ST : Mark of a winner

Dec 5, 2009

Mark of a winner

Features such as motion lighting sensors, solar panels and water-efficient loos have helped three new malls bag a green award

By tay suan chiang



A new breed of malls is more than a stylish place to enjoy endless shops and restaurants - the shopping adventure has been made more earth-friendly, too.

Recently opened malls such as City Square Mall in Kitchener Road as well as 313@Somerset and Ion Orchard, both along Orchard Road, have been given the green thumbs-up by the Building and Construction Authority (BCA).

They are winners of the BCA Green Mark award, which honours developers of buildings that are environment-friendly. The awards were first handed out in 2005.

Eco features that grabbed the eye of judges include the use of an efficient air-conditioning system, waterless urinals and carpark lighting sensors, all of which help the malls save energy.

City Square Mall, which opened in September, is the first mall to win the Platinum award, the highest accolade of the Green Mark award. It won the award in 2007.

How green the buildings are is judged based on their design concepts and energy models to show the estimated energy savings. Buildings need not be completed to be awarded.

The 11-storey mall was developed by City Developments Ltd (CDL) and designed by property group Lend Lease, which is also its leasing agent.

CDL declined to reveal construction costs for the mall but Mr Felix Lim, principal architect at Lend Lease, says by incorporating green features into the mall, 'it costs 5 to 6 per cent more to build, but the mall is expected to save $2million in annual energy bills'.

On the decision to go green, CDL's assistant general manager, projects division, Mr Allen Ang, says: 'We believe that a shopping mall is a strategic platform to reach out to shoppers and the community-at-large to raise their eco-consciousness.

'By offering a positive and vibrant shopping environment, City Square Mall shows that going green can be fun and easily a part of everyday life.'

The mall's green features include a skylight, 'so it will be lit by natural light, rather than depend solely on artificial lighting', says Mr Lim.

At night and on cloudy days, the mall remains bright. There are sensors around the complex that detect the amount of natural light entering and adjust the intensity of the artificial light as needed.

In the basement carparks, the lights darken and brighten automatically.

No, it is not because they are defective nor should shoppers wonder if they are in a horror movie. Rather, there are motion lighting sensors in place to control the lighting.

Mr Lim points out that with the various energy-saving features around the mall, the projected total electricity savings is about 11.4 million kWH a year, or 'the equivalent to the total electrical consumption of 2,380 units of HDB four-room flats'.

It is not only about saving electricity. He designed the mall for water efficiency, too, such as harvesting rainwater to hydrate the plants.

In addition, the men's toilets feature waterless urinals. These use an eco-friendly biotechnology cleansing system - where cultured bacteria eradicates the stench from waste liquids - and do away with the need to use water for flushing.

The estimated cost of savings is another $48,000 annually.

While some of the green features in the mall are not visible to shoppers, it has taken further steps to drive the recycling message home: It has six interactive panels that let shoppers learn about its green features as well as to pick up recycling tips.

Save water, electricity and money

The interactive panels get the nod of approval from housewife Mary Tan, 34, who was out shopping with her son, Bryan, five. 'It is never too early for him to learn about recycling,' she says.

The mall is also playing host to a BCA exhibition next Thursday to Sunday on how homes can be more environmentally friendly.

Over at Orchard Road's newest mall, 313@Somerset, which opened on Thursday, shoppers may be hard-pressed to find its green features, but they are in place. The mall is a Platinum Green Mark award winner last year.

Among its environment-friendly features are solar panels to power the mall, Newater for its sprinklers, a system that collects and channels rainwater to flush toilets and water the plants as well as lighting sensors in the atrium and upper-level carparks to help save energy during the day.

Putting in these green features allows the mall to enjoy energy savings of 6.3 million kWh a year and water savings of 22,500 cubic metres annually, says the mall's developer, who is also Lend Lease.

This is equivalent to the total electrical consumption of 1,277 HDB four-room flats, and water usage for 96 HDB four-room flats respectively.

It is also encouraging its tenants to go green. It has worked out the power and lighting requirements of the tenants, and should the energy consumption be high, recommendations to reduce the energy usage will be provided.

Shoppers headed to Ion Orchard will notice a green wall at the mall on the side facing Wheelock Place. This one-storey-high vertical wall that has been covered with plants is one of the green features that helped the mall win a BCA Green Mark Gold award in 2007.

The shopping centre also has photocell sensors around the building which reduce lighting levels by dimmers in response to the amount of available daylight. The mall is expected to save $470,000 annually in its energy bill.

Shopper Tan Jin Jin, 28, who practises recycling at home, says: 'Even though the energy savings are not passed on to shoppers, it's heartening to know malls are also becoming eco-conscious.'

taysc@sph.com.sg