Elemental

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These are my links for January 10th through January 14th:

• Why do architects earn less than other professionals? – BD Resource – Going back 50 years or so, architects used to have similar earning power to lawyers and medics, but we seem to have gradually painted ourselves out of the picture for clients. We wanted to focus on the interesting design bits. We didn’t want to “do money”, which led to the rise of the QS in advising and controlling costs for the clients. We were less interested in the management of projects, which led to the project manager becoming the client’s agent. All the so-called boring technical bits we delegated to technicians, technologists and engineers. No wonder clients now put far less value on what architects do.
• Building4Change : M&S backs A rated appliances and Code level 4 – Quite a commitment!: "High street retailer Marks and Spencer is incorporating energy efficient domestic appliances and building to level 4 of the Code for Sustainable Homes into its home insurance policy. If a property is damaged severely and warrants a total rebuild, properties will be rebuilt in line with the Code for Sustainable Homes level 4."
• Completion date scrapped for Masdar eco-city – Building – "Masdar, Abu Dhabi’s clean energy firm, has abandoned the final completion date of 2016 for its pioneering £13bn desert eco-city project.
  Initiated in 2006, Masdar City was billed as the world’s first carbon-neutral, zero-waste city. At the city’s groundbreaking ceremony in 2008 a completion date of 2016 was announced, but this has now been scrapped.
  The first stage of the project will be finished by 2013, with a new date of 2020 set for Masdar City to have a critical mass of residents and businesses."
• Ex-Llewelyn Davies Yeang team on move again | News | Architects Journal – Llewelyn Davies Yeang’s (LDY) former masterplanning unit has been sold on for the second time in two years
  The 13-strong team, which was offloaded by LDY in February 2008 to consulting giant the Tribal Group, has joined multi-disciplinary design and engineering outfit Scott Wilson.
• ASHRAE Standard 189.1 The Standard for the Design of High-Performance, Green Buildings – "Standard 189.1P, once published, will provide a ‘total building sustainability package’ for those who strive to design, build and operate green buildings. From site location to energy use to recycling, this standard will set the foundation for green buildings through its adoption into local codes. The Standard for the Design of High-Performance, Green Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings, is being developed by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) in conjunction with the Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) and the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). The standard is slated to be the first code-intended commercial green building standard in the United States when published early in 2010. It covers key topic areas similar to green building rating systems: site sustainability, water use efficiency, energy efficiency, indoor environmental quality, and the building’s impact on the atmosphere, materials and resources."
• Green, not grand – "Environmental concerns are no longer being overlooked by many developers, who have begun to take advantage of the politically correct, socially responsible image that being "green" provides, especially to attract multinational tenants. To prove their buildings are environmentally friendly, design professionals are beginning to adopt standards from the United States for "green" buildings, such as Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification, an internationally recognized rating system designed by the US Green Building Council. LEED certification is meant to verify that buildings are energy and water efficient, have low CO2 emissions, and utilize local resources that use smaller amounts of energy to create and transport. "

admin News 189.1, architect, ashrae, building, China, CSH, green, LDY, LEED, m&a, masdar, masterplanning, Scott_Wilson, standard

These are my links for October 5th through October 7th:

