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  Business Times 6 Jul 07
Green architecture
Geoffrey Eu finds out how architects here are meeting the pressing urban challenge of developing green, high-density projects

WHEN management bigwigs at Japanese insurance giant Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance decided to redevelop an office building on McCallum Street in the business district, they opted to go green in a big way.

While it's almost impossible these days to ignore the dire warnings of global warming and the threat posed to Planet Earth by climate change - witness the blanket media coverage and the priority given to the topic by numerous high-profile individuals as well as governments - more than a few companies are still slow to commit corporate funds to tackle the issue directly.

Tokio Marine, which has a significant presence in Singapore and the region, has taken the lead in a still-emerging field by specifying that its new Singapore headquarters should be a shining example of green, or environment-friendly, architecture.

It has taken a page from the Building and Construction Authority's (BCA) book - namely, the guide that BCA produced to highlight good industry practices to minimise environmental impact - and set itself the goal of constructing a building that meets or exceeds the industry's highest standards.

The new Tokio Marine building - a mid-size 18-storey block with a gross floor area of about 150,000 square feet - is due to be completed only in the third quarter of 2009.

In fact, the building that currently occupies the site - Asia Chambers - is not slated for demolition until next month, but it is interesting to note that the company employed energy consultants to work with its design team right from the start of the project.

'We pride ourselves as being an environment-friendly company and our aim is to reduce the burden on the environment worldwide,' says Jun Hemmi, GM of Tokio Marine Asia, a wholly owned subsidiary.

'We want this building to reflect that corporate philosophy and the commitment that we have in Singapore.'

Both shade and support

The inspiration for the new building's design, by Chan Sau Yan Associates (CSYA), came from the concept of a simple clump of bamboo.

The basic V-shaped building is crisscrossed on the outside by concrete-encased steel columns that represent an abstract bamboo cluster, which serves as structural support as well as providing shade from the sun.

'We looked at every single aspect of the design to make it work from an architectural as well as environmental point of view,' says Phillip Yong of CSYA.

'The idea started from how bamboo strands reinforce each other while growing high and strong. We wanted to do a structure that both shades and supports the building.'

Yong estimates the bamboo-like exterior structure will provide shade for up to 30 per cent of the building.

'It is environmentally responsible and efficient at the same time. We shade the building first, not the other way around.'

Another prominent design feature is a high-ceilinged ground-floor concourse that will be a public space devoted entirely to a landscaped garden.

Instead of banking halls, shops or offices, almost 10,000 square feet will be dedicated to an urban green space. There will also be a rooftop garden for tenants. Rainwater will be collected and used to water all the plants.

Meanwhile, the building will also make use of solar panels to supply lighting for internal lobbies and toilets on each floor.

'This is an energy-intelligent building,' says Joseph Loh, director, business & operation of G-Energy Global, the project's energy consultant. 'We looked into energy conservation for lighting and ways to minimise air-condition usage. We followed BCA's good practice code and bettered it by 30 per cent.'

He adds: 'We will have eco-friendly refrigerant equipment that is high in efficiency, and we have included a monitoring system to ensure that the building operator can sustain operating efficiency.'

Loh says that the building reflects various innovations in its engineering and design.

'We will also be looking at waste management and recycling, and monitor water and energy usage during construction. So we measure energy use and, if necessary, tell them how to reduce.'

He adds: 'We want to ensure that everything is done in such a way that comfort, design and ergonomics are not compromised - this is our main objective.'

In early 2005, BCA launched its Green Mark for Building Scheme, an initiative to promote environmental sustainability. While a few new buildings (such as CDL's City Square Mall commercial project, its Oceanfront @ Sentosa Cove residential project and Xilinx Asia Pacific's industrial building at Changi Business Park) have received the top Platinum rating, no office building has yet won one.

Loh estimates a potential savings of about $250,000 on a $1 million annual electrical bill for a building of the same size.

'It costs 15-20 per cent more to include all this, and additional effort to put it all in - it's not the incentives that are exciting, but the savings on long-term operating cost are substantial.'

According to some designers, issues such as energy efficiency and environmental sustainability are typically mere afterthoughts, tacked on by developers at the end of a project when construction has already been completed.

The awareness level for such issues is improving among developers, they say, but there is still a long way to go.

'From a truly green point of view, we are still in the infancy stage,' says Tai Lee Siang, president of the Singapore Institute of Architects and a director at DP Architects. 'There is a lot more to do with green architecture that hasn't been explored. BCA is appealing from a construction and energy point of view in terms of being creative in design, but it hasn't been fully explored, for example, by integrating solar panels with architectural forms or fully landscaping buildings from top to bottom.'

