Thermal Comfort in a Naturally Ventilated Office Building in Karlsruhe, Germany – Results of a Survey

In order to compare measurements and subjective votes on thermal comfort in a nonconditionedindoor environment under German climate conditions, a field survey was carriedout in an office and laboratory building in Karlsruhe during July 2005. Over a period of 4weeks 50 subjects filled in questionnaires twice a day every Tuesday and Thursday and accompanyingmeasurements were carried out at the workplaces. 90% of the votes on thermalsensation proofed the room temperatures to be "just right" or "slightly warm"; these votescover ranges of more than 5 Kelvin of the operative temperature and also include 7.5% temperaturesabove 27C. About 75% of all votes rated the indoor climate neutral or better althoughthe room temperatures showed fluctuations in space (rooms of the building) and time(period of the study).