• Energy Efficiency Partnership for Homes – Partnership Publications – EEPH/CLG report: "This report presents results and findings of the joint EEPH (Energy Efficiency Partnership for Homes) and Department for Communities and Local Government (CLG) project to study the levels of compliance with Part L of the Building Regulations.
  Specifically, it presents the results from a study of compliance for new dwellings built since April 2006 in accordance with Approved Document L1A (2006). The results for the full sample for the 2nd Phase of the project are presented"
• The future of green building in China – ClimateChangeCorp.com – Interesting (long) article on green building in China: "Perceived high cost is another barrier. When a World Business Council for Sustainable Development survey in 2007 asked the real estate developers and building professionals worldwide how much more they thought green buildings cost than normal buildings, the Chinese respondents said they thought certified green buildings cost 28% more. They were unaware that in China the average extra cost for a LEED certified building has been 3-5% more. This figure is similar to the global average incremental cost for LEED certified buildings.
  Lewis says as long as the Chinese developers have a perception that green buildings cost a quarter more, they will surely not go for green projects."
  China’s green building targets
  * Reduce building energy use in all cities by 50% by 2010 and 65% by 2020 (base year 1980)
  * Top 1000 State Owned Enterprises Programme aims to improve energy efficiency in the largest SOEs by 2010…
• Target Zero – About Target Zero – AECOM have been commissioned by Corus and BCSA: "The aim of this project is to understand the implications of the UK Government's move towards 'zero carbon' for five steel framed non-domestic building types.
  Target Zero will research and cost options for improving operational energy consumption and reducing embodied energy and other life-cycle impacts. The fully costed solutions generated will demonstrate how to achieve the three highest BREEAM ratings and meet the anticipated changes to Part 'L' of the Building Regulations."
• Zerofootprint » Communities – Interesting competition to retrofit a post-war, pre-90's concrete building and operate at net zero for a year. Their definition of net zero is on-site NOT community level, and by my reckoning excludes biomass: "All the energy required to power household amenities, cool, heat, and light the building must be provided on a net zero basis. Possible onsite energy systems can include wind, solar, bio-fuel cells (from occupant produced organic waste), hydrogen cells, etc. Energy must be produced by devices located within the building and its nearby property, and cannot be powered by fuel brought to the building. The building can contribute excess energy to the grid and, when necessary, access an equivalent amount, but no more."
• Passivhaus Windows | GreenBuildingAdvisor.com – I've been slightly obsessed with window u-values recently. This article has a great overview of German vs. US calculations differences and some good suppliers for windows from Canada: "When I interviewed Dr. Wolfgang Feist in 2007, he told me, “The reason for the number which we now use in Europe is the comfort of the occupants. It is a functional definition. During the winter, the coldest surface temperature in the room will be the window. If you don’t have a radiator in your room, the difference between the surface temperature of the window and the mean surface temperature of the room should not be more than 3 degrees Celsius; that’s for comfort reasons.”
  The colder the climate, the more important it is to use U-0.14 or better windows in a Passivhaus building — and not just for comfort. Low U-factor windows are necessary to meet the Passivhaus maximum annual heating energy standard of 15 kWh per square meter."

admin News building, Canada, carbon, China, competition, compliance, domestic, dwellings, German, green, part_L, passivhaus, residential, targets, u-values, UK, US, windows, zero, zero_carbon

These are my links for August 15th through August 19th:

