A new building standard has been introduced to the industry. Building off of the work done by its predecessor, the WELL Building Standard – Version 2 (v2) has passed in a unanimous vote from the International WELL Building Institute Governance Council.

During a session of the this year’s virtual Window and Door Manufacturers Association (WDMA) conference, Kerry Harp, owner and CEO of Harp Design Inc. with accreditations in LEED and WELL, explained the new program that would apply to exterior window and interior architectural wood door products.

WELL v2 underwent a two-year pilot starting in 2018 where it was evaluated, saw improvements and reviews before being launched in June 2020, said Harp. The WELL standard requires projects to undergo onsite testing along with a performance review that lasts one to three days to be verified.

As opposed to the seven concepts in version 1, WELL v2 focuses on 10: air, water, nourishment, light, movement, thermal comfort, sound, materials, mind and community. These concepts are made up of different features which are scored through points after being reviewed and tested in order to be verified.

After explaining the basics of WELL v2, Harp talked about how and where fenestration fits into the new program. Some concepts that must be implemented in order to receive certification are air, light and mind. A feature that must be met in v2 for the concept of air is ventilation design or having naturally ventilated spaces to improve indoor air quality.

The concept of light must meet the feature of light exposure, where the project has to provide indoor light exposure through daylight and electric light strategies.

For the mind concept, a project’s design must support occupant well-being by incorporating the natural environment throughout the project and integrate the project’s identity.