Sustainable Buildings and Where to Find Them

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Chris Jackson

Business Development Manage

1200 Last modified by the author on 14/03/2022 - 10:51
Sustainable Buildings and Where to Find Them

 

Sustainability drives the current construction industry demands. Due to the many challenges of a changing environment, the industry must adapt and innovate to combat such difficulties. Today, many companies standardize the sustainable approach to construction to safeguard the future.

What is Sustainable Building?

One can view the concept of sustainability in many ways. It is a method of development that seeks to balance numerous, often conflicting needs against an understanding of our society's environmental, economic, and social constraints. It is an approach that aims to leave as tiny a carbon footprint as possible during the building's lifespan.

Though one can interpret the term "green building" in various ways, the consensus is that its intended function and design should be to minimize the total impact of the construction on public health and the environment through:

  1. Effective utilization of water, energy, and other resources
  2. Safeguarding occupant health and increasing employee performance
  3. Minimizing pollution, waste, and environmental degradation

It can be as straightforward as installing an eco-friendly installation that makes your building more efficient, like energy-efficient roof hatches, up to integrating practical architectural design that will help lessen your carbon footprint. It pushes the boundaries for material manufacturing, planning, and technological advancements.

A green or sustainable building can help enhance or preserve the quality of life in its immediate area or location due to its design and features. The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design accreditation or LEED is a globally recognized certified certification that determines whether a structure is sustainable.

The Impact of Sustainability

Everyone gets affected by how all of us see and approach development. The repercussions of our collective decisions have very significant consequences for people's lives. Poor community design, for example, lowers the quality of life for those who reside there.

Sustainable development is a method of making better judgments about issues that influence everyone's lives. We can ensure that people have easy access to healthcare and leisure facilities by integrating health plans into the design of new communities, for example. Another example is, fostering more efficient food supply chains, ensuring that enough food is available in the long run.

Amazing Sustainable Buildings

Reforma Tower, Mexico

With 246 meters in height, this structure located on Paseo de la Reforma in Mexico City is the country's third tallest building. It recycles and utilizes water to produce electricity. It also makes use of solar and wind energy. Artificial intelligence manages the air conditioning system, which uses sensors strategically placed around the building to maximize energy efficiency.

Iberdrola Tower, Spain

The Iberdrola Tower, designed by architect César Pelli, holds its headquarters and embodies renewable energy zero miles because of its features. Its enormous 165-meter-high glass structure is Bilbao's business and financial landmark and a sustainable design and power optimization model. It has an energy recovery ring that cuts down on carbon emissions.

The structure's intended design generates value for its employees, the environment, and its customers. The headquarters' internal structure promotes teamwork, information transfer, and organizational development in a comfortable, environmentally friendly atmosphere that supports operational efficiency.

Shanghai Tower, China

It isn't easy to imagine that the world's second-tallest structure, a 632-meter skyscraper in Shanghai's Pudong financial district, is a green building. However, it can collect rainfall and recycle part of the wastewater for internal use as part of its intended design. The façade's design minimizes wind loads, reducing the material required for construction.

Beitou Public Library, Taiwan

Beitou Park in Taipei is home to Taiwan's first green library. It is a two-story structure with expansive windows designed to save water and electricity. The roof has a partial cover of photovoltaic cells, which create energy while collecting rainwater for toilet use.

Parkroyal Collection, Singapore

This premium hotel, located in the heart of Singapore, boasts 15,000 m2 of garden terraces, dubbed "sky gardens," for the enjoyment of its guests. Through motion sensors, solar cells, and rainwater collecting for later recycling, the intended design of the garden is to be self-sufficient and utilize minimal electricity.

California Academy of Sciences, USA

The designer of this research facility and natural history museum is Renzo Piano, which underwent an entire restoration in 2008. The new structure recycles rainwater, employs photovoltaic panels, maximizes natural sunlight, and features a one-hectare green roof with millions of California native plants.

Turning Torso, Suecia

This building is a work by Santiago Calatrava, based on a moving human torso. It is the tallest skyscraper in Scandinavia, standing at 190 meters on the Swedish side of the Öresund strait. It uses renewable sources of energy to power its functions. The kitchens recycle organic material to make biogas, and each flat handles its heating and water usage.

World Trade Center, Bahrain

This combination of two 240-meter-high twin towers is the world's first skyscraper to incorporate wind turbines into its construction. Located is in Manama, Bahrain's capital, they account for 15% of the towers' total energy usage. Three bridges connect the two buildings fashioned like sails to harness the wind, and each includes a 29-meter diameter turbine.

Museum of Tomorrow, Brazil

Built close to Pier Maua and created by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava, this science museum opened in 2015. Rainwater reuse systems, mobile solar panels, and an air conditioning system that utilizes water channeled from the Guanabara Bay are sustainable alternatives.

Pixel Building, Australia

This building is the first carbon-neutral office building in Australia. It has a green roof with solar panels to generate its energy and reserves all of the water it requires, making it a prototype office of the future. Its unique multicolored façade allows natural ventilation and illumination to reduce energy usage.

Takeaway

Moving forward and bringing positive impact to the environment and all impacted by your construction project is not an easy task. There will be many stumbling blocks that will be challenging, and testing your resolve if you genuinely seek it. Having an expert you can trust will make your decisions clearer and more sound.


 

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