Sail @ Marina Bay: Magnificence in the Sky

The Sail is located at the Marina Bay in Singapore, and is a mixed-use condominium apart from being Singapore's tallest apartment and also one among the top 10 tallest residential buildings in the world. This six-star penthouse stands out in the already sky-scraping Singaporean architecture, and gives an on-going view of the Marina Bay. The sustainable design of this waterfront lifestyle residential apartment was the work of Peter Pran, along with leading design firm NBBJ.

Structural Design of the Sail

The Sail consists of two tall-rated glass-clad skyscrapers, resembling wind-blown sails namely - Marin Bay Towers with 70 storeys and Central Park Tower wit 63 storeys. It comprises apartment units, several restaurants, health clubs, air conditioned reception areas, recreation room and executive Club Lounge on the 34th storey on the Central Park Tower, sky terraces on 44th and 34th level, reading room, infinity pools, open-air gardens, tennis courts, parking, aqua gym, gymnasium and spa facilities.

The 70-storeyed Marin Bay Towers is topped up to 245 metres (804 ft.) height. The site area is 9,090.9 square metres with a maximum permissible gross floor area of 118,182 square metres and has 29,000 square feet (2,700 m2) of retail space. It will offer 1,111 99-year leasehold residential units, 438 one-bedroom units, 418 two-bedroom units, 175 three-bedroom units, 75 four-bedroom units, as well as 5 penthouses, with the largest almost 9,000 square feet (840 m2) in size.

The exterior glass facade uses insulated low-E glass to reduce solar heat gain and thereby lowering the air-conditioning usage - first for Singapore residential towers - while taking full advantage of spectacular views with floor-to-ceiling glass in many units. The transparency of glass in the façade floods the aesthetic interiors view outside and the vice-versa. Glass windows in the living areas and study/guest room give an endless view of the Marina Bay.

Sailing in Green

Sail has changed the city into “Green City” and achieved BCA Green Mark Gold Certification - Singapore’s Gold standard of sustainability, by including various green features such as a seven-story car park green wall along a new pedestrian linkage connecting Raffles Quay to a proposed central park; improving the residents’ overall air-quality and living experience and creating a new public space for the City.

The design sets new safety and sustainability standards for all of Marina Bay. The structural design couples a shear-wall and foundation system to withstand seismic criteria, resulting in one of the safest buildings in the country. This building is first to access this system in Singapore.

Institute of Indian Interior Designers (IIID)

The Institute of Indian Interior Designers (IIID) is the apex body for the field of Interior Design in India. The IIID was founded and registered as a society in 1972 to establish good professional and trade practices and ethics among its members, highlight and enhance the image of the Interior Design Profession and create a platform for knowledge sharing with similar organizations at an international level.Today it comprises of over 5500 members spread across the country, and has 21 Chapters / Centres. The IIID is a non-profit, professional body whose members include leading Interior Designers, Architects, Consultants, Engineers, Project Management Consultants (PMC), Design Students, System Integrators, Artists, Painters, Facility Managers, Industry Members, Manfactures, Suppliers, Vendors, Contractors, Turnkey Solution Providers and so on. All these entities are affiliated to the field of Interior Design, Architecture and other related fields.

The IIID is headquartered in Mumbai and is a Full Member of:

• International Federation of Interior Architects / Designers (IFI)


• Asia Pacific Space Designers Association (APSDA)

It is also an Associate Member of the Japan Design Foundation (JDF).

Mission

The Mission of the IIID is to consolidate and extend contributions from the Interior Design Profession towards improving the quality of life in contemporary and future societies by sharing knowledge, expertise and experience.

Structure

The IIID has a multi category membership with the Associate/Fellow and Trade categories forming the core of the Institute. The other categories include Affiliate, Education, Licentiate, Student, Press and Honorary Members.

In order to accomplish the mission and objectives it has set for itself, the IIID has established a two-tier hierarchy to maintain close contact with its members spread over its chapters and centres. An Executive Committee at the Head Quarters in Mumbai and a Managing Committee at each Chapter / Centre is elected biannually from among the core members.

The President heads the Executive Committee at the national level and a Chairman heads each of the Managing Committees at the Chapters/Centres. New Chapters/Centres are established depending upon the membership strength in the city or state. Presently Chapters are formed where core membership stands at a minimum of 130.

Member Services

• Encourage and foster ideas of the profession


• Facilitate liaison between members and authorities


• Promote fellowship and ethical conduct


• Act for the common benefit of members


• Advocate common interests of members

Activities

The IIID has planned to undertake the following activities during the term 2008-2010

1. Make their presence felt in society by opening Design Cells to provide professional services by giving design inputs to Government. projects and Local Authorities.


2. Provision of an online forum on the IIID website for both experts and laypersons to post their queries or appreciate products/practices.


3. Organisation of a syndicated column providing regular insight into Design Practices.


4. Creation of a bridge between rural artisans & designers, by opening a Design Centre, which would promote handicrafts and showcase skills of artisans.