• Track LEED v3 Credits in Project Management Software – It can only be a matter of time before we see a BREEAM focused product like this? :"Tracking LEED credits is a document-intensive process. Just ask any experienced LEED Accredited Professional (AP). Submittal documentation includes drawings, receipts, product spec sheets, photos, commission plans and more. Adding to the clutter, numerous project members will access and edit these documents.
  Project management software, especially web-based systems, act as a repository for the storage and retrieval of critical project documents. Simply upload a document into the system, then attach it to the appropriate LEED-credit log. From there you can track the history of a document, see every change that has been made and who made it."
• Spillway: The Joy of Sprawl – Lovely blog post on SimCity which almost had me downloading the game straight away: "Realism and terrain constraints help ameliorate this problem, but generally the most beautiful cities are the ones that develop organically, at least in part, with some lack of planning thrown in."
• RICS survey finds some breathing space before the real storm hits (Brickonomics) – More doom from Brian: "So a less horrific picture than six months ago, but this can only realistically be seen as a breathing space before the nasty onslaught on public sector cuts takes effect.
  On my assessment the industry has about a year to reshape itself for levels of workload far below those to which it has grown accustomed. More importantly, it will need to learn how to live without turnover growth.
  Sadly the signs are that the industry is self-harming in the run up to its biggest challenge in a generation. Not the best preparation.
  Back to two of my big concerns of the moment: lunatic bidding (and it is not just our contracting brethren); and the madnes
• Why contractors can’t help suicidal bidding when the workload turns down (Brickonomics) – Excellent analysis from Brian (as always): "On the face of it contractors face the "Prisoner's dilemma", the classic game theory problem.
  In expressing the dilemma facing UK contractors in terms of the game we get something like:
  Contractors cannot discuss prices, but they know if they all take a "cooperative" stance and refuse to bid below cost then the industry remains competitive, but without being suicidal. If workloads are shrinking it probably means they each share the pain of reduced turnover, but at least the work they do win remains profitable or at cost. Their vanity may be damaged, but their sanity remains intact.
  But if some break rank, those that hold firm win no work and go out of business.
  So, as the theory suggests, they go for the option where they can best control the level of risk and which offers the least-worst option. This means they all take to bidding below cost.
  This creates a downward spiral where the exit point is collapse of firms who can no longer sustain t
• Asia Times Online :: China News, China Business News, Taiwan and Hong Kong News and Business. – Good to see hutongs being renovated rather than razed. I'm hoping they can manage to add in WC's to most buildings – last time I was there you still had to pop out of the bar/restaurant and leg it to the public loos on each street – intelligent addition of infrastructure is one of the main limiting factors to keeping areas like this useable: "I believe the next 10 years we will see far greater investment in the city's hutongs," Bechtle continues. "Places such as Nanluoguxiang are already showing how Beijing's alleyways and courtyards can be renovated intelligently. The quality of life is being raised there without sacrificing architectural aesthetics."
• Blog: Sustainability – the most interesting aspect of London 2012? – London 2012 – James Cracknell is Sustainability Ambassador for London 2012. After watching 'On Thin Ice', I'm in awe of this guy's (sometimes dangerous to himself) drive and grit: "Over the last few years, having rowed across the Atlantic and skied to the South Pole, my perception of the world we live in has changed. But it was the definition of sustainability on a human level – 'the potential for long-term improvements in wellbeing, which in turn depend on the wellbeing of the natural world and the responsible use of natural resources' – which probably best conveys why this was an area I wanted to try and help LOCOG achieve the targets they've set themselves."
• Uneconomic Growth – I'm fascinated by this premise, but how to translate from theory to reality?: "At what point do we realize that growth can only take us so far? Initially growth did a lot for our progress, but now we are seeing the impacts of uneconomic growth worldwide. It is time we turned our focus away from growing – getting larger – and push for development – getting better. The steady state economy is the logical next step for a growth economy that has reached the end of economic growth."
• Real Life LEED: Deconstruction Costs Revealed (aka Sustainable Demolition) – Deconstruction vs. demolition (in addition to the costs, think about time), and the offset of waste 'charges' vs. salvage: "On a 6,800 sf office/warehouse building, deconstruction costs showed a 20.9% ($2,128) premium over standard demolition, but that was more than offset by the retail value of the salvaged material at $3,046."
• Trends lend support to need for AEC Web 2.0 adoption « pwcom 2.0 – Great post from Paul, but don't forget Gen X cohort will be the 33-54 demographic over the next 15 years, anecdotal evidence suggests Gen Y have more in common with baby boomers (i.e. their parents): "Smaller employment pools will cause skills shortages as the 33-54 cohort decreases by 6 per cent over the next 15 years, creating ongoing recruitment, retention, and reward challenges … Also, Kogan believes, future leaders will want constant communication through technology, which means they’re always in touch and able to work, blurring the line between work and life outside of work – in other words, the classic description of Generation Y (or even Generation Z) and its demand for Web 2.0 tools and techniques to support new ways of working."
• Design Activism – The 'trouble' with environmentalism. I would never describe myself as an activist, but this Ann picks up this point on the other side of the coin (personal small changes):
  "Protest and direct action are powerful, but also risky and potentially dangerous. By contrast, personal change–drive less, eat organic food–is relatively safe and “easy.” As Derrick Jensen argues, writing in Orion magazine, personal change doesn’t equal political change:
  “Would any sane person think dumpster diving would have stopped Hitler, or that composting would have ended slavery or brought about the eight-hour workday, or that chopping wood and carrying water would have gotten people out of Tsarist prisons, or that dancing naked around a fire would have helped put in place the Voting Rights Act of 1957 or the Civil Rights Act of 1964? Then why now, with all the world at stake, do so many people retreat into these entirely personal “solutions”?"
• Tories to take axe to Partnerships for Schools – Building – And so it begins: "The Conservatives are preparing to slash the budget of delivery body Partnerships for Schools under proposals to cut the cost of the UK’s school building programme.
  The plans are part of an overhaul of schools policy, including the £55bn Building Schools for the Future programme, being discussed by the shadow Treasury team and shadow schools department. It is likely to see funds diverted from new buildings and major refurbishments towards smaller improvements in areas such as IT and furnishings."

admin News Activism, baby_boomers, bidding, BREEAM, BSF, China, Conservative, construction_industry, contractor, deconstruction, demolition, development, Economics, environmentalism, extranet, gdp, gen_X, gen_Y, growth, hutongs, infrastructure, LEED, London2012, PFS, planning, Productivity, Psychology, recession, simcity, Sustainability, Tory, urban, waste

These are my links for July 18th through July 19th:

