revealed that occupants in buildings where the ducts have never been cleaned are 60 percent more likely to develop respiratory ailments. Clean ducts can help improve air delivery systems. Furnishings, carpets and fabrics stay clean longer and even the energy efficiency and service life of HVAC equipment can improve.

I recently discovered that the excellent service to “cure” sick buildings is now offered in the Philippines. Piahstreams Philippines managing director Charlie Carmona introduced me to the company that has been in the country for several years now.

DECONTAMINATING at the source, ventilation system

Piahstreams Consultant Services (Piahstreams) and its partner, Remediation and Decontamination Solutions Corp. Inc. of Valentin Prieto Jr., are the experts at protecting lives against symptoms of sick building syndrome and other cases. Since 2001, Piahstreams has been providing consultation services to analyze contamination issues and recommend effective solutions to address various special niche market demands.

Piahstreams, via its professional affiliation in the United States, takes pride in its three independent yet highly sophisticated linked business cores—restoration and recovery, environmental remediation, and hazardous waste management.

The restoration and recovery core utilizes state-of-the art technology and proven industry methods to restore emergency support functions of post-disaster areas to maximize the survival of lives and the use of remaining assets.

The environmental remediation core focuses on improving the indoor environment and provide property owners and managers with assessments, remediation management, and loss prevention programs for mold and indoor air quality challenges using engineering, industrial hygiene and building science expertise.

The hazardous waste management core deals with the deployment of on-site and off-site waste minimization and processing technologies for industrial customers.

Equipped with years of experience and latest tools, the Piahstreams teams are capable of performing complete indoor VOC and Radon assessments, provide sound recommendations and customized solutions following international standards and protocols to ensure the health and safety of the building occupants are being addressed professionally.

With the Philippines’ experience of typhoons and major flooding, Piahstreams has become experts at mold remediation as well. Its services include everything from following specific protocols to sealing off affected areas, to removing the molds from surfaces, ducts and the air.

EQUIPMENT of Remediation & Decontamination Solutions Corp.

The mold remediation services include rapid response and mobilization, catastrophe management, professional containment, indoor air quality tests, on-site cleaning and decontamination, structure remediation, and reconstruction. They also do pack-out and storage, and following specific protocols and state-of-the-art equipment, cleaning and decontamination of HVAC systems.

Piahstreams Consultant Services can be reached at (632) 8822065/8823344. Remediation and Decontamination Solutions Corp Inc can likewise be called at (632)5501004 to 09.

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