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Special project
A Green Flavour
Project Orchid seeks to transform ACC Ltd’s Cement
House in Mumbai into a green building. JAYANTHI NARAYAN discovers
more.
G reen’ is the new mantra of corporate India and cement
major ACC Ltd is no exception – it has embarked on ‘Project
Orchid’ to convert Cement House, its corporate head
office in Mumbai, into an energy-efficient building. Built
in 1939 and based on a design by Ballardie Thompson &
Mathews, this six-storied building spread on 68,000 sq ft,
will soon become green and hi-tech while maintaining its traditional
majesty.
“The theme of the renovation of Cement House is to have
an integrated approach to building interior design and characteristics
of sustainable building,” says Tirath Sapra, Head -
Administration, ACC Ltd. The structure will be modernised
completely, including added features of climate and access
control, intelligent lighting, state-of-the-art office equipment,
modular furniture, and well equipped conference rooms and
workstations. In fact, Cement House is the first project in
India to be registered under the criteria of major renovation
of an existing building under the LEED New Construction &
Major Renovation rating of the Indian Green Building Council.
Knight Frank India is the project management consultant for
Project Orchid.
Heritage appeal
“It is always a pleasure for an architect to work on
a historical building that needs to be transformed into a
modern and hi-tech office while still retaining its charm
and grandeur,” acknowledges Niteen Parulekar, Design
Principal, Niteen Parulekar Architects Pvt Ltd (NPAPL). “ACC
posed this enormous challenge to us and I am glad that our
work is indeed surpassing their expectations.”
The structure’s façade has been refurbished to
enhance its heritage appeal. “The core and shell of
the building have been retained and the interior has been
renovated using environment-friendly material with the aim
of sustainable development,” explains Sapra. “The
external facade has also been retained.” What’s
more, the entire renovation programme is being executed in
an operational office without hindering business at any point
of time.
Renovation design
The refurbishment focuses on an open office concept with open
workstations and cubicles of various sizes that allow for
uninterrupted penetration of light. The earlier layout was
compartmentalised into several small and large cabins and
meeting areas along the periphery, which hindered the penetration
of light to the entire floor plate. “The focal point
of the design is undoubtedly the central atrium derived out
of a closed service shaft providing daylight, transparency
and visual connectivity through the building,” says
Parulekar.
A central service core used to house the HVAC and air-handling
units (AHUs) on all floors and run other utilities like the
chiller pipes, plumbing and drainage lines, and electrical
and data cables. In order to allow for more openness, the
service core now opens out into the sky-lit atrium that Parulekar
refers to. The entire design of the office revolves around
the concept of this atrium and allocation of spaces around
it.
The asbestos cement sheet roof has been replaced by a polycarbonate
sheet and the atrium has been extended to the basement level
to allow more daylight penetration. The atrium is enveloped
by glass railings on three sides for maximum transparency
and landscaped at the basement level to maximise the green
areas.
Temporary AHU room structures on every floor have been demolished
to open out the space. The existing windows (1,320 ×
2,080 mm) with wooden frames have been extended to 1,320 ×
3,000 mm sizes and changed to sleeker aluminium openable casement
windows using double glazed units (DGU) with U factor (shading
coefficient) 0.21 Btu/hr ft² °F and SC of 0.23.
Energy efficiency
“The need to mould the design to suit the green building
(LEED) requirements has only raised the bar a few notches
higher,” comments Parulekar. To this, Sapra adds, “Green
power has been generated off the existing site by means of
windmills up to a capacity of 9 MW. Also, we expect savings
to the tune of 25 per cent from energy-efficient appliances.”
Further, the project aims to save over 50 per cent water and
will use eco-friendly housekeeping chemicals. Indoor air quality
will be enhanced with the use of non-toxic building materials
and low volatile organic compound (low VOC) paints, adhesives
and sealants. Office waste will be segregated into dry waste
and wet waste; dry waste will be diverted to recycling haulers
while wet waste will be further processed to generate organic
compost on site. “There will also be green building
education for all occupants and visitors,” says Sapra.
If you’re wondering how expensive it is, Sapra has the
answer. “It is slightly expensive but the payback period
is only five to six years.” And Parulekar says, “Recycled,
rapidly renewable material, energy-saving lighting and air-conditioning
systems, terrace gardens and efficient water treatment systems
have been used within the constraint of a competitive budget
and stringent statutory norms.”
With the first phase of Project Orchid now complete, the entire
building is expected to be ready by June 30, 2009.
Energy-saving green features
• Creation of a central atrium
• Capturing maximum daylight with large windows –
double-glazed units
• Open office plan with low height partitions
• Motion and light sensors
• Variable refrigerant flow (VRF) system for HVAC
• Integrated building management system – centralised
control of HVAC, lighting and fire-fighting system
• Lighting control by occupants for more than 75 per
cent of the occupants
• Task lights
• Over deck insulation
• Roof gardens
• Use of high albedo paint
• Solar water heating system
• Use of materials with a high percentage of recycled
content
Water-saving features
• Native and adaptive landscapes
• Extensive use of sensor-based, water-efficient plumbing
fixtures
• Channelling rainwater for groundwater recharge
• Installation of sewage treatment plant to divert recycled
water for landscaping and flushing
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