Most trending green features a smart home can incorporate

01 Nov 2019 CW Team

S Raghupathy, Chair, Asia Pacific Network (APN) and Deputy Director General, CII, highlights the most trending green features a smart home can incorporate:

Daylighting: The best strategy to be energy-efficient in daytime is to have access to natural light in living spaces. This again depends on how the building is oriented and openings designed. This would allow energy savings of close to 60 per cent in lighting alone, when it is integrated with lighting sensors. These sensors form an important component of security, home control, energy-efficiency, automated lighting control, and other helpful systems. In spaces where daylighting from windows cannot penetrate, projects can make use of the ‘light pipe’ innovation.
Appliances: The use of LED lighting and star-rated appliances can help reduce energy consumption to a greater extent, as can the use of smart devices that regulate appliances and lights to minimise the amount of electricity they consume.
Temperature control: Computerised thermostats can minimise the carbon footprint; for instance, by allowing the regulation of temperature through a mobile device.
Going net-zero: These are projects that achieve 20-30 per cent energy savings by design over the energy benchmarks of Energy Conservation Building Code-R and meet the balance 70-80 per cent through on-site renewable energy systems to achieve self-sufficiency in energy without depending on the main grid. Simply put, the annual energy consumption of the project should completely be met through on-site renewable energy systems.
Metering and monitoring: Sub-metering of outdoor lighting, water pumping, EV charger, etc, can help analyse the electricity use pattern and further improve energy-efficiency. Building automation can help monitor the complete consumption pattern on one screen and make it easier for data accessibility and analysis. Smart water metering for every dwelling unit is the new trend in residential buildings.

- SERAPHINA D’SOUZA

Ideally, a green home designed holistically would address key parameters such as energy-efficiency, water reduction, sustainable materials and resources, site selection and indoor air quality. A green home with upgradation on technologies, automation and renewable energy sources is a smart home with IoT, BMS, automation, lighting sensors and renewable energy integrated with smartphone applications, allowing flexibility to occupants to verify energy and water savings in real time. Smart homes can be evaluated under IGBC Green Homes ratings system Ver 3.0, the latest edition launched in September this year. S Raghupathy, Chair, Asia Pacific Network (APN) and Deputy Director General, CII, highlights the most trending green features a smart home can incorporate: Daylighting: The best strategy to be energy-efficient in daytime is to have access to natural light in living spaces. This again depends on how the building is oriented and openings designed. This would allow energy savings of close to 60 per cent in lighting alone, when it is integrated with lighting sensors. These sensors form an important component of security, home control, energy-efficiency, automated lighting control, and other helpful systems. In spaces where daylighting from windows cannot penetrate, projects can make use of the ‘light pipe’ innovation. Appliances: The use of LED lighting and star-rated appliances can help reduce energy consumption to a greater extent, as can the use of smart devices that regulate appliances and lights to minimise the amount of electricity they consume. Temperature control: Computerised thermostats can minimise the carbon footprint; for instance, by allowing the regulation of temperature through a mobile device. Going net-zero: These are projects that achieve 20-30 per cent energy savings by design over the energy benchmarks of Energy Conservation Building Code-R and meet the balance 70-80 per cent through on-site renewable energy systems to achieve self-sufficiency in energy without depending on the main grid. Simply put, the annual energy consumption of the project should completely be met through on-site renewable energy systems. Metering and monitoring: Sub-metering of outdoor lighting, water pumping, EV charger, etc, can help analyse the electricity use pattern and further improve energy-efficiency. Building automation can help monitor the complete consumption pattern on one screen and make it easier for data accessibility and analysis. Smart water metering for every dwelling unit is the new trend in residential buildings. - SERAPHINA D’SOUZA

Infrastructure Urban

17 Sep 2025

DCPC Prepares for Special Campaign 5.0 with Focus on E-Waste

The Department of Chemicals and Petrochemicals (DCPC), Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers, is gearing up for Special Campaign 5.0, to be held from 2nd to 31st October 2025. The initiative will focus on e-waste disposal as per MoEFCC’s E-Waste Management Rules 2022, space optimisation, and enhancing workplace efficiency across field offices.Special Campaign 4.0, conducted between October 2023 and October 2024, delivered notable results in record management, grievance redressal, scrap disposal, and cleanliness drives.Key outcomes of Special Campaign 4.0Records management: 2,443 physical fil..

Real Estate

17 Sep 2025

BlackRock India Leases 1.4 Lakh Sq Ft in Bengaluru

BlackRock Services India, the domestic arm of global asset manager BlackRock, has leased 1.4 lakh sq ft of office space at IndiQube Symphony in Bengaluru, according to Propstack data. The 10-year deal is valued at around Rs 4.10 billion.The lease, among the largest transactions in India’s co-working sector, highlights the growing preference of global institutions for flexible office providers. The agreement, commencing October 1, 2025, covers ground plus five floors in KNG Tower 1 at Ashoknagar, MG Road — one of Bengaluru’s prime commercial hubs.As per the lease document, BlackRock will ..

Infrastructure Transport

17 Sep 2025

L&T Bags Rs 25–50 Bn Order for Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train Track Works

Larsen & Toubro’s (L&T) Transportation Infrastructure business has secured an order valued between Rs 25 crore and Rs 50 billion from the National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL) for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail (MAHSR) corridor.The contract, Package T1, involves the design, supply, construction, testing, and commissioning of 156 route km of high-speed ballastless track on a Design-Build Lump Sum Price basis. The stretch runs from Mumbai’s Bandra-Kurla Complex to Zaroli village in Gujarat and includes 21 km of underground track and 135 km of elevated viaduct.Se..