Sustainable Development - The Way For Future

K Raheja Corp is an Indian conglomerate, which provides services across real estate, retail and hospitality. Headquartered at Mumbai, the group is led by sons Ravi Raheja and Neel Raheja, and founded by their father Chandru Raheja when the group ventured out of the family business in 1996.

Sustainability and Green are concepts synonymous with energy renewal, reuse, preserving natural resources and harnessing the power of the sun and the wind. With growing consciousness and the understanding of the benefits of a Green Building, developers are more cognizant of crafting Green compliant offerings to their clients. Incorporating green building practices have lasting effects on environment conservation.

With a massive shift in mindsets now inclining towards the idea of encouraging sustainability, green building concepts have taken the front foot in the Real Estate industry. There are a wide variety of new technologies used in green buildings such as Net Zero Concept (Zero Energy and Zero Water Concepts) which depend on renewable sources to produce as much energy as they use. One of its numerous features is that it does not get influenced by any external source for energy and water. Extensive use of renewable source of energy like solar panels and wind turbines etc. stand among the advancements used to achieve net-zero status.

In addition to that, emerging technologies like HVAC (Heating Ventilation, and Air Conditioning) helps in the flow of warm and dehumidified air in all rooms and is the most quiet and convenient way to cool an entire building. The main objective is to decrease the electricity consumption of the building from the electricity grid, a

fossil fuel based thermal power dominated grid and thus contributes to the reduction in emissions of pollutants including GHG emissions. Glazing is another technique used wherein a Low ‘e’ double glazed glass is used to reduce the heat ingress into the building. These windows help make the indoor areas more comfortable and reduce energy costs to create a brighter, cleaner and healthier environment. The use of solar Photo Voltaic (PV) modules generates electricity from sunlight, which can be fed into the main electrical supply of a building. Reducing the need for fossil fuel generation, the growing grid connected solar PV sector helps cut greenhouse gas emissions and is a pure pollution free form of power generation.

Moreover, passive solar heating, sustainable building materials, mechanical systems and energy, healthy indoor air quality, optimal natural light inside residences and efficient water fixtures help in creating more sustainable buildings. Making use of local and recycled materials having lower embodied energy is very crucial. The reduction or no use of low VOC paints, adhesives and sealants are better for the environment, for indoor air quality and are approved for use by people with environmental sensitivities. Furthermore, sewage treatment helps remove the contaminants from wastewater, through physical, chemical, and biological processes and produce environmentally safe treated wastewater.

The use of Integrated Building Management Systems is vastly preferred by developers today. This is an automatic centralized control of a building’s heating, ventilation and air conditioning, lighting and other systems through a building management system. These help improve security, occupant comfort, and efficient operation of building systems, reduce energy consumption and operating costs and improve the life cycle of utilities.

Efficient use of energy resources and their conservation are essential for curbing wasteful consumption and sustainable development. These help reduce wastage of water, conserve natural resources, improve air and water quality, and protect biodiversity and ecosystems. To achieve more significant results, incorporating green factors in the planning and construction stage will be worth it.