The Singapore Engineer July 2015

The Magazine Of The Institution Of Engineers, Singapore July 2015 MCI (P) 074/03/2015

Celebrating 50 Years of Engineering Excellence

THE

www.ies.org.sg

SINGAPORE ENGINEER COVER STORY:

SUSTAINABILITY NTU Sports Hall

FEATURES:

Transportation Engineering • Chemical & Petrochemical Engineering • Focus on Singapore

CONTENTS

Celebrating 50 Years of Engineering Excellence

FEATURES 14 SUSTAINABILITY: COVER STORY:

Chief Editor T Bhaskaran t_b_n8@yahoo.com

NTU Sports Hall

Besides incorporating energy-efficient and water-efficient features, the Green Mark Platinum Award-winning project makes innovative use of environment-friendly materials.

24 TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING:

A systems thinking approach to building largescale land transport systems The article discusses the philosophy and considerations necessary to ensure safety and reliability of the assets, right from the concept stage to their end-of-life.

32 CHEMICAL & PETROCHEMICAL ENGINEERING:

Ethylene - the most common building block for petrochemical products An overview of the properties, production and application of this versatile chemical is presented.

Hitachi-GE Nuclear Energy’s project wins 2014 Bentley Be Inspired Award Advanced software helped develop an approach to address a major issue in Japan.

36 SUSTAINABILITY:

Energy efficiency improvements in industry lagging behind the Green Building sector There is widespread recognition of the importance of progress in this area, but the performance levels have been different.

38 SUSTAINABILITY:

Changing businesses to achieve sustainable economic outcomes A holistic approach is advocated, to realise energy savings and other desirable objectives.

39 FOCUS ON SINGAPORE:

Inaugural Green Mark Pearl Prestige and other Green Mark Awards presented In recognising environment-friendly buildings, there is now also emphasis on the contributions of building tenants towards reaching this goal.

40 FOCUS ON SINGAPORE:

CEO Angie Ng angie@iesnet.org.sg Publications Manager Desmond Teo desmond@iesnet.org.sg Media Consultants Roland Ang roland@iesnet.org.sg Desmond Chander desmond@shamrockcraine.com Published by The Institution of Engineers, Singapore 70 Bukit Tinggi Road Singapore 289758 Tel: 6469 5000 Fax: 6467 1108

34 POWER GENERATION:

Founded in 1966

Singapore leads the way in charting future research directions for water solutions The identification of technology focus areas is expected to spur innovation in this sector.

Cover designed by Stephanie Kwan Cover image by Nanyang Technological University

The Singapore Engineer is published monthly by The Institution of Engineers, Singapore (IES). The publication is distributed free-of-charge to IES members and affiliates. Views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of the Editor or IES. All rights reserved. No part of this magazine shall be reproduced, mechanically or electronically, without the prior consent of IES. Whilst every care is taken to ensure accuracy of the content at press time, IES will not be liable for any discrepancies. Unsolicited contributions are welcome but their inclusion in the magazine is at the discretion of the Editor.

Design & layout by 2EZ Asia Pte Ltd Printed in Singapore

43 FOCUS ON SINGAPORE:

National Gallery Singapore

The historical and cultural importance of the project necessitated a sensitive response in terms of the architecture and engineering.

REGULAR SECTIONS 02 MESSAGE 08 IES UPDATE 46 NEWS July 2015 THE SINGAPORE ENGINEER

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Message

Message from the Deputy President, IES and Chairman, IES Chemical and Process Engineering Technical Committee There is an air of optimism, as the world works towards the UN Climate Change Conference in Paris (COP 21), which will be held in December 2015.

“The path to Paris is now happening on both the political and negotiating levels and with a mood of exceptional confidence and engagement - what is being managed here is no longer resistance to an agreement but complexity, enthusiasm and an understanding that every nation is playing its part”, said Ms Christiana Figueres, Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

She said that what is occurring is in many ways unprecedented in the history of international cooperation in respect to vision and scale.

Further, at their recent summit, held in Schloss Elmau, Germany, the G7 issued a final communique which emphasised the importance of deep cuts in global greenhouse gas emissions over the course of this century.

The G7 countries also said they would continue efforts to provide US$ 100 billion a year by 2020 to support developing countries’ own climate actions.

Meanwhile, a new report from the UN Environment Programme says that non-state climate initiatives might bring emissions savings of close to 1.8 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent by 2020.

It is against a backdrop of these encouraging developments that the World Engineers Summit on Climate Change (WES) 2015 is scheduled to take place in Singapore, from 21 to 24 July 2015.

Organised by IES, the summit will address the theme ‘Sustainable Urban Development for Global Climate Resilience’, through four tracks covering ‘Clean Environment & Water Resources’, ‘Sustainable Development & Infrastructure’, ‘Sustainable Energy’ and ‘Resilience & Adaptation against Climate Change’.

The event will bring together engineers from multiple disciplines, urban planning specialists, energy specialists, environmental and water specialists, academia, financiers, policy makers, researchers and business leaders of corporations from across industries, worldwide, for an active dialogue on sustainable and technology-led engineering solutions to solve problems created by climate change.

Er. Edwin Khew Deputy President, IES and Chairman, IES Chemical and Process Engineering Technical Committee

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IES Council Members 2015 / 2016 President Er. Chong Kee Sen Deputy President Er. Edwin Khew Honorary Secretary Dr Boh Jaw Woei Honorary Treasurer Er. Koh Beng Thong Vice Presidents Er. Chan Ewe Jin Er. Ng Say Cheong Dr Richard Kwok Er. Seow Kang Seng Prof Yeoh Lean Weng Immediate Past President Prof Chou Siaw Kiang Past Presidents Er. Ho Siong Hin Er. Dr Lee Bee Wah Assistant Honorary Secretary Mr Joseph William Eades Council Members Mr Dalson Chung Prof Er Meng Joo Dr Goh Yang Miang Ms Jasmine Foo A/Prof Lee Poh Seng Mr David So Er. Joseph Goh Mr Mervyn Sirisena Er. Emily Tan Mr Tan Sim Chuan Er. Teo Chor Kok Er. Joseph Toh Er. Alfred Wong Dr Zhou Yi Honorary Council Members Er. Ong Ser Huan Er. Tan Seng Chuan

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IES UPDATE

Engineers in the railway and transportation sector to be accredited under the IES Chartered Engineer Programme societal and commercial problems related to railway engineering. IES is honoured to partner LTA, WDA, SBST and SMRT and contribute to the MOU through our Chartered Engineer programme to raise standards, competencies and proficiencies of the railway and transportation engineering industry and attract new entrants to this field while retaining current engineers”, said Er. Chong Kee Sen, President of IES.

Mrs Josephine Teo, Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Transport (third from left) was the Guest-of-Honour at the signing of the MOU by representatives of SBST, LTA, IES,WDA and SMRT.

IES, the Land Transport Authority (LTA), Singapore Workforce Development Agency (WDA), SBS Transit Ltd (SBST) and SMRT Corporation Ltd (SMRT) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to establish the Chartered Engineer programme for Singapore’s railway professionals. This will support the national-level SkillsFuture movement by building a sustainable pool of highly skilled and proficient railway engineers, and assisting individuals to advance in their careers based on skills and mastery. Mrs Josephine Teo, Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Transport was the Guest-of-Honour and witness for the MOU signing.

In addition, the MOU will establish a common set of railway engineering industry standards for engineering competencies. The signatories will work together to provide a platform for the continual development of professional standards and accreditation in operations, maintenance and regulatory work. This will expand on WDA's Singapore Workforce Skills Qualifications System for Public Transport framework and certification, and build a foundation to support the SkillsFuture objectives of an integrated, high-quality system of education and training. The introduction and recognition of these standards will help to further enhance the professionalism of the sector and to improve its attractiveness for a long-term career. All parties will also collaborate to drive industry-wide branding and promotion of the railway engineering profession.

“To achieve a robust public transportation system, Singapore needs a strong pipeline of railway and transportation engineers capable of the design, construction, operation and maintenance of various types of railway and transportation systems and developing innovative solutions for technical, 08

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Mr Chew Men Leong, Chief Executive of LTA, said, “The development of rail engineers is crucial to our growing public transportation sector. With the building of new rail lines and the doubling of our rail network to about 360 km by 2030, it is critical that we have engineers with the knowledge and expertise to plan, build, operate and maintain the rail system. This programme also encourages the right attitude in our engineers and the spirit of continuous learning, which will keep them in good stead to progress in this exciting industry”.

Visit to Transmission Cable Tunnel Project On 18 April 2015, the IES Civil & Structural Engineering Technical Committee organised a site visit to the EW2 May Shaft of Singapore Power’s Transmission Cable Tunnel Project. The visit allowed participants to take a look behindthe-scenes, to gain a better understanding of the technical challenges of the project.

The participants had the opportunity to witness first-hand the development of two cable tunnels which represent a long-term solution to Singapore's power requirements.

Prior to the actual site visit, participants gathered for a meaningful sharing session with representatives from the project team, who discussed the ideas behind the conceptualisation of the Transmission Cable Tunnel Project and also the various aspects of its development.

Participants were given a tour of the site.

IES UPDATE

IES College of Fellows facilitates first-hand look at Marina Bay district cooling network IES College of Fellows organised a seminar on the Marina Bay district cooling network followed by a site visit for IES members to the Marina Bay Sands Integrated Resort. The events took place on 19 May 2015.

Mr Foo Yang Kwang, the Deputy Managing Director (Business & System Development), Singapore District Cooling Pte Ltd, was on hand to give an in-depth explanation on the implementation of the Marina Bay district cooling network and the advantages of district cooling for Singapore. He also revealed that through economies of scale from centralisation, the Marina Bay network has been able to save up to 42% in electricity usage and significant costs for customers. It has also freed up premium space in the buildings for alternative use, which is very important for Singapore. Furthermore, with a strong engineering team and 24x7 operational attention, the network has also become one of the most reliable networks in the world. Members were shown the key components of the district cooling network.

