Advanced Built Environment

Assignment No. 1

April, 2015

Masters of Construction Management

Submitted By:
Lijo George Samuel - 1485 4957

*AUCKLAND UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY

TE WANANGA ARONUI O TAMAKI MAKAU RAU

School of Engineering
Master of Construction Management
Name

Lijo George Samuel

ID Number

14854957

Paper Name

Advanced Built Environment

Assignment

Number of words (excluding

appendices)

1950

Please read and tick the boxes below before handing in your assignment

If you are uncertain about any of these matters then please discuss them with your
lecturer. Assignments will not be accepted if this section not completed.

Where I have used someone elses words or images, we have clearly indicated this
by putting them inside speech marks (if appropriate) and adding an in-text
reference

Where I have used other peoples ideas or writing, we have clearly indicated this
by putting them into our own words and adding and adding the reference at the
end of the sentence/paragraph.

Other than the above, this assignment

IS NOT copied from another student or previous assignment

IS NOT directly copied from books, journals or other materials

IS NOT cut and pasted from the internet

HAS NOT been handed in by one of us or anyone else in any other course

HAS NOT been done by someone else (e.g. friends, relative, professional)
I agree to this assignment being used (or copied) for academic purposes which shall
include amongst other things, external moderation, promotional work, sharing
with fellow colleagues and others works of good quality (and if I have any concerns,
I will keep the lecturer informed)

..
Signature

02-10-2014
.
Date

Executive Summary
This report provides a brief summary of the requirements of design features by the client for
its proposed new headquarters. The report targets to those potential architects whose ideas and
ideologies coincides with the need and philosophies of the client in developing innovative
architectural design challenges.
The report provides with details of the proposed project and suggests few significant mustinclude guidelines and concepts that needs to be incorporated in the designs for the project. It
also supports these parameters with several testimonial projects from around the world.
The report also provides with some evaluation criteria for the selection of Architects interested
in creating a world class regenerative design.

Table of Contents

Introduction ...................................................................................................... 4
Background ....................................................................................................... 4

Project Description ........................................................................................... 4

Location of the project ......................................................................................... 5
Project Significance............................................................................................. 5
Project Guidelines ............................................................................................... 5

Evaluation Criterion to Architects ...................................................................... 9

References ........................................................................................................ 9

Introduction
Globally, conventional buildings have been constructed to meet certain needs like its
functions, budget and comfort, but very less importance was given to how it fits with the
natural environment. They were constructed considering only on the need of the moment
but, to accommodate the change in circumstances at later operational period, replacement
or remodelling takes a costly approach in terms of environment or financial aspect and also
generates more wastes(Nugent, Packard et al. 2011).
Green building design or eco-efficient design creates better outcomes by using fewer
resources resulting in less wastes, but still there exists a negative environmental impact.
GreenFern Limited understands the need of true sustainable environment like
regenerative environment which takes the innovative building concept to a very new level
beyond Green to a positive outcome, a need for more interactive & resilient structures that
pursues to integrate & restore the natural environment(Zari 2009).

Fig. 1 (Zari 2009)

Background
GreenFern Limited is a New Zealands leading company in manufacturing, marketing and
exporting of wide range of food products. The company focusses on becoming a world leader
in food production and exports by believing in driving environmental sustainability and
practising its environment policy through setting up priorities in its operations and supply
chains in achieving this vision.
GreenFern Limited needs to expand the headquarters office space in order to accommodate
the growth and expansion of the New Zealands leading company.

Project Description
Location of the project
The Location where company plans to setup its headquarters is near to or as a part of AUT
South Campus at Manukau, Auckland due to its proximity to Southern Motorway.

Project Significance
The client plans to build its new headquarters which aims to be iconic and unique in
architectural design seeking continuous innovation requirements to sustain & evolve in the
future and also balances the economic, environmental, social and cultural aspects of the
quadruple bottom line(Elmaraghy and Elmaraghy 2014).
The building design must be a source of inspiration for companys policy to achieve its vision
and also a marketing tool to strengthen the brand image of the company.
The building project should emphasize on proven regenerative practises for use of water,
land, energy & building design and also it is expected to achieve highest level of sustainability.

Project Guidelines
The following aspects needs to be taken into consideration in designing of the proposed
headquarters building project:

Integrated Design High Performance Building

The process involved in integrated design requires participation the architect and all
project members - client, cost consultants, contractors, engineers and other specialists
from various disciplines to work in continual organised collaboration from the start & also
during the continuity of the project. (WBDG 2012). This approach aims to improve the
present best practices thus by creating a more productive environment in trying to achieve
synergies between climate, use, building design & systems(Duffy, Schof et al. 2010).

