Vesa Vihanninjoki's study Real-time indoor environment quality assessment of sports facilities (2023), carried out for the Department of Civil Engineering at Aalto University, examined continuous indoor environment measurements in indoor sports facilities. The continuous measurement was carried out at Tuusula Tennis Centre by Granlund using Loopshore's technology.
In his master's thesis, Vesa Vihanninjoki studied reference levels for continuous measurement. Indoor environment measurements were examined especially from the perspective of indoor climate and indoor sports facilities. Above all, the study set out to determine what the reference values of the measured variables are based on.
A comprehensive literature review of earlier studies on indoor sports facilities was combined with a practical indoor air investigation project carried out at Tuusula Tennis Centre.
Granlund handled the measurements on the Tennis Centre's side, and the continuous measurement was carried out with Loopshore's technology. The devices were installed for a year to monitor the conditions.
“Continuous measurement was a well-founded addition to the research, because from a researcher's point of view the problem with standardised spot measurements is that we cannot know for certain whether the results give a comprehensive picture of the building's situation, and whether these momentary measurements are actually comparable with each other in terms of external conditions”, says Vesa Vihanninjoki. “When continuous monitoring is used alongside them, the quality of the sampling can be verified and, if necessary, check measurements can be made. This brings significant added value to both property management and academic research.”
Comprehensive condition data for research
During the study it emerged that much of the background to the reference values used by different service providers is classified as confidential. In this respect, the data was quite difficult to obtain for research use. Vihanninjoki is grateful for the constructive and trusting relationship with Loopshore, which made sufficiently detailed information available for the study.
“I found it really valuable that the material was so comprehensive, there was a lot of measurement data and I was able to use it so extensively for the research”, Vihanninjoki says.
“Openness is an important value for us, so it was a pleasure to take part in this research project”, agrees Janne Edgren, CEO of Loopshore, and continues “We want to operate transparently, so that all parties understand how the data is being used at any given time. Here the cooperation between all parties went smoothly.”
The study was carried out in close cooperation with the Tennis Centre. They also followed the air quality data themselves through the user interface. After the monitoring had ended, the Tennis Centre's CEO Timo Havulinna said of Loopshore's device and air quality service: “The information from the system was clear and useful. The product is excellent for this purpose and it was a pleasure to use.”
Good results with a hybrid model. Spot measurements and continuous measurement supporting each other.
Vesa Vihanninjoki advocates the wider use of a hybrid model in indoor air monitoring. “Continuous measurement always brings perspective, because you don't have to rely on one particular moment of measurement. In assessing a building's overall situation and in academic research, this in turn helps specifically to assess the reliability of spot measurements”, Vihanninjoki sums up.
The Finnish Housing Health Decree requires traditional indoor air investigation methods. Continuous monitoring of conditions does not achieve the accuracy required by legislators, and the method has not yet been standardised, but it was found to work particularly well here alongside a traditional indoor air investigation.
Based on the Tuusula Tennis Centre measurements and the literature review, the study produced, among other things, new reference values especially suited to indoor sports facilities. These were very close to the existing limit values of Loopshore's service.
Vihanninjoki presented the results of his work at the Finnish Indoor Climate Seminar in Helsinki in spring 2023. The study was partly funded through the international GenerIoT project.
Vesa Vihanninjoki currently works at Granlund as an expert in research services.