Syed Mohamed Beary Founder and Chairman Managing Director Bearys Group “By constantly reusing, recycling and reproducing construction waste, Bearys has achieved 96 per cent success in reducing construction and demolition waste sent to landfills.” — Syed Mohamed Beary Bearys Group, right from its inception, has ‘Green Architecture and Sustainable Development’ at the core of all its endeavours. This holistic vision affirms its commitment to contributing to the environment in a wholly responsible and sustainable manner. True to this resolve, all Bearys projects and endeavours are sustainable in nature. Bearys has Entrepreneurship, Environment and Education – ‘Triple E’ as part of its all-inclusive vision and focus areas. The group has seven IGBC/LEED platinum-certified projects to its credit. With its design-build-deliver, a unique value proposition, every Bearys project is a distinct landmark built on the principles of green architecture, exemplifying sustainable practices and is a winner of numerous awards. Bearys Global Research Triangle (BGRT), Bengaluru is an epitome of sustainability and is a winner of over 20 awards including the CII National Award for Excellence in Energy Management for the last three consecutive years. Environment Bearys is committed to the national goal of achieving zero emissions by 2070 and has adopted renewable energy as its core goal since 2015 to reduce GHG emissions. The following are a few of its initiatives: Installed hybrid renewable energy (wind turbine and roof top solar panels) in the mosque built by us at Kodi, Kundapur and the total energy consumption is met by on-site generation. This is the world’s first IGBC Platinum Certified Green Mosque. In fact, it is not just ‘Net Zero’ but a ‘Net Positive’ place of worship. In BGRT, we use over 95 per cent renewable energy, and are endeavouring to soon make it a ‘Net Zero’ R&D Park. Bearys head office “His Grace”, is slated to be the first ‘Net Zero’ commercial building in Bengaluru. The group believes in waste to wealth” and pursues the principle of ‘Reduce-Reuse-Recycle-Reproduce’. We have installed OWC and adapted the system of segregation, storage and recycling in all our projects and generate revenue. By constantly reusing, recycling and reproducing construction waste, Bearys has achieved 96 per cent success in reducing construction and demolition waste sent to landfills. Mulching, water sprinkling, and dumper tyre cleaning has been adopted during excavation work at all projects to avoid air pollution, lake pollution and road damage. All our projects are zero discharge buildings; wastewater is treated on-site and the treated water is reused for landscape irrigation, flushing and AC cooling tower make-up. Rainwater is sent to storage tanks and reused. Our chillers and fire suppression systems have no CFC, HCFC or Halons and cause no depletion of the Ozone layer. As a policy, we cut no trees. If unavoidable, we transplant them on site and ensure their survival. We provide a far greater landscape than mandated by building bylaws or NBC norms using local species. We organise and sponsor tree planting drives as an ongoing initiative in all our projects and educational institutions. We have developed and maintained a green road median of over 5 km at BGRT and are developing a tree-lined avenue of over 2 km in our latest data centre project in Mahape, Navi Mumbai. In our sports arena, we use a sub-soil drip irrigation system saving 90 per cent of the water as there is no water evaporation. The company has adopted a “Green Policy” for material sourcing and mostly procures regionally harvested and manufactured materials to avoid long-distance haulage, diesel use and carbon emission. We always source for higher recycled content. In addition, we do energy simulation for all our buildings with respect to orientation, façade treatment, and terrace insulation to reduce the heat gain and increase the daylight. Social Imparting education is an important and integral part of all Bearys endeavours. What was started by the Bearys Patriarchs way back in 1906 in a thatched hut, on the west coast of Karnataka, has today given birth to over 20 institutions including an engineering college, school of architecture, DEd /BEd and skill development centre, among others. We have more than 5,000 students who are primarily from poor and rural backgrounds. The group organises and spearheads several need-based social initiatives such as health camps, blood donation, job fairs and placement drives. However, the most successful one was ‘Drive against Drugs’ involving religious heads, thought leaders, NGOs and institutions. Bearys endeavour is always on societal happiness rather than mere individual happiness. The company believes in Individual Social Responsibility (ISR), rather than CSR. Giving back to society is taught to employees at all levels. Bearys along with IGBC is working on a ‘Clean City- Green City’ initiative and conducts a ‘Green Walkathon’ during the World Green Building Week. The group supports several anganwadis and has sponsored and built government schools in the neighbourhood of all its projects. ‘Shiksha and Suraksha” is an offbeat initiative of Bearys Group. Under this scheme, all employees including the recipient contribute a small percentage of their salary. The employer also makes a matching contribution. This has given a paradigm shift in elevating the lower strata of employees’ children to such an extent that many children have become doctors, engineers, lawyers, and architects including a few of them who are pursuing IAS/IPS courses. Customer relationship We develop our relationships with clients based on the sound principle of Quality – Value – Relationship. Due to this, we have long-lasting associations with most of our clients who have subscribed to our vision and stood by us through thick and thin. Governance Bearys follow an inclusive culture where all employees are offered equal opportunity. ‘Purity of Heart and Clarity of Mind’ plays an important role in developing human resources in all Bearys Enterprises and Institutions. Inculcating values and relationships with both top-down and bottom-up approaches has helped create a homogeneous atmosphere in our organisation and institutions in their growth prospects. Awards and Rewards is a continuous process in Bearys Group. We constantly wait for the opportunity to recognise and reward the individual’s contribution consistently. This is also a great opportunity for families to get together. Quality management Delivering excellence consistently forms the foundation and is an integral part of all our endeavours. This is ingrained in all stakeholders be it architects, consultants, contractors, suppliers, and vendors. When all forces work together with a single-minded focus, quality becomes a natural process, rather than a forced one. Financial transparency Financial transparency has helped a great deal in Bearys growth. We always believe in “Fair Deal Leads to Prosperity” and our work culture is based on a partnership spirit. We always ensure that every entity is fairly compensated for their product and services. Acknowledging this factor, all our vendors, suppliers and contractors are always willing to work with us and are ready to go that extra mile to ensure the project's success. We have adopted an effective accounting mechanism with various levels of checks and balances to ensure the highest level of transparency, integrity and quality of financial reporting. Corporate policies “Individual commitment, collaborative effort and collective leadership”. This holistic perspective has nurtured and developed Bearys Group to become what it is today. About the author Syed Mohamed Beary is the Founder, Chairman and Managing Director of Bearys Group. “Delivering Excellence, Consistently” & ‘Triple E’ i.e. ‘Entrepreneurship’, ‘Environment’ and ‘Education’ sums up Bearys Groups' endeavours. His larger dream is to make India fully literate, housing affordable and above all to build India truly green.