Indoor Spaces Environmental Evaluation for Office Buildings at CUASO—Applicability of the BOSSA Time Lapse

This study assesses the user perception of the Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) of workspaces by means of application of the BOSSA Time-Lapse System—developed by the University of Sydney and University of Technology, Sydney/Australia. It is a Building Occupancy Survey System Australian (BOSSA) tool, designed to assess the IEQ of workspaces by means of a questionnaire. Supporting the current Master Plan of the Armando Salles de Oliveira University Campus (CUASO), its buildings are being used as case studies for the development of BOSSA Brazil System. The first case study was conducted at the Laboratory of Environmental and Energy Studies (LABAUT), located at the Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism of the University of São Paulo (FAUUSP). This study was conducted into two different stages. Stage 1, named BOSSA Time-Lapse Base Case, was comprised of 12 volunteers participating in a critical analysis, helping to: (1) understand the functionality of the BOSSA Time-Lapse System; (2) identify translation issues and inconsistency in the questions and, (3) adapt the BOSSA System, which was developed in Australia, to the Brazilian reality. Stage 2, named Second Application of BOSSA Time-Lapse questionnaire, was comprised of four different volunteers invited to respond to the questionnaire without any influence from the researchers. Stage 2 helped to: (1) evaluate the user satisfaction/dissatisfaction with his/her workspace; and, (2) analyze his/her relations with the environment and the building architecture, using the BOSSA Time-Lapse questionnaire. Results show that the translation issues should be reviewed, and that the building has a high level of satisfaction among its users. The dissatisfaction results show high levels of noise, lack of privacy and natural light in some workstations, mostly related to workspace layout. The questionnaire applied at stage 2 identified different results when it comes to satisfaction and/or dissatisfaction with environmental comfort issues. This analysis will contribute to the understanding of the BOSSA Time-Lapse questionnaire, and its application in office buildings in Brazil, as well as to analyze variables of the building IEQ. It will also help to understand the use and application of the BOSSA System methodology internationally.