My Expressions

Studies have shown that employees are happier , healthier and more productive when they work in an environment that offers them adequate amounts of natural light .

New buildings may be designed with these studies in mind , but many older buildings were not, resulting in spaces that often depend primarily on artificial lighting . While employers can balk at the expense of reconfiguring such buildings to increase the amount of natural light, the investment has been shown to be well worth it in the long run -for both employees and the employers. For one thing , lack of exposure to natural light has a significant impact on employee’s health.

A study conducted in 2013 by Northwestern University in Chicago showed that inadequate natural light could result in eye strain, headache and fatigue as well as interference with the body’s circadian rhythms. Circadian rhythms which are controlled by the body’s biological clocks , influence body temperature , hormone releases , cycles of sleep and wakefulness and other bodily functions. Disruption of circadian rhythms have been linked to sleep disorders ,diabetes , depression and bipolar disorder. Like any other health problems , these ailments can increase employee absenteeism which in turn is costly for the employers.

Employees who feel less than 100 per cent and are sleep deprived are also less prone to work with their maximum productivity. One company in California saw a 5 per cent increase in productivity when it moved from an artificially lit distribution system to one with natural illumination. Aside from lowering worker productivity , artificial light sources are also costly , constituting anywhere from between 25 to 50 percent of a building’s energy use,

When a plant in Seattle , Washington was redesigned for more natural light , the company was able to enjoy annual electricity cost reductions of $500,000.Among the possibilities to reconfigure a building’s lighting is the installation of full pane windows to allow the greatest degree of sunlight to reach office interiors.

Alternatively, businesses can install light tubes, which are pipes placed in workplace roofs to capture and funnel sunlight down to the building’s interior. Glass walls and dividers can also be used to replace solid walls as a means of distributing natural light more freely. Considering the enormous costs of artificial lighting , both in terms of money and productivity , investment in such improvements should be a natural choice for businesses.

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