Today, the 5th day of June, is the World Environment day.

I've read quite a lot of articles in the news prints as well as watched many a programmes on the TV today about the topic. All of these programmes and newsprint articles essentially comprised of eco-awareness debates, news round-ups, sponsored construction project propaganda (ofcourse it means the paid commercial content on the TV by respective realtors), and what not.

While most of the printed / telecast content focused on telling what are Green Buildings, thereby stressing the plus points that we the earthlings can harness adopting such green way of living; the others focused on describing carbon credits and how irresponsible we have become by not adopting the new mantra of green living.

But, it was this small printed content in India's one of the leading media house's newspaper- Mail Today -- that stood out of all the other content.

Though I've not taken their formal permission to share this informative content on this blog submitting this in the form of a guest post, yet I do firmly believe that sharing such real-meaningful informative newsprint-content is alright in all senses since this is the right kind of information that one would need so as to understand the real meaning of GOING GREEN.

Sharing herewith the content with due credit to the people behind this content in Mail Today. This content lists out and briefly explains about the 5 common myths that we all usually associate the Green Buildings Concept with...

1. A green building is one that is surrounded by a tree cover: Not necessarily. It is about the right mix of design and construction techniques, materials and implementation which determines a green building.
   
   
2. Green housing is expensive: Actually green buildings can be cost-effective. Green buildings offer a lot of savings in the long run through energy savings. This helps the customer to repay the additional costs within three to four years. Reasonable levels of sustainable design can be incorporated into most building types at little or no additional cost
   
   
3. Golf course is a great example of a green development: On the contrary, golf course is one of the most non-green development factors. It consumes high volume of water and fertilizer
   
   
4. Green building is all about technology and material: Yes, and more. Green buildings are not only about the materials and technology used for the construction. Importance is also given on the location of the building, sunlight penetration and wind direction. Moreover, such buildings also take into account water efficiency, rainwater harvesting, etc. It’s about understanding the locality of your building
   
   
5. Green buildings do not look good and have a weird architecture: With new architectural designs, green buildings can actually be quite attractive. The application of design expression is no different from traditional architecture.

Suggested stuff of interest on Amazon.com:

             

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One of BnM's active subscribers, Chan Gul, asks via email...

What is Shell and Core Construction?

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Team BnM answers... With the building heights increasing and further increasing than what they used to be a century ago, and with newer methodologies being adopted for faster and safer construction practices the world over-- the integral civil engineering aspects like conceptualization, design, construction, interiors, etc. have also changed to suit pace. We all have been knowing since we look back into modern history, how buildings and houses were constructed as load bearing structures with foundations and walls predominantly constructed in stone and/or brick masonry. With further advancement of time and technology, reinforced cement concrete (RCC)/ structural steel/ structural steel+reinforced cement concrete composite elements formed framed structures became common, which were more stable and well engineered units. These framed structures adopted a typical construction pattern of casting the foundations, followed by casting the columns and beam networks, and eventually followed by casting of the intermediate and/or roof slabs. This engineering concept allowed the number of stories to increase over a particular plan area, which we normally call as multistoried buildings. However, now that the buildings the world over registering record-breaking heights while construction agencies finding ways to optimize costs and time curves involved, systems were designed in a fashion that allowed minimizing the construction time involved in raising the buildings without breaking the construction flow in respect of attaining the full building height (i.e., notwithstanding how many stories are there in the design, and how many slabs are to be cast in between for which, by conventional methods, the formwork has to be stopped at slab soffit (bottom) level, and then re-started post concreting and setting of the floor/roof slabs). WHAT IS SHELL & CORE CONCEPT OF BUILDING DESIGN & CONSTRUCTION? SHELL & CORE design and construction concept, on the other hand, designs the buildings and structures in such a way that allows the complete formwork (also called shuttering work in some parts of the world) for a particular level in plan to be made as a single unit that is slipped upwards with the help of 'jack & lift system' while concreting of the structural elements takes place continuously and gradually without stopping at intermediate floor levels. WHY THIS CONCEPT IS CALLED 'SHELL & CORE' METHOD? Under this concept of 'shell and core' design and construction, the buildings structures are defined under broad heads as

• CORE -- (the internal column-beam-wall systems that outline the various inside units on one particular floor level of the building in plan/layout, and which demarcate the internal boundaries of the rooms, halls, sanitary areas, ventilation areas (like passages, walkways, staircases, etc.)
• SHELL -- (the outermost peripheral wall system that ultimately provides outermost walled covering to the entire building in totality)
• INFILLS or INTERIOR ELEMENTS or MINOR ELEMENTS -- (these are the non-structural elements of the building that serve the essential purpose of architectural detailing units, finishing items, false partitions, and the likes)

