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Abuilding at Jaipur wasawarded the World'sBest Learning Build-ing at World Architec-ture Festival Awards

(WAF) 2009 at the Barcelona Inter-national Convention Center (CCIB)in Barcelona, among 611 projectsfrom all over the world. This wasthe Jaipur campus of Pearl Acade-my of Fashion, a building designedto control the temperature of in-ternal spaces, that is, the tempera-ture remains at 28 degree celsius in-side the building irrespective of theoutside temperature. The aim wasto provide 'submissive' coolingstrategies like open courtyards, wa-ter bodies and a step well in theacademy, where designing studentscan beat the oppressive hot weath-er outside. The plan adopted pas-sive environment strategies in theacademy to decrease power con-sumption - AC and lighting loadswere cut down drastically.

Arindam Das, director of PearlAcademy of Fashion in Jaipur, says:"We hardly use artificial lightingsin our campus as natural light is ad-equate - if anything, we sometimeshave to shut out the excessive day-light with blinds. Also, the use ofACs has been reduced substantial-ly due to pathbreaking techniquesemployed by our architect Mor-phogenesis, like using matkas asfillings in the floorings, which trapsheat and is a natural coolant, andusing jaali designs throughout thecampus for ventilation."

Akshay Kaul, landscape archi-tect recounts the history of greenbuildings in India. He says: "All oldhavelis and buildings of the colo-nial era were green as they werebuilt taking into account the natu-ral climate of the region (Con-naught Place, for instance). It is onlyin the recent times that very thinbuilding skins like aluminium, steeland glass, have been used. Thismeans you need to spend a lot ofmoney and energy in first manu-facturing them and then use artifi-cial systems like airconditioningand heating systems later to main-tain them."

"All the slick buildings of ourmodern suburbs are blindly imi-tating the west where the climate istemperate and the amount of en-ergy available, in the US or Europefor instance, is way ahead for thequality, reliability and quantumwhen compared to the Indian in-frastructure. But, now, with an in-creasing eco-consciousness and

with the construction sector be-coming fiercely competitive, goinggreen is suddenly seen as a USP.Still, we have only grazed the sur-face and we need to customize everybuilding to our climate and not asper the climate conditions of thewest," Kaul says.

Suddenly, there is an awarenessthat we need to secure our envi-ronment and that our future de-pends on how we sustain the foodproduction and conserve the envi-ronment we live in. And that's wheremoney should be invested. So, whatwere exceptions yesterday seem tohave become the norm now, withoccupiers emphasizing on going

green. From planting trees, to us-ing solar energy, to constructingsmart buildings and even collect-ing litter, corporate India is goingall green.

Patni Computers in Noida isIGBC (Indian Green Building Coun-cil) Platinum Rated and LEED(Leadership in energy and envi-ronmental design) certified greenbuilding. The basic design has beeninspired by the traditional inwardlook "Indian Haveli plan" designthat balances environmental re-sponsibility, energy efficiency, re-source efficiency, occupant comfort.The design concept is that of a sim-ple straight-line low key architec-ture in sync with the surroundings,site and climate. Passive (architec-turally) and active (mechanical,electrical) strategies have been op-timally designed to minimize en-ergy consumption. The buildingdepth is optimized to capture day-light for more than 75% of occupiedinteriors and to maximize outdoorview.

The campus of Wipro Technolo-gies in Gurgaon is also Platinum

Rated LEED certified green build-ing. The main focus of the designis the inverted cone, strategicallylocated at the cross junction of tworoads to give visibility to the build-ing. A highlight of the building isa control, open-to-sky-landscapecourtyard, which will contribute inkeeping the building cool duringsummer. All open office spaces lookinto the courtyard and enjoy a gooddeal of daylight.

Today, developers are announc-ing eco-projects by the dozens. Su-pertech launched the "Eco- Citi" res-idential project in Sector 137 in Noi-da with the aim of building a zero-carbon emission and eco-centric de-velopment project by using specialgenerators, machinery and ecolog-ical sanitation. According to R K

Arora, CMD of Supertech Limited,"In Eco-Citi, our approach is basedon the idea that all the ecologicallyresponsible aspects of the buildingare 'made visible' as part of its roleas an eco-habitat."

Green Boulevard, a project by 3C,is a green building and houses sev-eral multinational corporations likeAccenture, Sapient, Nokia SiemensNetwork, among others. It has beendesigned around shaded landscapecourts with water bodies and plants,which helps in reducing the ambi-ent temperature. The building depthhas been optimized to capture day-light.

