Well designed green buildings yield lower utility costs, greater occupancy productivity, less absenteeism, and stronger attraction and retention of occupants than standard buildings do. Green materials, mechanical systems, and furnishings have become more widely available and considerably less expensive than they used to be, for which building green is no longer a pricey experiment. Over the past five to ten years; green construction did not just yield more respect, it became a necessity as governments and corporations push it fully into the mainstream.
Built Environment
Expertise we provide under this field include:
GREEN BUILDINGS CONSULTANCY AND FACILITATION
Globally several rating systems have been developed for reducing the environmental effects of building and rating them. We provide green building certification advisory for the following green building rating systems:
- Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED): is the most widely used green building rating system in the world. Available for virtually all building, community and home project types, LEED provides a framework to create healthy, highly efficient and cost-saving green buildings. LEED certification is a globally recognized symbol of sustainability achievement.
- Pearl Building Rating System (PBRS): the aim of the Pearl Building Rating System (PBRS) is to promote the development of sustainable buildings and improve quality of life. Achievement of a sustainable building requires the integration of the four pillars of Estidama together with a collaborative and inter-disciplinary approach to building development known as the Integrated Development Process.
INDEPENDENT COMMISSIONING AUTHORITY
Commissioning is a quality assurance process that is designed specifically to ensure that the building systems will be designed, installed and operated to meet the Owner’s expectations.
An independent Commissioning Authority acts as an advocate for the Owner to facilitate the basic process of commissioning, which includes:
- Formalizing the Owner’s expectations for the building and documenting the Owner’s Project Requirements (OPR),
- Reviewing the design documents to ensure that the systems are designed to meet the requirements specified in the OPR,
- Performing checks during construction to ensure the systems are installed as designed and specified,
- Ensure the Owner’s staff is trained in the proper operation of the systems.
BUILDING PHYSICS ANALYSIS
Is the process of building computer models of energy systems in order to analyze them. Outputs may include the system feasibility, greenhouse gas emissions, cumulative financial costs, natural resource use, and energy efficiency of the system under investigation
ENERGY & WATER AUDITS
Audits allow you to understand how you are using energy and water, and what you can do to minimize their consumption in both the short-term and the long-term. You may need an audit for regulatory reasons or simply because you want to better understand and manage your energy and water usage.
- Understand the facility’s role in the consumption of energy and water,
- Recognize opportunities for making efficiency savings,
- Measure the success of efforts made to improve efficiency, and recognize the importance of starting to measure change.
BUILDING RETROFIT CONSULTANCY & FACILITATION
Retrofitting an existing building can oftentimes be more cost-effective than building a new facility. Since buildings consume a significant amount of energy (particularly for heating and cooling, and because existing buildings comprise the largest segment of the built environment. Objectives of a building retrofit are:
- Offers significant opportunities for improving occupants’ comfort and well-being,
- Reduce global energy consumption and greenhouse gas.
CAPACITY BUILDING
Capacity Building Programs have been developed as part of various projects to satisfy wide range purposes; these programs plan, develop, and establish various skills for governmental personnel, private sector practitioners and university students.
Past projects have included the following Capacity Building Programs:
- Facilitation of Green Building Brainstorming sessions with various stakeholders,
- Green Buildings Rating System Introduction Workshop Series,
- Integrated Management System,
- Environmental Management System – ISO 14001,
- Crisis Management System Training,
- Waste Management Strategies,
- Facilitation of Public Consultation Sessions as part of EIA process in UAE, Oman, Jordan & Palestine.