pastures
ByMichele Theseira
AQUOTE
byRalphBicknese claims that
sustainability is about ecology, economy and
equity. Yet, in every business, it is the profit
margin that governs anddictates. As
worldwide populations grow, energy
consumption rises. This, in turn, increases
demand for natural resources and electricity,
ultimately affecting global ecology, economy
and equity.
The fact that natural resourceswill at
some point be unable tomeet theworld’s
increasing demandhas set alarmbells
ringing. It has sparked inter-global
discussions deliberating issues of capacity,
raising questions like - Are resources
sufficient? If it is, for how long?Havewe
reached a ‘tipping point’? The next big
question: ‘What canwe do tominimise our
carbon footprint to sustain the natural
resourceswe depend on?
If it is any consolation at all, this
understanding comes as awake up call. It
has pooledpeople together tomakemore
environmentally conscious decisions in
work andplay. Fromproducts and services,
systems and brands, many have come to realise
the seriousness of environmental degradation.
This feature highlights some ofMalaysia’s
‘green’ commercial buildings. It shares some of
the ideas and concepts of the people behind the
projects that lean towards greener, cleaner and
more eco-conscious solutions. Those at the
helmacquaint uswith the green traits of their
architectural blueprints thatminimise
environmental impact and save energy.
Advocator of the ‘green’ kind
Gregers Reimann is one of three directors at
IENConsultants, pioneers of ‘energy
efficiency’ and ‘green building design’ in
Malaysia. Of its 14-strong staff of varied
nationalities, four are LEEDAccredited
Professionals (AP) and seven, certified Green
Building Index (GBI) facilitators. IENholds a
stellar track record, for having won the
prestigious ASEANEnergy Award amongst
other energy-conservation and
environmental-sustaining accolades. The firm
is responsible, as consultants, for making
Malaysia’s first and only commercial building,
the Diamond Building, awarded the GBI
Platinumand GreenMark Platinum rating.
(For the list of its other ‘green’ building
projects, awards and information, log on to
)
“Over the last five years, ‘going green’ has
become rather significant on the radar screen
in theMalaysian building sector. In fact,
Malaysia has seen the highest quantity of green
certified building spaces in South-East Asia,
amounting to 60million sq. ft. since the launch
of theMalaysianGBI certification scheme in
2009. This is quite impressive, as green
building certification, with fewexceptions,
is voluntary,” says Reimann. He adds that
although the bulk of the buildings are
targeting the lowest GBI rating level which
is rather easy to attain, it is a good start. He
hopes though, for tightermeasures and
criteria to rate green building efficiencies,
as found in other countries.
Reimann believes that societymust
startmakingmore environmentally
conscious decisions daily. “It beginswith
education and increasing our
understanding onmore important issues.
Take climate change as an example.Within
the next fewdecades, we globally need to
reduce our annual CO2 emissions per
capita to 1 ton, in order to avoid irreversible
destructive global warming effects. At the
moment, the averageMalaysianhas an
annual CO2 emission of 7 tons. The global
average per capita emissions are at 5 tons of
CO2 per year. Both are rapidly rising.”He
also informs that the building sector is the best
place to start savingCO2. “It has the largest and
cheapest CO2 reductionpotential. As a rule of
thumb, an energy efficient buildingwill
typically cost 5%extra, butwill in turn save 50%
of the energy bills. You receive a payback in
about 5 years or less,” says the director, his firm
having already handled several successful
energy efficient building projects.
Greeningthegrey
So, what dowe dowith the already built
structures and buildings? Demolish and
re-build? It really depends on a lot of criteria.
However, Reimann is not eliminating the
concept of ‘greening grey buildings’. “Therewill
be constraints towhat can or can’t be done,
especially if the building has to remain in
operationduring the ‘retrofit’.”He recommends
focus on these areas for upgrades fromgrey
to green:
• improve the energy efficiency of the
cooling system
• improve the efficiency of the
lighting system
• improve the building controls
• upgrading the façade if feasible –
improving air-tightness, newglazing or
shading
“One of our clients, whose buildingwent
under a ‘retrofit’ reported a reduction in energy
consumption by 40%. The environmental
changes alsomade the office space lookmuch
nicer,” Reimann shares. “Some of ourmore
ambitious greenbuilding projects report energy
consumptiondrops by 50%to 80%.”With the
Malaysian energy subsidies being phased out
over the next fewyears, Reimann says that the
economics of ‘green’ buildingswill become
even better.
