The Construction of Sustainable Buildings in London and the Arab Countries: The Need for the Green Building - Research Paper Example

 Sustainable building is becoming a major factor and concern in the construction of buildings, especially the skyscrapers and the commercial buildings. This research paper for that matter compares such sustainable buildings in London and in the Arab countries specifically United Arab Emirate and Bahrain. The research will be considering how the building sin the two locations have embraced the technology and constructs building that are environmentally friendly. This is to the extent that the energy conservation and recycling in the buildings are given priority. Not only that, the research also intends to account for how inclusive are the skyscraper in the two location recognizes with the initiative. Construction of buildings that are not sensitive to the future is a demonstration of not being mindful to the future, buildings just like any other activities are suppose to be constructed with the intention of being relevant today and in the future. The revelation that this is important has led to the involvement of sustainable buildings technology in order to make these buildings environmentally friendly. Even though, this technology is suppose to be embraced in all construction, some places have not fully recognized the need of this noble initiative and do not conform to the requirement of buildings as proposed by the technology (Sick and Erge, 2006). The difference in technological practice has led to the planning of this research. It seeks to understand the distribution of buildings that have included the technology while at the same time seeking to know the reason why other constructions are not keen to the new look of buildings. Case study areas remain London in the UK and Bahrain, and United Arab Emirate in the Arabic countries. It is a fact that building industry remains one of the greatest emitters of CO2 gas, while at the same time consumes up to about 40% of the total world energy. These are very significant numbers attributed to just one sector of the world’s economy (Addis, 2006). It has also been noted that this level of energy consumption as not genuinely used in the building and that most of the energy are wasted hence the need to conserve and recycle energy for the benefit of the future. Architectural designing skills will be of help in enabling the building to conserve. These designs are aimed at mitigating on the unnecessary energy losses making the buildings sustainable in the future by managing energy rationally (Anderson, Shiers, and Sinclair, 2008). Given the spectacular move, the designs of the buildings and final construction have been advised to adhere to the requirements so that energy can be conserved and recycled for the future (Sassi, 2006). A typical example is the traditional large scale building that served as office block. In these buildings, several environmental factors were ignored and this contributed to the poor insulation of the bildings, which has consequently contributed to the extensive use of artificial means for lightening, heating, and cooling (Edwards, 2012). For the purposes of avoiding all these, buildings are suppose to be designed in line with the requirement of the green buildings so that some of the unnecessary usage of energy can be avoided (Jayamaha, 2007). Large commercial building and skyscrapers have since practiced this initiative by paying attention to the requirement of sustainable building and some of the buildings that have fully embraced the technology are listed below. Buildings in London London compared to Arab countries remains ahead in terms of compliance with the requirements of the sustainable building with most of its building embracing the requirement of the technology. Some of the large commercial buildings in London that have conformed includes; The Gherkin This building cuts itself a niche by being the first of the entire skyscraper to make emphasis and comply with the requirement of the sustainable building. In the design and construction of the building, the designers and constructors drifted from the traditional office shape to that a form that made use of the natural light and ventilation in equal measure (Fox, 2005). In this regard, it is reported that the building is using half the amount of energy that is being used by other buildings of similar magnitude. Castle House The building is fitted with wind turbines for power generation in an effort to utilize renewable energy source. The turbines are expected to generate up to 45kW of power, it is expected that the power will be able to run all the energy requirements of the building. The same self-energy generation is seen in the construction of one Canada square in London (Kibert, 2008). This building too has a way of generating its own power while at the same time is designed to utilize the natural light and ventilation. This is in the realization that most of the energy is lost in lightening of offices due to poor ventilation associated with the traditional building doormats. City hall in London also uses the same strategy in conforming to the sustainable building requirements (Ryan, 2011). Buildings in Arab Countries Even thought the extent of sustainable buildings is rated low in terms of compliance in the Arab countries , some of the buildings are known to have embraced it. In that regard, the following buildings are considered; The Bahrain World Trade Center Towers, Bahrain It is said that the spectacular shape associated with the building is not for the purpose of beauty but for maximizing the production of energy. The twin sale shaped building is fitted with the funnels for generating energy from wind. Almost 15 % of the total energy consumption in the building comes from wind that is self-produced by the building. It will be noted that the presence of oil in the Arab countries jeopardizes the ability of the nation to embark on sustainable building technology because the prizes of oil is cheap compared to other nations where oil is not produced (Brebbia, 2011). The oil factor has made Arab countries to demonstrate reluctance in embracing the technology. Despite this, buildings in these areas are still being encouraged to be sustainable sensitive since energy is not the only factor that is focused on (Quinn, 2006). In UAE, skyscrapers have been constructed without consideration the sustainable nature of the building. Buildings