TALK GREEN WALK GREEN 
GREEN INTERIORS
A normal office going person spends more than eight hours within the confines of his office. This is a substantial part of his life. During this time, he is
constantly breathing in the air surrounding him in the office. Existence of harmful pollutants in the office air can have serious implications on his health.
Various substances used for office interiors emit Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs). Some of these compounds are carcinogenic. Prolonged exposure of such gases is known to cause several health disorders such as allergies, headache, irritation in eyes, nose and throat etc. Then, there are certain materials that disintegrate into tiny particles and mixes with the indoor air which is then inhaled. Such substances cause respiratory disorders. And lastly, there are substances which support growth of microbes such as fungus, mold etc. Such microbes can cause discomforts such as sneezing, coughing, lethargy, dizziness etc.
A variety of materials is used by the interior designers to meet certain functional requirements, as well as to enhance indoor aesthetics. Such materials vary significantly with regard to their performance on IAQ (Indoor Air Quality) parameters.
In order to facilitate the interior designers and our customers to assess the IAQ performance of a set of materials used in a certain proportion for a given space, there was a need to develop a scorecard which could assess the combined IAQ effect of a given space.
THE GODREJ INTERIO IAQ SCORECARD
A team at Godrej Interio has developed a scorecard which can assess the IAQ score of a given combination of materials used for a given interior space. The score obtained by this tool can be used to check to what extent a given combination of materials is good for the office inhabitants. It also guides on ways to improve the score by selecting alternate materials with better IAQ performance.
The scorecard is based on assessing the IAQ performance of various materials used for Interiors, on aspects such as VOC, Microbial Contamination and Suspended Particulate Matter.
The score is scientifically calculated starting with assessment of materials used, to assessment of different items made using these materials, and finally assessment of a group of items used in a given indoor space.
Although this model will not give the exact level of emissions, it will tell whether a given space is acceptable or not. This model has been tested against the standards in the industry and Rachna Sansad Institute of Environmental Architecture; Mumbai played an important role in guiding us. They helped us to decide the criterions and the weightages to be given for them. They also tested the model and gave us a certificate.
This recently launched service is being offered by Godrej Interio as a value-add to facilitate our customers to walk the green talk.