Green Building

The client is also the designer of the building. The office building is built on 1585 sqft. , trapezoidal plot facing west. Lack of space in old office building leads to the construction of new office building, which at present houses 35 members and is flexible to carry 65 members. Making of this green office building, was inspired from (a) Jain Aparigraha (Jain philosophy) (b) A book –“The third curve” by Mansoor Khan and (c) Sri Lankan Architect Geoffrey Bawa.

This is a green office building which abides to the philosophy of PANCHATATVA ELEMENTS, The most frequently occurring theory of classical elements, namely, earth, water, air, fire, and sky.
WATER-
• Water reuse
• Rain water harvesting
• Water metering
• PEX plumbing system
• Root zone treatment
SKY-
• 75% of building is day lit
• Sensors light used
• North facade glazed visual connection

EARTH-
• Conservation of top soil during excavation
• Floor- kota stone
AIR-
• Cross and natural ventilation
• HVAC with fresh air system with VRV full inverter
• CO₂ sensors
FIRE-
• Solar panels/solar hybrid inverter system
• Staircase on south wall

This building is functional having a basement, ground floor and 2 floors. This is the smallest green office building with a plot size of 1585 sq. ft. Green practices are taken in account at all stages of the completion of the project.
The floors in this building are segregated functionally-
• The basement is planned for the engineering, accounts, and sales/purchase staff. Contractors gather here for verification & bill certification. There is also a Sample room for the clients.

• The design staff works on the ground floor, closest to the green lawn. The glazed facade provides a visual connection between the working floor and the green garden. This floor has a meeting room which could be used for meetings between staff and the contractors.

• The Principal of the firm gets easy access to the design staff and conference room from the first floor cabin. A VIP Lounge on this floor enables clients to wait comfortably. The managing director cabin is sandwiched between two floors i.e. studio and conference. This makes the building accessible for the director and it is convenient for him to communicate.

• The second floor comprises of a conference room which has provision for unobstructed view on the east and north faces. This floor also houses the product design division which gets access to the east faced opening and a small green patch that is open to sky. The Conference hall is multifunctional as the space can be used for different activities i.e. meetings, presentations, sample selections etc. by the users.

• Terrace has been utilized for ancillary facilities and includes a dining area, washroom and pantry. The terrace is covered by a traditional slab on girder roof. A provision of solar panels saves energy for this building.

GREEN ELEMENTS -

TOILET-
The toilets of all different levels are planned in a different way. Water is saved by using water efficient fixtures and water treatment plant.
NON-CARCINOGENIC PEX PLUMBING SYSTEM-
The PEX system is part of a water supply piping system that has several advantages over metal pipe or rigid plastic pipe systems.

GLASS-
Glass-High performing, double glazed unit having visual light transmittance- 50% and solar heat gain coefficient < .3.

LIGHT-
This building is provided with a full glazing on north façade because of which 75% of the building is day lit. Occupancy sensors with LED lights helps to save energy.

HVAC-
Use of centralized VRV 3 inverter AC with an additional HRV unit which gives 30% fresh air to the occupants.

GREEN WALL-
A green wall is used to hide solar panels as well as to aesthetically please the terrace.

SOLAR PANELS-
A 10 KW photovoltaic system is installed, thereby helping to run all the fixtures, fans and computers through solar panels.

WINDOWS-
The building is well ventilated, by windows on east and west walls.

STAIRCASE-
The staircase is planned on the south wall of the building as well as it is the most heated wall.

PAINT-
Eco-clean paints are applied on the interiors and exteriors. All interior walls are without putty.

ROOT ZONE TREATMENT-
Grey water is treated naturally without the use of any pumps, chemicals or ozone. Water is filtrated through a process in which a plat named as reed grass purifies water through its roots.

Sustainable practices are:
• Solar Passive Design- Natural & Cross Ventilation, Buffer Spaces on South Façade, Maximum use of Day lighting / North Light, Terrace Garden, External Shading, Light Well, High Thermal Mass, Night Purge Ventilation, Green Walls, Recessed/Box Windows & 100% views to Outdoors.
• Active Design- Installation of SKN 154 & 144 DGUs, VRV-III, Under Deck Insulation, LED lighting, Daylight & Occupancy Sensors, HRW system and 10kwp Solar-PV installation
• 51.5% energy savings over ASHRAE 90.1-2010 & ECBC 2008.
• The LPD achieved is 0.45W/sq ft, the entire lighting system is integrated with Daylight, Occupancy sensors & Task Lighting.
• On-site Root-Zone treatment through Reed grass (PHRAGMITES) of capacity 3000l/day.
• ECO-CLEAN paints have been used.
• PEX plumbing system is used.