Sustainable Design and Construction - Doc

Adaptive challenges in sustainable design and construction
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Abstract
Presently, the world is facing unprecedented urban expansion. In 1800, it was
analysed that, there was only 3% of the total population of the globe that resides in urban
regions. It had increased from 14 to 47% between the years 1900 to 2000 (Aston, 2013).
Since, the year 2008, in the very first time of history, it is noted that more than half of the
total population of the world reside in urban regions. In the year 2003, United Nations has
estimated that by the year 2030, there are five billion individuals that are living in the urban
areas, which accounts for around 61% of the global population (Aston, 2013). The continuous
migration taking place in urban regions have substantial environmental results. The
unprecedented shift in condition through the countryside towards the cities had created
influence over the change in climate, in which urban regions includes around 70% of the
global emission of greenhouse gas (Aston, 2013). This report has examine about the adaptive
challenges in sustainable design and construction and their solutions through which
challenges can be mitigated.
Introduction
Cities are expanding and moving toward megacities that have high density or urban
planning, thin corridors and steep increase in urban structures. The rise in urbanization had
created the urban environment deterioration because the housing plot size had reduced;
therefore, it has increased density and crowded greenery (David and Nicholas, 1995). Cities
are recording increase in temperature as compared to non-urban regions, and this
phenomenon is known as urban heat island. Previous studies had shown that strong tie exists
among urban morphology and the rise in air temperature in city centres (Barrett, Sexton and
Green, 1999). It is noted that urban structure absorbs the solar heat at the daytime and release
the same during night time (Ruggieri, Cadena, Martinez-Blanco, Gasol, Rieradevall and
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Gabarrell, 2010). Dense areas also try to trap the heat that is released through urban structures
in the urban environment, lead to the rise in air temperature as compared to the nearby rural
regions and create UHI impact. UHI impacts the street level thermal comfort, quality of the
environment, health and it might raise the demand for urban energy (Gibberd, 2001).
With the increase in buildings and related infrastructure to cope up with the increased
city population, a massive amount of resources is needed for operation, construction, and
building maintenance. In spite of the importance of building as the resource in both operation
and maintenance, it hugely relies on the design quality (Abidin, 2010). In the past years, there
is a significant impact on the Green building design with the primary aim to build the
buildings even more sustainable through reducing the use of resources in operation,
construction, and building maintenance (Griffith, 1994). The system of building like, lighting
and air conditioning is referred energy guzzlers that can try to consume around 60% of the
total consumption of energy and its known as the commercial building. It can also affect the
quality of indoor environment. Therefore, the efficiency of energy of the system is essential.
The material selection that can reduce the embodied energy and waste construction is
essential (Hill and Bowen, 1997).
Adaptive challenges in sustainable design and construction
Advances in the Design, Construction, Operation, and Maintenance of the Built
Environment
The multifaceted relationship among the built environment as well as microclimate is
the main reason behind promoting sustainable theme within building and design practice
(Ortiz, Pasqualino and Castells, 2010). There is a considerable body of research studies and
knowledge about this topic; still, for understanding it entirely about microclimate effect on
the built environment, it’s quite tricky. The complete ecology system includes various
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systems that are huge to get quantified as well as depicted in models and numbers (Kibert,
1994). Nevertheless, this inadequate position of present knowledge related to the urban
relationship of climate should not become a reason to be indirect towards corrective actions
in the process of design. Engineers and planners are expected to see the design process with
the right analysis over all the ecological aspects, in which concern is usually placed not only
on current time but also on upcoming time (Loh, 2000). In the past years, many studies had
been conducted to develop the models, techniques, the platform of simulation, etc., for the
architects and urban planners for analysing the effect of design over different parameters of
the environment (Zimmermann, Althaus and Haas, 2005). One crucial aspect that depicts the
highly tremendous progress in urban climate study deals through the problem of UHI, urban
noise, urban airflow, daylighting, air pollution, as well as outdoor thermal comfort. In the
current years, it is analysed that modelling techniques placed over the map in the urban
climate such as solar radiation, temperature, wind and daylighting are developed so that it can
support in guiding the urban design (Miyatake, 1996). Different measures of mitigation like
the greenery integration with the urban structures, cool roof material implementation,
enhancement in urban airflow, and anthropogenic heat controls are researched to a great
extent (Miyatake, 1996).
At the level of the building, there is true progress in the performance modeling of
buildings and the related systems like energy, thermal, acoustic, lighting, quality of indoor air
with high certainty and precession. Through the information technology advancement, high
use of sensors as well as control systems is analyzed in buildings lead to proper performance
and efficiency of energy in buildings (Miyatake, 1996). At the level of material, it is noted
that Nanotechnology is implemented for developing the building material, which can assist in
enhancing the building performance like improving the acoustical and thermal insulation,
permitting the daylighting by the help of glazing system but minimizing the heat entry. The
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life cycle analysis concept is also launched that can quickly analyze the embodied resource
body all around the complete construction of life cycle (Miyatake, 1996). This also led
towards the better resource control usage during the planning, designing, operation, and
construction of the building.
Current Challenges Encountered in Sustainable Design and Construction
Despite the advancement in research and development in the construction of
environment as analysed in the previous section, there are still critical issues to be examined.
