Green Building Technology - Coursework Example

Green Building Technology Throughout much of the 20th and 21st centuries, the architectural goals of the nation have been focused upon a race towards the sky. Various cities and developers have struggled to present the tallest building in the world through the utilization of new advances in architecture and structural engineering. However, there is a new challenge cresting on the horizon proving itself both far superior to such petty concerns and more difficult than these engineering feats. The world’s present ecological situation and environmental problems have been called to the attention of the designers and engineers. In modern times, architectural design should more than anything else aim to lessen the impact on the environment during construction and building exploitation through a range of energy and resource efficiency strategies. The primary reasons for developing green building technology are quite simple. They originate from the growing need of present societies to prevent environmental destruction and to use energy efficiently. In recognition of new studies that reveal the unhealthy conditions often found in buildings constructed in more traditional methods as well as the tremendous impact these buildings can have on the surrounding environment, one of the major issues addressed through green building is the health and safety of its users and the environment in which it is built. This is a considerably important issue since further studies have revealed its effectiveness in that buildings designed in compliance with green building requirements can reduce the rate of respiratory disease. Green building technology also carries a suggestion to select building materials that produce low or even zero emission, which in turn improves air quality (California Integrated Waste Management Board, 2007). Thanks to the invention of computer modeling, which has become an almost indispensable tool in architectural and structural business design, the effort to comply with green building guidelines is also much easier in today’s technological world. These programs enable developers to optimize building designs including the electrical and mechanical systems by allowing the entire building to be designed as a unified, integrated system that functions to support itself as much as possible (California Integrated Waste Management Board, 2007). Buildings can now be devised that produce a portion of their own energy through solar panels, collect their own water supplies (for toilets, etc) through specially designed rainspouts and collecting basins and that otherwise utilize the natural resources of the environment in non-impactful ways that function toward greater usability and functionality of the structure as a result of integrated systems (such as insulating concrete walls that simultaneously help to cool the building while also assisting in the collection of condensation water for use in other areas of the structure. During recent years new terms have emerged in the architectural and construction fields that are important to understand when working with green standards. ‘Sustainable development’ is the ability to fulfill current community needs without sacrificing the needs of future generations. Although, there are also many other definitions regarding the concept of sustainability development, they share some common characteristics in that they are composed of three factors: environment, economy and equity. The current ecological situation suggests economic development within a region or country should not eliminate or ignore the social and environmental concerns that will be faced by future generations as the environmental situation continues to change. In other words, sustainable development represents the accomplishment of social and economic progress that pays attention to the preservation of the environment through its use of natural resources in an appropriate and efficient manner. While the term concerns various elements of building technology as it relates to reducing the impact of building upon the environment, another term has developed to address the specific concerns and technologies used to make this dream a reality. ‘Green building’ has grown to encompass many related concepts. Its scope goes beyond being merely about the building but covers the sustainable development issues as well. Some of these issues include ‘efficiency enhancement’ in which buildings and their sites utilize natural resources like vegetation, water or energy more efficiently; or in which buildings that may have an effect on human health (due to the use of materials and shape) and on environment have reduced these impacts to a significant degree. These actions are carried out by better design, careful construction, innovative materials and usage, planned operation in conjunction with appropriate site planning, responsible maintenance, and the exclusion/removal of older buildings that cannot be brought into sustainable compliance. (Building Design & Construction, 2003). The term ‘green building’ is often identified with the concept of sustainable development thanks to a nearly identicle desired outcome. For example, both terms are used to refer to a structure that is designed, developed, built, operated, reused, and renovated by considering and taking into account ecological and resource-efficient technologies, practices, materials and processes (California Integrated Waste Management Board, 2007). Moreover, the design of green buildings is carefully orchestrated to meet particular objectives including preserving environment, protecting human health, enhancing employee productivity by providing a nice workplace, using natural resources efficiently (water, energy, and other resources), and reducing or eliminating any possible negative impacts to the environment (California Integrated Waste Management Board, 2007). This is completely in keeping with the concept of sustainable development. Despite the fast development and implementation of green building technologies that have occured within the past several decades, the idea may have existed more than a century ago (Building Design & Construction, 2003). The history of green building technology can be separated into three distinct periods: past, present, and future. Home builders/developers commenced the construction of resource-efficient building in the early 1970s in response to the Flower Power movement of the later 1960s and its emphasis on earth-friendly practices. The term ‘green building’ has been used since the late 1980s, with increasing usage moving into the 1990s. Officially, the first recognized green home building was constructed in Austin, Texas in 1991. The largest green home building exists in Colorado where the movement saw tremendous interest with more than 100 builder members