Center for the Built Environment

People frequently cite a number of benefits related to underfloor air distribution (UFAD) systems—more flexibility, better indoor air quality, comfort, energy efficiency, and reduced lifecycle costs. These benefits may be realized in practice, however much depends on the system design, building use, climate, and other factors. The focus of this paper is to describe each of these benefits briefly, discuss what is required to take advantage of these potential benefits, and note what is commonly observed in current practice.