• Crouching Tiger? | Forum For The Future – Excellent article on China. "Government backing for big green ambitions is also in evidence at Tianjin. This industrial port east of Beijing is to be the site of a hugely ambitious new ‘eco-city’, a joint Chinese-Singaporean venture which will shortly enter its first phase with the construction of a 1.5km2-‘eco-business park’. When complete, the city’s 350,000 residents will live in super-efficient buildings clustered in hubs designed to minimise commuting needs, and travel to work by light railway. It’s a lot less ambitious when it comes to energy, however, with only 20% to be sourced from renewables.
  In a country which builds two Manhattan islands’ worth of new floor space every year, there’s an urgent need for such exemplar developments. But Tianjin’s experiment will be watched closely, because such projects in China have often not lived up to expectations. "
• The Lazy Environmentalist: Desertec Industrial Initiative – I don't know how Polly finds the time or energy, but she's got good news for DESERTEC: "The aim is to ensure by 2050 that solar power from the northern Sahara will meet at least 15 percent of European electricity needs and a significant proportion of local electricity demand in the countries of North Africa. The purpose of the newly founded initiative is to clarify the technological issues and create the neccessary political, socio-political and economic foundations and develop a vaible implementation plan within the next three years. The DII is expected to network closely with the scientific community, non-governmental organisations and governement organisations. The DESERTEC Foundation will play a central role in this respect."
• how good is PAYS? « carbon limited – Great explanation from Casey on how PAYS might work (or not). The long and the short of it: "Even at this broad brush level, it’s clear that there will be a significant shortfall here. PAYS will not, single handedly, solve the existing stock problem. Someone else – either government or homeowners – are going to have to stump up and the costs are likely to be high."

admin News africa, China, CSP, desertec, Energy, Europe, existing, PAYS, refurbishment, sahara

These are my links for June 3rd through June 5th:

• ECUK – Sustainability – Engineers chartered with EC now explicitly expected to "Do more than just comply with legislation and codes": "ECUK’s Guidance on Sustainability clarifies the role of engineers in relation to sustainability and lists six principles to guide professional engineers in their work. It should be read alongside sustainability related information produced by Professional Engineering Institutions, such as codes, policy statements or guidance of a technical nature. "
• Sustainable legislation: keep it simple – Building – Pooran Desai of BioRegional takes on CSH: "Up to Code Level 4, the outcomes from an environmental persepective are basically sound though the metrics can be made more straightforward, robust. However, Code 5 and 6 as they are currently written are of dubious environmental value. The industry now generally accepts that forcing ‘net zero carbon’ on-site electricity generation is not helpful. There are other problems. On higher density sites particularly where you can’t collect sufficient rainwater to flush toilets, it forces on-site grey water treatment, often energy and chemical intensive, when even the Centre for Alternative Technology states that conventional sewage treatment is more eco-friendly than on-site grey water recycling. The solutions needed to deliver Code 5 and 6 are not just expensive in capital terms, but may not be kept operational because of high maintenance costs. This means that many homes built to current Code Level 5 and 6 will be less eco-friendly than Code 4."
• Genuine partnership remains the key to regeneration success – The Regeneration Blog – Excellent point, and not just for regeneration, but the entire construction industry: "I was at a conference the other day when a very clever person (oh, I wish, I wish, it had been me) said "less than three years ago we were confidently asserting that we had seen the end of boom-and-bust, now we are bust we are pinning our hopes back on the forthcoming boom. Well, you can't have it both ways"."
• Lord Turner on failed markets, irrational markets and environmental policy – 21 May 2009 – "The CCC’s report concluded that the electricity sector would have to be radically decarbonised by the 2030s in order to meet the 80% 2050 target. This cleaner electricity could then be applied, across other sectors such as transport, to help reduce emissions. He said that the CCC had concluded that the volatile nature of the financial market, with its direct impact on carbon and fossil fuel prices meant that a wholly market-led approach to tackling climate change would simply not work. Stronger policy instruments, coupled with government intervention would be needed to deliver the radical changes required."
• Living Building Challenge Version 1.3 — ILBI – A kind of supplement to LEED, via CRGBC: "The Living Building Challenge is a rigorous performance standard that defines the closest measure of true sustainability in the built environment, using a benchmark of what is currently possible and given the best knowledge available today. Version 1.3 is comprised of sixteen prerequisites within six performance areas, or Petals: Site, Energy, Materials, Water, Indoor Quality, and Beauty + Inspiration."
• China’s Grand Plans for <br/>Eco-Cities Now Lie Abandoned by Christina Larson: Yale Environment 360 – Arup's mythical Dongtan – lessons learned (a must-read): "Dongtan and other highly touted eco-cities across China were meant to be models of sustainable design for the future. Instead they’ve become models of bold visions that mostly stayed on the drawing boards — or collapsed from shoddy implementation. More often than not, these vaunted eco-cities have been designed by big-name foreign architectural and engineering firms who plunged into the projects with little understanding of Chinese politics, culture, and economics — and with little feel for the needs of local residents whom the utopian communities were designed to serve."
• NYCDOT – Street Design Manual – "The New York City Street Design Manual provides policies and design guidelines to city agencies, design professionals, private developers and community groups for the improvement of streets and sidewalks throughout the five boroughs. It is intended to serve as a comprehensive resource for promoting higher quality street designs and more efficient project implementation.
  The Manual builds on the experience of innovation in street design, materials and lighting that has developed around the world, emphasizing a balanced approach that gives equal weight to transportation, community and environmental goals. It is designed to be a flexible document that will change and grow, incorporating new treatments as appropriate after testing. The use and continued development of the Street Design Manual will assure that New York City remains a leading innovator in the public realm as it becomes a greater, greener city."
• Eco-ventilation health scare prompts regulation change – Building – "The draft report by the BRE’s Dr Michael Swainson and seen by Building, found that filters were not being replaced when worn out, which could lead to a build-up of humidity, carbon dioxide and other pollutants, as well as driving up energy use. It also says this could increase the risk of cancer in the homes of smokers.
  Mechanical ventilation systems are required in energy-efficient airtight homes to make sure that fresh air can circulate and that pollutants and humidity are extracted from the house. However, like a hoover, if the filter is not replaced the system stops working.
  The systems are virtually unavoidable if a home is to meet level four of the Code for Sustainable Homes, which all new homes in the social sector must meet by 2010."

