st diamond building

8/13/2019 St Diamond Building

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ST DIAMOND BUILDING, The Green Building Landmark in

SouthEastAsia

The Energy Commissions Diamond Building is a standout among the sea of government offices in

Putrajaya, in more ways than one. By visual experience, anyone would describe the countrys aministrative

capital with the wide expanse of roads and buildings which are mostly brown concrete ones that all look

similar, exceptional to one greenish glass upside-down pyramid shape building with the top buried in the

ground. Little that many know it is actually one of the most energy efficient, multi award winning office

building in South East Asia.

The (Suruhanjaya Tenaga) ST Diamond building is a green building landmark in South East Asia that is

designed to showcase technologies that cut down energy consumption and potable water usage, promote

the use of sustainable building materials and provide enhanced indoor environmental quality. It is a

physical evidence reflecting the determination of the nations regulatory body for energy policies,

standards and safety implementing arm, Energy Commission to prioritize energy efficiency during 2005

then. However, this double Platinum-rated building has proven itself to be more, as global sustainable

community recognizesit as an international standard of showcasing sustainable office building design in

the tropics.

With just an additional cost of 6%, the ST Diamond Building carries two Platinum Certificates, each one

from Malaysias Gree n Building Index (GBI) and Singapores Green Mark.Besides scoring from the

green building rating tools from both countries, the ST Diamond Building also carries several awards such

as, the global ASHRAE Technology Award 2013 (2ndplace) and regional ASEAN Energy Award 2012,

testifying that its innovative design has earned recognition internationally.
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The inverted pyramid shape increases ground space for

landscaping while m aximizing roof space for Solar PV.

Photo Credit: Lin Ho. Courtesy of Senandung Budim an Sdn

Bhd.

BENCHMARKING THE BUILDING ENERGY

INDEX

The building has an building energy index (BEI) of 65

kWh/m2/year (excluding Solar PV)at annual

operation of 2,800 hours a 70% reduction in energy

consumption compared to a typical building office in

Malaysia with an average BEI of 210 kWh/m2/year,which majority of them scores BEI of between 200 and

250. The overall BEI is determined by several factors

ranging from passive design, active design and

management system during operation.

DIAMOND SHAPE

The unique shape of the ST Diamond Building was

designed according to the climate and solar path of

equatorial Malaysia. Solar studies showed that the 25tilt angle of the facades can ensures that North and

South facades are fully self shaded throughout the

year, while it reduces the solar impact by 41% for the

East and West facades.

To maximize daylighting, a central atrium was introduced and the diamond shape takes form. Meanwhile,the diamond reflects Energy Commissions role and mission as a regulatory body significantly for its

transparency, value and durability. The building includes seven floors above grade and two underground

levels for parking. Low-e-glazing with Solar Heat Gain Coefficeint (SHGC) of 0.37 ensures direct solar heat

will be reduced, while the glazings visual light transmittance (VLT) of about 50% allows for effective diffuse

light to the office interior. The inverted diamond shape also increases the ground space available for

landscaping, which helps reduce the heat island effect and also and allows glare free diffuse light to be

reflected off the landscape.

Daylight Strategy

The ST Diamond Building is designed 50% daylit, without glare and minimal heat entry, This is achieved

through extensive faade daylighting system simulation to able deeper daylight penetration. With the

usage of mirror lightshelf, white painted window sill, white ceiling and no interior partitions and no


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Ill ustration of Malaysia Offi ce Buil dings Energy Indexes indi cating the reduction of energy consumption

usage in the ST Diamond Bui lding Photo Credit Lim Gene-Harn, IEN Consultants

suspended

ceilings, the

daylight

distribution is

improved until 5

meters from the

faade + 2

additional metersof corridor space.

Fixed white

louvers with top

surface mirror

finish on the top

side are mounted

with a 30 tilt

angle above the

lightshelf for glare

protection whilestill allowing

daylight to be

deflected onto the

ceiling.

The atrium has

been carefully

designed to

optimize daylight

utilization for eachfloor employing

the combination of the following three strategies:

1. Automated blind with six different configuration to maintain the appropriate daylighting levels at all

times. The blinds with 30% light transmittance are adjusted every 15 minutes and follow a three

different control strategies for morning, mid-day and evening

2. The windows size becomes larger deeper into the atrium to cater for lower daylight levels

A band of Tannenbaum reflector panels are applied to 4thand 5thfloor to deflect daylight across the

atrium to 1stand 2ndfloor where daylight levels are the lowest. The christmas tree profile reflectors have

an inclination of 10 and reflect about 85% of the light in semi-diffuse manner, hence, avoiding visual glare

issues for the building occupants.
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ST Diamond Building Sunpath Diagram Photo Credit Greening Asia