5. Setup of interactive sessions with corporations/experts with the intention of providing members a re-learning experience on products/practices.

Networking & Collaboration

• The IIID communicates and cooperates with similar bodies at the national and international levels.


• It also encourages cooperation between designers, affiliated professions, other artists and traders.

IIID believes in collaborating with institutes of affiliated professions, such as The Indian Institute of Architects, Practicing Architects & Engineers Association and so on. IIID also has a close liaison with the Council of Architects in New Delhi

Education

IIID has worked out a comprehensive syllabus on education in Interior Design which is available for adoption by educational institutes. The syllabus will be periodically updated in line with developments both in educational systems and interior design trends.

Communication

IIID publishes a quarterly magazine - INSITE, a "walk through" its various national and regional activities and events. INSITE now includes sections that contribute to the continuing education of its members by updates on technology and associated services, and features examples of good design practices from around the country.

Awards

IIID promotes and acknowledges excellence in Interior Design by conducting an annual competition for completed works at a National level. Held at different cities and venues each year, the Awards Nite is a much talked about and featured event of the Institute.

Exhibition

'Showcase' - the very name, which is synonymous with the work – An exhibition' of latest products and trends in the profession. Showcase is hosted by each of the various Chapters/Centres of the IIID.

Conventions

The biannual National Convention gathers members to deliberate on issues of contemporary interest to members, ranging from good practices and principles to social responsibility and technological advancements in design. The panache with which the Convention is organized and administered speaks of the high standards set by the IIID and its mission.

Sponsorship

IIID invites sponsorship based on specified guidelines for special projects or events of the institute which mutually benefit its members as well as sponsors. Sponsorship could be specifically designed to suit sponsors, budgets and themes. Sponsorship on a long term basis is also available for specific activities.

IFI

The IIID is actively involved with The International Federation of Interior Architects & Designers (IFI) which was founded in Denmark in 1963. During the IFI's existence there has been tremendous growth in IIID membership, while representing 52 member associations, institutions and schools in 45 countries of every continent. The IFI collectively represents over 25,000 practicing Interior Designers worldwide.

IIID was admitted to the IFI as a full member in 1995 and hosted one of the most successful IFI Congress - 'DesignSutra' at Mumbai in 2003. Presently the IIID has a representative on the IFI Board since 2001.

GreenSpaces™: Your Contribution for a Better Tomorrow

GreenSpaces™ is a 1.75 million square feet LEED certified ‘Super’ Platinum Green Building and approved SEZ Information Technology Park, located 6 kilometers from Delhi on the Faridabad border.

GreenSpaces™ is all set to be the World’s most energy efficient commercial building, and will be ready for occupation in 2013.

GreenSpaces was nominated by the Government of India and accepted as a reference Flagship project by the Asia Pacific Partnership (APP) of seven countries - Australia, Canada, China, India, Japan, South Korea and USA. These countries, together, use 50% of the World’s energy and also contribute to 50% of its pollution.

The GreenSpaces™ team has launched the ‘GreenSpaces Challenge’ and invites creative and innovative people around the globe to contribute ideas, products or services that will help improve energy efficiency by over 80% and / reduce cost.

GreenSpaces Challenge provides an opportunity for all – students, engineers, scientists, researchers, suppliers, architects. It is an opportunity for participants to position themselves at the forefront of technology and for onlookers to experience a glimpse of the future of a sustainable building. According to the recent studies on climate change, buildings account for 50% of all greenhouse gas emissions, and 40% of global energy use. This clearly represents a challenge and an opportunity for all.

GreenSpaces’s mission is to achieve dramatic energy savings by reshaping the way commercial buildings are designed and built. Its current design saves 74.4% energy over a standard ‘A’ grade building and the aim is to achieve + 80%. It will demonstrate that the energy footprint of buildings can be reduced from 40% to 10% of global energy usage, and serve as a role model for all future buildings.

www.greenspaces.in

For detailed information about the project and an invitation for ideas please visit www.greenspaces.in/challenge

National Building Code (NBC)

The National Building Code is a single document in which, like a network, the information contained in various Indian Standards is woven into a pattern of continuity and cogency with the interdependent requirement of sections carefully analyzed and fitted in to make the whole document a cogent continuous volume. A continuous thread of preplanning is woven which, in itself, contributes considerably to the economies in construction particularly in building and plumbing services.

Building codes exist to protect the public’s health, safety and welfare. National Building Codes (NBC) regulate building construction & building use in order to protect the health, safety & welfare of the occupant. You must always take the correct precautionary measures to assure the safety of your family members.

Beginning and history of National Building Code

A Planning Commission was entrusted with the preparation of the National Building Code. For fulfilling this task a Guiding Committee for the preparation of the Code was set up by the Civil Engineering Division Council in 1967. This Committee, in turn, set up 18 specialist panels to prepare the various parts of the Code. The Guiding Committee and its panels comprised of architects, town planners, materials experts, structural, construction, and electrical illumination, air conditioning, acoustics and public health engineers. These experts were drawn from the Central and State Governments, local bodies, professional institutions and private agencies.

