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  Business Times Singapore 30 Dec 06
More commercial buildings going the green route
 By Vincent Wee

WITH commercial buildings using 30 per cent of all the electricity consumed in Singapore, efforts to make them more environmentally friendly can go a long way.

The Building Control Authority (BCA) has this in mind in encouraging building owners to take part in its green mark for buildings scheme which it launched last year. While it will be a requirement to attain at least the green mark certified level from April 1, 2007 for all new public buildings and those above 5,000 sq m that are being retrofitted, some building owners have already decided to go green even though they are not required to.

'We consciously try to adopt green features when we develop and upgrade our commercial projects,' said Martin Tan, CEO of CapitaLand Commercial and Integrated Development. 'Many of the environmentally friendly features incorporated in our buildings, like Capital Tower and One George Street, will bring long term benefits such as lower energy consumption and a healthier indoor work environment.'

Long term benefits are what the BCA is hoping to highlight in its drive to convince building owners to take on the slightly higher building costs of environmentally friendly buildings.

The financial benefits include lower energy, waste disposal and water use costs. Less tangible but just as significant benefits are a better indoor environment resulting in increased productivity and health while at the same time having a lower impact on the environment.

The BCA estimates that a typical commercial building that has attained a green mark certification or gold award will achieve energy savings of 10 to 15 per cent over the long run.

The extra up-front costs, generally amounting to one to three per cent on the construction bill, will be recouped in seven to ten years.

For example Capital Tower uses the more expensive double-glazed windows to cut down heat and glare while letting daylight in, while One George Street has invested in sky gardens to help reduce local ambient temperatures. City Developments' Republic Plaza meanwhile takes an integrated approach to running a green building. This ranges from the simple use of an energy saving device for the escalators to a system to monitor energy and water consumption.
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