Fig 2: (UO and Konstruct 2006)

The Potential Benefits of Integrated Design(UO and Konstruct 2006):

- Reduced Construction & Operating Cost,
- Positive Community Image- in form of reduced pollution & energy production and
- Continuous Improvement.
5

Integrated Design process is a crucial part for a successful unique project for
attaining high levels of efficiency. High levels of efficiency and the goal for Zero Net Energy
can only be achieved by integration of all elements- building, site & environment, all these
that includes structure, systems, materials, operations, landscapes and all stake
holders(Cadima n.a.).
Testimonial: The result of the integration of Integrated Design can be witnessed from the
project- The Bullitt Centre, in Seattle occupied in 2013. This project is known to be one of
the worlds most efficient commercial building and is targeting the Living Building
certification(WBDG n.a. ).

Materials & Waste

The usage of materials for the building project must be considered on the basis of
many aspects such as its sourcing, manufacturing processes, requirements of its transport,
usage & disposal. These aspects can have significant effect on wide range of social and
environmental damage including pollution, global warming, natural habitat, depletion in
natural resources, extinction of living species, waste production and health problems(Sassi
2006).
The usage of environment friendly materials should be used for the project in order to
achieve high Green building ratings.
Following factors should be considered on selection of materials:
- Use of recycled and renewable materials from verifiable sources.
- No usage of ozone depleting & volatile organic compound materials.
- Low embodied energy building materials.
The development of the project should aim to recycle at least 70% of all construction
wastes.
Testimonial: The construction of Emerson Global Data Center located at St. Louis, Missouri
was completed in July 2009. In construction of this building, 20 percent of materials came
from post-consumer materials and 80 percent of construction waste was diverted from
landfills to recycling plants to minimize the carbon footprint of the project. This project
was awarded LEED Gold certification in 2010(WBDG n.a.).

Water
Water is an essential element for life. Regeneration is one of the most important aspect
that needs to be embodied in the design of the project. The design elements should
accommodate various facilities for conservation, recycle, re-use of water and treatment of
mined sewerage from the sewer.
Testimonial:
The Council House 2 (CH2) office building in Melbourne, Australia opened in August 2006.
It was the first building in Australia to achieve the maximum points in 6 Green Star
rating(melbourne.vic.gov.au n.d.).
6

The building has implemented primarily four categories of water management measures
as follows(melbourne.vic.gov.au n.d.): i) water efficiency
ii) Recycling of water by sewer mining.
iii) Re-use of water from Rainwater harvesting & fire sprinkler test water.
iv) Innovative water saving techniques.
The different systems used for water management in the building
are(melbourne.vic.gov.au n.d.):
1) Water recycling and sewer mining: The Blackwater treatment plant is setup at the
basement of the building for treating blackwater from toilet and greywater (showers
and basins). The system also mines out water from the sewer and treats it to be used
as a source of useable water.
2) Rainwater harvesting and Re-use of water from fire sprinkler test water: The water
from fire sprinkler test and from roof area is treated by the Blackwater treatment plant.
3) The Vertical gardens watering system is another concept used in the building where
the building is provided with both horizontal and vertical plantings to accommodate
enough plantings of the total site area.
These kind of innovative solutions needs to be incorporated for the building project to
achieve Net Zero Water and to improve the surrounding environment in restoring the lost
natural habitat.

Energy Management
The building needs to be equipped with innovative energy management solutions like from
the renewable energy sources integrated photovoltaics, wind turbines, efficient HVAC
system, improved insulation solutions, natural ventilation, high performance glazing
system and efficient weatherproofing(Nugent, Packard et al. 2011).
The project needs to meet the goal of maintaining or achieving close to Net Zero Energy
needs smart and innovative solutions to attain the highest green ratings and certifications.
Testimonial:
The first building in New Zealand to be awarded with 6 Green Star rating is the Geyser
Building located in Parnell, Auckland. The building includes innovative energy management
solutions and high tech, sustainable features:
- The building uses a third less amount of energy.
- It uses half the amount of artificial lighting.
- It features a state of the art eco-technology where in winter, it allows the building to
heat itself by trapping warm air between its walls and in summer, the overall outer skin
of the building opens automatically to allow fresh air for full ventilation.