3C has also come up with LotusBoulevard, a green residential proj-ect, which has features like insu-lated walls and insulated roofs,which reduce heat by up to 60%.While the external lighting is solar,the mechanical and electric equip-ment are energy efficient. Other fea-tures like 80% open spaces, zero dis-charge, a mechanism to rechargewater by a unique water-harvestingmethodology make it a unique proj-ect. In its endeavor to reduce thecarbon footprint, the 3C Companyis creating environment friendlybuildings. Vidur Bharadwaj, direc-tor of the 3C Company, says: "Real-

izing that the green-building tech-nology is the way forward for sav-ing the planet, and as it is pro- life,we will constantly strive to makeour projects safe, secure and a de-lightful experience for the occu-pants. The mission for developinggreen buildings has resulted inenormous savings on operating en-ergy costs, which will benefit endusers immensely."

Sandeep Singh, an architect anddirector of a project managementcompany, TPM, says: "Earlier, therewas a thrust only on aesthetics, butfinally, builders and occupants haverealized that aesthetics can take abackseat and functionality shouldrule. Products which offer func-tionality are being introduced likeHindalco-manufactured fireproofglazing on glass facade." He addsthat the practice is to go for greenbuildings - which utilize maximumnatural light and conserve energyin every possible way. Newer tech-niques and materials are being in-vented by the day to ensure that thebuildings are in sync with nature.

The construction industry is in-creasingly picking up a number ofgreen products. Green Windows byFenesta Building Systems are UPVC(unplasticised poly vinyl chloride)

windows and help in saving ener-gy as these windows cut aircondi-tioning costs significantly. Also, theyallow sufficient ventilation and sun-light into the house. These windowsdo not require paint or polishingand are therefore maintenance free.

While green is a buzzword now,it all started with the Orchid inMumbai, who call themselves anecotel instead of a hotel. From thebasic architecture of the buildingto water conservation, and from theuse of 'rubber wood' instead of realwood to the use of energy savingdevices, the hotel does it all to qual-ify as an eco-friendly hotel.

It’s no longer just fashionable but essential to become eco-friendly. NAMRATA KOHLI gives a lowdown on how just about everyone — from developers to institutional sector to corporates — is going green

RUNNING FOR GREEN COVER

All oldhavelisand build-

ings of the colonialera were green as theywere built taking intoaccount the naturalclimate of the region,like Connaught Place,

for instance

PatniComputersin Noida is

IGBC Platinum Ratedand LEED certifiedgreen building. Thebasic design has beeninspired by the tradi-tional inward-looking‘Indian Haveli plan’,designed to balanceenvironmental respon-sibility, energy effi-ciency and resource

efficiency

WiproTechnolo-gies cam-

pus, Gurgaon is a Platinum Rated LEEDcertified green build-ing. The main focus ofthe design is the in-verted cone, strategi-cally located at thecross junction of tworoads to give visibility

to the building

Super-tech’s Eco-Citi residen-

tial project is in Sector137 in Noida. Thebuilding will havezero-carbon emissionwith eco-centric devel-opment and will usespecial generators,machinery and ecolog-

ical sanitation

Lotus Boulevard, also by 3C, is agreen residential project, which hasfeatures like insulated walls and insulat-

ed roofs, which reduce heat by up to 60%. While theexternal lighting is solar, the mechanical and elec-tric equipment are energy efficient. Other featuresare 80% open spaces, zero discharge, and a mecha-nism to recharge water by a unique water-harvest-

ing methodology

Pics: TOI

■ SUDDENLY,THERE IS ANAWARENESSTHAT WE NEEDTO SECURE OURENVIRONMENTAND THAT OURFUTURE DEPENDSON HOW WESUSTAIN THEFOODPRODUCTIONAND CONSERVETHEENVIRONMENTWE LIVE IN. ANDTHAT’S WHEREOUR MONEYSHOULD BE PUT

■ SO, WHATWEREEXCEPTIONSYESTERDAY SEEMTO HAVEBECOME THENORM NOW,WITH OCCUPIERSEMPHASIZINGON GOINGGREEN. FROMPLANTING TREES,TO USING SOLARENERGY, TOCONSTRUCTINGSMARTBUILDINGS ANDEVENCOLLECTINGLITTER,CORPORATEINDIA IS GOINGALL GREEN

greenwarriors 19pg.

A T i m e s o f I n d i a P r e s e n t a t i o n , D E L H I , JA N UA RY 2 9 , 2 0 1 1 T I M E S P R O P E RT Y

[FAST FACT]■ THE CONSTRUCTIONINDUSTRY IS INCREASINGLYPICKING UP A NUMBER OFGREEN PRODUCTS. GREENWINDOWS OR UPVCWINDOWS HELP IN SAVINGENERGY AS THEY CUTAIRCONDITIONING COSTSSIGNIFICANTLY

With an increasing eco-consciousness & with the construction sector becoming fiercely competitive, going green is seen as a USP

QQUUIICCKKBITES

Green Boulevard, a project by 3C,is a green building and houses sev-eral MNCs like Accenture, Sapient,

Nokia Siemens Network, among others. It hasbeen designed around shaded landscape courtswith water bodies and plants, which helps in re-ducing the ambient temperature. The building

depth has been optimized to capture daylight