At the operations centre, Mr Ang Chee Keong, General Manager of Operations, Singapore District Cooling Pte Ltd, emphasised the vigilant 24x7 attention required of the operators on duty. These operators are responsible for ensuring that supply is not disrupted but they also have to save costs for the customers by making decisions on the optimal choice between discharging the thermal storage systems and operating the chillers. In the electrical room, Mr Ang showed the In-Panel-Gas Fire Suppression System

which goes beyond the standard requirements for fire safety. He emphasised that this was just one example of the corporate philosophy to ensure the safety of workers and added reliability assurance for customers in the event of electrical fires, even if significant additional investments are required.

IES delegates paying attention during the presentation

Briefing on the In-Panel-Gas Fire Suppression System in the electrical room

A first-hand look at the operations centre

IES members visit Tuas South Incineration Plant The IES Environmental Engineering Technical Committee (EETC) organised a technical visit to the National Environment Agency’s (NEA) Tuas South Incineration Plant (TSIP), Singapore’s fourth and largest publicly managed Waste to Energy (WTE) plant, on 29 May 2015.

the incineration of plastics, which produces harmful gases; safeguarding good air quality; re-utilisation of bottom ash; the advancement of sustainability in environmental protection; and social responsibility.

Mr Ng Wah Yong, Deputy GM, Mr Phua Kim Tian, Senior Manager (IP Industry Support Team) and senior engineering staff, at TSIP, graciously hosted the IES delegates. The IES members were given a guided tour of various TSIP facilities and its Central Command & Control room to understand the operational aspects of the plant.

Approaches, ideas, insights, views and professional expertise were mutually exchanged and shared on many aspects of environmental engineering, statutory compliances and clean+green technologies. Discussions also centred on the minimisation of global environmental impacts and hazards, and included the control of pollution, particularly due to 10

THE SINGAPORE ENGINEER July 2015

Mr Ng Wah Yong sharing his professional views with IES delegates.

IES UPDATE

IES engages in closed-door dialogue with new NTUC Secretary-General On 2 June 2015, IES hosted a closed door dialogue session between Mr Chan Chun Sing, Secretary-General of the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) and members of the IES Council.

Mr Chan was briefed by Er. Chong Kee Sen, President, IES on the IES organisation structure and membership details while Er. Edwin Khew, Deputy President, IES explained the criteria and process for election to the council. Mr Chan commended the efforts to ensure diversity among the council members as there exists equal representation from the private, public and academic spheres.

The dialogue session entailed a discussion on the importance of establishing a competency framework, a ‘progressive skills ladder’ and a benchmark for engineers so as to raise standards within the engineering field, create long-lasting career progression and development as well as ensure employment and employability for engineers.

Er. Chong also took the opportunity to introduce and explain the new ‘Chartered Engineer’ scheme as the competency accreditation which IES has recently been working on. Mr Chan applauded the introduction of the Chartered Engineer scheme and stressed on his role in bridging the gap between engineers and the government.

He emphasised the need to work closely with IES in planning the accreditation and career paths for engineers, with the aim of getting support from big companies, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and the government, in accepting the competency accreditation.

Mr Chan hopes that, through this, engineers will work towards achieving the accreditation. Mr Chan reiterated the importance and urgency of developing benchmarks within the engineering field and stressed that benchmarking

Mr Chan Chun Sing and IES Council Members engaging in a lively discussion.

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should be a continuous process in which the engineering field should continually seek to review and improve on their practices.

In addition, there was a candid exchange of opinions and concerns between Mr Chan and IES Council Members, on the challenges faced within the engineering field.

Mr Chan noted that one of the key complications was the inability to attract engineers into and retain them within the field. IES Council Members shared that the reasons given by some engineers were that the risks involved were high but the returns were low. Mr Chan also expressed concern regarding the gender representation within the engineering field and noted that female engineers make up a lower percentage of the whole cohort, in comparison to male engineers.

The dialogue session provided an excellent platform for Mr Chan to understand the challenges faced by engineers and how IES and NTUC can collaborate further to enhance the prospects and opportunities within engineering as a profession and its related sectors. Mr Chan also stressed the importance of the engineering profession and that he understands the contributions of engineers in shaping Singapore’s past and also future landscape.

The dialogue session ended with all agreeing to work together and to have regular dialogue sessions to ensure that all the initiatives and programmes launched between NTUC and IES continue to grow and remain sustainable.

IES is a partner of the NTUC U Associate programme.The U Associate programme is designed to enable professional bodies, institutions and alumni clubs to join NTUC enmasse, allowing members to enjoy a holistic array of Work, Live and Play benefits.

Group photo taken with Mr Chan Chun Sing, at the end of the dialogue session.

COVER STORY

NTU Sports Hall To be ready in 2016, the new recreation facility has already clinched the Green Mark Platinum Award at BCA AWARDS 2015.

The new NTU Sports Hall won the Green Mark Platinum Award at BCA AWARDS 2015.

Nanyang Technological University (NTU) is a global leader in sustainability research, attracting more than S$ 1.2 billion in research funding, whilst also putting into practice the principles of sustainability, in the design of its lush, green campus.

The new Sports Hall is designed with sustainable features, in line with NTU’s intention to achieve a 35% reduction in energy and water consumption as well as waste production, by 2020, under its EcoCampus initiative.

With an area of 10,000 m2, the three-storey Sports Hall will be able to accommodate 1,000 spectators, effectively doubling the current seating capacity. The mechanised seats will be retractable, so that the venue could be configured into 13 full-sized badminton courts or into three basketball / volleyball courts and a netball court.

KEY SUSTAINABILITY FEATURES

In order to achieve sustainability, the project has adopted, right from the start of the design, a range of measures

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including the use of environment-friendly materials as well as energy efficiency and water efficiency features.

ENGINEERED WOOD SYSTEM The Sports Hall will be the first large-scale building in Singapore to employ an engineered wood system (EWS) in a newly adopted design and construction process. The building will be constructed using combined structural systems. The superstructure will be an EWS that sits on a normal reinforced concrete substructure. Two forms of EWS will be used for the Sports Hall. Glulam (glued laminated timber with panels linearly aligned) will be used for beams, columns and the long span roof support, and prefabricated CLT (cross-laminated timber) will be used for internal finishes and flooring.

An EWS is created through binding layers of timber using structural adhesives to produce solid plane timber suitable for roofs, floors or walls. The durability of the Sports Hall superstructure is optimised through a combination of measures including provision of a sacrificial

COVER STORY

The long-span glulam roof structure provides heat insulation, thereby contributing to reduced energy consumption.

layer and protection cappings to ensure water-tightness for the purpose of weather-proofing and, through design, prevention of water stagnation to preserve the viability of the CLT structure. The adoption of the unique long-span glulam roof structure provides greater heat insulation than concrete, which contributes to reduced energy consumption.

One of the best-performing building materials from a sustainability perspective, EWS is produced from sustainably-managed forests, possesses the least carbon footprint among building materials, reduces overall cooling costs during its lifecycle and it can be recycled upon demolition. The use of such materials has grown exponentially right across Europe over the last two decades, for projects that range from residential premises to commercial spaces and from private establishments to public buildings. European construction has recorded reductions in on-site labour, programme duration, the need to deliver materials to work sites and inconveniences to neighbours. The lighter construction of an EWS, as compared to concrete, has also reduced the need for heavy foundations.

The use of EWS in Singapore offers benefits through its whole lifecycle, including the potential for less on-site manpower; a reduction in construction-related noise and pollution; a safer working environment; shorter site construction periods; and an improved sustainability standard.The EWS panels will be imported from overseas suppliers and a design review between the consultant and main contractor will be finalised, prior to installation.

Skilled installers will complete the installation of the panels and a range of monitoring, control and inspection procedures will be put in place to monitor each phase of installation.

OTHER MATERIALS The Sports Hall makes extensive use of other environmentfriendly materials, besides EWS. For example, carpets, dry walls and ceiling board materials with a high recycled content will be used. Only adhesives with low volatile organic compound (VOC) content and low VOC paints will be used for the interior finishes.

NATURAL VENTILATION Through modelling and analysing sun and wind patterns on site, the Sports Hall design takes full advantage of July 2015 THE SINGAPORE ENGINEER

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COVER STORY its natural surrounds. This results in optimising the use of natural ventilation, reducing the need for mechanical ventilation, leading to a reduction in energy consumption.

AIR-CONDITIONING DESIGN While the need for air-conditioning can be reduced in Singapore, it cannot be eliminated and as such, an energyefficient air-conditioning system has been designed. This incorporates a passive induction cooling system for the Sports Hall, water cooled chillers with cooling towers, two 220 RT (refrigeration tons) chillers with R134a refrigerant as well as chilled water and condenser water pumps with variable speed drives.

Passive induction air-conditioning Working on the basic principle that hot air rises and cold air sinks, the passive induction air-conditioning system supplies cooled air at floor level, which is warmed up by the heat from the building and the occupants. It then becomes buoyant and floats up towards the ceiling where chilled water coils, at a high level, cool the warm air.

This system for the Sports Hall, derives energy savings from two main features. Firstly, the temperature in the 12 m-high space will be stratified, such that only the occupied zone will be cooled. The upper zone, which is void space, does not need to be cooled. This is unlike the conventional air-conditioning system where cooled air is mechanically forced down from the ceiling and the entire volume is cooled. Secondly, the need for a fan to distribute the air is eliminated as the convective force is provided by the heat load in the space.

This passive induction air-conditioning system has many benefits. It sets a new benchmark for providing thermal comfort, saving energy and reducing the need for frequent maintenance. It also eliminates the need for unsightly metal ducting hanging from the ceiling to distribute cooled air, which also saves space. From a maintenance perspective, this system eliminates the need for cleaning and maintenance of the ducts and air

Chilled water coils, at a high level, cool the warm air.