First Version - 1970

The first version of the Code was published in 1970. After the National Building Code was published in 1970, a vigorous implementation drive was launched by the ISI to propagate the content and use of the Code among all concerned in the field of planning, designing and construction activities. For this, State-wise implementation conferences were organized with the participation of the leading engineers, architects, town planners, administrators, building material manufacturers, building and plumbing services installation agencies, contractors, etc.

Second version - 1983

The Code, published in 1970 at the instance of planning commission was then revised in 1983. Thereafter three major amendments were issued, two in 1987 and the third in 1997. The 1970 and 1983 versions of the code were recommendatory in nature.

List of Standards along with National Building Code of India 1983

The following list records those standards, which are acceptable as `good practice`, and `accepted standards` in the fulfillment of the requirements of the Code. The latest version of a standard shall be adopted at the time of enforcement of the Code. The standards listed may be used by the Authority as a guide in conformance with the requirements of the referred clauses in the Code.

In the following list the number appearing in the first column within parentheses indicates the number of the reference in this Part.

1. IS: 8888-1978 Guide for requirements of low income housing


2. IS: 6313 Code of practice for anti-termite measures in buildings: IS: 6313 (Part I)-1971 Part I Constructional measures IS: 6313 (Part II)-1971 Part II Pre-constructional chemical treatment measures IS: 6313 (Part III)-1971 Part III Treatment for existing buildings


3. IS: 3792-1978 Guide for heat insulation of non-industrial buildings (first revision)


4. IS: 1634-1973 Code of practice for design and construction of wood stairs in houses (first version)


5. IS: 4838 Anthropometrics dimensions for school children: IS: 4838 (Part I) - 1969 Part I Age group 5 to 11 years IS: 4838 (Part II) - 1969 Part II Age group 12 to 16 years


6. IS: 4963-1968 Recommendations for buildings and facilities for the physically handicapped.

Third version -2005

Considering a series of further developments in the field of building construction including the lessons learnt in the aftermath of number of natural calamities. As a culmination of the Project, the revised NBC has now been brought out as National Building Code of India 2005 (NBC 2005)on 16th September 2005.

It is the third revision compiled under the aegis of the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS). It provides guidelines for regulating building construction activities across the country. The NBC 2005, formulated by the Bureau of Indian Standards, spells out new regulations for adoption by infrastructure departments, municipal administrators, public bodies and private agencies. It contains mainly administrative regulations, development control rules and general building requirements, fire safety requirements, stipulations on use of materials, structural design and construction and building and plumbing services.

It has the basic codes for construction materials, services, systems and processes. The NBC lays down the minimum provisions buildings need in order to ensure public safety with regard to structural sufficiency, fire hazard and health aspects. It contains administrative provisions, development control rules and general building requirements.

NBC 2005, in addition to the technical specifications for buildings, has for the first time, focussed on the techno-legal requirements, including the scope of participation of professionals in providing the built environment and also pinning responsibility on professionals for the structures that they create.

What’s new in NBC 2005?

It allows architects and engineers to sanction building plans for smaller plots and less complicated structures. It makes it mandatory for architects and structural engineers to take responsibility for the safety of their structure in case of a natural disaster. It provides for a periodic renewal of certificate for occupied buildings from a structural, fire and electrical safety point of view.

The code has detailed town planning norms for amenities such as educational and medical facilities, fire services, etc. It has revised parking requirements for metro and mega cities. Provisions for buildings and facilities for the physically challenged have been revised.

Contents of NBC 2005

Part – 0: Integrated Approach – Prerequisite for Applying Provision of the Code

This part covers guidelines to be followed for judicious implementation of the provisions of various parts/sections of the Code.

Part – 1: Definitions

It lists the terms appearing in all the parts/sections of the National Building Code of India. However, some common definitions are reproduced in this part also.

Part – 2: Administration

It covers the administrative aspects of the Code, such as applicability of the Code, organization of building department for enforcement of the Code, procedure for obtaining development and building permits, and responsibility of the owner and all professionals involved in the planning, design and construction of the building.

Part – 3: Development Control Rules and General Building Requirements

It covers the development control rules and general building requirements for proper planning and design at the layout and building level to ensure health safety, public safety and desired quality of life. It provides provisions for covered area, plinth area, FAR, amenities, land use classification, height/ size of rooms, kitchens etc.

Part – 4: Fire and Life Safety

It covers the requirements for fire prevention, life safety in relation to fire, and fire protection of buildings. The code specifies planning and construction features and fire protection features for all occupancies that are necessary to minimize danger to life and property.

The code cagorises the buildings as follows:

Group A - Residential

Group B - Educational

Group C - Institutional

Group D - Assembly

Group E - Business

Group F - Mercantile

Group G - Industrial

Group H - Storage

Group J - Hazardous

Part -5: Building Material

It covers the requirements of building materials and components, and criteria for accepting new or alternative building materials and components.