like Burj Khalifa, Emirates Park Tower 1 and 2 are examples of building in UAE that ought to have considered the need of sustainability (Duke, 2008). Buildings in the UAE have been advised to consider embracing the technology in the subsequent buildings for the interest of the future. Sustainable buildings have proved efficient for the purpose for which it was established and needs to be encouraged (Glain, 2009). A Rationale for the Selection of the Topic The core interest of sustainability in this context is to provide a system in which the usefulness of the building is made to be realistic about the future, it ability to cope with several demands and remain efficient in the satisfaction of needs. Sustainable building has been given much concern in the contemporary world that in the future, it is expected that most planners will be mindful of it. Most of the brilliant technologies today are appreciated on their ability to be useful in the end. It is thus important to express the same desire when considering constructing complex commercial buildings and skyscrapers that are designed for a span of life extending to centuries (Vassigh and Özer, 2009). Sustainability in this context is not confirmed on the ability of the building to conserve energy but also a range of issues. For instance, sustainable buildings are designed for the environmental impact-its ability to be sensitive to the environment so that their construction do not jeopardize the ability to conserve and nurture environment for the benefit of the future. Resource recycling and conservation is also another factor that these building technologies consider (Anink, Boonstra, and Mak, 2006). Issues relating the community, the quality of indoor environment and the ability to efficiently use energy and renew them for the future are some of the factors that are aimed at. The latter being the central theme of this research paper-A comparison of the sustainable commercial buildings in London and Arab countries with special interest in energy use and renewability (Günther, 2009). The reason for which buildings construction today is encouraged to embrace the technology is then justified. Building of the commercial centre and skyscrapers are therefore destined to take considerably a long period after construction. It is thus important that the building should not be detrimental to the society for the rest of its being around. Thanks to the new technology that allows building to influence positively to the environment and other factors now and in the future after construction (Mumovic and Santamouris, 2009). It is thus interesting to make a comparison of the two busiest commercial cities found in Arab countries and London and assess whether they conform to this important technology or not and the reason behind every findings. This topic selection was reached after a consideration of many issues. The interest in the topic also comes with the fact that in the construction of the sustainable building, many factors and stakeholders are brought together for making the decision about the technology (Keeler, 2009). It is thus important to note that this paper will also explore the bedeviling or promoting the implementation of this program given that it is a program that has to be accomplished by many of the relevant stakeholders coming together. In the event that the technology will be found not to be embraced in any way, it will be possible to apportion blame for one of the many tenets involved in the implementation for the program- the architects, policy developers and planers, and the contractors in the countries selected. In this regard, we should not forget that politics and other economic factors also influence the adoption of the technology (Brown, 2009). Research Goals This research has been conceived to reach to specific objective and aims concerning sustainable buildings in London and the Arab countries of Bahrain and United Arab Emirates. A plethora of factors will have to be considered when collecting data in the specified regions for the purpose of this study. The responses are to be collected from specific people in the construction circle. This is because these are the only people who are knowledgeable in the field and can answer the complex questions related to this topic. Like any other research, this paper considers objective questionnaire that is able to capture the aims of the study in tandem with the research concerns and final objectives. Aim This research aims to; I. Identify and compare the building materials used in the construction of the building and the reason behind their use. II. Compare the cost of construction with regard to the energy consumption during the building period and how this is controlled III. Analyzes and compares the difference in energy consumptions in the buildings that have embraced the new technology and those that have not IV. Identify the various renewable sources of energy used in the buildings the sustainable building and how efficient they are in terms of energy generation. V. Identify other sustainable features that are associated with the green buildings and relate their role in the environment VI. Compare the general outcome of the findings between London buildings and those in Bahrain and United Arab Emirates VII. Find out the resonance between the three individuals involved in the construction in reference to the construction of sustainable buildings-the architects, designers, and engineers. VIII. Compare the cost of constructing sustainable buildings vis a vis those of the traditional one and see if there is significance difference Objectives The objective of the study will be reached by answering the following questions related to topic of the study; a. What is the government position in the constructions of the buildings both in London and in the Arab countries? b. Is the construction of skyscrapers and large commercial building entrenched in law to aloe for compulsory compliance c. What is the individual take of the three persons involved in sustainable building concerning its implementation d. Is there a significance conservation occasioned by recycling and other measures in the sustainable buildings e. Is there relevant technological advancement in London and Arab countries to warrant for the development of the technology f. Is availability of oil and other sources of fuel a factor that contributes to inability to embrace building that are sustainable g. What is the clients response