in the state. (City of Mission Viejo, n.d.) Today’s green buildings are twice as energy efficient as those that were built in the past 30 years. This is due primarily to the invention of new green building technology with the advent of new materials and tools that make these materials feasible. In the U.S. alone, there were about 61,000 green homes constructed within the time period from 1990-2004. Today’s green building complies with several requirements including low operating costs, reduced maintenance costs, enhanced home value and improved (meaning reduced) environmental impacts (City of Mission Viejo, n.d.). Green building creates trends as people increase their concerns towards using energy efficiently. The green building program has been growing during the past 30 years and can be expected to continue spawning new invention and innovation (City of Mission Viejo, n.d.). Realizing the challenges that society faces in the long term, therefore, the growing use of appropriate technology may provide favorable conditions to spawn invention and innovation that utilize various materials that more completely comply with sustainable development concepts. This includes the new computer programs that allow developers to design integrated building systems to achieve maximum efficiency as well as advances in material usage, production and recycling. Moreover, the innovation and invention in sustainable development concept goes beyond merely developing new technologies. In fact, these concepts involve encouraging creative thinking that heads for new processes and techniques of problem solving. The present situation suggests that invention and innovation can encourage businesses to practice sustainable development concept in many ways (‘Invention and Innovation’, 2003). This encouragement comes from a variety of different sources. Due to the need to preserve the environment from destruction, many groups who are concerned about how to best accomplish this preservation have set up information centers about sustainable development. For example, SustainableABC.com serves communities that have several chemical sensitivities. This is important since about 30 percent of the population is affected by a particular level of environmental sensitivity. The goal of SustainableABC.com is to help environmentally-influenced communities gather information on sustainable development through the provision of resources and education (SustainableABC.com, 2003c). According to the site’s mission statement, the organization was established in 1996 as a means of increasing the impact of education and resources in order to explore the relationship between ecology and sustainability as well as examine how different communities implement these values in their daily activities. One of the organization’s missions is to encourage the development of environment-friendly design, lifestyle choices, and construction (SustainableABC.com, 2003c). In order to realize the benefits of these initiatives, several people from diverse fields of study are required to work hand-in-hand to achieving the goal. These individuals include builders, solar cell engineers, air quality experts, interior designers, architects, and other eco-professionals. Although they come from different fields of study, they must share a common vision and a willingness to share their experience as they implement their particular plan of sustainable development (SustainableABC.com, 2003c). Groups such as SustainableABC.com facilitate this communication and coordination by providing a worldwide meeting place where ideas, innovations, new technologies and new approaches can be discussed, explored, envisioned and shared throughout the professional and private communities. Considering the importance of sustainable development, it is necessary for eco-professionals to team up to develop the so-called green building technology needed to preserve the environment. Without professional involvement, little could be accomplished toward preserving the environment as building has been determined to have the greatest impact on natural resources exploitation. Roodman and Lenssen (1995) indicate that the building and maintaining of buildings consumes approximately two-fifths of all material and energy flow, one quarter of the world’s wood production and one sixth of the fresh water withdrawals in the world. Under such circumstances, green building development has plenty of opportunity to design buildings that utilize natural resources more efficiently while at the same time creating healthier buildings that produce a better environment for those using the buildings and those living or working within these communities and provide cost savings to building owners (California Integrated Waste Management Board, 2007). The advantages of developing green building technology or sustainability building are numerous, especially as is it viewed in the long term. To begin with, the daily operation of the building is far lower than traditional costs of building operation, which offsets much of the higher initial costs incurred in the initial building process as compared to traditional building within a relatively short period of time. The economic benefit of green building is calculated by analyzing the associated costs during the lifetime of the building or the value of the assets that can be sold at a later date (Environmental Building News, 1999). However, since green buildings use special materials in order to achieve the full capability of the building, the construction of such structures should exactly match the projects conceptual design. To function efficiently, green buildings must be constructed as an integrated system rather than a collection of stand-alone systems a la the traditional building project. In addition to the economic point of view, green building also provides numerous benefits from an architectural point of view. These benefits mainly refer to the functional benefits that the building provides to people who use the building and the environment that receives the impact of the building’s existence (Environmental Building News, 1999). As has been suggested earlier, green buildings provide an architectural advantage in that they are capable of enhancing and improving the health, comfort and productivity of the building’s users while also reducing the production of environmental pollution, thus reducing the building’s impact upon the surrounding environment. A prime example of the new abilities of green building technology can be found in Britain in the form of the new Brighton Jubilee Library, completed in 2005, which represents a culmination of ideas and concepts that speak eloquently of its position and use in society as well as illustrating several of the concerns the modern world is facing regarding the use and construction of a facility such as