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COVER STORY

The east elevation

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COVER STORY diffusers associated with a conventional air-conditioning system. For the users of the Sports Hall, in particular, badminton players, the potential for condensation and draughts, associated with a conventional air-conditioning system, is eliminated, providing thermal comfort and the optimal environment for sporting activities.

Chiller efficiency An auto condenser-tube-cleaning system is incorporated into the chillers. This system automatically cleans the condenser water tubes daily to prevent scaling and fouling.

It reduces the frequency for regular tube cleaning and allows the chillers to maintain good heat transfer with regular cleaning of the condenser tubes.

Further, provision has been made for chiller plant efficiency monitoring. The permanent measuring instrumentation will include full bore, magnetic, multiple point type flow meters or equivalent, temperature sensors with accuracy of +/-0.05o C, provision of two spare thermo wells at both sides of the temperature sensor, and power meters with +/- 1% accuracy.

LIGHTING DESIGN Maximising natural light The design of the Sports Hall seeks to optimise the use of natural daylight and reduce the artificial light requirements. Common areas are designed to receive adequate daylight and have daylight sensors installed to eliminate unnecessary daytime use of artificial light. The east and west walls of the sports hall are protected from the environment and incorporate a continuous top light shelf (halo) that brings diffused light into the sports hall.

As a result of these measures, the energy consumption associated with artificial lighting is reduced.

Artificial lighting The use of energy-efficient light fittings and a lighting control system will keep lighting usage flexible. LED lamps are used to reduce the operating wattage. The zoning of the activity and gallery areas will allow for variable lighting to be used to suit user needs, and motion sensors will be installed in areas of low usage such as the toilets and staircase areas.

ENERGY-CONSERVING LIFT Energy conserving features such as an AC variable voltage variable frequency motor drive and the sleep mode will be incorporated into the lift that will be installed at the Sports Hall.

WATER CONSERVATION Efficient low-flow water fittings will be used extensively.

Since significant amounts of water will be used in the cooling tower system, water sub-meters will be installed for the cooling towers and linked to the BMS and water 18

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COVER STORY

The west elevation

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COVER STORY

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COVER STORY

The use of natural ventilation reduces the need for mechanical ventilation.

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COVER STORY treatment system. The sub-meters can monitor water usage and ensure at least seven cycles of concentration at acceptable water quality in the cooling tower system.

A heat recovery system will be installed, which will provide the heat for the hot water for showers, in place of conventional, electric hot water systems.

CONCLUSION

The successful delivery of the integrated, sustainable design was guided by the NTU EcoCampus initiative objectives and was facilitated through great teamwork, close collaboration and a strong safety and sustainability culture shared by all project team members. Boasting strong sustainability features, NTU’s new Sports Hall is testament to the university’s strong commitment towards sustainability. It will be the first large-scale building in Singapore to employ an EWS and has projected energy and water consumption savings of 40% and 30%, respectively.

It will also incorporate the use of environment-friendly materials and the design provides for bicycle parking, shower and locker facilities to encourage and support the use of bicycles to get to and from the Sports Hall. The Sports Hall is part of NTU’s campus master plan which will propel NTU to become one of the greenest ecocampuses in the world.

PROJECT CREDITS Project Owner Nanyang Technological University Civil & Structural Consultant T.Y. Lin International Pte Ltd Mechanical & Electrical Consultant T.Y. Lin International Pte Ltd Design Architect Toyo Ito & Associates, Architects Project Architect Sembcorp Architects & Engineers Pte Ltd Quantity Surveyor Sembcorp Architects & Engineers Pte Ltd PDV System Consultant ME (TCS) Consulting Engineers ESD Consultant TÜV SÜD PSB Pte Ltd Lighting Specialist Highlight Systems Acoustics Consultant Acviron Acoustics Consultants Pte Ltd

All images by Nanyang Technological University

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COVER STORY

The design allows natural sunlight to enter building whilst also providing adequate shading.

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TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING

A systems thinking approach to building largescale land transport systems

by Oh Sin Hin, Joyce Hong and Mohamad Azman Othman, Land Transport Authority

Land transport is a highly complex large-scale system designed to provide safe, reliable and efficient mobility for people, goods and services. Its complexity increases in a highly urbanised city, such as Singapore, due to the dynamic interactive nature of the environment, systems as well as commuters. This article will share on the vital factors guiding the adoption of systems thinking for the planning and development of Singapore’s future rail and road/tunnel networks.

It will also describe how a model-centric approach with different project model customisations has helped in the realisation of a comprehensive and reusable land transport design solution.

Furthermore, this article will expound on the underlying engineering philosophy and Systems Engineering (SE) process considerations from concept to system delivery, supported by a whole lifecycle asset management strategy for maintaining a high level of safety and reliability standard till the end-of-life of the asset.

INTRODUCTION On 1 September 1995, Singapore’s Land Transport Authority (LTA) was formed to formulate integral solutions on land transport for society, enabling access to essential services, amenities and destinations in a holistic manner. Large-scale land transport system development poses huge challenges relating to diverse stakeholders’ needs and complex interoperability of the network. SE plays a pivotal role in integrating the various modes of transport, by providing a systematic process to plan, develop and sustain a whole system solution that satisfies stakeholders’ needs.

The approach encompasses three basic building blocks, namely, people, infrastructure and processes/governance.

This article will describe LTA’s engineering philosophy and process implementation based on systems thinking, to establish a structured SE concept and framework for future land transport development in Singapore.

A PEOPLE-CENTRED LAND TRANSPORT SYSTEM LTA’s vision revolves around a ‘people-centred land transport system’ where commuters are the key stakeholders. A holistic approach to enhance commuters’ travelling experience is the essence of the vision. In particular, policies and strategies focus on building more comprehensive connections, improving the quality of service and addressing the diverse needs of all commuters, so as to engender a more inclusive community.

A robust SE concept and framework is needed to address the challenges facing a large-scale land transport system in a dynamic environment. Integration and interdependency among the environment, systems and commuters have to be systematically managed to avoid failure to meet public 24

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Figure 1: Enhancing commuters' travelling experience

expectations as well as the risk of cost over-run due to unforeseen problems.

KEY DESIGN CHALLENGES The design complexities and uncertainties facing largescale land transport projects are enormous. For example, a modern driverless Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) typically consists of many systems and subsystems that are intricately integrated to achieve the desired emergent properties and performance and consistently meet high standards of reliability, availability and safety. Individually, each system has an equally vast number of system requirements that have to be carefully evaluated to achieve the desired system/subsystem behaviour consistent with operational expectations as a whole.

TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING In reality, many complex large-scale projects encounter problems due to various underlying reasons. In the conceptual phase, early project design assumptions can lead to unexpected consequences and problems. A common source of a problem is the conflict between functions or components when assembled together.

For example, when a functional decomposition activity is carried out, the overlapping functionalities and qualities could deteriorate due to lack of ownership, insufficient attention, miscommunication across system boundaries etc.

With the progressive delivery of several major land transport projects over the years, many tried-andtested whole system requirements and design solutions were tested, refined and accepted. Therefore, the timeconsuming re-evaluation of such requirements can be substantially reduced for implementation of similar projects.

To capitalise further on experienced manpower resources and available advanced SE tools, it is necessary to venture beyond the current practice and envision a cost-effective,

One of the goals of SE is to identify such problems early, in order to ensure timely resolution. For this reason, it is necessary to invest continuous attention to the ongoing flow of SE activities throughout the system lifecycle. A strong SE process also brings substantial cost benefits to the entire system lifecycle, particularly in the early concept and development stages where major design decisions occur.

GENERIC WHOLE SYSTEM LIFECYCLE MODEL Considering the numerous systems that comprise the integrated land transport system, a structured framework and process to define and manage the systems development from project inception till completion is paramount for the success of the project. A generic ‘V’cycle as shown in Figure 3 is tailored to focus on the key areas in a system lifecycle, covering requirements elicitation, decomposition and definition, integration and verification, operation and maintenance as well as upgrade and decommissioning.

Figure 2:The composition of a modern MRT

Figure 3: 'V' Process Model

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TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING

Figure 4: Generic System Lifecycle Model

systems thinking approach to guide future implementation.

Ideally, the improved SE framework has to be adaptable and reusable for all future land transport projects. This is achievable through a concept of whole system modelling and reuse in a generic whole system lifecycle model.

The key to the implementation of the generic whole system lifecycle model lies with the introduction of the Generic System Model in the concept phase of the project. This is illustrated in Figure 4.

The Generic System Model provides an initial point of design reference for the reuse of emergent and system properties for a project to move from concept phase to design phase. It enables a smooth transition of matured and accepted baseline requirements to form the various project models.

Figure 5: Generic Product Models

Fundamentally, the Generic System Model is the entity for incorporating continuous requirements refinement and reuse. From the source requirements, the generic design requirements are developed using a combination of scenario-based requirements analysis and top-down partitioning methodology.

A GREEN FRAMEWORK The generic system lifecycle model can be implemented in any land transport project catering to diverse commuters’ needs and transport modes. A methodical GREEN (Generic Requirements Engineering for Efficient rail/road Networks) framework was formulated to take advantage of systems thinking across different transport modes to define a consistent concept of operation and system

Figure 6: Moving towards Model-Based SE

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TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING requirements to accelerate design conceptualisation and reduce waste.

The GREEN framework is established by the following fundamental principles: 1.

2.

3.

4.

Reusability Repeatability Flexibility Compatibility

Reusability Reusable product models form the foundation of the GREEN framework. These product models include heavy/ medium MRT, Light Rail Transit (LRT) and various road/ tunnel project models. Potential refinements for each product are also considered for future projects.

Repeatability Repeatability of desired emergent properties and performance is ensured in the various product models through whole system concept and design reuse.

Flexibility Flexible design considerations are built into the system requirements to cater for customisation, scalability, upgradability and uncertainty management.

Compatibility Requirements are established and baselined through reusable operation principles, thereby ensuring the best practice derived from a previous project is compatible with future implementation.