admin News arup, bedzed, built_environment, chartership, China, cities, city, code, CSH, design, dongtan, EC, EcoHomes, Economics, electricity, filters, generation, mcdonough, nyc, obligations, planning, recession, standards, Sustainability, transport, UK, urban, ventilation

What I’ve been reading about:

• Andrew Todd: ‘the Gehrys and the Libeskinds don’t add anything to a city’ ~ Cafebabel – "Architecture has now become a political act, involving huge amounts of money, so only good governments can support good projects."
• The Chinese Century – Review of a book I have on my bookcase on China and construction. Good article and tempting me to crack on with the massive tome itself.
• HOK Partners with Biomimicry Guild to Advance Green Design – GreenSource Magazine – Fascinating developments in the world of built sustainability: "HOK, the world’s largest architectural/engineering firm, recently announced a formal partnership with the Biomimicry Guild. In an audio press conference, representatives from both organizations strove to impress biomimicry as an emerging and vital element of sustainable design. The Biomimicry Guild was founded ten years ago by biologists Janine Benyus and Danya Baumeister based on their interest in using their special knowledge of biological adaptations to solve design and engineering challenges. They are to date the only group in the world dedicated to this approach."
• Green Prefab Architect Michelle Kaufmann Releases White Paper Calling for “Nutrition Labels” for Houses – Potential EPC competitor for global housing? "Michelle Kaufmann, award-winning green architect and sustainable living expert, today announced the release of the white paper, "Nutrition Labels for Houses." The white paper explores the need for a universal sustainability labeling standard for houses in the same vein as the federally mandated Nutrition Facts Label for foods. It also asserts that a universal labeling system would help grow the green building industry by making it easier for homebuyers to understand the environmental, health, and financial benefits of living in a green home. "
• UAE puts up £7.34bn to avoid property crash – Building – “The cost of capital is increasing, and a slowdown or correction in real estate pricing is inevitable. The margins are still healthy but it is getting harder.”
• Arts Energy – Home – Arts Council England has developed a self-assessment toolkit for arts organisations to help them implement an effective energy management programme. Such a programme can reduce energy usage and carbon emissions, potentially reducing energy costs by up to 20%.
  The toolkit consists of a number of modules that identify energy efficiency opportunities, develop good energy management practices and set up an action plan. In addition the tool will allow registered users to track their energy performance over time using relevant performance indicators.