Emerging Principles for Sustainabl e Architecture

ST Diamond Building Axonometric View

Photo Credit Greening Asia Emerging

Principles for Sustainable Architecture

Smart Artifical Lighting system

The ST Diamond Building office space

uses ceiling suspended with electronic

ballasts and T5 tubes. However, since the

lighting system is daylight responsive by

integrating lux sensor into the building

automation system,the installed lighting

load of 8W/m2is able to be drop to

0.9W/m2 during operation when the set

point of the general lighting is reduced

150lux instead of 300lux as required by

MS1525. This is possible, as all occupants

can compensate with an individual task

light when needed, though most people

prefer lower light levelsl (50-100lux) whendoing computer work. These lighting

controls result in more than 90% lower than

the 15W/m2 baseline of MS1525. A

research has shown that this could reduce

energy consumption, increase the daylight

responsiveness of the building without sacrificing visual comfort. All

work tables have individuals task lights, providing further ergonomic

benefits by allowing individual lighting control. A survey among the

occupants showed a high level of satisfaction of the hybried lighting

system consisting of daylighting, general lighting and task lighting.

Floor Slab Radiant Cooling

Another unique point about the ST Diamond Building is the floor

slab cooling system. The radiant cooling from the floor slab is

achieved by cooling the reinforced concrete floor slabs with chilled

water by 19 degrees Celsius using polyethylene-reinforced thermal

pipes embedded in the concrete slab. The concrete slabs act like a

thermal storage, which will be charged every night from 10 p.m. to

6am and be cooled to around 22C. During the day-time, the

system is shut off, and floor slab passively absorbs heat gains from

people, computers, solar gains etc. During the day, the floor slab

increases its temperature by about 1C only to be cooled down

again the following night.

By doing so, this reduces cooling transport energy by 64%

because it is more efficient to transport cooling with water than with

air. Also, with much of the cooling being shifted to the slabs, so the

AHU system can be down-sized about 30%. By shifting 30-40% of the cooling to night time, the ST

Diamond can save cost from the lower off-peak energy rates and from reduced maximum demand charge.

In fact, the building management system was used to reduce the peak demand by another 50% by

sequencing the start-up of the AHUs.

The monitored ceiling surface temperature is constantly 2C or higher than the dew point of indoor air, this
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Ill ustration showing diffuse l ight being reflected from the l andscape area Photo Credit: IEN Consultants and NRArchi tects

ensures no condensation will form on the ceiling surface.

Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy

Emphasis is also made on energy efficient office equipment. A procurement policy allows for the purchase

of only energy efficient labelled equipment and appliances with five star Energy Start ratings. The ST

Diamond

Building also

has 71.4

kWP of Thin

Films Solar

Panels

integrated in

the roof

which

reduces the

buildings

energyconsumption

by 10%. The

thin film solar

technology is

suitable for

the tropical

climate, as

this type of

solar cells is

better atcapturing

diffuse light

than conventional solar panels and thin film solar cells also experience less of a drop in energy efficiency

when baking under the hot sun. Their measured annual yield is 1400 kWh/kWp, which significantly higher

than conventional solar PV (1150 kWh/kWp). The generated electricity is connected to national utilitys grid

under the Feed in Tariff Scheme (2012). With such, the solar panels have generated a monthly average of

8,300 kWh and annually about 100,000 kWh.

Internal Air Quality and Thermal Comfort

A green building puts equal amount of attention on occupants well being too. By using low VOC paints and

carpets, which are certified by Green Label certification, the total volatile organic compounds parts per

billion is sufficiently low to satisfy the indoor air quality criterion. A 12 month post occupancy comfort survey

was carried out to collect occupants responses regarding thermal comfort, glare comfort and odor

problems. The result is over 80% of the occupants expressed satisfaction. The thermal comfort is

addressed by the usage of CO2sensors that regulates the demand control variable air volume (VAV)

ventilation system.IAQ measurements throughout the different levels of the building indicates the CO2

parts per million (ppm) is less than 500 ppm, hence, giving the occupants plenty of fresh air, as the

maximum limit is 1000ppm.The basement car park is natural ventilated through the sunken garden and

equipped with carbon monoxide and temperature sensors in the event if mechanical ventilation is needed.

However, observations have shown that it is virtually not used, as the natural ventilation is normally

sufficient.
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Raytrace simulation illustrates the effectiveness of lightshelf and window sill. Photo Credit- IEN Consultants

Water Efficiency

The ST Diamond Building also boasts its extensive water saving strategies. By using rainwater for toilet

flushing and irrigation, annual potable water consumption has been reduced by 35%compared topotable water otherwise used for industry standard water fittings and irrigation as defined by the Green

Building Index. The rainwater is collected from the 700m2catchment area and stored in four 2,600 gallon

(10,000 liters) rooftop tanks.