MOVING TOWARDS A REUSABLE MODELCENTRIC APPROACH Models are constructed to provide an accurate and coherent view of the land transport system design and operation to characterise the operational needs and design considerations as early in the system lifecycle as possible.

Through utilisation of the System Modelling Language (SysML) and its modelling diagrams, operational scenarios are modelled to relevant details to verify the integrity of the system design and interactions with the operator.

This facilitates the SE activities in the formulation of operation principles as well as identification and evaluation of new operational capabilities for future land transport systems.

partitioning and allocation of functions (along with its requirements and boundaries) to the respective stakeholders or systems. Concurrently, models developed have to be traceable to the requirements in a requirements database to ensure consistency, completeness and correctness.

The formulation of operational requirements, starting as early as possible in the system lifecycle, is managed in the requirements datase of IBM’s Rational DOORS requirements management application and maintained as part of the overall system design process. The level of details should be adequate for the operator to prepare the operating procedures for the operation and maintenance of the land transport system.

OPERATIONS CONCEPT Using IBM’s Rational Rhapsody modelling tool, the Operations Concept Model represents at a very highlevel, the interactions among the commuters, rail regulator, operator, external agencies and the integrated land transport system (Figure 9).

The Operations Concept Model closely resembles the operator’s hierarchical structure and deployment roles at various sites. Each of these roles interacts with the various systems to fulfil the expected functions.

The Operations Concept Model is supported by a System Architecture Model that contains the physical breakdown and identification of the various systems and their interface boundaries.

The Operations Concept Model is traced to the operational scenarios which describe the various normal, degraded and emergency situations encountered and the respective functions required to support these scenarios.

The operational scenarios reveal a greater level of details on how the operator manages the land transport system.

This may include preceding/post conditions, primary, alternative and exceptional decision flows.

Each operational scenario is upward traceable to the Operations Concept Model, downward traceable to the Generic System Model and also traceable to the operational requirements residing in the Rational DOORS requirements database. This ensures consistency, correctness and completeness across the system lifecycle.

When moving towards Model-Based SE (MBSE), there are four major activity domains to be considered. These activity domains consist of requirements, behavioural, architectural as well as verification and validation. Synthesis of these domains will require detailed analysis and good understanding of the different perspectives and needs of the whole system.

ASSET MANAGEMENT STRATEGY Inevitably, LTA needs to make tactical decisions in a timely manner throughout the asset lifecycle so as to maximise the asset’s useful life, thus achieving optimum performance and asset life cost. In addition, timely procurement of additional operating assets, such as trains, could also be made to keep pace with growing ridership demand.

As the system design requirements are analysed and decomposed to lower level details, the models facilitate

To enable a holistic asset lifecycle management, LTA, instead of the operators, will own the rail operating

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TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING assets while the operators shall be fully responsible for the operation and maintenance of the network. Asset Management strategies are formulated as an integral part of the systems lifecycle model to facilitate timely upgrade, renewal or expansion of the rail network for sustainability.

The Asset Management strategies are underpinned by four principles, as illustrated in Figure 12, which are positioned to ensure a clear line of sight on assets and the influencing factors:

Establish a knowledge-based Asset Management system To determine the right extent of intervention on the right asset at the right time, an accurate understanding of the asset condition is vital for Asset Management.

Asset maintenance, upgrade and/or replacement would need to be executed at strategic intervals with respect to the actual asset condition before the rail system

Maintain stakeholders’ satisfaction In line with LTA’s vision to be a ‘people-centred land transport system’, targeted levels of services and performance measures are defined as early as during the concept phase. The Asset Management plan would then take into account current as well as incremental and evolutionary growth in stakeholders’ expectations.

Integrated planning for whole asset life Asset planning and acquisition need to take into account potential costs incurred throughout the asset lifecycle.This includes capital cost as well as cost due to growth in asset capabilities and long-term support.

Figure 7: Major MBSE activity domains

Figure 8: Requirements modelling

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TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING

Figure 9: Operations Concept Model

fails to meet stakeholders’ expectations of service level and performance.

Ensure competency in Asset Management Clear demarcation of roles and responsibilities in Asset Management would enable all relevant stakeholders to establish appropriate competencies and resources.

In essence, these principles form the four pillars of Asset Management, namely, Stakeholders Management, Capability Management, Information Management and Competency Management.

Conscientious management of each of these pillars coupled with deep understanding of their inter-relationships will reduce risks and harness opportunities for effective Asset Management.This in turn supports the crux of LTA’s Asset Management philosophy, ie to sustain equilibrium between the needs of commuters and the asset owner.

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Figure 10: MRT System Architecture

TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING

Figure 11: Operational scenario example

CONCLUSION Delivering a robust and efficient ‘people-centred land transport system’ within budget and on schedule is a major challenge, owing to the complexities and uncertainties inherent in many large-scale land transport projects.

However, this can be successfully countered using a costeffective systems thinking approach that incorporates comprehensive and reusable design solutions using a model-based approach and supported by a whole lifecycle Asset Management strategy.

REFERENCES 1. Land Transport Authority, Land Transport Master Plan (LTMP), 2013.

2. Oh Sin Hin, Joyce Hong, Samuel Chan: ‘A Practical Implementation of a Generic Approach to Systems Engineering’, INCOSE Conference 2010.

3. British Standards Institution (BSI), Publicly Available Specification 55 Asset Management, 2008.

Figure 12: Asset Management principles

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CHEMICAL & PETROCHEMICAL ENGINEERING

Ethylene - the most common building block for petrochemical products

by Ng Mee Lin and Lucas Ng, Petrochemical & Refining Sub-Committee, IES

Ethylene (C2H4) or ethene is one of the most important fundamental chemicals in the petrochemical industry and yet it is also one of the simplest organic molecules, second only to methane. It is made up of two carbon and four hydrogen atoms with a double chemical bond between the two carbon atoms.

DISCOVERY Ethylene was discovered by Johann Joachim Becher, a German physician and alchemist in the 1660s.

The chemical name, ethylene, which means ‘daughter of ethyl’, was adopted in 1852. The International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) in 1892 standardised the nomenclature of the organic compound and ethylene became ethene.

PHYSICAL PROPERTIES The chemical formula of ethylene is C2H4. It has a molecular mass of 28.05 g/mol and a density of 1.18 kg/m3. Ethylene is a colourless, highly flammable gas, with a boiling point of -103.7° C. It has a sweet but unpleasant taste and odour.

PRODUCTION Crude oil-based Traditionally, ethylene is produced from crude oil-based liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), naphtha and light gas oil, from the refineries, by steam cracking. In this process, gaseous or light liquid hydrocarbons are heated to 750° C to 950° C, inducing numerous free radical reactions, followed by immediate quenching to stop these reactions. In this way, large hydrocarbons are ‘cut’ into smaller ones, introducing unsaturated states with energy stored in higher chemical bonds between carbon atoms.

Ethylene is then separated from the resulting complex mixture or cracked gas, by subsequent quenching, compression, chilling and distillation.

This is an energy-intensive operation and much effort is dedicated to recovering heat from the gas leaving the cracking furnaces. Most of the energy recovered from the cracked gas is used to produce high pressure (1,500 psig) steam. This steam is, in turn, used to drive the turbines for compressing cracked gas, the propylene refrigeration compressor, and the ethylene refrigeration compressor in a conventional process. An ethylene plant, once running at steady state, does not need to import steam to drive its steam turbines.

Gas-based Ethylene is also produced through the dehydrogenation of ethane (C2H6), another hydrocarbon gas. This process has been made popular by the discovery of shale gas in the US. Shale gas consists of a complex mixture of light 32

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hydrocarbons known as natural gas liquids or NGLs which exist under the ground in a liquid state along with methane gas. The major component is ethane co-existing with propane and butane.

Shale gas that is harvested from the ground is treated and processed to remove the methane (dry gas) from the liquid mixture. NGLs go through a separation process, utilising fractionators which separate the ethane, propane and butane.

Ethane is then ‘cracked’ into ethylene, through the process called dehydrogenation, in which two of the hydrogen atoms are ‘stripped-off ’. Ethylene is obtained again through various compression and distillation processes.

Bio-based With the new emphasis on preserving the environment, certain petrochemical companies have developed ‘green’ ethylene production processes that use bio-based feedstock instead of feedstock based on fossil fuels. This is believed to reduce lifetime greenhouse gas emissions from both production and usage.

Bio-ethanol is produced by the fermentation of sucrose feedstock such as sugarcane or from starchy biomass such as corn, by hydrolysis followed by fermentation.

Through catalytic dehydration, bio-ethylene is formed, which is chemically identical to ethylene produced from petrochemical feedstock.

Through either the dehydrogenation of ethanol (C2H5OH), using BP technology, or the dehydration of ethanol, using Atol technology, ethylene is produced. The BP technology involves a two-stage reaction under mild operating conditions and using a supported hetero-polyacid catalyst, to produce diethyl ether with subsequent dehydration to produce ethylene.

Coal-based China has the world’s third largest coal reserves and is the world’s largest consumer and producer of coal. Besides using it for power generation, China has a long history of using coal as a chemical feedstock to produce methanol and polyvinyl chloride. It has 52 % of the world’s methanol capacity but the capacity utilisation was barely half, in response to the world demand.

CHEMICAL & PETROCHEMICAL ENGINEERING During the period when crude oil prices were persistently high, and as a result of technological breakthroughs, the emphasis was to use the abundantly available coal reserves for the production of chemicals. One process that captured much attention is the conversion of methanol to olefins (M-T-O). Coal is used for methanol synthesis and methanol is converted to olefins in a fluidised bed catalytic reactor (using UOP technology).