mel starrs News Architecture, Arts, biomimicry, book, China, competitors, Council, Dubai, Energy, HOK, Housing, labelling, recession, review, toolkit, UK

These are my links for August 26th through August 28th:

• Sending recycling to China ‘better than binning it’ – "This study sought to answer the specific question of whether the CO2 emissions from the transport outweighed the benefits of the recycling. It quantifies the CO2 emissions from transporting one tonne of recovered mixed paper or recovered plastic (PET/HDPE) bottles to China. It assumes that the carbon savings of recycling in China are similar to those identified in other countries, including the UK. "
• Soft Landings – "Welcome to Soft Landings, a joint initiative between BSRIA, the Usable Buildings Trust and the Darwin Consultancy, that enables a graduated handover for new and refurbished buildings. The Soft Landings project will result in a set of procedures and worksteps for project teams to stay engaged with buildings after practical completion."
• National Statistics Online – Product – Construction Statistics Annual – 266 page pdf – "Responsibility for producing the Construction Statistics Annual, starting with the 2008 edition, has been transferred from BERR to the ONS.
  Brings together under one cover a wide range of statistics that are currently available on the construction industry. It gives a broad perspective of statistical trends in the construction industry in Great Britain through the last decade together with some international comparisons and features on leading initiatives that may influence the future.
  Contains construction output and new orders, tender price, output price and cost indices, data on building materials, floorspace statistics, local and central government expenditure, lottery funded projects, international comparisons, employment statistics, workload of professionals, planning applications,…"
• Puffbox.com » Archive » Another reason to use Twitter – Good advice from Simon on how businesses could be using Twitter.
• Inhabitat » ZIGGURAT: Dubai Carbon Neutral Pyramid will House 1 Million – Another grand plan for Dubai – this time a Ziggurat. Apparently they'll be able to grow food (in greenhouses???). Would love to know more about this – for instance how will they get daylight deep into the middle of the base of the pyramid? And who are these 1 million inhabitants? It really does look like something from Star Trek, which sadly quite excites me, despite my inner cynic screaming that it can't possibly be sustainable. Quite happy to be proven wrong…

mel starrs News built_environment, China, construction_industry, Dubai, handover, POE, recycling, seo, statistics, Sustainability, twitter, waste

It’s not like me to talk about air conditioning – I spend most of my time trying to design it out. However, I found myself pondering the international market and what else is a blog for, than a place to throw out your half-baked thoughts to the world. Feel free to jump in and correct any misguided notions I have come up with…

Every year BSRIA publishes a review, the latest of which can be found here.

In 2007, the world market for air conditioning was valued at US$62 billion compared to US$55 billion in 2006. Asia Pacific is the largest market with total sales amounting to US$28 billion in 2007. The Chinese market alone was valued at US$12 billion in 2007. Sales of air conditioners in the Total Americas region were valued at US$15 billion, followed closely by Europe with US$13 billion market size in 2007. The Middle East, Africa and India market was valued at US$5 billion.

If you’ve ever been to Beijing, or any other city in China, you can’t help but notice the hundreds of split units haphazardly sprouting from beneath windows on every tower block.

There is a case to be made for installing cooling in China (close to 40ºC in the south central areas), and I’m not (yet) party to the school of thinking that believes humans can adapt to every temperature on earth and should therefore live without air conditioning technology. You should however design out as much heat gain with the fabric as possible.

To demonstrate, here are two buildings in Montevideo, the capital of Uruguay, S. America. The first, Palacio Salvo was once the tallest building in South America at 26 storeys high and completed in 1925. I don’t know if it has central air, but it is faces south east (remember, we’re in the southern hemisphere) and is constructed from heavy weight materials with tall floor to floor heights, tall windows, but relatively small window to wall ratio. No external units to be seen on the facade (although there might be some on the roof).

Compare this to the building on the opposite side of the Plaza Independencia. I couldn’t find the name but I suspect it was built in the sixties. The building axis is north-south, exposing the major facade to sun for most of the time. And look at the facade!

Covered in through the wall units, which is no wonder given the light weight construction and high proportion of glass.

Clearly, things ought to have moved on. We ought to have learnt our lessons. But the apartments going up in China leave a lot to be desired. These apartment blocks are relatively new. Why were they not designed with central air or with splits in a central location? I’m no expert on Chinese construction, but I suspect it could be to do with the common practice of selling apartments as ’shells’ – the buyer fits out and finishes the apartment. And of course it could be that the wealth of the inhabitants is increasing at a rate faster than the housebuilders are planning on.

