SWIM
This SWIM section explains which features of the WELL Building Standard are already in place across campus and which features we’re looking into or are in the process of pursuing. The following chart lists the number of WELL optimization points achieved or employed in five areas around campus. The summaries for each concept area also include the number of points achieved or targeted for each optimization (preconditions aren’t awarded any points), which ranges from 1 to 3 points. A higher value indicates that feature is particularly impactful.
The standard includes two categories of features: preconditions, which are required for every project, and optimizations, which are presented as a menu from which project teams may select those that best align with the project’s goals and culture. Projects need not meet all provided optimizations; in fact, projects are capped at meeting 12 optimizations per concept area when officially certifying. That’s why you’ll notice that the CSL, which has achieved WELL certification, and the ESC, which is pursuing certification, have no more than 12 points in any concept area. Total points earn projects either a Silver (50-59 points), Gold (60-79 points), or Platinum (80-100 points) level certification. Even though the Welcome Center, Greenhouse, and Garden Center aren’t officially certified, the corresponding score for each of these areas is presented in the table below.
To explore the language of each feature listed below, check out the DIVE section.
|
WELL Concept Area |
Welcome Center |
Greenhouse |
Garden Center |
CSL |
ESC |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Air (12 points possible) |
5 |
2 |
2 |
10 |
11 |
 |
Water (9 points possible) |
2 |
6 |
3 |
6 |
8 |
 |
Nourishment (12 points possible) |
13 |
12 |
12 |
12 |
12 |
 |
Light (12 points possible) |
0 |
0 |
0 |
6 |
11 |
 |
Movement (12 points possible) |
14 |
14 |
16 |
12 |
12 |
 |
Thermal Comfort (12 points possible) |
0 |
0 |
0 |
4 |
9 |
 |
Sound (11 points possible) |
0 |
0 |
0 |
6 |
7 |
 |
Materials (12 points possible) |
15 |
15 |
15 |
12 |
12 |
 |
Mind (12 points possible) |
9 |
9 |
9 |
7 |
9 |
 |
Community (12 points possible) |
13 |
12 |
10 |
8 |
8 |
|
Total points achieved |
71 Gold |
70 Gold |
67 Gold |
83 Platinum |
99 Platinum |
Click the links below to learn more information about each category of this section.
Air | Water | Nourishment | Light | Movement | Thermal Comfort | Sound | Materials | Mind | Community
Air
The Air concept aims to ensure high levels of indoor air quality across a building’s lifetime through strategies that include source elimination or reduction, active and passive building design, and operation strategies and human behavior interventions.
What We’re Already Doing
Preconditions- Meet radon threshold
- Prohibit indoor smoking
- Prohibit outdoor smoking
- Ensure adequate ventilation
- Mitigate construction pollution
- Promote air quality awareness (1)
- Design healthy envelope and entryways (1)
- Manage pollution and exhaust (1)
- Implement particle filtration (1)
- Manage condensation and mold (1)
What We're Looking Into
Preconditions- Meet thresholds for particulate matter
- Meet thresholds for organic gases
- Meet thresholds for inorganic gases
- Monitor fundamental air parameters
- Conduct system balancing
- Meet enhanced thresholds for particulate matter (2)
- Meet enhanced thresholds for organic gases (1)
- Meet enhanced thresholds for inorganic gases (1)
- Increase outdoor air supply (3)
- Implement demand-controlled ventilation (3)
- Implement indoor air monitors (1)
Water
The Water concept covers aspects of the quality, distribution, and control of liquid water in a building. It includes features that address the availability and contaminant thresholds of drinking water through filtration, as well as features targeting the management of water to avoid damage to building materials and environmental conditions.
What We're Already Doing
Preconditions- Meet sediment thresholds
- Meet microorganism thresholds
- Meet dissolved metal thresholds
- Meet organic pollutant thresholds
- Meet disinfectant byproducts thresholds
- Meet herbicide and pesticide thresholds
- Meet fertilizer thresholds
- Meet public water additive thresholds
- Isolate moisture-sensitive materials (1)
- Provide adequate sink (1)
What We're Looking Into
Preconditions- Monitor fundamental water parameters
- Monitor water contaminant parameters
- Implement legionella management plan
Nourishment
The Nourishment concept requires the availability of fruits and vegetables and nutritional transparency and encourages the creation of food environments where the healthiest choice is the easiest choice.
What We're Already Doing
Preconditions- Implement ingredient labeling
- Implement refined ingredient labeling
- Limit total sugars (1)
- Promote whole grains (1)
- Manage oils (1)
- Promote healthy nutritional messaging (1)
- Implement healthy menu design (1)
- Restrict artificial ingredients (1)
- Provide nutrition education (1)
- Include designated eating space (1)
- Provide daily meal breaks (1)
- Manage allergies and alteratives (1)
- Implement enhanced ingredient labeling (1)
- Provide meal support (1)
- Implement responsible sourcing (1)
What We're Looking Into
Preconditions- Ensure fruit and vegetable availability
- Promote fruit and vegetable visibility
- Provide nutritional information
- Provide gardening space (1)
- Provide planting support (1)
- Ensure food access (1)
Light
The Light concept promotes exposure to light and aims to create lighting environments that are optimal for visual, mental, and biological health.