in the development of the sustainable building as proposed by the designers and contractors h. Is there prospects that sustainable buildings will be fully embraced in the future based on the current trends A Literature Review Green buildings agitation is becoming like a movement in which every large commercial buildings and other skyscrapers are advised to observe given the benefits that comes with it. Apart from energy conservation and recycling purposes, green building as a whole also provides for other environmentally interested issues to be put under control (Brebbia, 2011). The sense of green building is not only revolving around energy but a number of related issue that are supposed to be used sparingly with great care to avoid wastes that can be mitigated on. It is also important to know that green buildings are not only realized with the design and architectural work, it is also closely engrossed on the materials used during building. Several people are brought together in the implementation of this noble course with the architects, clients, design team and engineers all working in tandem to the realization of a similar goal. The epicenter of all this effort is to realize a building that will for the rest of it lifecycle remain environmentally relevant and resource efficient (Howe, Gerrard, and Fucci, 2010). All these are achieved from the design, construction, maintenance, renovation, and finally demolition. When all these can be achieved, green buildings will demonstrates expansion, practice, and complementation of what the classical building proposed-utility, economy, comfort, and durability. As such, the main targets of the green buildings are to ensure that there is efficient way of utilizing the energy, water, and relevant resources (Maeda, 2011). Improvement of the employee’s productivity and the health of the occupant is also another important factor that the building endeavors to realize. Finally, it also looks into the issue of waste reduction, degradation of the environment and pollution controls are checked. Energy crisis has hit the world leading to power rationing or a hike in the energy prizes; this has bedeviled economic advancement making green building a viable choice to halt this. It made emphasis on the use of renewable energy sources within the building. The use of solar panel and photovoltaic are some of the sources of energy proposed by green building (Yudelson, 2008). The energy conservation of the green building is not only concerned within the finished building but also those energy used in transporting the building material. It insists that even in the course of building, the use of energy must be justified and unnecessary usage should not be tolerated. After this, the internal energy usage after the construction of the building is also stringently regulated to avoid (Yudelson, 2009). Green buildings are able to reduce the cost of energy in the world since reliance will be on renewable sources only. Based on this, it will be prudent to consider some of the buildings constructed in conformity with the technology and note how they have contributed to the energy saving and recycling. Green building has dominated London construction, a good sign that the knowledge and good will is there compared to the Arab cities. This has been attributed to the presence of oil in plenty in the region, it makes energy cost to be affordable hence reluctance. The need for the green building is not only confined in the UK and Arab countries alone. The US has also considerably embraced the technology and most commercial buildings are conformed to this (Reed, 2009). The concept of energy saving and environment and matters have been given priority in the US with buildings ensuring that the needs are accurately captured. The need to get the platinum Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating concerning the sensitivity has led to the competition in fulfilling the requirement of the green building to the letter (Aiello, 2008). Some of the building that have embraced the technological improvement includes the following; Alma den tower, Banner bank building, Daybreak corporate center, Helios House gas Station and Heifer International are some of the houses that have gone the green way. It is worth noting that the Helios House has uniquely engaged in making sustainable building be efficient in achieving its goals and objectives. The building is constructed using recycled glass, scrap metal, and steels. The solar panels fitted in the building also accounts for nearly 90 % energy demand of the building (Bullivant and Yeang, 2011). The building has a unique roof that is green and grows cacti. This is one of the apex demonstrations of green building, and one has to appreciate the technology that has been used in the designing and construction of the building. Daybreak is another building where conservation activities have taken the lead and has been certified by the LEED. During the construction of the building, about 95 % of the building has been waste during construction were recycled so that they could be useful in doing some other useful activities in attempts to make the building mindful about wastes and conservation. 22% of the building was from recycled materials elsewhere (Solomonson, 2005). The building design also allows for water conservation, this water is used for running irrigation within the building. Regarding the level of energy consumption, the building uses about 22% less power as compared to the traditional buildings. Banner Bank in Idaho also boasts of being constructed from the recycled materials that constitutes about 40%. The building also uses the geothermal systems I heating with elaborate reclamation process that has seen energy consumption reduced by about 65% while that of water reduced by about 80% (Wells, 2005). Added to this, the building also uses bio-fuels in the back-up generators to supplement their energy requirements. It will be appreciated that these buildings have employed unique and farfetched method to realize this improvement in the conservation efforts. This can only confirm to us that there are potential that can be used tapped and improve the requirement of improving the status of achieving sustainability of the buildings. Sustainable buildings are gaining popularity and are expected to be part of the building requirements in the future (Baird, 2010). Sustainability of building is one of the fundamentals that must be considered by