Create Smart Buildings & Plug into Smart & Sustainable Future

The tapestry of technology has driven us towards a meaningful change where mankind got its new direction. Technology brought us a lot of varieties in our life through innovation, invention and discoveries. The decade we are living in, has witnessed major advancements in terms of technology that have gone on to transform the ambit of architecture, engineering, and construction. Holding the strong hands of digital technology we entered into this smart decade where we have come under a gamut of automation. From smart gadgets to smart building, the bright elements of science are constantly helping us to transform seamlessly. Builders and architects of today are learning and developing their knowledge and integrating their engineering skill with data science and creating smart building utilizing space. From smart homes and offices to smart buildings and cities, the transition of the dream of a sustainable future has been an ambitious one.

Metamorphosis of Construction

Government initiatives like ‘100 Smart Cities Mission’ and ‘AMRUT’ have already created a haul in the market for building a better infrastructure for citizens. In today’s smart era, ‘Smart’ is synonymous to ‘Sustainable’. Today’s generation is well aware of the darker side of the science and technology which leads to pollution. Notably we are using inexpensive sensors, always-on wireless connections, image capture, advanced 3D visualization, Building Information Modelling (BIM) as well as Geographic Information System (GIS) technology to revolutionize the history of construction and building. The energy efficiency and sustainability is the key to control the carbon footprints and present a healthy rejuvenated environment to our forthcoming generation. The efficient integration of technology and construction is effectively transforming the growth of smart infrastructure.

Smart Building

Shelter is the top priority to our survival but with time, our priority is shifting towards comfort and luxury, instead of just a concrete construction. Luxury home is characterized by smart connectivity which is done via digitalization. Smart buildings are featured by smart data pertaining to electricity, water consumption, hourly space utilization, and so on. This centrally collected data helps the dwellers to take corrective actions pertaining to construction.

Smart buildings are designed in such a way that the energy gets utilized efficiently irrespective of the internal and external conditions.  Due to the system of energy efficiency, the energy consumption comes down and keeps a wonderful balance of ecology. These smart applications add to the asset value of the structure making it a preferred option to go for.

Smart building has sensing and processing capabilities to listen for itself and then program itself to do what it sees as optimal. In the design of smart building, BIM and GIS technology along with IoT sensors, 3D models, and 2D drawings are efficiently being used by skillful architects. The integrated format of BIM, reality capture and GIS creates a system of digital twin of infrastructure for effective facility management, cutting functional costs, enhancing sustainability, and giving the importance of GIS technology in smart infrastructure.

Let’s dig deep inside to know the ‘Top 5’ smart buildings across India which is bolstering the flag of India in the global map.

Indira Gandhi International Airport

Location: Palam, Delhi

Type: Commercial

The IGI airport scored a perfect 100 in the safe and productive parameters, as well as a 93 in the green parameter. It is the busiest airport in the country handling close to 70 million passengers a year. The airport complex has 10,000m² of landscaped area, costed Rs.7000 crore. In 2016 Honeywell announced this as 10^th smartest buildings at the Network 18 and Honeywell Smart Building Awards for 2016. The newly launched terminal 3 of this airport is fully constructed making use of the sustainable elements. Instead of artificial lights they emphasized on natural light they are relying on 1,200 energy-efficient LCD screens, 300 rainwater harvesting stations and storm drains the control erosion. The intelligent light fittings at the complex were designed by Entelechy Systems, based on the ABB I bus KNX technology.  Ground operations at the terminal are also powered by electric vehicles. The new terminal features 97 travelators, 63 elevators, 34 escalators and eight inclined walkways that connect the international arrival and departure levels. IGI airport building was regarded as smartest & largest airport in India. This is the first in the world to be achieved the ‘Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) New Construction Gold Certification’.