You might have noticed that there’s a race to do something about climate change …
This is an emergency Without big reductions
in global carbon dioxide emissions, the world cannot win the fight against climate change.
We are in the fight of our lives, and we are losing!
As much as we love it, if the construction industry wants to be a leader in that race
it's got its work cut out. Everything from the type of buildings we make
to the materials we build them with are having a huge impact on the environment.
In fact, the built world accounts for around 40% of all greenhouse gas emissions,
so it has a fundamental role to play in helping us turn the tide.
But it’s not all doom and gloom. Some of the most exciting buildings being
constructed today are good for the environment and good for us.
So as we enter a crucial new year in the fight against climate change,
we’re taking a look at five buildings that are changing the way we build for the better.
Let’s kick off in
Shanghai, China’s most populated city, where local company Lankuaikei Agriculture Development
has been using cutting edge tech to create a more efficient, sustainable form of farming.
But not content to use tech to transform farming,
they’re also using it to create a pioneering new headquarters.
2023 will see LAD move into their new Shanghai HQ which is billed as
being an “energy neutral, zero emission, zero water building”
To achieve this the building is packed full of features to manage heat,
ventilation and water consumption.
The front of the building faces a lake which allows cool air to flow
in through its open terraces. The roof slopes at a carefully designed angle to
prevent the summer sun from overheating while allowing the winter sun to warm.
Rain water is collected by the terraces and stored underneath the building for use in
services, while the plants which line the terraces filter the air and provide shade.
These features reduce the need for mechanical systems to provide services as the building
does it automatically. That means it’s using less energy than usual,
in turn shrinking its carbon footprint.
And its not the only one of its kind to be doing that in China.
Heading down the coast to Shenzhen, China’s Silicon Valley, where skyscrapers used to
be the order of the day, different forms of building are now emerging.
China’s love affair with the high rise seemingly came to an abrupt halt in 2022
when a nationwide ban stopped almost anything over 500 metres being built.
As you might guess, most skyscrapers aren’t very sustainable, and the mega
tall ban seems to have ushered in a new wave of innovation.
Opening later this year, the WeBank tower in Shenzhen is changing some
basic assumptions of what a tall building can be.
Most tall buildings are sealed off by a curtain wall of glass,
meaning all heating and ventilation inside the building has to be mechanically controlled.
Now, that’s a big deal as air conditioning a city
in the sky uses huge amounts of energy and creates pollution from exhaust fumes.
The solution architects at SOM came up with for the WeBank Tower
was to create cutaways into each floor, mixing indoor and outdoor,
allowing more daylight and creating natural ventilation through the building.
This approach has also reduced the amount of glazing needed on the exterior of the
building by around half that of a similar curtain wall skyscraper.
Now, headquarters for banks and tech start ups are all well and good for showcasing cutting edge
technology, but we’re going to need to change the way we build at all levels to beat climate change.
That’s exactly what our next building is aiming to do. Taking advantage
of a recent change in building codes, the Return to Form tower in Denver is
aiming to inspire a new generation of timber construction in the US.
Timber is a great building material because it’s
renewable and stores carbon it captures from the atmosphere during photosynthesis.
But for tall buildings its use has been limited by scepticism over its
structural durability and its resistance to fire.
But following extensive research a new provision,
excitingly known as G147-21 has been passed in the US. It increases the allowable area of
exposed timber ceilings from 20% to 100% in buildings up to 12 storeys.
That might sound like a strange humble brag, but it means buildings like Return to Form can
be feasibly constructed en masse without any complicated bureaucracy. That means
buildings can use more timber to replace less sustainable materials like steel and concrete.
Work starts on the tower later this year and when it’s complete it will have 84 flats,
a cafe, lobby and a gym and with a bit of luck,
we could be seeing many more buildings like this in the future.
Now we couldn’t make a video about sustainable buildings without mentioning Scandinavia.
In Norway’s capital Oslo another tower is being
constructed, which could become a huge influence on green building design.
This is the Gullhaug Tor, a recently announced 16 storey
office and residential tower. Like the WeBank tower in Shanghai it uses
the form of the building to create natural heating and ventilation.
This is achieved by placing the building in a triangular site
which allows for greater airflow and solar gain from the sun as
well as architectural features which will facilitate air flow.
But it’s not just this new system that’s making this building an eco
icon. Everything from how you get to the building to the materials it's made of
will help add to a 50 percent reduction of CO2 emissions as compared to a similar building.
This ventilation system will be the first of its kind for an office and apartment tower in Norway.
That’s important because it shows this kind of technology isn’t just for super big,
rich buildings but can be used by ordinary, everyday buildings
as well. If we’re going to beat climate change all buildings will need to change.
So far we’ve focused on individual buildings, but how about something on a larger scale? Well
for that we’ll need to head over to UNESCO’s 2023 World Capital of Architecture: Copenhagen.
If the words urban redevelopment project send a shiver down your spine, hear us out,
because there’s a project here which is trying to be both environmentally and socially sustainable.
As any fans of The B1M will know, large scale city developments can have mixed results,
to say the least, but in a former harbour in
the north of Denmark’s capital there’s a regeneration project with a difference.
This is Nordø, a 115 home development in the Nordhavn smart city area. Designed
to be accessed by foot or bike, the development is a traffic-free
“island oasis” within easy reach of everything the wider city has to offer.
Most importantly though, the building by Henning Larsen has been awarded DGNB Gold,
a world leading sustainability label.
While other environmental awards like LEED or BREEAM are awarded by assessing
what has been added on to a design to make it more eco friendly, DGNB looks
at the whole lifecycle of a project from an ecologic and social sustainable perspective.
Nordø earned this award by reducing CO2 emissions over the entire lifecycle of
the project from construction to operation and through other features like creating
better indoor environments through enhanced daylight and ventilation.
Whether its high tech headquarters or timber towers, 2023 is going to
be a year of new precedents and big ambition.
There’s also the chance to dive deeper on this and the other topics on our channel
over on The World’s Best Construction Podcast – available now wherever you get
your podcasts. And as always , if you want to learn more about where construction is headed,
make sure you’re subscribed to Tomorrow’s Build.