Project Types

PROJECT TYPES

The features of the WELL Building Standard™ (WELL) can be applied across many real estate sectors, however the WELL Building Standard version 1.0 is applicable specifically to commercial and institutional buildings. Furthermore, not all WELL features apply to all buildings, depending on the stage of construction. WELL v1 is therefore further organized into project types, which take into account the specific set of considerations that are unique to a particular building type or phase of construction.

For WELL v1, there are three project types outlined below. If you’re interested in tracking the progress of a specific project type towards WELL Certification™, download the project checklist.

This project type is relevant for office projects only occupying a portion of the space in a building, or those that occupy an entire existing building not undergoing major renovation. In Core and Shell buildings that are WELL Certified™, some WELL features may already apply towards New and Existing Interiors certification, making certification easier. WELL Certification for tenants is also possible in buildings that have not first achieved Core and Shell certification.

PROJECT TYPE PRECONDITIONS OPTIMIZATIONS TOTAL
New and Existing Interiors 36 62 98

At registration, projects define the borders of project scope. The WELL boundary may not unreasonably exclude portions of the building, space, or site to give the project an advantage in complying with credit requirements. The WELL project must accurately communicate the scope of the certifying project in all promotional and descriptive materials and distinguish it from any non-certifying space. The WELL project should be defined by a clear boundary such that the WELL project is physically distinct from other interior spaces within the building. Regardless of boundary, WELL organizational protocol requirements (as defined within Appendix D) must be adopted by the entire entity seeking certification located in the project’s building, such that an occupant’s location within the building does not determine the availability of these protocol requirements.

The following features contain WELL Organizational Protocol Requirements:

Projects that are operated as a co-working space should pursue the ​New & Existing Interiors project type. Co-working projects are those in which the owner (including direct employees) is responsible for the buildout and operations of the entire space, but will only occupy a portion of the space. The remainder of the space will be​ leased by tenants for a short or long-term basis.

For this type of project, Feature 65 would ​​only apply to employees of the ​project ​owner​, and Features 86​ (precondition)​ and 90-96​ (optimizations)​ ​would apply to regular building occupants​.