Alternative feedstocks and building blocks Worldwide, a lot of the ethylene is produced by steam cracking of hydrocarbons of various types, ranging from ethane to LPG, naphtha and light gas oil, with the preferred feedstock varying significantly by geographical region. With the recent drastic drop in crude oil prices and the increase in shale gas production in the US, sourcing for alternative feedstocks at lower cost is getting more intense. Some plants are turning to lower cost ethane for producing ethylene. Others are turning to propane, with the dehydrogenation of propane resulting in the production of propylene which serves as another building block for petrochemical products. As a result, technology advancements in this area have been tremendous in recent years.

coffee cups, coolers and cushioning materials for packaging to insulation materials.

Another ethylene derivative is poly ethylene terephthalate (PET) which is a thermoplastic polymer from the polyester family. It is used to make fibres for clothing and containers for food and drink including transparent bottles for drinks.

PET is produced from ethylene glycol and dimethyl terephthalate.

On its own, ethylene can polymerise to form polyethylene (PE). PE consumes more than half of the world’s ethylene supply. PE, also called polythene, is the world's most widely used plastic. It is primarily used in consumer products like films for food packaging, carrier bags, bottles and containers.

More high-end industrial applications have evolved recently like films for solar photovoltaic cells, parts for electrical and electronic instruments, and even automobile parts like coloured bumpers and instrument panels.

APPLICATIONS Ethylene is the main component in the building blocks for many useful petrochemical products that span the manufacturing supply chain for both industrial and domestic applications.

It is because of its distinctiveness and usefulness that ethylene is manufactured in greater amounts than any other chemical in the world. What makes this chemical useful is the double bond between two carbon atoms, which makes it very reactive and well-suited for many different chemical reactions.

A variety of chemical products can be derived from ethylene. These ethylene derivatives, can be produced by oxidation, halogenation or alkylation.

Formed by the addition of oxygen to ethylene (oxidation of ethylene), ethylene oxide (EO) is commonly used for gaseous sterilisation of disposable healthcare products because it leaves no residue. Ethylene glycol (EG), which is the most widely used anti-freeze, can be derived from EO. When chlorine is added to ethylene in the presence of a catalyst, vinyl chloride monomer (VCM) will be formed, via halogenation. By polymerising VCM, we get poly vinyl chloride (PVC) which is the most commonly used plastic material in the world. PVC has a number of applications ranging from piping, cable insulation and signage, to clothing and health-care products.

The alkylation of ethylene with benzene produces ethyl benzene (EB). Polymerisation of EB produces polystyrene foam, such as the light-weight trademarked Styrofoam. It has wide applications, from the production of disposable

Ethylene is the main component in the building blocks for many petrochemical products that have industrial and domestic applications.

REFERENCES 1. Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia.

2. AFPM, Platform for Education and Government Relations at http://education.afpm.org/petrochemicals.

3. ‘Second-generation petrochemical processes take lead’, Hydrocarbon Processing, August 2014 issue.

4. ‘Olefin production boosts demand for coal-based methanol in China’, Chemical Week, September 2013 issue.

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POWER GENERATION

Hitachi-GE Nuclear Energy’s project wins 2014 Bentley Be Inspired Award The project uses Bentley's MicroStation and i-models to help determine a safe, rational, and cost-effective approach to decommissioning ageing nuclear power plants in Japan.

Bentley Systems Incorporated, a leading company dedicated to providing comprehensive software solutions for sustaining infrastructure recently announced that HitachiGE Nuclear Energy Ltd’s project ‘Development of Decommissioning Engineering Platform Based on 3D Plant Model’ has won a 2014 Be Inspired Award. The project won in the ‘Innovation in Power Generation’ category. The 2014 Be Inspired Awards winners were selected by nine independent panels of jurors comprising distinguished industry experts. The awards honour the extraordinary work of Bentley users in improving and sustaining the world’s infrastructure, through infrastructure design, construction and operations.

maximum operating life established by the government and, therefore, will need to be decommissioned. In preparation for this monumental task, we need to accurately estimate the safety of the decommissioning process, the amount of radioactive waste material that will need to be managed during each decommissioning, and the cost involved. This project enabled us to prove an approach that accurately estimates the amount of radioactive material involved by converting data from Hitachi-GE’s own CAD system in conjunction with a customisation of Bentley’s MicroStation 3D information modelling system and i-models. As a result of the project’s tremendous success, we would like to promote the further use and development of this system”.

The Hitachi-GE Nuclear Energy project was prompted by the Japanese government’s decision to decommission all nuclear reactors that are more than 40 years old. By the 2040s, decommissioning will peak at more than 50% of Japan’s domestic plants.

Hitachi-GE Nuclear Energy Ltd Hitachi-GE, a joint venture established by Hitachi Ltd and General Electric Company, in July 2007, as one of the world’s leading comprehensive plant manufacturers, engages in the development, planning, design, manufacture, inspection, installation, pre-operation, and maintenance of nuclear reactor-related equipment and is able to execute integrated project management. Hitachi-GE has been involved with 23 reactors in Japan to-date, including those currently under construction. Among them, it has participated in all of Japan’s Advanced Boiling Water Reactor (ABWR) projects - four ABWRs are already operational and three are under construction. Overseas, it has supplied major nuclear reactor equipment for the Lungmen Nuclear Power Plant in Taiwan.

Decommissioning nuclear power plants takes as many as several thousand workers, 10 years, and a cost of ¥ 36 to 77 billion per reactor. The objective of the project was to accurately calculate the amount of waste materials that must be managed as radioactive substances for each nuclear power plant. With the help of MicroStation’s 3D modelling capabilities and i-models, the Hitachi-GE Nuclear Energy joint venture assessed the radiation dose for workers, the number of man-hours and amount of radioactive waste materials generated from the demolition, demolition procedure data, and residual radioactivity.

Anne-Marie Walters, Bentley Industry Marketing Director, Process Manufacturing and Resources Industries, said, “The Be Inspired Awards jurors selected this project for its innovative approach to an extreme engineering challenge - an approach that fully leveraged the ability of i-models to integrate geometric volumes with complex data. The jurors commended the Hitachi-GE Nuclear Energy team for carefully and methodically thinking through the disassembly process of nuclear plants and changing the approach from the traditional consideration of plant weight to the consideration of plant volume. This enabled the team to take into account the radiation dose rate from each part of the plant. The team was then able to develop a safe, rational, and cost-effective approach to decommissioning Japan’s ageing nuclear power plants”.

Masato Oura, Hitachi-GE Nuclear Energy Ltd, Nuclear Power Business Development & Management Division, Chief Project Manager, said, “In the future, a number of Japan’s nuclear power plants will begin to exceed the 40-year 34

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Bentley Systems Bentley Systems is a global leader dedicated to providing architects, engineers, geospatial professionals, constructors, and owner-operators with comprehensive software solutions for advancing the design, construction, and operations of infrastructure.

The project enabled Hitachi-GE Nuclear Energy Ltd to prove an approach that accurately estimates the amount of radioactive material involved..

SUSTAINABILITY

Energy efficiency improvements in industry lagging behind the Green Building sector

by Ken Hickson

A ‘status report’ on energy efficiency for the built environment and industry sectors.

Mr Ken Hickson

‘Energy Efficiency is, at this point in time, the only game in town’.

That bald statement came from none other than Singapore’s Minister for the Environment and Water Resources, Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, when speaking at the crowded opening of Carbon War Room’s ‘Creating Climate Wealth’ event in Singapore two years ago.

Have times changed? Is energy efficiency still being given the priority it deserves? It is, after all, still the best way to cut energy use and cut emissions of greenhouse gases at the same time.

Singapore has committed to achieving a reduction in carbon emissions from current levels by between 7% and 11%, by 2020.

Energy efficiency is called ‘the low hanging fruit’ and the International Energy Agency (IEA) describes it as a ‘fuel’ in itself, as it represents ‘one of the few options to reduce emissions in the short term’.

Dr Fatih Birol, the IEA’s chief Economist told a Singapore audience when the World Energy Outlook was released in December 2012 that it was ‘an economic sin’ and an ‘epic failure’ of international energy policy that only one third of all economically-viable energy efficiency potential is being realised.

So globally, some progress has been made. Industry, the world over, is getting the message and some significant improvements are being observed. But has Singapore grasped the energy and cost savings that energy efficiency represents?

THE MANUFACTURING SECTOR Initiatives in Singapore There has been a strong drive by the National Environment Agency (NEA) to get industry to adopt energy efficiency practices and all energy-intensive companies in the industry sector are required, since April 2013, under the Energy Conservation Act (ECA), to implement mandatory energy management practices.

This covers big energy users in manufacturing and manufacturing-related services, as well as those companies engaged in supply of electricity, gas, steam, compressed air and chilled water for air-conditioning, along with those in water supply as well as sewage and waste management.

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Currently, there are 168 companies operating 213 premises which ‘qualify’ under the ECA as energy-intensive facilities, which account for more than 80% of the total energy used in Singapore, according to NEA. They are all required to appoint an energy manager, monitor, report energy use and emissions annually, and submit energy efficiency improvement plans.

Organised by NEA, the National Energy Efficiency Conference 2015, which will be held from 6 to 7 October 2015 will serve as a platform to provide thought leadership in energy efficiency to local organisation and companies, by bringing together energy efficiency experts and industry energy professionals to share their knowledge.

Financial incentives SDCL Asia set up in Singapore two years ago and was selected by the Singapore Economic Development Board to run the S$ 200 million programme to invest in energy efficiency upgrades in the manufacturing sector.

EDB is piloting the Energy Efficiency financing scheme whereby a third party financier pays for the cost of energy efficiency projects, and the energy savings are shared between the various stakeholders.This third party scheme aims to encourage owners and operators of existing industrial and manufacturing facilities to implement projects in energy-efficient equipment or technologies.

The potential benefits of such a scheme include an offbalance sheet solution, where no investment is required on the part of the companies, but still allows companies to enjoy part of the energy savings. The financing scheme can potentially cover equipment, labour and installation costs, as well as the cost of measurement and verification of the energy savings resulting from energy-efficiency projects implemented.