What We're Already Doing
Preconditions- Ensure indoor light exposure
- Promote lighting education
- Light levels for visual acuity
What We're Looking Into
Optimizations- Lighting for the circadian system (3)
- Control solar glare (2)
- Manage glare from electric lighting (2)
- Implement enhanced daylight plan (1)
- Ensure views (1)
- Manage brightness (1)
- Ensure color rendering quality (1)
- Manage flicker (1)
- Enhance occupant controllability (1)
- Provide supplemental lighting (1)
Movement
The Movement concept promotes movement, physical activity, and ergonomic space set ups and discourages sedentary behaviors through environmental design strategies, programs, and policies.
What We're Already Doing
Preconditions- Design active buildings and communities
- Support visual ergonomics
- Ensure desk height flexibility
- Provide ergonomics education
- Design aesthetic circulation networks (1)
- Promote visible stairs (1)
- Provide bicycle storage (2)
- Provide facilities for active occupants (2)
- Select sites with pedestrian friendly streets (2)
- Implement activity programs for employees (1)
- Provide dedicated activity spaces (1)
- Provide physical activity equipment (1)
- Provide off-site activity spaces (1)
- Integrate active facades (1)
- Provide on-site pedestrian destinations (1)
What We're Looking Into
Preconditions- Ensure seat flexibility
- Provide standing support
- Integrate point-of-decision signage (1)
- Select sites with diverse uses (2)
- Select sites with access to mass transit (2)
- Provide active workstations (2)
- Utilize ergonomic consultation (1)
Thermal Comfort
The Thermal Comfort concept aims to promote human productivity and ensure a maximum level of thermal comfort among all building users through improved HVAC system design and control and by meeting individual thermal preferences.
What We're Already Doing
Preconditions- Support thermal environment
- Monitor thermal parameters
What We're Looking Into
Optimizations- Enhance thermal environment (1)
- Achieve thermal comfort (3)
- Ensure personal thermal comfort (3)
- Monitor thermal environment (1)
- Manage relative humidity (1)
Sound
The Sound concept aims to bolster occupant health and well-being through the identification and mitigation of acoustical comfort parameters that shape occupant experiences in the built environment.
What We're Already Doing
What We're Looking Into
Preconditions- Manage background noise level
- Manage acoustical privacy
- Label acoustic zones
- Limit background noise levels (3)
- Ensure adequate wall construction (2)
- Ensure proper door specifications (1)
- Meet thresholds for reverberation time (1)
- Implement sound reducing ceilings (1)
- Implement sound reducing vertical surfaces (1)
- Implement sound masking (2)
Materials
The Materials concept aims to reduce human and environmental exposure to hazardous building material ingredients through the restriction or elimination of compounds or products known to be toxic and the promotion of safer replacements.
What We're Already Doing
Preconditions- Restrict lead
- Manage lead hazards
- Manage PCB hazards
- Ensure acceptable structures
- Manage exterior paint and soil
- Manage hazardous waste (1)
- Manage pesticides (1)
- Limit hazardous materials (1)
- Ensure acceptable cleaning ingredients (1)
- Manage volatile organic compounds (1)
- Manage semi-volatile organic compounds (1)
- Purchase compliant products (1)
- Manage furniture and furnishings emissions (1)
- Manage flooring and insulation emissions (1)
- Manage product emissions: adhesives, sealants, paints and coatings (2)
- Manage product content: adhesives, sealants, paints and coatings (1)
- Select optimized materials (1)
- Promote ingredient disclosure (2)
What We're Looking Into
Preconditions- Restrict asbestos
- Limit mercury
- Manage asbestos hazards
- Implement acceptable cleaning practices (1)
Mind
The Mind concept promotes mental health through policy, program and design strategies that seek to address the diverse factors that influence cognitive and emotional well-being.
What We're Already Doing
Preconditions- Commit to mental health promotion
- Promote mental health literacy
- Provide access to nature
- Provide mental health screening (1)
- Provide mental health coverage (1)
- Support stress management programs (1)
- Provide enhanced access to nature (1)
- Promote tobacco prevention (1)
- Support tobacco cessation (2)
- Provide access to substance use services (2)
What We're Looking Into
Optimizations- Provide workplace support (1)
- Offer mental health education (1)
- Offer mental health education for managers (1)
- Develop stress management plan (1)
- Provide restorative indoor spaces (1)
- Provide restorative outdoor spaces (1)
- Provide restorative programming (1)
- Promote substance abuse prevention and education (1)
- Provide opioid emergency response kits and training (3)
Community
The Community concept aims to support access to essential healthcare, workplace health promotion and accommodations for new parents while establishing an inclusive, integrated community through social equity, civic engagement and accessible design.
What We're Already Doing
Preconditions- Provide WELL feature guide
- Promote health and wellness education
- Integrate beauty and design
- Promote health-oriented mission
- Select project survey
- Administer survey and report results
- Promote health benefits (2)
- Promote culture of health (2)
- Offer health risk assessments (1)
- Promote seasonal flu prevention (1)
- Implement immunization schedule (1)
- Design lactation room (2)
- Ensure essential accessibility (1)
- Provide single-user bathrooms (1)
- Provide family bathrooms (1)
- Develop emergency preparedness plan (1)
What We're Looking Into
Preconditions- Facilitate stakeholder charrette
- Facilitate stakeholder orientation
- Administer pre-occupancy survey and report results (1)
- Monitor survey responses (1)
- Facilitate interviews and focus groups (1)
- Offer family leave (1)
- Offer bereavement support (1)
- Promote civic engagement (1)
- Integrate universal design (2)
- Provide essential accommodations (1)
- Promote emergency resources (2)
