Singapore is truly one of the most developed cities of South-East Asia & is very efficient in managing itself. The very smart people who manage the city have realized that they not only need progress but also need to manage it with a proper care for available energy & environment. They are not only worried about economic gains but are also keen on attaining ecological gains. Hence the Building and Construction Authority’s (BCA) has taken up the construction of a Green Building as its flagship R&D project.
Singapore plans to unveil its firs zero-energy building (ZEB) on Braddell Road by 2009. Unlike most other buildings across the globe, this is not a green building that just reduces energy consumption but actually uses no energy for its functioning! How can any work be done without consumption of energy? Well, it cannot be done. Then, am I lying? No. The building produces as much energy as it consumes & hence that amounts to pretty much zero consumption. The building develops all that energy from renewable sources of energy.
The building is to be fitted with solar panels on top. These panels provide the energy for most of the building. But any building cannot be completely self reliant without reducing the consumption of energy in a smart way. This building uses some very smart local inventions to reduce the consumption of energy. Fresh energy is only channeled into rooms which have people in them as sensors are used to detect motion. Even the cooling & heating systems of the building are sufficiently revamped to save 60% of energy consumption.
The building is truly a first in the world as it is the first time that an already existing building is going to be revamped into a Zero-Energy Building (ZEB). It paves way for many more constructors to take it up. While the cost in making such a building is 8% more than in the case of normal structures, that can be retrieved in 12 years. This is indeed a small price to pay, if any, for energy saving & achieving a safer planet.
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