* Look out for the followup feature to this
article nextweek, on the ‘green’ in ‘going green’
with the facts and figures that prove going
‘green’ leads to greener pastures.
* Images and graphs, courtesy of
IENConsultants.
G
r
e
e
n
e
r
DID YOU KNOW?
Green Technology is the development and
application of products, equipment and
systems used to conserve the natural
environment and resources, in the attempt to
avert ecological problems. Criteria of Green
Tech products, equipment or systems include:
X
X
minimising the degradation of the
environment;
X
X
has zero or low green house gas (GHG)
emission;
X
X
is safe for use and promotes healthy and
improved environment for all forms of life;
X
X
conserves the use of energy and natural
resources and
X
X
promotes the use of renewable resources.
(Retrieved from
)
>
Is it viable for the commercial property andbuilding
industry to adopt environmentally sustainablepractices
in its construction anddesign?Here is the scoop, the
nuts-and-bolts of goinggreen, alongwith thebigquestion
on ‘bottom line’
Year of completion: 2010
Photo credit: ACICC
kWh / m2 / year
Typical building
-50
50
100
150
200
250
0
ST Diamond
building
BEI
PV
X
X
Please email your queries to us:
ON
friday
AUG 23, 2013
Be the first to view and invest in SAGE GARDENS, CANADA
Property investors and purchasers, hear ye! Come Saturday
Aug 24 at One World Hotel, Bandar Utama, Malaysians will be
one of the first, given the chance to take a sneak peek of
Canada’s stylish, sustainable condominium development
project called Sage Gardens. “If you’re looking for smart ways
to grow your investments, we highly recommend the affluent
St Albert area, located within the city of Edmonton, in
Canada,” says Virata Gamany, the Malaysian director at Vision
International Properties, the developer of Sage Gardens.
Vision International Properties has offices in Vancouver,
Malaysia, Singapore and Hong Kong.
Reasons not to miss the sneak preview, if not a great
investment opportunity, a value-for-money buy:
• 218-unit four-storey low-rise, low density condominium
project in an affluent neighbourhood with urban conveniences
• one-, two- and three-bedroom unit choices ranging in sizes of between 650 and 1,000 sq ft
• prices ranging from about CAD$200,000 (approximately RM630,000)
• semi-furnished with appliances and freehold
• excellent location eg. minutes away from town, West Edmonton Mall, University of Alberta,
international airport, community resources, recreational park, upcoming school, residential
areas, Sturgeon Community Hospital
• St Albert’s thriving economic overview – ranked #7 on Forbe’s ‘Where to Buy’ list; #5 on REIN’s
‘Top Investment Location in Alberta’ list; #1 on MoneySense magazine’s ‘Best Place to Live in
Canada’ list
• designed by award-winning architect David HT Wong reputed for his ‘healthy designs’
that respect the environment. He is also recipient of the 2012 Queen Elizabeth II Diamond
Jubilee Medal
• ‘green’ features like cross ventilation, vented solariums, solar collector solutions, year-round
rooftop garden, rain-water harvesting, water-heating wall panels etc.
• well thought of amenities like winter garden, disable-friendly features, rooftop barbeque area,
courtyard with water feature, play area for children, children’s daycare centre, gymnasium with
clinical facilities, open air and underground car park
• Vision International Properties makes your Canadian investment hassle-free by assisting with
legal matters, bank financing etc. It also provides services like property maintenance, finding
tenants, and ensuring average distribution of rental incomes through its rental pool programme
averaging yields of between 7% to 12%
For more, call 03-2035 5939 or visit
List of local ‘green’
commercial and office
buildings to be proud of
X
X
ST Diamond Building or Bangunan
Berlian
X
X
Bangunan Angkasa Raya
X
X
MKH Group’s The Pod
X
X
Putrajaya Waterfront @ Precinct 4
X
X
Qube, Shah Alam
X
X
LEO (Low Energy Office) Building
X
X
ZEO Building or Pusat Tenaga Malaysia
Zero Energy Office Building
X
X
QI Tower
X
X
Mercu Mustapha Kamal
X
X
Setia City Mall
7
1
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Average Malaysian Sustainable Level
by 2050
Ton CO2
emissions per
person per year
1 ton CO2 emission challenge at COP15, Copenhagen, 2009
GREEN BUILDINGS play a
key role in achieving this goal
World average (2010):
5 ton CO
2
per person
Part ONE
Year f completion: 2010
Photo Credit: AC C
t
2 e i sion challange at COP15, Copenhagen, 2009
INSIGHTS
CUT AND KEEP