To sum it up, the 'Shell and Core' building concept is to plan, design and build the core (inside) building which is covered or surrounded by shell (perimeter). Once the core and shell building elements are constructed, the internal architectural elements can be taken up gradually and continually. MAJOR ADVANTAGES OF 'SHELL & CORE' DESIGN and BUILD CONCEPT Some of the major advantages of using the 'shell and core' concept are:

• speeds up the whole design & build process
• facilitates economic and fast track design and construction method that saves a lot of time, efforts, and thereby, cost
• helps in planning, designing and constructing building layouts that optimally utilizes the overall available space
• most importantly, results in development of Green Buildings that are not only environment friendly, but also use minimal energy on a sustained basis
• such designs are suited for commercial buildings the most, besides residential & multi-storied builds of course, since it allows the internal smaller unit hirer/ purchaser to plan, design and build their own dwellings capitalizing upon the green strategies and methodologies adopted and implemented by the main property developers. This is important, since the smaller players can use the technology and 'greener' advantages of the building without worrying about exorbitant costs that otherwise could have not let them to adopt methods underlying the important of 'going-green'

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In continuation to the ongoing 'Go-GREEN' series that this favorite weblog of yours (which essentially deals with common man's day to day civil engineering related issues, doubts and queries), the editors' desk here at BRICKS-n-MORTAR (BnM) today feels privileged to bring about and share a unique social initiative and success story called 'SULABH' that has become a benchmark for not only India, but also for the rest of the world.

Started way back in 1970 by a social activist named Dr. Bindeshwar Pathak (Ph.D., D.Litt. Sociologist, Social Reformer and Environmental Sanitation Expert), SULABH has been working since then with the same dedication, vision, aim and mission of transforming India of the yesteryears  to:

A healthy and hygienic India, free of the practice of defecation in the open and faecal pollution of environment. A society free of untouchability, social discrimination and prevalence of the sub-human practice of manual cleaning of human excreta. And to educate and motivate the people, sensitize policy makers and functionaries and promote activities and programmes of the Govt. and as well as the people, to achieve Sulabh’s vision in the foreseeable future.

The founder of SULABH, the flagship social activity arm of the India based NGO - 'Sulabh International Social Service Organisation' (SISSO), was one among the chosen 31 "Heroes of the Environment" for the year 2009 by the Time Magazine, which conferred this prestigious title under the category "Scientists and Innovators."

Among all the social campaigns like the 'climate change' and 'save the world' and other similar summits across the world of the yesteryears' as well as today's, this initiative of SULABH stands out on its own in true Gandhian legacy who non-violently fought for the rights and cause of apartheid and social equality for all.

Today, the world best knows 'The Sulabh International Social Service Organization' as "a non-profit social organization working in the field of sanitation (human excreta disposal and solid waste management), environmental pollution control, waste-water treatment and disposal, biogas generation and production of compost fertilizer, liberation of scavengers from the demeaning task of manual cleaning of excreta, vocational training & rehabilitation of scavengers and their wards, health & hygiene promotional activities, empowerment of women and other weaker sections of the society, research & development and human resource development."

Organizations like SULABH must be given all the support and appreciation for contributing their invaluable bit towards 'A BETTER WORLD... A REAL GREEN WORLD' in so many ways. And for all these better reasons and more, BRICKS-n-MORTAR awards their 'GO-GREEN AWARD 2009' to 'The Sulabh International Social Service Organization' and its entire team. Carry on the good work, SULABH, and keep people like us inspired for the good-green-cause.

Suggested related links and stuff to read about:
- All about 'Sulabh International Social Service Organisation' (SISSO)
-  Sulabh's Aims and Objectives
-  Sulabh's Museum of Toilets

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'Vote Earth' is WWF’s campaign to combat the climate catastrophe. The noble endeavor highlights- "If you choose Earth over Global Warming, make it official by casting your vote."

The campaign needs large scale public participation, and the initiators seek to have everyone mindful's help in making the campaign a success and meaningful for the sake of mother Earth.  
BRICKS-n-MORTAR too support the cause and insist all its readers, followers and subscribers to support the cause.

Visit www.voteearth.in and join the community. People of rest of the world may join respective communities in their respective countries/ world regions.