29 Materials/ components which have been covered in this part are:

Aluminum & other light materials & their alloys, Bitumen & Tar products, Builders hardware, Building chemicals, Building lime and products, Burnt clay products, Cement & concrete (i/c reinforcement), Composite matrix products, Conductors & cables, Doors / windows & ventilators, Electrical wiring & accessories, Fillers, stoppers & putties, Floor coverings, roofing’s & other finishes, Glass, Gypsum based materials, Lignocellulosic building materials (timber bamboos etc.), Paints & allied products, Polymers, plastics, Sanitary appliances & water fittings, Soil based blocks, Steel & its alloys, Stones, Structural sections, Thermal insulation material, Threaded fasteners & rivets, Unit weight of building materials, Water proofing & damp proofing materials, Welding electrodes & wires, Wire ropes & wire products

Part – 6: Structural Design

This part through its seven sections provides for structural adequacy of buildings to deal with both internal and external environment, and provide guidance to engineers/ structural engineers for varied usage of material / technology types for building design.

Section 1: Loads, Forces and Effects

It covers basic design loads to be assumed in the design of buildings. The live loads, wind loads, seismic loads, snow loads and other loads, which are specified herein, are minimum working loads which should be taken into consideration for purposes of design.

Section 2: Soils and Foundations

It covers structural design (principles) of all building foundations such as raft, pile and other foundation systems to ensure safety and serviceability without exceeding the permissible stresses of the materials of foundations and the bearing capacity of the supporting soil.

Section 3A: Timber

It covers the use of structural timber in structures or elements of structures connected together by fasteners/ fastening techniques.

Section 3B: Bamboo

It covers the use of bamboo for constructional purposes in structures or elements of the structure, ensuring quality and effectiveness of design and construction using bamboo. It covers minimum strength data, dimensional and grading requirements, seasoning, preservative treatment, design and jointing techniques with bamboo which would facilitate scientific application and long-term performance of structures. It also covers guidelines so as to ensure proper procurement, storage, precautions and design limitations on bamboo.

Section 4: Masonry

It covers the structural design aspects of unreinforced load bearing and non-load bearing walls, constructed using various bricks, stones and blocks permitted in accordance with this section. This, however, also covers provisions for design of reinforced brick and reinforced brick concrete floors and roofs.

Section 5A: Plain and Reinforced Concrete

It covers the general structural use of plain and reinforced concrete.

Section 5B: Prestressed Concrete

It covers the general structural use of prestressed concrete. It covers both work carried out on site and the manufacture of precast prestressed concrete units.

Section 6: Steel

It covers the use of structural steel in general building construction including the use of hot rolled steel sections and steel tubes.

Section 7: Prefabrication and Systems Building

Section 7A: Prefabricated Concrete

Though desirable for large scale building activities, has yet to take a firm hold in the country. It includes a few recommendations on the need to avoid ‘progressive collapse’ of the structures.

Section 7B: Systems Building and mixed/ Composite Construction

It covers recommendations regarding modular planning, component sizes, joints, manufacture, storage, transport and erection of prefabricated elements for use in buildings and such related requirements for mixed/composite construction.

Part – 7: Constructional Practices and safety

It covers the constructional practices in buildings; storage, stacking and handling of materials and safety of personnel during construction operations for all elements of a building and demolition of buildings. The objective can be best achieved through proper coordination and working by the project management and construction management teams.

Part – 8: Building Services

This part through its five elaborate sections on utilities provides detailed guidance to concerned professionals/ utility engineers for meeting necessary functional requirements in buildings.

Section 1: Lighting and Ventilation

It covers requirements and methods for lighting and ventilation of buildings.

Section 2: Electrical and Allied Installations

It covers the essential requirements for electrical installations in buildings to ensure efficient use of electricity including safety from fire and shock. This section also includes general requirements relating to lightning protection of buildings.

Section 3: Air conditioning, heating and Mechanical Ventilation

This section covers the design, construction and installation of air conditioning and heating systems and equipment installed in buildings for the purpose of providing and maintaining conditions of air temperature, humidity, purity and distribution suitable for the use and occupancy of the space.

Section 4: Acoustics, Sound Insulation and Noise Control

It covers requirements and guidelines regarding planning against noise, acceptable noise levels and the requirements for sound insulation in buildings with different occupancies.

Section 5: Installation of Lifts and Escalators

It covers the essential requirements for the installation, operation, maintenance and also inspection of lifts (passenger lifts, goods lifts, hospital lifts, service lifts and dumb-waiter lifts) and escalators so as to ensure safe and satisfactory performance.

Part – 9: Plumbing Services

This part through its two sections gives detailed guidance to concerned professionals/ plumbing engineers with regard to plumbing and other related requirements in buildings.

Section 1: Water Supply, Drainage and Sanitation (including Solid Waste Management)

It covers the basic requirements of water supply for residential, business and other types of buildings, including traffic terminal stations. This section also deals with general requirements of plumbing connected to public water supply and design of water supply systems. Provisions on Rain Water Harvesting have also been included

Section 2: Gas Supply

It covers the requirements regarding the safety of persons and property for all piping uses and for all types of gases used for fuel or lighting purposes in buildings.