this. More than simply allowing the actual building materials used in the construction of the building to be seen and celebrated, the Brighton Library has taken the concept of architecture as engineering another step forward by ensuring most of the materials used have at least a double function in the daily operation of the building, either by meeting specific user needs or to contribute to the overall function of the building’s processes even as they work to contribute toward the overall enjoyment of the aesthetics. Both inside the building and outside, the materials used and the ways in which they are used function to contribute to the use and operation of the building. The blue tiles on the exterior of the building are an economical alternative to tin used in similarly funded buildings while the glass sheets work in mathematical precision with the tiles to maximize the use or disuse of natural sunlight. “Heating bills during winter months are further reduced by the library’s magnificent south-facing glass facade, with louvres specially angled to allow in winter sun but deflect it in the summer” (“Jubilee Library”, 2006). Also visible from the outside are three large wind towers placed prominently on the roof of the building. “These are an integral part of the passive cooling system, drawing warmed air up and out of the structure. … High efficiency heat recovery units capture heat from lighting, PCs and people, recycling it back through the system” (“Jubilee Library”, 2006). According to one of the designers, Nick Lomax, the towers are designed to “add to the flamboyance of the city skyline” as well as to “use the breeze to draw excess heat, especially in summer, up from the spaces below” (Glancey, 2006). The exposed concrete of the interior columns, as well as the specially designed hollow-core concrete slabs that comprise each floor, plays a major role in the collection and circulation of heat and coolant. Warm air is allowed to rise through the columns and be sucked out of the building in warm weather while natural cooler air is filtered down through the evening hours with the help of the wind towers on the roof. Despite the tremendous advantages that can be seen in the Jubilee Library and other structures, though, the construction of green buildings also introduces some unanswered challenges, particularly since the intangible benefits of the architectural point of view are rarely considered in costs analysis calculation. Precisely because these elements are intangible, therefore impossible to quantify, there has not yet been a means devised to bring these benefits into the equation which has a tendency to greatly reduce their importance in building consideration. Therefore, there should be methods that consider the intangible benefits of green building so that owners or developers may consider the construction of green building as a feasible and intelligent business move (Environmental Building News, 1999). In many cases, the materials used in green building construction can actually be more expensive than traditional supply chains as they involve clean processing and production. When faced with a strict construction budget, this fact often outweighs the benefits of a clean working environment or a lower environmental impact. In addition, green building technology requires the close interaction of several professionals, which can also increase the price of design. Instead of bringing in stand-alone systems that have already been tried and proven, green building technology requires integrated systems and strict adherence to building plans. These additional restrictions can often require additional training on the part of the professionals and others as well as place additional restrictions upon the building’s design possibilities based upon the location, environment, intended function and other factors. All of these factors further add to the overall price tag and further discourages investors interested in the bottom line profit margin from pursuing this type of development. Although green building technology has rightfully been emerging as a more and more popular option in the development of new buildings, and increasing numbers of individuals are expressing a willingness to invest more initially in order to save in the long run, green building technology still has a long way to go before it is fully developed. While many of the concepts behind green building technology, such as the attempt to reduce energy usage and impact on environment, have been attempted throughout the years, most notably in buildings constructed in the early 1970s in response to the earth friendly movements of the 60s, green building technology has reached a new high thanks to new technologies and materials available that facilitate the complicated, integrated design process necessary to bring these designs to working life. As a future architect I am trying to follow latest trends in the industry and technology, which increasingly leans toward green technology. As a future parent, I, along with many others, have begun to realize the importance of trying to prepare and leave a better world for future generations, again leaning strongly toward the development of green technology. While there remains some distinct disadvantages in attempting to bring green building to the mainstream developmental market, these, like several of the other disadvantages that have been recently overcome, can be met through continued effort, participation and cooperation among professionals. Work Cited California Integrated Waste Management Board (CIWMB). Green Building Basics. (2007). Retrieved June 12, 2007 from Cerver, Francisco Asensio. The Architecture of Skyscraper. New York: Hearst Books International, (1997). City of Mission Viejo. The History of Green Building – Past, Present & Future. (n.d.). Retrieved June 12, 2007 from Emporis. Building Definition. (2004). Retrieved June 13, 2007 from Environmental Building News, “Building Green on a Budget”, Vol 8, No. 5, (May 1999). Retrieved June 13, 2007 from (Back) Glancey, Jonathan. “Sweet and Low Down.” Guardian Unlimited. (2006). Retrieved June 13, 2007 from < http://arts.guardian.co.uk/features/story/0,11710,1426989,00.html> Invention and Innovation for Sustainable Development. Lemelson MIT Program, (2003). Retrieved June 13, 2007 from Jodidio, Philip. New Forms: Architecture in the 1990’s. Benedikt Taschen Verlag Gmbh, (1997). “Jubilee Library.” Designing Libraries. (2005). Retrieved June 13, 2007 from GreenHomesforSale.com List A Home. (2007). Retrieved June 12, 2007 from SustainableABC.com. Lists a Home. (2003).Retrieved June 12, 2007 from ---. Products Directory: Green Building Materials & Healthy Building Materials. (2003). Retrieved June 12, 2007 from ---. Sustainable Architecture, Building, and Culture. (2003). Retrieved June 12, 2007 from Read More