| |JULY 202219INDUSTRY INSIGHTSGREEN BUILDINGS THE INDIAN SCENARIOBy Anil Banchhor, Managing Director & CEO, RDC ConcreteA green building concept focuses on the inter relationship between the building and its surrounding so that the building does not have any negative impacts. It does this through focusing on design which leads to reduced energy and water consumption by the inhabitants, healthy indoor environment quality and use of smart materials (which don't consume huge energy). India ranks second as the country with the largest number of green buildings after US. Most of the Indian projects have demonstrated through their simplicity that green building and sustainability are not complex or high-tech ventures. In particular, the retrofitting of old buildings demonstrates that it is an easy procedure which can be replicated with ease to transform some of old buildings in the country's cities and towns. Green buildings may not be green just based on the materials and energy that goes into it, but it also depends on the location and the amount of recycling that has gone into it. For example, a new energy efficient building where nothing existed earlier will actually use-up 3-4 times more resources than an old abandoned building which has been retrofitted and made energy efficient. The difference in green buildings is in the approach to its design, which focuses on a concern for extending the life span of natural resources: reducing operating cost such as for use of energy and water consumption by the inhabitants, providing human comfort, safety and productivity other typical features which include the use of non-toxic (for the inhabitants), recycled and environmental friendly building materials.Green building is not just the one which is good for the environment, but it also is the one which creates profits to its users. Analysts estimate the differential cost to be no more than 3-5 percent for a green building. If you factor-in savings of 25-30 percent of water and electricity consumption bill in an average green building in India, the additional expense may not be recovered within five years, but such buildings can be profitable in the long run.In fact most of the green buildings in India are non-residential commercial structures concentrated in a few of the big cities, and the common man still sees such homes as a luxury. Therefore, it is necessary to demystify the concept of Green and Sustainable housing.There are several `Smart' green building materials, which are cost effective and long lasting available for the modern home owner which would help them build or rebuild their homes, to a more eco-friendly and sustainable habitat. Traditional construction materials now have greener and smarter substitutes such as crushed rock fines to replace natural sand. It helps in replacing natural sand usage in concrete and plasters. Crushed rock fines were once upon a time a reject waste which was dumped while producing stone aggregates for concrete. It ensures a comparatively denser concrete than those made only with natural sand and quarry fines resulting in significant increase in compressive strength and durability. Using this alternative has not only helped the environment in just protecting it from huge dumps of this material, but has also helped to maintain the river bed levels, which used to be a challenge when sand was mined from it. Anil Banchhor,Managing Director & CEO
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