In many workplaces abroad, air conditioning is standard as temperatures regularly reach unbearable working temperatures.

In Britain however, we've been relatively slow in recognizing the benefits that air conditioning can bring to a work place. Temperatures this summer reached more than 30 degrees centigrade and many workers assumed that when the heat became uncomfortable, and they became groggy and irritable at their desks, there would be some kind of law in place that allowed them to stop working and leave for the day. While this is the case in some other countries around the world, no such law exists in Britain for a maximum temperature, although it exists for a minimum temperature to prevent workers from working when it is too cold.

A Trade Union Congress (TUC) survey found that 34 per cent of workplace safety representatives cited workplace temperature as one of their main concerns. The TUC has, for the past couple of years, been calling for a maximum working temperature to be put in place, and so it makes sense for business owners to install air conditioning for when temperatures soar in the summer months.

It can be a false economy not to purchase equipment to maintain a pleasant temperature in a workplace, as an uncomfortably hot office is by no means a productive one. Increased heat can dampen the enthusiasm of even the most motivated staff, causing irritability, loss of concentration, discomfort, tiredness, an increased risk of accidents and even workplace violence, as well as a general feeling of de-motivation and lack of morale.

An air conditioned office is a pleasure to return to after a lunchtime in the outdoor heat, and employees are less likely to take sick leave if they know they won't have to sit hot and uncomfortable all day at their desks.

There have been recent concerns and questions as to whether with the advent of the Swine Flu pandemic air conditioning should be switched off in buildings to avoid the spreading of the H1N1 virus. The Government's Health and Safety Executive (HSE) released official advice to the contrary. It states that the overall effect of turning off units would result in more static air, which would lead to discomfort and ill health, and cited the dilution effects of air conditioning on stale or contaminated air, as well as the more comfortable environment it provides.

The benefits of conditioned, temperature-regulated air really do outweigh any financial outlay that an installation can have. Businesses will have a fully-productive, happy workforce that is able to concentrate when temperatures outside become unbearable, not a sluggish, irritable one that just wants to go home and jump in a cold shower.