Besides this, NEA provides a number of incentive schemes to encourage greater adoption of energy efficiency practices, even one to co-fund an Energy Management Information System (EMIS) for manufacturing facilities to demonstrate their effectiveness in supporting better energy management. Through this grant call, NEA is requesting EMIS project proposals from companies for their facilities in Singapore.

THE BUILDING SECTOR As buildings account for a high percentage of energy use, in Singapore as well as globally, the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) has been the driving force,

SUSTAINABILITY along with the Singapore Green Building Council (SGBC), to get more buildings to be awarded a Green Mark.

buildings and businesses have gained significant energy savings from BBP’s expertise.

Achieving significant energy efficiency improvements, whether in a new building or a retrofit, is by far the biggest component towards a Green Mark Award.

None of BBP clients has needed to invest in new equipment or required to pay anything upfront for the service provided. BBP is only paid out of measurable energy savings, and these must be verified by an independent third party.

This is part of the country’s master plan to achieve the target to green 80% of all building stock by 2030. Currently, as at mid-2015, Singapore has close to 2500 buildings which have been awarded a Green Mark.

Singapore is recognised as one of the global leaders in green buildings and once again hosts the International Green Building Conference, to be staged from 2 to 4 September 2015 and jointly organised by BCA and the Singapore Green Building Council (SGBC).

EXPERTISE FROM CONSULTANTS Energy management consultancy TEALE sees growing awareness of the need for energy efficiency but feels there should be greater adoption of energy-efficient practices.

Projects undertaken by TEALE include some major work for two large multinational companies in the industrial and manufacturing sectors. Both projects involved coming up with the design, implementation and commissioning of complex energy management Information systems (EMIS).

Accurate measurement of all energy used by different processes, equipment and buildings was required as was the introduction of effective management practices to show where improvements could be made. In the case of one of the companies, a global medical manufacturer, by identifying leakages and waste, as well as accurate measurement of energy use, savings in the region of 100,000 kWh per month were achieved for the complete plant.

PERFORMANCE If one was asked, based on observations and talking to those in the know, to rate Singapore industry, there is still obviously some considerable way to go.

To be seen at the forefront of industry energy efficiency improvements, even in Asia, let alone, globally, Singapore has made a start, but its report card would read ‘Could do much more and do it more convincingly’.

Much more has been achieved by the building sector, driven hard by BCA and the SGBC. Singapore has set standards and achieved results which are up there with the world’s best. A report card in this case would read ‘Making very significant progress to reach very ambitious targets. Well done’.

(Ken Hickson is a Singapore-based sustainability consultant, author and lecturer. He is the author of six books, the last three produced in Singapore. Published in 2013, ‘Race for Sustainability’ incorporates profiles and case studies from Asia, covering energy efficiency, renewable energy, air pollution, deforestation and waste management. More information can be obtained from www.sustain-ability-showcase.com).

TEALE has been able to introduce systems to provide reliable and efficient standards to such an extent that, in the case of a large-scale aerospace business, what started with the Singapore plant is now being rolled out for the company’s operations globally.

Energy cost savings should be enough to be the primary driver for all companies to embark on energy efficiency programmes, whatever the size and nature of business.

Also, cutting carbon emissions is in the country’s interests as it is for industry the world over.

Globally, industry is a major user of energy, accounting for around 20% of total emissions of greenhouse gases. In tropical Singapore, keeping buildings cool for their owners and tenants also requires a lot of energy.

This prompted a Singapore company, Barghest Building Performance (BBP), to focus on optimising the energy use for chillers in Singapore and it has managed to introduce companies to some genuine energy savings.

BBP’s work helped Lumileds gain a Green Mark Platinum Award for its manufacturing plant. A number of other

Instruments used by TEALE to measure and manage power and water use include, clockwise, from top left, power meter, water meter and a compressed air monitoring panel.

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SUSTAINABILITY

Changing businesses to achieve sustainable economic outcomes

Mr Bob Sharon, CEO, Green Global Solutions

For Green Global Solutions, ‘Digital Transformation’ is the most sustainable platform for business growth and change’ as it demands new investment in technology and business models to effectively engage all stakeholders and deliver greater efficiencies and improved business outcomes.

“Sustainability is not an optional exercise. It is a necessity.

So embracing Digital Transformation, coupled with hybrid cloud computing, makes the most sustainable use of all resources, definitely delivering the most promising of business outcomes”, says Mr Bob Sharon, CEO, Green Global Solutions.

Mr Sharon believes, that by taking a holistic approach to align customers’ on-premise applications, IT and data centre infrastructure, along with existing operational processes, it is possible to maximise savings of any hybrid cloud strategy.

Customers can then make informed decisions based on accurate information, with Green Global Solutions playing the role of trusted independent advisor who is not tied to any particular technology, product, system or supplier.

“We look into a customers’ unique circumstances and work through with them in a discovery process and a journey to select the best technological and businesses processes to achieve results”, said Mr Sharon.

Green Global Solutions started out in Australia and has helped a number of organisations see significant improvements in their bottom line, largely through savings in energy, but also through improved productivity.

relevant government agencies, to show where it can promote energy efficiency measures and directly help existing or planned data centres introduce measures and systems which will significantly reduce their energy use.

The company knows that by adopting Digital Transformation and hybrid cloud computing, the data centre industry can continue to grow, while at the same time, it can introduce measurement and management systems designed to save energy and significantly reduce operational costs.

“We have seen from our work in Australia that energy savings in the order of 40% and 70% are possible. And for data centres, acknowledged to be big energy guzzlers, that means much improved business outcomes”, says Mr Sharon.

Green Global Solutions Green Global Solutions is an infrastructure and energy services company with a focus on sustainability. The company delivers desired outcomes, through a holistic approach to infrastructure and energy projects that integrate all components of sustainability, commercial viability, people and the environment into every aspects of its work. Working with clients, Green Global Solutions transforms their computer rooms and data centres to meet tough bottom-line savings goals in conjunction with regulatory and environmental requirements.

Green Global develops comprehensive plans incorporating energy auditing, design, procurement, project management and ongoing monitoring that are implemented and monitored long-term to ensure positive financial and environmental impacts for clients while guaranteeing outcomes and reducing risk.

Now with its first Asian office in Singapore, set up in April 2015, it finds it is in good company with businesses already realising that they must go beyond ‘green buildings’ to transform their businesses, particularly if they are to gain real benefits from energy savings.

Green Global Solutions has already secured its first Asia-based customer. It is undertaking a feasibility study for Aion Technologies Pte Ltd as it considers going on its own Digital Transformation and hybrid cloud computing pathway.

Green Global Solutions has already engaged with Infocomm Development Authority (IDA) and other

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Green Global Solutions has developed a three-phase process for Digital Transformation - defining the current state with an assessment of business and operational processes, applications, IT and infrastructure; defining the future state and direction through the use of application heat maps; and steering the course between the two to successfully deliver on agreed outcomes.

FOCUS ON SINGAPORE

Inaugural Green Mark Pearl Prestige and other Green Mark Awards presented At the BCA AWARDS CEREMONY 2015, Mr Khaw Boon Wan, Minister for National Development, presented the top awards including the inaugural BCA Green Mark Pearl Prestige and Pearl Awards and the latest BCA Green Mark Champion Award.

Including the above, a total of 221 BCA Green Mark Awards were given out this year.

BCA Green Mark Pearl and Pearl Prestige Award 2015 This year, City Developments Limited (CDL) emerged the winner of the inaugural BCA Green Mark Pearl Prestige Award for City House, an existing Green Mark Platinum building in the Central Business District. The building has clearly demonstrated outstanding total building performance where 70% of its interior office spaces are also certified to Green Mark Office Interiors standards.

Since 2011, CDL has set a target to achieve a minimum of BCA Green Mark GoldPlus for all existing buildings. It has also worked closely with its commercial tenants to achieve greater environmental sustainability. Examples of engagement initiatives include participation in the CDL Green Lease Partnership Programme where the landlord has a dedicated team of Green Lease Ambassadors working with tenants on the energy performance of occupant-centric spaces, ‘1° C Up’ Programme, green fitting-out kits and recycling programmes. As of April 2015, close to 80% of CDL’s commercial tenants have signed the Green Lease Memorandum of Understanding under the Green Lease Partnership Programme, pledging to monitor and reduce energy consumption.

Taking the lead on tenant sustainability initiatives is a key strength for many award winners. Pearl Award winner Raffles Quay Asset Management (RQAM) has several key sustainability practices in place for its tenants. This includes the implementation of a Management Regulation manual to every tenant where power, lighting and air-conditioning allocations are clearly specified. A Green Guide is also provided to aid their understanding and working towards environmental sustainability. The guide introduces water efficiency, office recycling programmes and the use of energy-efficient lighting. Regular meetings with tenants are also arranged to share knowledge on green measures.

Other Pearl Award winners include Manulife Centre and Tampines Grande by CDL, ONE@Changi City by Ascendas Frasers Pte Ltd, and DNV GL Technology Centre by Ascendas Land (Singapore) Pte Ltd. The BCA Green Mark Pearl Award was launched in September 2014. The new prestigious award recognises the strong commitment of developers, building owners, landlords and tenants of the same project/building working in tandem to achieve greater environmental sustainability for their project/building.The award is given to developers,

building owners and landlords who have a substantial number of tenants who are Green Mark certified under the Green Mark occupant-centric schemes within a base building which is Green Mark GoldPlus or higher.

The award aims to: • Emphasise the importance of total building performance of the building / project.

• Accord recognition to developers, building owners and landlords who have made an effort and taken active steps to work with their tenants to shape their behaviour and operational practices.

• Encourage developers and building owners to ensure that their green building is operating and performing as designed, both from the outside (ie common areas and building services within the control of the developer / building owner/ landlord) and inside (ie tenanted spaces).

• Recognise developers, building owners and landlords who demonstrate thought leadership.

There are two tiers of the award - Green Mark Pearl Award and Green Mark Pearl Prestige Award.The awards are given out for the following three building types - commercial offices, retail malls, and business park developments.

