GLUMAC - Engineers for a sustainable future

"Eco-City of The Future"  Dongtan, China

Diana Volovelskay, San Francisco Marketing Coordinator

The global construction boom over the past decade in Europe and Asia is expected to hit an all-time high in 2012, according to the International Construction Information Society (ICIS). The World Green Building Council (WGBC) notes, "China has the largest construction volume in the world."

 

Outside Design versus Local Design

With 10 years of international building experience in both Europe and Asia, Glumac is now focused on expanding our reach into China. Working directly with owners on high-technology projects has us positioned to collaborate on a larger scale. Projects such as:

• Digital Island Data Center in Hong Kong, Tokyo, Frankfurt, and London (500,000 sf design and commissioning)
• Adobe Labs in Hong Kong and Beijing
• High-technology 6-story Class A office building in Mumbai (350,000 sf)
• Symantec LEED^® Certified R&D facility in Chengdu (700,000 sf design and commissioning)

"It™s great to take our extensive portfolio of sustainable design projects and apply those proven technologies in new countries like India and China," said Steven Straus, Glumac CEO.

Having worked on the Hong Kong International Airport Transit Terminal and the largest hotel in Hong Kong at the time, Airport Regal Hotel, Los Angeles Principal, Edwin Lee, P.E., LEED^® AP, plans to open a Glumac Shanghai office in the summer of 2008. "We will be able to develop in terms of sustainable design and engineering; In Shanghai for instance, you can find all of the well known architects there, and the construction budget in Shanghai is bigger than all of Europe. This will allow Glumac to work on some interesting projects that will help contribute positively to the environment."

"The LEED^® benchmark rating system is becoming very popular. Five years ago in the United States everyone was skeptical about LEED^®, and what is happening in China is like it was 5 years ago in the United States. With our record, we can make a big difference over there."

There is a big push toward sustainable projects in China, and LEED^® is the standard. In the near future, most international projects will include LEED^® credits. Glumac collaborates with engineers from other countries to establish these sustainable design concepts.

Green Building in China

As of April 1, 2008, China introduced a Green Building Council to support the new green building standards that were launched in late 2007, joining 21 other countries that have established green rating systems and guidelines. Currently, over 80 percent of the nearly 21.5 billion square feet of new buildings constructed each year in China are categorized as "high-energy" buildings, consuming two to three times more energy per unit area than those in developed countries. (UNEP SBCI, 2007).

The Chinese Ministry of Construction has now established a target calling for energy consumption in new buildings to be 65 percent less than in existing buildings, and accordingly, the government has instituted rebates to help meet this goal. They estimate the current value of the green construction market to be $213.77 billion.

 

That said, the process of working on a project in China is unique to that in the United States. Traditionally, a non-national engineer is allowed to bring the project to Design Development (DD), but they must then use a local engineer to get to 100% Construction Documentation (CD) level. Our niche is that Glumac can do work on Schematic Design (SD), DD, and also CD levels.

Shifts in the market now allow us to utilize our local experience and knowledge to provide for a positive contribution to international projects. "Outside of the United States, to flourish, it™s all about relationships," said Sam Graves, Glumac Senior Associate. "Anybody can put a design to paper, but not just anybody can put out an effective design that a customer wants. I™ve worked in several different locations overseas: clean rooms, data centers, high-tech production facilities in Singapore, India, Ireland, Germany, France, Australia, South America, Israel, and even Puerto Rico."

Sustainable Forecast

For now, green building in China and India is in the beginning stages. In the United Kingdom, the long-standing BRE Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) is a template for China™s new green building policies. It is so successful that over 500,000 buildings in the United Kingdom are registered for assessment. China™s 11th Five Year Plan (2006-2010) is focused on reducing energy emissions, alongside the prospect that by 2020, China will account for 16% of the world™s total energy consumption. The Indian Green Building Council is in the process of modifying LEED^® to work within India™s construction standards, and the World USGBC continues to make strides toward universal sustainability.