Find Team BnM's small initiative in this regard at:

Vote Earth | What you can do for planet - Vote Earth http://www.earthhour.in/voteearth

EarthHour's (Vote for Earth) social media links:
Facebook Orkut Flickr You Tube Twitter

The ongoing 'green talks' at the world's largest summit till date on climate change and damage control (Officially called the United Nations Climate Change Conference) being held from Dec. 7 to Dec. 18 at Copenhagen are slowly and steadily becoming a classic cacophonous case of "Who'll Blink First?", with none of the parties engaged in the so-called dialogue willing to give in to the others' demands.

Go green

Inside the Bella Center at Copenhagen, the venue of the year 2009 climate summit, where hundreds of world leaders and/or their respective representatives along with thousands of delegates from over 190 countries are gathering for the largest climate summit in history, trying to attain a common ground following desperate talks, endless debates, high drama and eclectic atmosphere galore.

The developed nations are hell-bent in getting the 'draft' painted their way with no particular (harsh) commitments on their part in the years to come; while the rest of world (G77 countries + African countries + Others) are jostling their way to keep the draft of the Kyoto protocol also in place alongside which can take care of their sustained economic growth provisions while committing on the cutting the carbon commissions as well.

As the summit's deadline is nearing, more and more chaos and differences are arising. Seems, it would take more time for peoples' representatives of this world to be aboard a common ground for working together towards the betterment of mother earth.

Go greenSo, what does it all mean to common people like you and me?  Nothing significant in immediate terms one may say...  BUT perhaps could be existence threatening in distant future of the coming generations.

No matter if the talks work out or fail for now, do pledge to contribute your small yet-so-very-important bit by adhering to at least a few of these eco-friendly methods and habits, like:

• conserving energy to whatsoever extent possible
• reducing wastes and carbon emissions at personal, official and social places
• contributing for the sake of recycling things, wastes, etc.
• using energy efficient appliances and accessories
• constructing buildings and infrastructure using the 'green buildings' norms
• taking all those possible steps which can make your existing homes, offices, surroundings, etc. as eco friendly as possible
• imparting knowledge and common know-how to physical and virtual communities around you
• starting groups and action committees at whatsoever level... big, medium, small; which can spread the good work
• run campaigns to let others also follow your example
• and, foremost, CHANGE YOURSELF into a real eco-friendly entity. As it is said so very commonly...  charity begins at home. SO START AFRESH and MAKE THAT CHANGE  :-)

Do share with us what other steps can common people like you and me can adopt to contribute our bit. Share your story with us and our readers if you have one. BRICKS-n-MORTAR would feel privileged to share this noble cause on this e-community too.

Suggested related links to ponder upon:

• Copenhagen Climate Summit: What You Need to Know
• Copenhagen Climate Council
• Official website of the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen
• Greenpeace.org
• CarbonFund.org - CALCULATE your own carbon footprints
  

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The Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) recently released and showcased a video/ presentation on the concept of Green Buildings during the 'Green Building Congress 2009'. The essence of the video is to highlight the importance and factors that define the concept of green buildings. It augments the basic definition of the green buildings (which is basically defined as: "A green building is one which uses less water, optimises energy efficiency, conserves natural resources, generates less waste and provides healthier spaces for occupants, as compared to a conventional building.") Without any doubt, the concept is a noble idea that must be deliberated upon by one and all in the world; be it an individual, or a builder, or government organizations, or umpteen departments, etc. Team Bricks-n-Mortar shares the link to this conceptual video with you so that you can also learn about the concept of Green Buildings and can spread the good word further with your family, friends, network and community as a whole. Remember, together, we can bring about the much required change to avoid the ill-effects of global warming and depleting ozone layer. Be an active supporter of our GO-GREEN movement. Download and watch the IGBC's video/presentation on green buildings... http://www.igbc.in:9080/site/igbc/images/CII_IGBC_Web.swf

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A recent USA visitor to your favourite blog BRICKS-n-MORTAR.com posted a message to us asking about the merits and demerits of HOME INSULATION, and to have our opinion whether she should go for it or not? Team B-n-M, therefore, hereinbelow this post explores various related ifs and buts, dos and don'ts, merits and demerits, etc. on this issue so as to provide ample information to our reader who asked question about 'home insulation' besides sharing the outcome of the analytical findings of Team B-n-M with all other readers and visitors alike.

What is home insulation / building insulation?