Part – 10: Landscaping, Signs and Outdoor Display Structures

Section 1: Landscape Planning and Design

It covers requirements of landscape planning and design with the view to promoting quality of outdoor built environment and protection of land and its resources.

Section 2: Signs and Outdoor Display Structures

It covers the requirements with regard to public safety, structural safety and fire safety of all signs (advertisements) and outdoor display structures including the overall aesthetical aspects of imposition of signs and outdoor display structures in the outdoor built environment. Few more terminologies related to signage and explanatory figures have been added.

Anti-Fogging Glass

Car windows, eyeglasses, camera lenses, even our bathroom mirrors are all victims of the frustrating effects of fogging. Fogging can pose hazard when it inflicts automobile windscreens; glass fogs up when warm, moist air comes into contact with it and cools to form thousands of tiny water droplets on the glass. The droplets scatter light, reducing the visibility through the glass.

Existing Technology

Fog is caused when steam condenses on a cool surface and then forms minuscule water droplets due to the water's surface tension. Water molecules are more attracted to each other than to air molecules and form a spherical shape to maximise contact between water molecules, which leaves as few as possible exposed to the air.

But water is also attracted to glass, and if this attraction is enhanced, it can overcome the surface tension. Previous anti-fog coatings have capitalised on this using titanium dioxide surfaces which increase the attraction between the water and glass. This overcomes surface tension so the water spreads out in sheets.

However, these coatings first need to be charged by UV light which means they do not work for long in the dark. And they tend to stop working altogether after three months.

Latest Anti-Fogging Glass

Super-hydrophillic

Super-hydrophillic - water loving - coating is composed of nano-particles made of silica, the same material that glass is made from, to create a coating with a rough surface, although it looks smooth to the naked eye. Polymer chains are used to assemble these very tiny particles of Glass onto a surface. A polymer chain is a long chain-like molecule with positive charge and the glass particles with negative charge are taken. So positive to negative attractive force can be used to build these layers up onto the surface. The net result is we create a very porous coating, that is, a coating that has lots of holes in it.

The silica particles form layers of tiny pores, each a thousand times smaller than the width of a human hair. The pores attract the tiny droplets of water that make up the foggy surface. Stacked ten to twenty layers thick, with air pockets in between, these pores create what's called a "wicking" effect, which forms the water droplets into a uniform sheet. When a droplet is dropped on that surface, the water is drawn into these pores instantaneously and wicked away into a uniform sheet. The result is no water droplets on the surface that can scatter light and a nice transparent lens in this case.

This cheaply produced technology added benefit of increasing the clarity of unfogged glass. It reduces the glare and allows more than 99 percent of light to pass through the glass, compared to untreated glass that scatters between four and eight percent of light. Because of the thin film coating that is filled with holes, it means that the coating also acts as an anti-reflection coating. That is, it will allow more light to pass through.

The super-hydrophilic materials with self-cleaning action are currently in use for side view mirrors of vehicles and exterior materials of buildings.

Super-hydrophobic

Super-hydrophobic - water-fearing – coating is made by adding a second, ultra-thin layer of water-repelling molecules. Then the large surface area created by the roughness of the surface has the opposite effect. It increases the repulsion between the water and glass, causing the water to form droplets.

These could be used to form self-cleaning surfaces, where water that lands on the surface is snapped up into droplets that grow larger and larger until they finally roll away, taking the dirt with them. This is the method a lotus leaf naturally uses to clean itself.

Application

• Windshields and windows

• Solar panels

• Lenses for cameras, endoscopes, laparoscopes, and other optical devices

• Eyewear – goggles and glasses

• Dental mirrors

Advantages

• Stable over time

• Inexpensive

• Does not require UV-light activation

• Excellent optical properties (high transmittance; low reflectance and refractive index)

Energy Efficient – Glass Comcast Centre

Comcast Centre in Philadelphia recently awarded the tallest LEED-certified building in the United States with an assist from energy-saving and solar control glass. Comcast Centre is located in downtown Philadelphia right above the Suburban rail station, earned the tallest LEED certification after earning a Gold Certification for LEED-CS (Core & Shell). It was designed by Robert A.M. Stern Architects.

Comcast Centre is a lively plaza with a fountain, a cafe, and an arbour finned with colour-shifting dichroic glass. Steel frames and glass are the main structural components of the Comcast Centre. The obelisk-like 58 story tower is covered in high-performance glass and sunscreens, and features louvers in the atria to help optimize daylight inside the building. All are sheathed in glass with combines both the solar control and energy saving facility.

The glass is also featured in the crown and corners that cap the 975-foot-tall building. Many other green design features help this mixed-use skyscraper reduce energy consumption, making it a great example of environmentally responsible urban growth.

The building's exterior features a glass curtain wall made of lightly tinted, non-reflective low-emissivity glass. Comcast Centre is a fully glazed structure using glass to filter light around the building. This also protects the building from extreme heat and cold conditions. The ceilings are 13ft high and the windows are clear enough to allow a free flow of light. The summit of Comcast Centre is in the shape of a rectangular glass box.

