A case study of design improvement in Thai residential building project to comply with The WELL building standard

Abstract

Nowadays, people are paying more attention to health, environment and atmosphere when choosing their prospective housing assets. The Well Standard is developed by The International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) in the United States to help ensure that their certified residential projects have been developed with thorough consideration of hygiene, environment and well-being of their residents. The WELL v1 standard initially focused on commercial and institutional buildings; however, it can be applied for other project types through the WELL Pilot Program. This research specifically focused on this program designed for multifamily residential buildings. The certification has three levels, namely SILVER, GOLD, and PLATINUM. The WELL standards are concerned with seven physical and mental aspects of the project environments and residents. anamely Air, Water, Nourishment, Light, Fitness, Comfort, and Mind. This research studied the project development process of one high-rise building project, which has recently been awarded the GOLD level WELL Pilot v1 for Multifamily Residences, from its inception to certification. This research involved collecting related project documentation and conducting in-depth interviews with project participants. Based on the collected data, this research also determined additional costs required for the project to meet the WELL standard requirements and summarized major impediments during project development. These results can potentially benefit real estate developers who are planning to develop similar types of residential building projects in the future.