None of us know what the future holds for us as we return to “normal” over the coming months in the COVID-19 recovery process, but one thing we know for sure is that our lives will never be the same. People are now hyper-aware of their air space and the potential for spreading disease, particularly in highly trafficked areas. These areas include places we go every day such as office buildings, schools, and gyms. So how do we get over this and feel comfortable going back to the buildings we live, work, learn, and play in?

U.S.-based building automation system manufacturer, Computrols, is doing its part by providing people with information on the cleaning and indoor air quality of their facilities by way of their new product known as Storyboards.

Computrols Storyboards is the latest feature in an already robust CBAS Web software product that the company has been offering for nearly 20 years. This new feature is intended to help building operators demonstrate the measures that are being taken to ensure the health, safety, and comfort of the people who inhabit their facilities.

Drew Mire, CEO of Computrols explained, “While dashboards do a great job of displaying data to those that have background knowledge of the topic, they do not provide the much-needed education element. That is precisely why we created Storyboards.”

In addition to displaying building data, the Storyboards product also provides brief explanations of the information presented to give the layman some additional context. As in the Indoor Air Quality Storyboard example shared above, Computrols also recommends having some kind of aggregate scoring system that will give a passerby the information they need. With that said, these screens can provide an array of data for those seeking more detailed information as well. This is exactly why Storyboards are custom-built for each facility they deployed in.

“As we return to our buildings, we’ll need to ensure that all reasonable efforts are made to enhance building safety in regards to COVID-19. Perhaps just as importantly, we’ll need to effectively communicate these efforts to building occupants to give them peace of mind”, says Mire.

Although the impetus for this new solution came from the need to provide people comfort in returning to their workplaces, Storyboards also has the potential to present building occupants with other data such as energy consumption, progress on facility construction projects, and more.