Also, all water from the sinks and floor traps (grey water) is piped separately through a sand filter to a

collection tank from where it is reused for irrigation of a mini wetland instead of going to the sewerage.

2000-3000 liters of water are recycled every week day. The usage of water efficient fittings is able to

reduce the potable water usage by more than 67% compared to conventional plumbing fittings.

Green Transportation

Acknowledging the significant amount of carbon footprint per household in transportation, which is 68%,

green buildings such as ST Diamond Building is designed to address solutions for occupants to have

alternatives towards a lower carbon footprint of transportation. As such, 2 Electric Vehicle charging stations

are available, ten percent of parking garage spaces are designated for green/fuel-efficient vehicles and

carpool vehicles; secure bicycle racks; location served by public transportation and shaded walkways for

pedestrians linking to the master development.

Environmental Impact and Cost Effectiveness

In a nutshell, the operational carbon (CO2) reduction achieved by the ST Diamond Building amounts to

1,673 metric tons per year, which is akin to taking 900 cars off the road (assuming each car travels

12,000km/years). This reduction is derived from savings of electricity alone and does not include reduction

due to water savings, waste discharge, refuse recycling, embodied carbon and savings from district cooling
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Cross section m odel shows the self shading design of the ST Diamond Buil ding and the natural ventil ated basement carpark.

Photo Credit Greening Asia Em erging Principl es for Sustainabl e Architecture

Different sets of blind configuration as

mentioned il lustrated here PhotoCredit: SunScreen Singapore

consumption of the building. The buildings eco friendly measures cost

about RM3.5 million, representing about 6% of the total construction

cost. Savings of almost RM1 million annually in operating costs from

energy efficiency and solar power generation, this resulted in an

estimated payback of 3.5 years despite Malaysias subsidized utility

tariff rates.

Conclusion

The ST Diamond Building has been operating for 3 years since the

completion and occupancy during mid-2010. It is learnt that the

maintenance team has been maintaining the green features of the ST

Diamond Building well and also educating the staffs more about the

building they are working in. It is vital that the users could adapt to

such green building environment and understand how it works in order

for the building to achieve its purpose which is using lesser energy.

The ST Diamond Building is a physical demonstration landmark that

has served as a milestone to chart Malaysias determination towards

sustainable development and smarter, energy efficient buildings.

Equally important, the ST Diamond building has demonstrated the

financial viability of green buildings. By cutting the energy

consumption down to 1/3 and with a payback of only 3.5 years, the ST Diamond Building has
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Picture taken from i nside of the Atrium Photo Credit: Gregers Reiman,

IEN Consultants

The effectiveness of Energy Management System showing the relationship of daylight availabil ity and li ghting power

density. Illustration: Charles Loo, IEN Consultants

Graph indicating the operation intervals of floor slab cool ing and ai r handling unit. Photo Credit: CharlesLoo, IEN

Consultants

shattered the commonly held mis-

conception that Going green is

expensive. Instead, the ST Diamond

building, which annually saves RM1

million operational costs, has proven

that Not going gree n is expensive.
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Sectional perspective showing the embedded thermal pi pes in the concrete slab for radiant cool ing Pho to Credit Greening Asia

Emerging Principles for Sustainabl e Architecture

Images showing during the procurement stage Photo Credit: Tan Khim Bok, IEN Consultants
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Recorded data showing the tabulation of ceili ng surface temperature and room tem perature. Photo: CharlesLoo, IEN Consultants

2 Electric Vehicle charging station i s avail able at the basement. Photo Credit: Charles Loo,

IEN Consultants
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The ST Diamond bu ilding energy breakdown for year 2011. Photo Credit: Pureaire , IEN Consultants

Project Name Headquarters of Energy Commission of Malaysia

Location Putrajaya, Malaysia

Status Built and Operating since 2010

Completion Date June 2010

Site Area 4,000m2

Gross Floor Area 14,690m2excl car park

Client/Owner Energy Commission of Malaysia

Architecture Firm NR Architect

Principal Architect Dr Soontorn Boonyatikam (Thailand)

Main Contractor Putra Perdana Sdn Bhd
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Sustainability Consultant IEN Consultants Sdn Bhd

Mechanical & Electrical Engineer Primetech Engineers Sdn Bhd

Civil & Structural Engineer Perunding SM Cekap

Landscape Architect KRB Enviro Design Sdn Bhd

Quantity Surveyor ARH Jurukur Bahan Sdn Bhd

This Article above is also printed out Green+ Magazine edition October 2013.

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