To proceed any further with this article, let us first ponder upon a while on the dictionary meaning of the term 'insulation'.
The term 'Insulation' is usually used in Civil Engineering / Architectural jargon to refer to the infill and/or applied material that provides the parent body (on which insulation is done) a sort of blanket cover so as to not let the main weather indicators (heat, cold, temperature variations, etc.) change the near-ideal comfortable environs of a dwelling - be it a home or an office or any other constructed or fabricated unit.

Benefits of getting home insulation done

In simpler practical terms, getting the buildings properly and adequately insulated is the perfect way of providing an effective and continuous barrier between the conditioned indoor spaces and unconditioned outdoor spaces of any particular building. This makes sure that the insulated boundaries of a home (or any building in that matter of fact) will not allow the soothing heated-up environs within during the winters to loose heat, while ensuring that the air-conditioned cool ambiance is not leaked to outsides in summers. Thus without losing the useful inhouse radiant heat in winters and/or gaining the unwanted surroundings heat in summers, it thereby helps a household to maintain a more consistent level of comfort throughout a house, thereby lowering the extents of power / energy / utility bills up to considerable levels.

A few key benefits, therefore, of getting the buildings insulated being:

• reduced energy bills due to reduced variability in radiant (ambiance) inhouse temperatures and thereby reduced usage of air conditioners.
• reduced carbon emissions, also known as greenhouse gas emissions, due to less usage of air conditioners and fuels.
• reduced variability of inhouse temperatures in various parts of the homes (like not too much difference between ground floor and attics and basements, etc.)
  
• efficient energy management
• enhanced life and stability of building due to lesser effects of temperature variations on intrinsic construction and interiors related materials.
• enhanced fire protection of building components.
  
• better mortgage and/or resale value for the building.
• almost nil demerits of the system.
  
• last, but definitely not the least, a sense of safety and completeness to your beloved and cherished home showing you care for it.
  

Conclusion and suggestion to the readers

All in all, referring to all the benefits of housing insulation besides insulating all kinds of buildings in general, it seems prudent to go for it taking services of the suppliers/ providers of repute in one's region who have long standing credibility behind their names. Based upon our extended online and offline search in your region in the United States of America (i.e., the region where the reader who posted this query lives), one such credible party that is having a good name for insulation for houses is sent to you by private email too, as you had desired. You may consult them for a free evaluation of your home and take an appropriate decision thereafter. As for our advice, we would advise you to go for insulation of your home, as it would surely reduce your annual energy bills for one since as per one recent report, heating and cooling account for 50 to 70% of the energy used in the average American home, and you can very well comprehend what kind of figures it would translate into; isn't it? 
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Sharing herewith on BRICKS-n-MORTAR this article published in the 'Times of India' newspaper on 21 July 2009 titled: "City (New Delhi) lays a green foundation with new buildings ~~~ Corporates Take Note of Environmental Concerns, Opt For Eco-Friendly Structures To Save Energy" Original article published in TOI by Neha Lalchandani | TNN

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New Delhi: US secretary of state Hillary Clinton’s visit to the ITC Green Centre in Gurgaon, one of the region’s four buildings to be certified ‘GREEN’, drew the world’s attention to what Clinton referred to as the ‘‘monument to the future’’. Delhi may soon not be short of such monuments as several buildings have now switched over to green technology to save energy, including Rashtrapati Bhavan that is saving about Rs 60 lakh annually by shifting to a more environment-friendly technology. A green building is one which is energy efficient, uses natural and renewable energy and causes the least amount of damage to the environment. Sources say it is mostly new buildings, and that too only commercial ones, that are going in for green building certification as it is difficult and expensive for existing buildings to make any major changes in architecture. It takes between Rs 2.5 and Rs 3.5 lakh for the process, depending on the size of the structure. At present, ITC Green Centre and Wipro in Gurgaon, Spectrum and Patnis in Noida are the four buildings that have a LEED certification. ‘‘For existing buildings, it would require a huge investment to get certification though one can cut down on energy consumption by adopting several simple methods,’’ said an architect. However, agencies like CPWD have ensured changes in several of their office complexes. According to a CPWD spokesperson, Udyog Bhawan, that houses several offices of the industry and commerce ministries, is saving over Rs 45 lakh a year by converting to energy efficient technology. It was also awarded the national energy conservation award for the most energy efficient building in 2008, having brought down its energy consumption from 47 lakh units in 2005-06 to 35.49 lakh unit sin 2007-08. All that was done was to use CFLs, switch to solar energy and go in for more energy efficient technology. ‘‘Such changes are also being implemented in eight more buildings with us,’’ said the spokesperson. Among other buildings in Delhi that are green are the Delhi Metro Bhawan, two of TERI’s offices and the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) office. The Commonwealth Games Village is also being constructed using GRIHA guidelines for a green building. In India, there are two mechanisms for evaluating the energy efficiency of a building. The Indian Green Building Council (IGBC), that was formed in 2001, set up the Leadership in Energy and Environment Design (LEED) India committee that rates buildings based on five environmental criteria. The second system is that devised by the Energy Resource Institution. The Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment (GRIHA) has been endorsed by the government as the national rating system for buildings, based on their predicted performance over their life span. Recently, BEE also started a rating system for commercial buildings, under which the RBI building in Delhi was one among the two recipients of the star-rating. For those who have the money, altering an existing building can go a long way in saving energy and money in the long term. Building two walls instead of one for insulation, covered balconies, tiling or whitewashing rooftops, creation of rainwater harvesting structures and minimising the use of reflective glass could go a long way in bringing down the electricity bill though the cost recovery could take a few years due to the high capital costs. Gaurav Shorey of TERI, area convener of GRIHA, said: ‘‘If you do not have the option of having a green building constructed, there is still a lot that can be done with existing structures. Simple practices of using electricity with care, switching off extra lights, preserving water and planning energy consumption will go a long way in making homes energy efficient. Air-conditioners should not be set at a very low temperature and ceiling fans should be used in tandem for optimum benefits.”