the designers so that much can be achieved in terms of conservation and waste reduction. Theoretical Framework, Research Approach, and Proposed Methodology for the Study Theoretical Framework London compared to the Arab countries has embraced the use of renewable sources of energy in the contemporary buildings because of various reasons that faces the two countries. Being that the Arab countries are fully endowed with Oil, there are chances that the prices fuel and gas are relatively cheaper compared to the situation in London where natural energy sources are scarce and they have to counter this by being aggressive in the development of renewable sources of energy. This explains why there has been much of exponential development of renewable sources of energy in the country that Arab Countries. This is in the spirit of constructing commercial buildings that are in conformity with the requirement that skyscrapers be constructed with sustainability in mind. The other factor that is contributing to the low consideration of sustainable building in the Arab countries may be inadequate awareness by the customers, the contractors, and the designers. Even if the knowledge is there, then no one has taken initiatives to consider this, it can be attributed to the lack of compelling policies that commercial buildings should embrace the new technology that guarantees sustainability. It will be remembered that politics is an integral part of the policy making program that influences the enforcement of such policies as in the case in London. Many stakeholders have to be considered in the decision-making with regard to embracing this technological advancement, otherwise enforcing the law would be a problem especially if politics can play a role in the decision making as in the case of sustainable buildings. Arab countries tend to lack this important facet in implementation of the program. With reference to the theoretical framework stipulated above, it is important to design an approach that will work seek to understand the reasons behind the difference in the commercial building in London and in the Arab countries. The methodology employed should endeavor to cut down on possibilities of loopholes that may advance unreliable data. The approach given in this case will consider the major stakeholders during construction with the exception of the customers. The three stakeholders; contractor, designers, and policy enforcers will be the source of information for comparing and making conclusion based on the data collected. The approach is regarded able to give a reliable data given the nature of this research paper. Much of the details in this approach are contained in the methodology section. Methodology Unlike in London, in Arab countries, it is extremely rare to find anyone who has witnessed a construction that is designed for sustainability purposes-those that uses wind or solar energies even though their ability to generate such energy is enormous. Reasons explaining the tragedy is that there is inadequate knowledge about constructing houses that are compliant with the requirement thus no one can give advises on the use and accommodation of the technology. Another version of blame is on the policy makers, it is said that either ignorance related to the technology has immensely contributed to the retarded development of the technology in the region or it is the issues relating to the political, economic, and other related technicalities. In London, enabling environment has been put into place and most of the commercial buildings have to comply with the policy of sustainability. It is interesting to note the distribution of this technology in the two countries as well as the justification to the trend. Consultants have also had their fair share of the blame in the retardation while other posits that the knowledge is new to the contractors and that they have not internalized the requirements. For collecting a reliable data that will explain the skewed distribution of the technology, this research proposes to use direct questionnaire in collecting the information from the relevant people. The information dubbed the survey brief is intended for three categories of people in this case, the policy and the decision makers, contractors, and the architects. This category of three constitutes the cardinal source of information based on building construction referred to as the triangle of building development (TBD). The three individuals will be given differently structured questionnaire to respond on. Because of the nature of this research that deals with the complex commercial buildings, customers were shelved from this research as it only aimed complex buildings and skyscrapers that uses enormous power up to five mega watts and not 0.2 as experienced in residential houses. The procedure will be that the questionnaire will have to be filled directly by the researches-the response coming from the intended persons. This choice was made to curb responses that are based on references and to allow only those that the respondent had at the time of the interview. It will also avoid assistance from a third party leading to collection of erroneous data the same procedure will be used in all the three places without alteration. The information collected will be tallied followed with analysis in a way that is consistent with the intention of this research, the findings will then be compared, and conclusions made. The study also intends to use equal samples of the interviews for the purpose of fair comparison, consideration will be made in the two areas of study. It is important to note that other features of sustainable building will also be looked into though those concerning energy conservation will be given much emphasis and used for the determination of the research objectives. References Addis, William. Building with reclaimed components and materials: a design handbook for reuse and recycling. London: Earthscan, 2006. Aiello, Carlo. Skyscraper for the XXI century. New York: EVolo Pub., 2008. Anderson, Jane, David Shiers, and Mike Sinclair. The Green Guide to Specification an Environmental Profiling System for Building Materials and Components.. 3rd ed. Chichester: John Wiley & Sons, 2008. Anink, David, Chiel Boonstra, and John Mak. Handbook of sustainable building: an environmental preference method for selection of materials for use in construction and refurbishment. 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