For mixed developments, applicants can choose to split up the application for the award, based on each component, as long as they meet the eligibility criteria. The award category of the projects shall be based on the predominant use of the building.

BCA Green Mark Champion Award 2015 Mapletree Investments Pte Ltd is the sole winner of the BCA Green Mark Champion Award this year, with a total of 12 Green Mark projects that are rated Gold and above.

This includes five Platinum and one GoldPlus Awards.

Sustainable design is widely applied in Mapletree’s developments, and the group is reaping the rewards of its labour. Their annual energy savings amount to more than 53 million kWh from its Green Mark accredited properties.

This is equivalent to meeting the electricity needs of over 9,500 Singapore households for one year.

The upcoming Mapletree Business City II, which is slated to be completed in 2016, will also adopt environmentally sustainable building practices. It has been designed to Green Mark Platinum standards.

The BCA Green Mark Champion Award was launched at BCA Awards 2008. This award recognises developers with strong commitment towards corporate social responsibility and outstanding achievements in environmental sustainability. It is given to developers who achieve a substantial number of Green Mark buildings at Gold level and higher. There are two categories for the award - BCA Green Mark Champion and BCA Green Mark Platinum Champion.

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FOCUS ON SINGAPORE

Singapore leads the way in charting future research directions for water solutions More than 300 senior water technology experts from 35 countries identified the technology focus areas (TFAs) for the global water industry at the first-ever Singapore International Water Week (SIWW) Technology and Innovation Summit (STIS), held from 16 to17 June 2015 at One Farrer Hotel, Singapore.

The event, which is part of the SIWW Spotlight series, commenced with a Welcome Address from Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister for the Environment and Water Resources and an Opening Address delivered by the Summit Chairperson Mr Ng Joo Hee, Chief Executive, PUB Singapore.

In his speech, Dr Balakrishnan suggested seven possible avenues through which significant progress can be made so that Singapore can achieve both water and energy independence well before 2061. They are: • Improving energy efficiency of reverse osmosis • Reducing the energy consumed by pumps • Recovering energy from used water • Generating a significant quantum of solar energy • Harvesting the potential energy of falling water • Making a meaningful reduction in water consumption • Preventing water leakages “Singapore is once again honoured to convene the world’s leading experts in water technology and innovation to focus on critical issues in greater depth”, said Summit Chairperson Mr Ng Joo Hee, who is also the Chief Executive of PUB, Singapore’s national water agency.

“The law of economics dictates that we need to allocate scarce resources to where they are demanded most, and to use them in the most efficient manner possible. These research areas are thus important towards accelerating the development of new solutions. With increasingly complex challenges faced by the water sector, cutting across multiple domains, we have also witnessed the need for integrated solutions that effectively combine two or more TFAs together”, he added.

“As many of the identified TFAs are aligned with PUB’s technology roadmap, I am looking forward to collaborations between PUB and like-minded institutions to develop solutions to achieve water sustainability for Singapore” Mr Ng continued.

The outcomes from the two-day summit will be supplemented with case studies and compiled into a global blueprint for water solutions, and will help shape the content and discussions for Singapore International Water Week 2016 (SIWW 2016).

Key TFAs Experts from water and wastewater utilities, industrial water users, solution providers, research institutes, 40

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Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister for the Environment and Water Resources presenting the Welcome Address.

Summit Chairperson Mr Ng Joo Hee, Chief Executive of PUB, delivers the Opening Address.

The inaugural STIS attracted a large number of experts.

international organisations, investors and technology multipliers identified the TFAs against a background of key innovation drivers facing the global municipal and industrial water sectors. These include rapid urbanisation, changing demographics, economic growth and climate change, which place considerable stress on the world’s water resources. Delegates debated on the respective merits of each TFA in the fields of clean water and used water, before voting for those that would be of highest priority.

The identification of TFAs is only the first step to bringing innovation into the water sector. The STIS also discussed how the water sector has conventionally been viewed as a sector with high barriers to innovation. These barriers include water not being priced appropriately, a fragmented global water market, regulations hindering adoption of new technologies, and the water sector being risk averse given its position on the frontline of producing a critical resource for the nation or state.

Similarly, businesses or industrial water users can be risk averse as they want to protect the profitability of their business. The way forward is for the water sector, both municipal and industrial, to work together to develop approaches to overcome the barriers and bring new water innovation to the market. These include inculcating an innovation culture through leadership, development of a clear and systematic pathway from research to

FOCUS ON SINGAPORE implementation, and facilitating more collaborative platforms for test-bedding, and demonstration projects.

The TFAs include the following: • Decentralised Treatment Technologies • Low Energy and High Water Recovery for Reuse • Point of Use Reuse • Source Separation for Waste Water Management • Low Energy Seawater Desalination • Low Temperature Thermal Desalination • Biological Processes of Water & Waste Water • Brine Management • Network Asset Management • Industrial Water Technologies • Water Demand Management • Storm Water Management for Flood Control and Water Supply • Sludge Management • Separation / Membrane Technologies • Optimisation of Waste Water Collection Systems • Improving Energy Efficiency and Generating Energy from Waste Water Treatment

SINGAPORE INTERNATIONAL WATER WEEK Singapore International Water Week (SIWW) is a global platform to share and co-create innovative water solutions.

The biennial event gathers stakeholders from the global water industry to share best practices, showcase the latest technologies and tap business opportunities. SIWW is part of the strategic programme of the Singapore Government to grow the water industry and develop water technologies.

Held in between the main SIWW editions, the SIWW Spotlight series are exclusive by-invitation events to continue the dialogue from SIWW and foster ongoing exchanges on pressing challenges faced by the water industry worldwide. This meeting of minds focuses on critical issues and discussions in greater depth, where the outcomes will shape the programme and content for SIWW. These events are organised by Singapore International Water Week Pte Ltd, a company set up by Singapore's Ministry of the Environment & Water Resources and PUB, Singapore’s national water agency.

The 7th Singapore International Water Week will be held in conjunction with the 5th World Cities Summit and the 3rd CleanEnviro Summit Singapore, from 10 to 14 July 2016 at the Sands Expo and Convention Centre, Marina Bay Sands, Singapore.

PUB signs MOUs Signed on the sidelines of the SIWW Technology and Innovation Summit 2015, PUB signed two memorandums of understanding (MOUs) to deepen Singapore’s collaborations with global partners for knowledge-sharing and capability building in waterrelated research and technology.

The first MOU was signed with the ASEM (AsiaEurope Meeting) Water Resources Research and Development Centre, and the second was signed with VCS Denmark, Denmark’s third largest water and wastewater utility.

Strengthening collaboration with Denmark The MOU with VCS Denmark marks a major milestone in the cooperation between Singapore and Denmark in water solutions following the signing of an earlier MOU between the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources and the Danish Ministry of Environment during the Singapore International Water Week 2014. Both leading water utilities recognise the benefit of accelerating the sharing and creation of solutions by tapping on each other’s strengths in areas such as wastewater technology and operations, energy reduction, and climate adaptation.

The MOU was signed by Mr Tan Yok Gin, PUB’s Deputy Chief Executive (Operations) and Ms Gerda

Hald, VCS Denmark’s Deputy Chief Executive Officer. The event was officially witnessed by Mr Ng Joo Hee, Chief Executive of PUB and Mr Anders Buur Baekgaard, Chief Executive Officer of VCS Denmark.

VCS Denmark is the third largest water and wastewater company in Denmark. VCS operates seven waterworks, eight wastewater treatment plants and 3400 km of water and wastewater pipeline network.

VCS Denmark is known as a front-runner in the water and wastewater sector.VCS Denmark has supplied the city of Odense with clean drinking water since 1853, and embodies more than 150 years of experience in water supply and wastewater management.

From left, Mr Anders Buur Baekgaard, Chief Executive Officer of VCS Denmark, Ms Gerda Hald,VCS Denmark’s Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Mr Tan Yok Gin, PUB’s Deputy Chief Executive (Operations), Mr Ng Joo Hee, Chief Executive of PUB, after signing of the MOU.

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FOCUS ON SINGAPORE

Enhanced energy generation from used water sludge and food waste process usage. This could potentially allow the used water treatment plant to achieve energy self-sufficiency, which is, using only as much energy as the treatment process itself generates”.

If successful, the process could potentially be implemented at the future Tuas Water Reclamation Plant and NEA’s Integrated Waste Management Facility.

This collaboration is a result of an MOU signed during the Singapore International Water Week (SIWW) in 2014, in which both Anaergia and PUB agreed to explore potential research and technological collaboration, particularly in the domain of waste-to-energy.

Mr Goh Chee Kiong, Executive Director, Cleantech, Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB), Dr Andrew Benedek, Anaergia’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, and Mr Harry Seah, PUB’s Chief Technology Officer, at the launch of Singapore’s first co-digestion plant to enhance energy generation from used water sludge and food waste.

PUB and Anaergia Pte Ltd (Anaergia), have announced the commencement of Singapore’s first project aimed at producing more biogas for electricity generation by codigesting used water sludge and food waste.

Used water sludge contains organic materials. Anaerobic bacteria can convert these organic materials into biogas, which can then be used to generate electricity. In this project, used water sludge from the Ulu Pandan Water Reclamation Plant (WRP) will be mixed with food waste collected from the Clementi district and treated in a co-digestion demonstration facility. This new combined treatment of used water sludge and food waste has the potential to produce more biogas due to the higher calorific value in food waste.

The co-digestion plant can treat up to 40 tons of combined food waste and used water sludge. It will adopt the Omnivore process patented by Anaergia, which makes use of anaerobic digestion to produce biogas.

As part of the project, the National Environment Agency (NEA) will be conducting a district level pilot in Clementi for the collection of source-segregated food waste from various premises, such as educational institutions, hospitals and camps, for co-digestion at the demonstration plant.

The demonstration plant is currently under construction and will be completed by September 2015.