He adds: 'There are a lot of things to consider, such as material and energy recycling, which is still lacking in industry research. People are not used to the idea of having recycled timber in their homes. When you talk about absolute sustainability, it's hard to name a city as an example. With a lot of cities, it's only talk. Countries like the US, UK, Germany and some other European countries have strong legislation but in Singapore, this is not in place yet.'

Also: 'Singapore has got tremendous potential because we have such a clean and green environment - the infrastructure is already there. Urban planning is well ordered and controlled - if we want to further refine it, it is all within our means. I have advocated that if downtown is a showcase of our commercial strength, HDB can offer a new town - such as Punggol - as a model of an eco-friendly green town. With the New Downtown, there is also a tremendous opportunity to see it as not just a sea of glass and steel towers - it can be a Green Downtown.'

Says Tai: 'From an architect's standpoint, you try to do nice, notable buildings but being green cannot be an afterthought - it has to be meaningful. It's easy to spread plants over a whole building but we must also integrate the green features with social and commercial considerations. Costs inevitably go up but building managers need to see that they will benefit eventually - it is an uphill task.'

He adds: 'If you try to build a green condo, the developer will pay more, but he must convince the end-user to buy into the concept so that it can be sold at a higher value. We have to convert the unconverted and overcome this first hurdle but collectively as a society, we have to say that we will do this for the next generation.'

It may be difficult to single out buildings that are entirely green, but some developers and architects have creatively implemented energy-saving devices into their designs.

For example, leading local architects WOHA installed special windows in each of the apartments in their Moulmein Rise project, preventing rain from coming in while still allowing natural breezes to flow through. The award-winning 'monsoon window' concept was inspired by simple horizontal openings in Dayak longhouses, which serve a similar purpose.

Catering to the tropics

'In most high-rise apartments, when it is cool and windy there is also a high possibility of rain, so people don't leave the windows open,' says Richard Hassell of WOHA. 'It was all designed with the tropical climate in mind.'

He adds: 'Everybody has to move very quickly towards green design. We're used to cheap oil-economy designs where we use energy to compensate for not designing for the climate. Tropical regions are urgently in need of research because the problems are different from those in temperate climates.'

He also says: 'There is an opportunity for Singapore to take the lead because it is one of the few developed cities in a tropical region - our progress has been lagging behind advanced places like Germany, Norway and Australia. BCA has produced a prescriptive set of green regulations that enforces minimum compliance but the standard solutions might discourage creativity and innovation - I'm not sure it's the right format but it's a good start.'

Says Hassell: 'We tried to specify eco-friendly material for our office renovation but there are no suppliers here for certified recycled materials - we must encourage suppliers to go green as well.'

WOHA has just completed the Newton Suites residential project, which features sun-shading over the entire building, cantilevered sky gardens and green walls over the whole 36-storey structure.

It is also working in tandem with Arup, a global design consultancy, to create a residential project here that is carbon-neutral, using materials such as solar panels, bio-energy and renewable fuels.

'The real challenge for urban centres like Singapore is how to develop green, high-density projects,' says Hassell.

Arup is also involved in the master plan for Dongtan, a proposed eco-city on an island near Shanghai that is billed as the world's first sustainable city.

According to Erwin Viray at the Department of Architecture in NUS, there are ongoing studies on sustainability in collaboration with other leading architecture schools, such as the Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich.

'It is still in the early stages, but we are exploring the possibility of having a sustainability centre here to do studies on future cities. It will involve new towns and we will create models that can be exported to other South-east Asian countries and China. It's important that buildings go green and that we develop green systems that can be exported,' says Dr Viray, adding that the idea is to find ways to develop new materials and actually implement the necessary processes and construction methods.

'To produce a green building in a more committed way, you need a committed client,' says Sim Boon Yang of local firm Eco-id.

'In Singapore's urban context, this has to do with buildings that don't consume a lot of energy. All materials have a carbon rating, so the idea is to build one with the least resources necessary - that's where recycled and renewable materials come in.'

He adds: 'The whole industry needs to move onto the same level. Now, even if the client and architect are committed, there is little choice with materials - we are still a long way from a level of sophistication.'

As an example of a green feature, Sim cites the facade of The Naumi, a soon-to-open 40-room luxury business hotel on Seah Street that was formerly The Metropole Hotel.

'We introduced an origami climbing frame - like a giant topiary - that goes up 10 storeys of the building facade, with a system to irrigate the creeper plants that will grow there. The green facade is a symbolic gesture towards nature, acting as a filter and secondary skin. It's an alternative to glass or aluminium - and it's just a start.'
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