The Comcast Centre’s high-performance windows and low-emissivity glass curtain wall reduce the air-conditioning and lighting cost by blocking 60% of the heat from the sun and letting in 70% of the site’s available daylight. It also allows better quality of air and air-flow systems. This reduces energy usage from lighting and cooling, which are both huge portions of a skyscraper’s energy demands. Radiant heating, thermal extraction, and displacement ventilation also help the building be more efficient.High-efficiency water fixtures help the building use 40% less water than a typical office building, and shading in the plaza outside reduces the project’s urban heat-island effect by 70%.

The building was designed to use 40 percent less water than a typical office building. Waterless urinals are a part of the building to make the Comcast Centre an environmentally friendly building because they would save an extra 1.6 million gallons of water a year.

One of the tower's signature elements is a 120-foot-high winter garden topped by a series of three atria, three stories in height, overlooking a light-filled interior plaza. External window screens have been installed in the winter garden to check the sunlight. An under-floor water loop is used to cool the winter garden and 6th floor atrium floor during the summer and warm it during the winter, saving energy.

In the winter, thickened steel mullions serving as sunshades deter downdrafts, deflecting cold air into the 45-foot-high double wall of the winter garden so that it doesn’t enter the indoor areas. Internal radiant fin tubes attached to the steel mullions modulate the temperature on the inside of the glass to prevent condensation. The granite floor stores heat and radiates it back at night, while a low-velocity air system under occupied floors supplements heating.

The exterior lighting scheme of the building consists primarily of white LEDs colour-temperature matched to the fluorescent lights used by the interior. Along each floor, the corner spandrel panels feature upward and downward facing 4,100K LEDs to create the appearance that the length of the building has been bottom-lit by spotlights. The only major colour element can be found at the top of the tuned mass damper; a single row of colour-changing LEDs that is programmed to commemorate special events.

Other highlights that helped to earn Comcast Centre its LEED certification are a low-velocity displacement ventilation system, floor-embedded radiant heat, access to an underground commuter rail hub and extensive use of recycled materials.

Recycled materials were used for the carpeting in Comcast Centre. Building systems, like heating and air conditioning, are controlled floor-by-floor to avoid excess consumption. The paints used carry minimal volatile organic compounds.

The stairs of the building are extra wide to accommodate firefighting needs in case of emergency. The contractors have also installed emergency lighting in the stairs. Comcast Centre has 35 high-speed elevators.

In Comcast Centre's lobby is the Comcast Experience, which is a 2,000 square feet (190 m2) high-definition LED screen that has become a tourist attraction. Projecting computer-generated images so realistic, you’ll think they’re jumping out of the wall. With a resolution 500% greater than that of an HD television, the Experience is a remarkable technological and artistic achievement.

The video wall, a giant HD video screen that is actually the largest four-millimetre LED screen in the world, is located right in the building’s publicly accessible main lobby, so everyone can enjoy it. This building is provided with 30 gearless elevators, seven hydraulic elevators, and two escalators.

Energy Conservation Building Code (ECBC)

The Energy Conservation Building Code (ECBC), launched on 28 June 2007, is a document that specifies the energy performance requirements for all commercial buildings that are to be constructed in India. The code is mandatory for commercial buildings or building complexes that have a connected load of 500 kW or greater or a contract demand of 600 KVA or greater. The code is also applicable to all buildings with a conditioned floor area of 1,000 m2 (10,000 ft2) or greater.The ECBC has been developed by India’s Bureau of Energy Efficiency, and is mandated by the Energy Conservation Act, 2001, passed by the Indian Parliament in September 2001.

ECBC is a set minimum energy efficiency standards for design and construction. ECBC encourage energy efficient design or retrofit of buildings so that it does not constrain the building function, comfort, health, or the productivity of the occupants and also have appropriate regard for economic considerations (life cycle costs i.e. construction + energy costs are minimized).

BEE would take suitable steps to prescribe guidelines for energy conservation building codes. Central Government can prescribe energy conservation building codes, and direct owners/occupiers to comply with them. State Government can modify the code in response to local climate conditions. ECBC provides a platform for the Broad stakeholders such as Building Industry, manufactures, professionals, Government Agencies etc to participate. ECBC addresses local design conditions and construction practices. It also emphasis on maximizing building envelope benefits – to encourage better designs.

ECBC defines the norms of energy requirement per sq. metre of area and takes into consideration the climatic region of the country, where the building is located. Norms have been developed to cater to 5 different climatic zones in India such as composite, hot and dry, warm and humid, moderate and cold.

The ECBC provides design norms for:

• Building envelope, including thermal performance requirements for walls, roofs, and windows, except for unconditioned storage spaces or warehouses.


• Lighting system (Interior and exterior lighting), including day lighting, and lamps and luminaries performance requirements.


• Mechanical systems and equipment, including ventilating, and air Conditioning.


• HVAC system, including energy performance of chillers and air distribution systems.


• Electrical system and motors.


