Sustainability Awards

01 Sep 2017 CW Staff

The target: To reach a green footprint of 1,000 crore sq ft in India and become the world's No. 1 by 2022. And according to scorecard of the Indian Green Building Council, we have achieved 4.63 billion sq ft to date. Moreover, sustainable practices are not only an ethical move but make good business sense as well. Sustainability is on the global agenda, with companies such as Carrier Airconditioning & Refrigeration, India, offering solutions for projects that suit local requirements in India. Carrier, part of UTC Climate, Controls & Security, a unit of United Technologies Corp, is a world leader in high-technology heating, air-conditioning and refrigeration solutions. Carrier experts provide sustainable solutions, integrating energy-efficient products, building controls, and energy services for residential, commercial, retail, transport and food service customers. This year, Carrier partnered with CWAB to recognise and award projects that are sustainable in nature. We call them the SUSTAINABILITY AWARDS. These were assessed by the eminent jury panel that vetted the Noteworthy Projects. Setting the perfect tone for this category of awards, Arun Bhatia, Managing Director, UTC Climate, Controls & Security, India Region, addressed the audience at the CWAB awards. He focussed on green building trends derived from a recent global study titled World Green Building Trends 2016. The survey, conducted across 69 countries with over 1,000 study participants, revealed the significant drivers of green buildings as environment regulations, healthier neighbourhoods and sustainable practices. It also pointed out to significant overall barriers as higher perceived first cost, lack of public awareness and inability to prove business case. As Bhatia said, 'The first thing that came out of the report as a bottleneck is for people to adopt green buildings.ö Seventy per cent of respondents cited lower operating cost as the most important benefit of a green building, with Bhatia adding, 'Nearly half of those involved reported a payback on their investments in five years or less.' Moving on to the awards, here's a look at the winning sustainable projects this year... Category: Sustainability Capgemini (Global Training Centre), Pune, by DSP Design Associates Located in Pune's IT hub of Hinjewadi, the 400,000-sq-ft project follows a symbiotic model. The site is home to 400 trees, of which 70 per cent were retained to preserve the microclimate. The building mass is intentionally lifted upon stilts to create a promenade effect and link all the blocks through accessible landscaped greens. The sustainable approach ensures that the built spaces accommodate the technical requirements of the campus and simultaneously maintain harmony with the environment. Category: Sustainability B 23, New Delhi, by Architecture Discipline If meaningful design is about the essence of things, this bungalow is a distinctive statement on a 2,000-sq-yard block. This house typically stands as a tribute to the 1970s Indian modernism, and showcases exemplary style. It is an extremely interactive home for a close-knit joint family, and the architecture is such that the space embraces their roots and is progressive at the same time.