wood is good
a world of wellbeing
Beechwood is good for you and for the planet. It’s not just free from toxins and produces no harmful emissions, but it actually improves air quality. As a natural material, wood can help to provide all the benefits of biophilic experiences: reducing stress, improving cognitive function and enhancing mood and creativity.
biophilia: connection to nature in the workplace
Exposure to views and images of nature can help to speed up healing and recovery time, boost positive feelings and reduce negative ones. Interior environments that are cold, sterile and devoid of life, on the other hand, can diminish our experience, mood and happiness.
WELL's Mind concept includes two dedicated biophilia features. Biophilia I (Qualitative) requires a biophilic design framework that integrates nature patterns and natural analogues into the project. Biophilia II (Quantitative) sets measurable targets for natural elements within the interior. All natural materials such as stone, wood, bamboo and cork do not contain any VOCs and come with their own material transparency.
Specifying solid wood furniture is one of the most effective and immediately visible ways to introduce natural analogue elements into an interior — satisfying both the qualitative spirit and the quantitative targets of WELL's biophilia features simultaneously.
research
The research basis for this is substantial. Studies from Japan, Finland, Canada and Austria confirm that the presence of natural wood in work environments measurably reduces stress responses in the nervous system, improves cognitive function, lowers absenteeism and enhances overall mood and productivity. A study linked nature, biophilic design, and wood with improved physical and mental wellbeing, finding a correlation between the presence of wood and employees' overall satisfaction at work, lower absenteeism, higher levels of concentration, and improved productivity.
For architects designing projects in dense urban environments — where views of nature from the workspace are limited — natural wood furniture provides a critical compensating biophilic strategy, bringing the warmth and texture of the natural world directly into the interior landscape.Through its remarkably positive impact on the indoor climate of a building, wood can contribute to the overall health and productivity of those who live and work there. Studies indicate wood’s calming effect on the nervous system, leading to greater emotional and physical wellbeing.
Exposure to views and images of nature can help to speed up healing and recovery time, boost positive feelings and reduce negative ones. Interior environments that are cold, sterile and devoid of life, on the other hand, can diminish our experience, mood and happiness.