• Water heating and pumping systems, including requirements for solar hot-water systems.

The code provides three options for compliance:

1. Compliance with the performance requirements for each subsystem and system;


2. Compliance with the performance requirements of each system, but with tradeoffs between subsystems; and


3. Building-level performance compliance.

Simulation exercises indicate that ECBC-compliant buildings use 40 to 60% less energy than similar baseline buildings.

ECBC development Process

1. An extensive data collection was carried out for construction types and materials, glass types, insulation materials, lighting and HVAC equipment


2. Base case simulation models were developed


3. The stringency analysis was done through detailed energy and life cycle cost analysis.


4. A stringency level for each code component was established


5. Code was finalized after consideration of comments on a draft version.

ECBC Scope

1. Mandatory Scope Covers commercial buildings


2. Applies to New Construction only


3. Building components included
   
   
   
   • Lighting (Indoor and Outdoor)
   
   
   • Building Envelope (Walls, Roofs, Windows)
   
   
   • Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) System
   
   
   • Solar Water Heating and Pumping
   
   
   • Electrical Systems (Power Factor, Transformers)

ECBC Compliance Approaches

1. Component-based (prescriptive)

• Requires little energy expertise


• Provides minimum performance requirements


• No flexibility

2. System-based (trade-off)

• Allows some flexibility through the balance of some high efficiency components with other lower efficiency components

3. Whole building design analysis (performance)

• Allows flexibility in meeting or exceeding energy efficiency requirements (as compared to a baseline building)

Building Envelope Design

Impact of Energy Codes

1. Market Development for EE products

• Building Insulation


• Energy Efficient Windows (Glass and Frames)


• High-Efficiency HVAC Equipment

2. Improved Design Practices

• Lighting and Day-lighting


• Natural Ventilation/Free-Cooling Systems

3. Lower Energy Use and Reduced Electricity Bills

4. Reduced connected load and Improved Power Factor

Saint-Gobain’s Transparence 2009: The Grand Finale

To say that Transparence 2009 was a success would be more than an understatement. It would be equivalent to attempting to throw some light on the sun.

28th December 2009, SRM University Campus, G.P Ganesan Auditorium. That’s where it all happened. Transparence blended in with the annual NASA Convention – organized at the same venue on the same day.

In this fourth edition, Transparence proved that it was much more than just an architecture design competition. What started off as a humble attempt to provide students of architecture a platform to showcase their talent, ended up as a lesson in architecture, hard work, innovation, creativity, perseverance and much more for everyone present. At Transparence this year, the students taught more than they learnt. It is well and truly said – Child is the Father of Man.

After a warm welcome and review of the regional rounds through an enjoyable audio-visual, the mentor of the event, Ar. Vidur Bharadwaj delivered an interesting speech. Without much ado, the jury was introduced and the presentations plunged into. Ar. SR Sikka, Ar. I. Zachariah and Ar. Christopher Beninger kindly consented to be the judges.

Eight teams – Two from each of the North, South, West and East regions – competed in the war that was Transparence. The sky was the limit; for a seemingly limitedly-scoped theme (“Ecotel” – an eco-friendly, green hotel building), the students sure came up with some outstanding ideas. Right from forms of nature to fairy tale-like la la lands, they had it all.

The winning concept was “Evolve with nature; nature’s impression in design; a design inspired by elements of nature”. The award was bagged by a team of three enthusiastic youngsters from Sir JJ College of Architecture, Mumbai. The runners up were the IIT Kharagpur team, which used water as the primary element of design conceptualization, mostly in terms of rainwater harvesting and optimum utilization of this life-giving substance. The first runner-up prize was bagged jointly by teams from IIT Roorkee and SAP Chennai, who worked on the concepts of “Bubbles” and “Eco-Village” respectively.

Renowned Architect Karan Grover stood out in the event through his brilliant presentation on Green Architecture, which comprised not just drab powerpoint slides but several videos, images and relevant examples that drove home every point he made.

Saint-Gobain Glass also took this opportunity to launch SGG Envision, its latest offering in architectural glass. Ar. CN Raghavendran did the launch honours.

The end of Transparence 2009 marked the beginning of Transparence 2010, the theme for which was duly unveiled and revealed to be “An International Convention Centre”, and Ar. Niteen Parulekar was proclaimed the mentor.

All in all, the Grand Finale of Transparence 2009 was a truly memorable affair.

Press Coverage of Transparence 2009

GRIHA: Necessity, Not Luxury

For those in the know, an introduction would be redundant. But for those who aren’t, an introduction is a must – An introduction to GRIHA, or Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment. It is, essentially,

• A point based voluntary scoring system to evaluate commercial, residential and institutional buildings on "green scale"


• Is based on Indian codes, standards and best practices


• Comprises an evaluation panel of eminent professionals
  

All right, so what’s the news? The news is that the Union Government of India has, in a landmark decision, made it mandatory for all new buildings of the Public Sector Undertakings and the government to seek new green rating norms in an effort to ensure energy efficiency and tackle climate change threats. Every government building, the law says, must get at least 3-star rating (on a scale of 1-5 stars) under the GRIHA scheme. And why not? The idea is to minimise demand for non-renewable resources and maximise utilization.