BSRIA point out that the window units market is shrinking (except in India), so we are learning lessons and moving away from individual window units (except in India, where they are expecting slow growth), but the market for minisplits continues apace.

My main gripe with splits (especially when the condenser is mounted on the external wall outside) is that it indicates a bolt-on solution, and therefore a sloppiness or laziness in the design of the building. They smack of retrofit and are, let’s face it, ugly. Aesthetically, they ruin buildings. There is an argument to be made in that minisplits ensure that only the areas required are colled at any one time, but I’m sure how well this stacks up.  Can anyone point me to study which defends or argues against this position?

Given a global view of the world, what do we need to do next to ensure that air conditioning growth in hotter* countries doesn’t negate any carbon savings made elsewhere in the world? Whose responsibility is it?

BSRIA point out that mature markets are well placed to help out:

A growing awareness of green technologies and energy efficiency will continue to have a significant impact on air-conditioning applications in saturated markets and will support a trend for more advanced products such as inverters, heat recovery and VRFs.

But there are warning signs too. The market in moveable units has plummeted in Europe:

This was partially caused by customers switching to permanent cooling solutions such as minisplits in anticipation of changes in global weather.

Is it too late? Are we going to have to mitigate against expected warming and start designing back in air conditioning which we have been trying to design out for the past decade? It’s a worrying thought.

*Jared Diamond’s excellent book ‘Guns, Germs and Steel’ is a great place to start for an understanding of why the world’s wealth was distributed like it was by the mid twentieth century. Can’t recommend it enough.

mel starrs Opinion air conditioning, China, global market, mini splits, South America

These are my links for April 1st through April 5th:

• How To Find Lost Objects – via LifeHacker – a 122 page pdf on a similar vein to www.flylady.net
• IES <VE SBEM> EPC SOFTWARE MEETS 6TH APRIL DEADLINE – IES on the ball again when it comes to SBEM (even though their DSM software IMO is the tool you ought to use)
• Cover It Live – via Simon Dickson, a killer live blogging app. Might try this for Think 08…
• Cutting carbon will grow US economy – Researchers at Yale University reviewed 25 leading economic models and showed that GDP would increase by around 3 %/y if dramatic carbon cutting measures were adopted across the country.
• 1 April 2008: New release of iSBEM_v3.1.a for EPCs – The overheating calculation still isn't working – expect yet another version in the future…
• Hong Kong BEAM – Green Building Label – Interesting statistics – "A US study, for example, found that certified green buildings cost 1.8% more to design and construct, but yield 20% cost savings over the life of the building."
• PM helps householders go green – Article not that exciting in itself, but found it via Twitter. I love Twitter…"Green Neighbourhoods initiative will give a "green makeover" to up to 100 neighbourhoods in England with an aim to reduce their carbon footprints by more than 60 per cent."
• China Launches Green Building Council: An Interview with Kevin Hydes, World GBC Chair – China, BREEAM and LEED. International standards currently only used in office buildings for multinationals or upscale apartments. China's version called what? (link goes to mandarin site)

mel starrs News BEAM, Blogging, BREEAM, business_case, calculator, carbon, certification, China, commitments, dsm, ebook, Economics, free, government, green, Green Building Council, gtd, ies, Kevin Hydes, LEED, lifehacks, Productivity, SBEM, Simon Dickson, Software, United Kingdom, United States, web2.0, www.flylady.net, Yale University

What caught my eye today, February 6th:

• Answers to your questions (Jonathon Porritt) – Great interview with Jonathan Porritt. I particularly like his response to the thorny issues of BP/BAA and offsetting flights.
• FT no longer on the QT about wind power – Summary from Greenpeace on recent article on wind power in the FT
• Bordeaux to measure wine’s CO2 footprint – I’m hoping for a low figure…
• Population bombs – George Monbiot joins the debate on population. Worth a read.
• Sustainability: Two Irreconcilable Perspectives – Thoughtful piece from Dave Pollard on how business is currently thinking about sustainability.
• The great fuel folly – Jeremy Leggatt in full conspiracy theory flow, thinks the big five are up to something and oil may have peaked at 85m barrels a day.
• China urges US, Oz to lead on climate change – Watch out – China could pull this off yet…

mel starrs News China, Dave Pollard, George Monbiot, Greenpeace, Jeremy Leggatt, Jonathan Porritt, Jonathon Porritt, oil, United States