One important aspect is related to the combination of such practices ongoing in the design
process (Pitt, Tucker, Riley and Longden, 2009). It is noted that even most of the designers
view the task as the responsibility of consultants, instead of part or either parcel of design
work (Noah and Bradley, 1996). Therefore, it’s crucial that more research should be
undertaken for combining the modelling approach and process of design (Ortiz, Castells and
Sonnemann, 2009). Through the Building information modelling (BIM) advancement, it will
serve as the right way for combination to take place. It also permits the have the right mix of
various simulation methods, to attain a correct understanding of the relationship among
simulation model to take place (Porter, 1991). Presently, there is a lack of proper analysis of
inter-relationship among building and urban system. This type of analysis is essential as
studies depict the microclimate that is governed by the urban region and has a vital effect on
energy, lighting and thermal performance of the building. Presently, there are many research
task going at the urban level with the application of geographical information system (GIS).
The research of this type of inter-relationship among the urban and building system might
facilitate through the proper combination of BIM and GIS (Roberts, 1997).
Economic Challenges & Opportunities
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Economic issues are related to the limitation of budget and financial achievement for
the interior and client design practice. As per Roodman and Lensen (1995), certain reasons
impact the company’s ability to become part of the sustainable area that includes:
inappropriate funds, the motive of financial gain, proof that buyers try to seek towards
sustainable buildings, funds which are permitted to other causes and challenging process of
permission to mention a few (Roodman and Lensen, 1995). The most popular of all these
reasons is probably that related with irrelevant amount. It is noted that green items are priced
importantly more as compared to conventional elements and make conscientious client
budget that is selected reluctantly (Nelms, Russell and Lence, 2007).
Price should not be considered an impediment towards project progress, which could
be sustainable (John, Clements-Croome and Jeronimidis, 2005). It is noted that designers
should try to inform the customers, not just about the starting cost of the item, but also an
extra replacement, and maintenance cost related to conventional materials. Familiarly applied
in LEED Rating systems in the context of life cycle price that mainly evaluates the item
economic performance over the complete span of life (Shen and Tam, 2002).
Environmental Challenges & Opportunities
The present environment depicts the extensive series of issues, which act as a barrier
to the sustainable design progress. As per Stavins (1996), environmental challenges cover
policy maker of government for creating recommendation and structure of government,
which can comfortably accommodate the decision making for the long term, develop
communication connection with various other cities, and lack policies for enhancing choices
(Burgan and Sansom, 2006). Present legislation over the green buildings is precisely
considered as the patchwork for multiple cities or either building regulation of countries.
Various corporations and universities around the United States had also implemented the
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individual measures for migrating the sustainable buildings (Wong, 2015). The currently
explored International Green Construction Code (IGCC) seeks to bring change in a situation
through offering baseline provision for examining the simple issues of sustainability. It will
also permit the individual jurisdiction to include the jurisdictional electives for rightly
reflecting the local needs and situation (Wong, 2015).
Solutions
It is envisioned that in the coming time, there will be universal development and
combined model, which could embed the complete building and urban models. It also permits
to have a seamless combination of the two level of the model (Yahya and Boussabaine,
2010). This will try to facilitate the development in the conditions of the boundary, which is
generated through the urban model, which is easily used by the building model for
simulation. For instance, it is noted that simulation can undertake the temperature and wind
distribution at the urban level and such information could be used through the building model
for having the complete simulations of both temperature n wind condition going inside the
building (Wong, 2015).
Other significant development can be combined with sensors with an urban model to
master the plan and for creating the smart cities (Ugwu, Kumaraswamy, Wong and Ng,
2006). Such information at the level of the urban region will be propagated at the building
level, to accurately analyse the effect on energy and performance of the building (Osmani,
Glass and Price, 2008). At the building level, right integration of sensor information and
simulation performance can be attained and therefore, the same result into the proper
efficiency of energy and building performance (Wong, 2015). There should be more
combination of user behaviour with simulation performance.
Conclusion
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Presently, the research conducted in the sustainable design and construction seems to
look quite fragmented. It I crucial to develop a more holistic approach to the better analysis
of the relationship among building, urban, urban building, and material. It is also essential
that these analyses need to be propagated all around the process of building delivery through
the inception towards design, operation, and maintenance of the building environment.
Adaptive reuse also increases the life of building through ignoring the demolition waste
creation, and protect the embodied energy, which is appropriately identified to contribute
towards decreasing low carbon emissions, reducing the change in climate and attain
sustainable development.
Adaptive reuse of the antique buildings has rapidly seemed too emerged in the urban
building conservation, especially in developing countries. While saving the heritage building
value and providing building with the current use, the historic building reuse can also
improve the social and economic sustainability.it is revealed by practitioners that attaining
the low carbon needs to have a holistic reference of social, economic, political and
environmental concern that includes the four fundamental pillars of sustainability framework.
Therefore, the ongoing application of the heritage building needs to embrace the efficiency of
energy, cost effectiveness, low emission of carbon, harmonized relationship with the nearby
environment, social equity as well as cultural identity. Above all such this, political assistance
is required for facilitating the low emission of carbon.
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