Take, for example, the Earth System & Environment Science Engineering Building, a research facility located in the Indian Institute of Technology Campus, Kanpur. The facility, as the name suggests, houses laboratories and other facilities for various disciplines of the environment sciences. The facility is nestled into the existing landscape. In siting the building, the natural course was left undisturbed. The architecture of the building has been designed around the existing vegetation, so as to not disturb the natural surroundings and fully grown.

The facility houses wet labs which are non-air-conditioned spaces on the ground floor and dry labs that are air-conditioned spaces on the first floor. Building design and envelope has been optimised through selection of appropriate wall and roof construction and through adoption of passive design measures after studying the sun path analysis to provide shading devices for windows and roof which would reduce energy demand to condition the spaces. This is probably the only existing building in India with a GRIHA rating of 5 stars, though there are several similar proposed projects, such as the Triburg Headquarters at Udyog Vihar in Gurgaon, Integrated Township in Kanyapur, Asansol, West Bengal, and the Office of Public Works Department, Nashik

Today, glass has an almost indispensable role to play in green architecture. Energy efficient glass is the need of the hour, given its unmatched features of optimum transparency that helps in day lighting of interiors, solar control & thermal insulation which cuts down the relative heat gain, and so on. To elaborate, glass can do the following wonders:

Day Lighting - The use of glass allows the penetration of adequate daylight and facilitates a reduction in power consumption.

Energy Efficiency - High performance glass helps control solar and thermal heat gain, thereby cutting down on air-conditioning expenses.

Recyclability – All architectural glass products are recyclable and qualify as “green” building material.

Recycled Content – The production of glass requires a minimum level of ‘cullet’ or broken glass in the Float Glass manufacturing process thereby by qualifying it as a material with high recycled content.

Acoustic Control – Certain types of architectural glass provide a high degree of acoustic comfort by obstructing the entry of sound from the exteriors of a building.

Blending Interiors with Exteriors – Facades made with reflective glass do not obstruct visibility from the inside.

Self Cleaning – The future belongs to environment friendly self-cleaning glass, a type of architectural glass that keeps itself clean and imparts a brilliant aesthetic effect to buildings.

Green architecture – GRIHA becoming law – Glass. Not just alliteration. A symphony, a necessity, a calling.

Burj Khalifa - World’s Tallest Glass Fantasy

Burj Khalifa nee Dubai has been bestowed the title of the tallest skyscraper in the world on 4th January 2010 amongst a blaze of fireworks. After being called “Burj Dubai” while under construction, this half-mile-high tower got rechristened as “Burj Khalifa”.

Burj now stands out prominently against the horizon. It is visible across dozens of miles of rolling sand dunes outside Dubai. From the air, the spire appears as an almost solitary, slender needle.

Renamed In Honour

The unexpected announcement of renaming this tapering metal-and-glass spire as Burj Khalifa was to honor the Abu Dhabi leader who is also president of the UAE. He rescued Dubai from last year’s financial crisis, during which Dubai collapsed by nearly half - the result of easy credit and overbuilding during a real estate bubble that has since burst. Riding to the rescue was Sheik Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the ruler of oil-rich neighbor Abu Dhabi, which pumped tens of billions of dollars into Dubai last year as it struggled to pay enormous debts.

Highlights

This opening ceremony revealed the height of the skyscraper as 2,717 feet (828 meters) from the desert. But the number of floors in this building is still a well-guarded secret. Mohammed Alabbar, chairman of the tower's developer Emaar Properties, initially said it had "more than 200" stories, but he later backtracked to more than 165 inhabitable floors, given its tapered top. Promotional materials sent before the tower's opening claimed it had 160 stories.

The Burj is the centerpiece of a 500-acre development that officials hope will become a new central residential and commercial district in this sprawling and often disconnected city.

The $1.5 billion "vertical city" consists of luxury apartments and offices and a hotel designed by Giorgio Armani also plans to have the world's highest mosque (158th floor) and swimming pool (76th floor). An observation deck on the 124th floor opens to the public Tuesday, with adult tickets starting at 100 Dirham, or just over $27 apiece.

Safety Measures

The groundbreaking tower was designed by Chicago-based Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, which has a long track record in engineering some of the world's tallest buildings, including the Willis Tower.

Developers say they are confident about the safety of the tower, which is nearly twice the height of New York's Empire State Building.

Greg Sang, Emaar's director of projects, said the Burj Khalifa has "refuge floors" at 25 to 30-storey intervals that are more fire resistant and have separate air supplies in case of emergency. Its reinforced concrete structure, he said, makes it stronger than steel-frame skyscrapers. A plane won't be able to slice through the Burj like it did through the steel columns of the World Trade Center.

At their peak, some apartments in the Burj were selling for more than $1,900 per square foot, although they now can go for less than half that, said Heather Wipperman Amiji, chief executive of Dubai real estate consultancy Investment Boutique.