ATLANTA - The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Appeals Board has rejected a final appeal of an addendum to the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers' (ASHRAE's) ventilation standard.

ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 62-2001, "Ventilation for Acceptable Indoor Air Quality," sets minimum ventilation rates and other requirements for commercial and institutional buildings. Addendum 62n was approved for publication at the society's 2003 annual meeting. Six appeals were filed, and they were later denied by ASHRAE.

The ANSI appeals board's decision upholds a decision made earlier this year by its board of standards review, which voted to deny all appeals made to ANSI, thereby upholding its earlier approval of the addendum.

The addendum specifies the determination of design ventilation rate used for application of the ventilation rate procedure. The procedure specifies ventilation rates that can be easily measured for compliance verification and allows designers to determine appropriate rates and reduce the potential for over ventilation in some densely occupied spaces, according to David Butler, P.E., committee chair. Furthermore, the standard is now focused on minimum requirements and is written in mandatory, enforceable language.

Publication date: 11/08/2004