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Disclaimer: Article shared for the purpose of spreading the meaningful 'GREEN BUILDINGS" campaign which is the need of the hour for India as well as the entire world. Not meant for any commercial copying/ copyright infringement/ etc. Standard universal disclaimer stands on part of this blog.

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WITH THE ONGOING TUSSLE OF THE MANKIND WITH THE MOTHER NATURE IN ALMOST ALL SPHERES OF MODERN LIFE, THE MAN IS HELL-BENT ADAMANT TO RUIN ALL THE GOOD THINGS THE NATURE HAD PRESERVED FOR HIM, THEREBY RUINING ALL THE RESERVES AND VALUE SYSTEMS. THE SAME HAS GONE TRUE FOR ERECTING BUILDINGS ALSO WHERE MAN HAS PUT ENDLESSLY ENORMOUS LOADS OF CONCRETE, STEEL AND MULTITUDES OF DEBRIS ON EARTH'S FACE.

The practices deployed over the period of years aspiring to reach the zenith of his Architectural and Design skills, and not understanding the true importance of saving the grace of the mother nature, the mankind has now put itself in danger of destabilizing the nature's harmony and balancing character. Floods, droughts, green-house gases, ozone depletion, melting of polar ice, etc. are just a very few examples how the mankind has now been at the receiving end.

However, understanding the importance of living in harmony with the nature, a few individuals/ corporates/ organizations have lately started thinking of maintaining the ecological balance going hand-in-hand with the increasing skylines. The concept of Designing and Constructing the 'GREEN BUILDINGS' has become a positive and welcome start.

Acknowledging the importance of Going Green, BRICKS-n-MORTAR.com will essay some valuable webspace writing some stuff on this topic, enabling our readers to understand the basic requirement, necessity and uniqueness in adopting the 'GREEN-BUILDING-REVOLUTION'.

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WHAT IS A 'GREEN BUILDING'?

In this first article of this series- "GO-GREEN!", let us first let our readers understand what a green building is?

Wikipedia defines a Green Building as:

Green building is the practice of increasing the efficiency with which buildings use resources — energy, water, and materials — while reducing building impacts on human health and the environment during the building's lifecycle, through better siting, design, construction, operation, maintenance, and removal.

Green buildings are designed to reduce the overall impact of the built environment on human health and the natural environment by:

• Efficiently using energy, water, and other resources
• Protecting occupant health and improving employee productivity
• Reducing waste, pollution and environmental degradation

The Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) defines a Green Building as:

A green building uses less energy, water and natural resources, creates less waste and is healthier for the people living inside compared to a standard building.

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In the next article on this "GO-GREEN!" campaign of BRICKS-n-MORTAR.com, we shall discuss the various facts and requirements of green buildings concept vis-a-vis the further developments in this field of Civil Engineering.

Do post your suggestions/ feedback/ contributions to us.

[Filed under "Go-Green, Buildings, Construction, Architecture" category(ies) by Team@Bricks-n-Mortar.com]

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