At least 6,500 buildings need retrofitting to reach green building target

Sharon See Channel NewsAsia 13 Sep 10;

SINGAPORE : The Singapore Green Building Council estimates that at least 6,500 buildings here need to be retrofitted over the next 20 years.

This will enable Singapore to reach its target of "greening" at least 80 per cent of its buildings by 2030.

Several green ideas are being exhibited at the third Build Eco Xpo, a three-day event that focuses on green practices in building, design and technology. The event is being held at the Sands Expo and Convention Centre.

One idea involves the use of titanium dioxide coating solution to treat panels of glass.

Titanium dioxide is a chemical commonly found in sunblock, paint and ink. When exposed to sunlight, it prevents water from staining, and allows dirt to be washed away easily by rain water.

It also helps to oxidise dirt, and that means buildings can keep themselves clean in sunlight.

Another green application showcased is plastic sheets which emit light. It is made possible with technology that allows light emitting materials to be printed directly on materials such as plastic and paper.

Dr Albert Lu, a senior scientist at the Agency for Science, Technology and Research, said: "The target future applications would include aesthetic or ambient lighting, flexible signages, and in the longer term, even for general lighting, because this promises very good energy efficiency as well as minimum heat generation."

While these ideas will help new buildings be greener, the Building and Construction Authority is also helping older buildings to be more energy efficient.

Singapore currently has 500 green buildings and this forms 8 per cent of the building stock.

So far, some 10 existing buildings are in the midst of retrofitting.

For them, the benefits go beyond saving the environment and being energy efficient.

The president of the Singapore Green Building Council, Lee Chuan Seng, said: "What we have found so far is that when you retrofit a building, some of the building owners are now reaping savings of half a million dollars, S$1 million a year."

Most retrofitting processes typically involve improving the air-conditioning and lighting systems, lifts and the facade. - CNA/ms

Green Individual Award to be introduced later this year
Channel NewsAsia 13 Sep 10;

SINGAPORE : A new award for green building professionals will be introduced later this year.

The Green Individual Award is to recognise the contributions of professionals and individuals who have been leading the green building movement in Singapore.

Environment and Water Resources Minister Yaacob Ibrahim made this announcement at the opening of the World Green International Congress on Monday.

The World Green International Congress is held in conjunction with the Singapore Green Building Week, and Building Eco Xpo Asia, a trade event for the green building industry.

Dr Yaacob said with the rise of the green building movement, there will be demand for green building professionals to support the greening of the built environment.

Singapore would need to train about 18,000 to 20,000 green collar professionals over the next 10 years in the development, design, construction, operation and maintenance of green buildings.

The award is a collaborative effort between the Building and Construction Authority and the Singapore Green Building Council.

It will be open for nomination next month.

- CNA/al

20,000 to be trained in 'green building' push
They will lead energy efficiency drive; new awards to recognise efforts made
Amresh Gunasingham Straits Times 14 Sep 10;

ABOUT 20,000 working professionals in the building sector, as well as polytechnic and university students, will be trained over the next 10 years in the nuts and bolts of designing and running green buildings.

As specialists and resource persons in sustainable building design and management, they willlead the charge towards the national target to equip eight in 10 buildings here with more energy-efficient features by 2030.

To kick-start this charge, awards will be given out every year - beginning this year - in recognition of contributions by individuals in creating such a sustainably built environment. Winners, to be drawn from the building and construction sector, could be engineers, developers or even materials suppliers.

This announcement came from Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Yaacob Ibrahim yesterday at the launch of the inaugural World Green Building Council International Congress at the Marina Bay Sands.

The three-day forum has drawn industry players in the sustainability sector from around the world.

Nominations for the new awards, to be presented jointly by the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) and the Singapore Green Building Council (SGBC), will open next month.

The BCA-SGBC Awards will be handed out in four categories - architects, engineers, entrepreneurs and innovators - in May next year.

SGBC president Lee Chuan Seng said that putting the spotlight on outstanding players in a relatively young industry here can have knock-on benefits.

About 1,000 individuals now have the qualifications to bill themselves BCA Green Mark Managers.

But more of them are needed so that Singapore's concrete jungle can be a green, energy-efficient one.

To grow the 'clean tech' sector, a $680 million kitty has been set aside by the Government to fund research and development and manpower training.

Those to be trained in this new field include tertiary students in polytechnics and universities reading courses in areas such as sustainable building design and management.

Most buildings here are now lacking in energy-efficient features. The BCA estimates that only 8 per cent of all buildings here, with 210 million sq m of floor space among them, have these features.

The Government will require all public-sector buildings to undergo energy audits in two years.

By 2020, new public-sector buildings with more than 5,000 sq m of air-conditioned floor space will have to fall in line with tightened energy-ratings criteria set out by the BCA.

A report released by the United Nations last year pinned the blame for almost a third of the world's carbon emissions on buildings.

It added that a failure to make some of the world's gleaming structures green will double the amount of carbon contributed by buildings by 2030.

6,500 buildings need to go 'green'
Sharon See Today Online 14 Sep 10;

SINGAPORE - The Singapore Green Building Council (SGBC) estimates that at least 6,500 buildings here need to be retrofitted over the next 20 years.

This will enable Singapore to reach its target of "greening" at least 80 per cent of its buildings by 2030.

Several green ideas are being exhibited at the third Build Eco Xpo, a three-day event that focuses on green practices in building, design and technology. The event, which started yesterday, is being held at the Sands Expo and Convention Centre.

One idea involves the use of titanium dioxide coating solution to treat panels of glass.

Titanium dioxide is a chemical commonly found in sunblock, paint and ink. When exposed to sunlight, it prevents water from staining and allows dirt to be washed away easily by rain water.

It also helps to oxidise dirt, and that means buildings can keep themselves clean in sunlight.

While such ideas will help new buildings be greener, the Building and Construction Authority is also helping older buildings to be more energy efficient.

Singapore currently has 500 green buildings and this makes up 8 per cent of the building stock.

So far, about 10 existing buildings are in the midst of retrofitting.

SGBC's president Lee Chuan Seng said: " ... When you retrofit a building, some of the building owners are now reaping savings of half a million dollars, $1 million, a year."

Most retrofitting processes typically involve improving the air-conditioning and lighting systems, lifts and the facade.

Awards to recognise 'green' individuals
Uma Shankari Business Times 14 Sep 10;

NEW Green Individual Awards will be launched this year to recognise the contributions of professionals and individuals in the green building industry, Environment and Water Resources Minister Yaacob Ibrahim said yesterday.

Some 18,000 to 20,000 professionals will need to be trained in green design techniques to help achieve the target of 'greening' 80 per cent of buildings in Singapore by 2030, industry regulator the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) has said.

Right now there are almost 500 green buildings in Singapore, forming just 8 per cent of total building stock.

'With the rise of the green building movement there will be demand for green building professionals to support the greening of the built environment,' Dr Yaacob said.

He was speaking at the opening ceremony of BEX Asia, which focuses on green building architecture, design, products, practices and technologies for environmental sustainability.

This year's BEX Asia is running in conjunction with the World Green Building Council's International Congress 2010 and the Singapore Green Building Council's (SGBC) inaugural Green Building Conference.

The new awards are being launched jointly by BCA and SGBC.

A product certification scheme to assess and label green building products will also be launched soon. 'One of the major problems facing the building industry in trying to be green is the lack of robustly assessed and certified products to facilitate the faster switch to green buildings,' said SGBC president Lee Chuan Seng.

The new scheme - Singapore's first - will adopt assessment criteria such as energy, water and resource efficiency to assess the environmental friendliness of building products.