 Indoor environment
The headquarters building needs to be equipped with good indoor environment of very
high quality. There should be provision of sufficient quality of both natural and artificial
lighting, an excellent natural ventilation system, overall thermal comfort, & use of nontoxic based materials.
Testimonial: The CalPERS Headquarters Complex located in California, USA is a awarded
with LEED_NC Gold rating. The quality of Indoor environment was taken in to consideration
with integrated design approach throughout the construction period. The Building is
equipped with many facilities like(WBDG n.d.):
o Shade AHU & Shading- to reduce temperature of air intake and direct solar heat gain.
o Daylighting Controls system to modulate the interior light levels.
o Operable windows to provide fresh air.
o High Floor to Floor Height to increase natural light.
o Low-E Glass to reduce the intensity of solar heat gain.

Transport Impacts
Transportation is an important aspect to be taken into account in selecting the raw
materials for the construction of the building. The energy intensive transportation
should be kept to a minimum for the movement of raw materials to site. Locally
available renewable sources like wood and other materials should be considered
for the construction of the building.
The site should be provided with sufficient cycle parks to encourage active
transport.
Testimonial: The CIRS building at the University of British Columbia is built to exceed LEED
Platinum and standards of Living Building challenge. This building perfectly fits to the
testimonial of minimal carbon foot print in procurement of construction materials. It is
largely constructed of certified wood and beetle-killed wood which is British Columbias
largest source of carbon, offsetting the pollution emissions from the use of other nonrenewable materials like cement, aluminium and steel(Meinhold 2011).

Aesthetics & Beauty

The design with appealing and inspiring Aesthetics is interconnected with three principles
of ecological health, social justice and economic prosperity.
The Beauty and Aesthetics in Architectural design should be in re-centering human
consciousness from an egocentric to more bio-centric perspective(Beauty n.d.). The client
believes that this ideology should reflect in the design of the building to inspire the minds
in giving more back to the environment instead of consuming from it.

 Green Building Rating and Certification

The headquarters building desires to set a benchmark in terms of the functional
attributes of the building. This accomplishment of the buildings design and functions
needs to be scaled with different types of standards or certifications like the LEED,
Green Star NZ and The Living Building challenge. The architectural design with
regenerative and adaptability aspect to mimic nature is a challenging goal that the
client would like to achieve.

Evaluation Criterion to Architects

The project design should adhere to a minimum of 6 Star Green Star Certified Rating
(scores 75-100).
Architectural firms with previous experience in handling projects certified to a minimum
of 6 Green Star Rating or equivalent to any other Green Building Rating System and
Certifications.
Project designs incorporating the maximum number of required parameters and in
compliance with the Green Building challenge.
Description of the management style and method of the architectural firm in managing of
a project at different progressive stages of the project.
Provision of approach to constructability of designs and plans.

References
Beauty, S. (n.d.). "E. K. Meyer." Journal of Landscape Architecture.
Cadima, P. (n.a.) An Integrated Buildign Design Approach.
Duffy, K., et al. (2010). "Integrated Design." Retrieved 31-03, 2015, from
http://designsynthesis.betterbricks.com/what-integrated-design.
Elmaraghy, W. and H. Elmaraghy (2014). A New Engineering Design Paradigm The Quadruple
Bottom Line. 24th CIRP Design Conference, ScienceDirect.
Meinhold, B. (2011). "University of British Columbia's CIRS Building is a Living Eco Laboratory in
Vancouver." from http://inhabitat.com/university-of-british-columbias-cirs-building-is-a-living-ecolaboratory-in-vancouver/ubc-cirs-perkinswill-1/.

melbourne.vic.gov.au (n.d.). "Water conservation." 2015, from

http://www.melbourne.vic.gov.au/Sustainability/CH2/aboutch2/Pages/WaterConservation.aspx.
Nugent, S., et al. (2011). "Living, Regenerative, and Adaptive Buildings." from
http://www.wbdg.org/resources/livingbuildings.php.
Sassi, P. (2006). Strategies for Sustainable Architecture. New York, Taylor & Francis.
UO and Konstruct (2006) Rethinking the Design Process.
WBDG (2012). "Engage the Integrated Design Process." from
http://www.wbdg.org/design/engage_process.php.
WBDG (n.a.). "Case Studies and High Performance Building Database." from
http://www.wbdg.org/references/cs_egdc.php.
WBDG (n.a. ). "Case Studies and High Performance Building Database." 2015.
WBDG (n.d.). "Case Studies and High Performance Building Database." from
http://www.wbdg.org/references/cs_calpers.php.
Zari, M. P. (2009) Regenerative Design For the Future. BUILD 115 68-69

10