The Vanderbilt University Facilities Department in alignment with the guidelines released by the Centers of Disease Control (CDC) concerning building system operations to stop the spread of COVID-19, as well as, guidance from the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) is committed to providing the safest environment for students, faculty, staff, and the entire Vanderbilt community.
The guidance from these sources is very similar and falls into three basic categories:
- Increasing the amount of outside air being delivered to spaces.
- Using high-efficiency filtration in systems that circulate air between large numbers of spaces.
- Maintaining temperature and humidity levels within spaces.
To keep the Vanderbilt community as healthy as possible, indoor quality will be maintained at temperatures ranging from 68 to 76 degrees and relative humidity of 45 to 50 percent. The Vanderbilt standard of air filtration at MERV-11 or higher will be maintained. In all systems capable of supporting this a higher level of filtration, where appropriate, we will be moving to MERV – 13. A fresh air supply in each Vanderbilt facility will be increased to the maximum extent that the facility HVAC infrastructure can support for fresh air ventilation, while maintaining temperature and humidity control.