Let the sunshine in: Perception of windows by Chinese office workers

The right amount of glazing in large office buildings is fiercely debated within the FM, property and construction industry. At stake is the balance between the beneficial effects of daylight and views, discomfort from glare, excessive summer heat gain or winter heat loss, and the associated cost of cooling or heating necessitated by excessive radiant heat gain or loss. This study sought empirical evidence from people working in eight large office buildings in the city of Ningbo, China. 100 people in each of eight large buildings all occupied by financial or professional services organizations, were given a questionnaire. A total of 776 questionnaires were completed, an extremely high response rate of 97%.