Mr Harry Seah, Chief Technology Officer, PUB, said, “This demonstration plant aims to validate the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of co-digestion implementation in Singapore. It will provide the opportunity for the water reclamation plants to generate more electricity for 42

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Dr Andrew Benedek, Anaergia’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer noted, “There is no better place than Singapore nor a better utility than PUB to work together with, to demonstrate Anaergia’s ground-breaking technologies designed to make water reclamation plants energy neutral. All of us at Anaergia are grateful to EDB and PUB for making such a demonstration possible and once the plant is built, we look forward to bringing future clients to view this reference plant”.

This project was supported with a co-funding grant from the Technology Pioneer (TechPioneer) Scheme, administered by the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) on behalf of the Environment and Water Industry Programme Office (EWI). This scheme encourages water companies to tap on Singapore as a Living Laboratory so that cutting edge technology can be test-bedded and commercialised in an actual operating environment. A total of 150 projects involving the test-bedding of water solutions have been facilitated at PUB’s installations, and more than 20 test-bedding projects are currently on-going at PUB’s facilities.

Along with this investment, Anaergia will establish and operate its Asia Pacific Headquarters in Singapore, to serve as its base for engineering services and project management in supporting their operations in the Asia Pacific. Anaergia’s global headquarters is located in Burlington, Ontario, Canada.

“We are pleased that Anaergia has chosen to establish its regional headquarters in Singapore, which will conduct high-value activities such as design and project management. This investment is a testament to Singapore’s global leadership in the water industry and will add vibrancy to Singapore’s industry ecosystem comprising 180 water companies today”, said Mr Goh Chee Kiong, Executive Director, Cleantech, Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB).

FOCUS ON SINGAPORE

National Gallery Singapore Implemented at a cost of S$ 530 million dollars and due to open in late 2015, National Gallery Singapore is one of Asia’s most significant architectural projects in the cultural sphere. A spectacular and respectful adaptive reuse and conservation programme has seen the transformation of two of Singapore’s most important buildings - the former Supreme Court and City Hall buildings - into a major visual arts institution that will host Singapore and Southeast Asian art within a total built area of 64,000 m2. Aside from creating the customised gallery spaces, all efforts have been made also to conserve historic features of the building, and rooms holding special importance, such as the City Hall Chamber, have been fully restored.

National Gallery Singapore, viewed from the padang. Image by Fernando Javier Urquijo, studioMilou Singapore.

A MAJOR PROJECT The architectural teams from CPG Consultants and studioMilou Singapore worked closely with the client teams throughout the design development and each phase of the construction to meet the challenges of conservation and the adaptation of the buildings. Meeting the exacting standards of a major art institution and respecting the importance of safeguarding the existing fabric of the two buildings have been the most exciting characteristics of the project, for both architectural teams.

The international competition for National Gallery Singapore attracted some 111 entries, with studioMilou’s design being awarded the project in 2008.

Commendable for its clarity and rigour, the competition itself set the framework for an exceptionally efficient launching of the project, and highlighted the need for a sensitive and astute approach, at all times, to the historic character of the buildings.

COMBINED SKILLS AND EXPERTISE studioMilou partnered with CPG Consultants in 2008 to create a strong team of architects and engineers

Gallery space in the former Supreme Court. Image by Fernando Javier Urquijo, studioMilou Singapore.

collaborating closely with the client teams on all aspects of National Gallery Singapore’s architecture and options.

From the preliminary design development to the final stages of construction, studioMilou and CPG have worked intensively to master the extreme complexity of the project, exemplified by the new glass and metal roof draping over the monuments, the extensive basement

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FOCUS ON SINGAPORE developed under the two existing buildings, the exacting restoration of the two historic buildings and the insertion of new services within the fabric of the buildings.

The innate complexity of the project and its scale have been challenging for all, from design development to construction, and these challenges have been overcome through the daily communication between studioMilou, CPG, the client and the contractors.

elegant space of monumental proportions, facilitates visitor flows and houses many of the key operational facilities, such as ticketing, leaving the above-ground spaces free for the public to meander freely, for exhibitions and events.

AN ELEGANT ROOF The design’s signature element, a spectacular filigree metal and glass roofing structure, drapes gently over the monuments and is supported by steel, tree-like structures which give maximum support to the new roofing whilst retaining the architectural integrity of the monuments.

From the exterior, the pale gold and grey filigree metal roof shimmers, changing subtly with the level of daylight and reflecting the sky’s moods, echoing the sea’s surface and sloping downwards at the entrance between the two monuments, to create a visual continuity between the expansive atrium and the padang opposite.

The spectacular public space on the roof will provide visitors new perspectives of the buildings, the surrounding city area and seascapes, whilst also providing gardens, water features and dining facilities.

SPECTACULAR VIEWS Whilst filtering out the harshness of the sun, the roof also allows its rays to permeate into the interiors, bathing the spacious atrium and other spaces in natural light.Within the interiors, the original windows have been preserved and, in some cases, enlarged, offering visitors spectacular views of the city and seascapes. The interior colour schemes and materials have been limited, with extensive use of wooden flooring. The unified scheme avoids stark contrasts with the historic features of the monuments and offers a calm backdrop for the many exhibitions that will be staged.

Work progressing on the City Hall rooftop.

Image by Fernando Javier Urquijo, studioMilou Singapore.

UNITING THE BUILDINGS Beneath the buildings, the monumental basement concourse designed by studioMilou, like the roof, links the monuments with minimal interventions to their historic structures above ground. This concourse area, in itself an

The former Supreme Court roof terrace. Image by studioMilou Singapore.

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The entrance atrium between the two historic buildings.

Image by studioMilou Singapore.

FOCUS ON SINGAPORE CONSERVATION AND ENGINEERING CPG Consultants managed, from the preliminary design phase, the civil & structural engineering, mechanical & electrical engineering, transportation engineering and quantity surveying, ensuring with studioMilou that all infrastructural layers met the highest international standards.

Under the supervision of studioMilou, the French engineering company Batiserf Engineering carried out the key structural studies up to the preliminary design phase (for the built structure, the underpinning, the diaphragm wall, excavations and the structural design for the reuse of the buildings, the piling, the roof structure, tree structure, truss structure, structural glazing, and glass façades).

CPG, with its extensive experience in conservation projects including many iconic buildings in Singapore, such as the National Museum of Singapore, Old Hill Street Police Station and the Central Fire Station, supervised the conservation studies of the architectural restoration consultants, and ensured the extensive conservation of the buildings’ facades, including the restoration and cleaning of shallow relief sculpture panels. CPG was also responsible for overseeing the meticulous restoration works carried out by the project’s main contractor, Takenaka-Singapore Piling Joint Venture.

PROJECT CREDITS Client National Gallery Singapore Architects CPG Consultants Pte Ltd studioMilou Singapore Pte Ltd Conservation Consultant Architectural Restoration Consultants Pte Ltd Green Design Consultant CPG Consultants Pte Ltd Civil & Structural Engineer CPG Consultants Pte Ltd Mechanical & Electrical Enginee CPG Consultants Pte Ltd Quantity Surveyor CPG Consultants Pte Ltd Landscaping Consultant ICN Design International Pte Ltd Façade Consultant Arup Security Consultant Certis Cisco Security Pte Ltd Acoustics Consultant Shen Milsom & Wilke Special Lighting Consultant Lighting Planners Associates (S) Pte Ltd

A restored courtroom in the former Supreme Court. Image by Fernando Javier Urquijo, studioMilou Singapore.

Main Contractor Takenaka-Singapore Piling Joint Venture

The basement concourse beneath the historic buildings. Image by studioMilou Singapore.

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NEWS

Singapore Power to build cooling network for Raffles City Chongqing Tenants of Raffles City Chongqing will enjoy the same round-the-clock availability and high reliability as the consumers in Marina Bay, Singapore.

Mr Lim Ming Yan, President & Group CEO of CapitaLand Limited and Mr Wong Kim Yin, Group CEO of Singapore Power, after signing of the agreement.

Singapore Power (SP) recently signed an agreement with CapitaLand Limited (CapitaLand) for the delivery of district cooling for Raffles City Chongqing in China.

SP will design, build, own and operate an advanced energy-efficient cooling system for Raffles City Chongqing.

The district cooling system will deliver high-quality airconditioning services to consumers through an integrated underground pipe network.

SP's advanced energy-efficient cooling network is expected to deliver up to 50% cost savings in energy consumption, compared to conventional building chiller plants. Raffles City Chongqing is expected to enjoy lower energy usage with about S$ 30 million savings over 20 years.

Mr Wong Kim Yin, Group CEO of Singapore Power, said, “Singapore Power is excited to partner CapitaLand for Raffles City Chongqing. With our expertise in advanced energy-efficient cooling networks, we are confident Raffles City Chongqing will set a new benchmark in sustainability.

Advanced energy-efficient cooling networks are uniquely suited to serve China’s drive towards urbanisation and clean development. Singapore Power will grow this business with high priority, leveraging our advanced engineering capabilities and our successful track-record in Marina Bay, Singapore”.

Mr Lim Ming Yan, President & Group CEO of CapitaLand Limited, said: “CapitaLand is one of the pioneer adopters of green building standards because we strongly believe sustainability is a continuous process that is integral to our business. As internationally recognised urban icons of excellence, Raffles City developments attest to CapitaLand’s commitment to develop user-centric built environments to improve the economic, environmental and social well-being of our stakeholders. We look forward to partnering Singapore Power in implementing this advanced energy-efficient district cooling system at Raffles City Chongqing - the single biggest development in Chongqing to-date to adopt the system".

Training courses in Multi-Discipline Project Engineering launched in Singapore Academy of Project Engineering UK, in collaboration with ETS Solutions Asia, have launched training courses in Singapore, on Multi-Discipline Project Engineering.

It is a first-of-its-kind and includes a rare combination of theoretical and practical aspects of engineering studies and industry experience.

At an event held recently, an MOU was signed by representatives of the two organisations, to mark the launch.

ETS Solutions was established by a team of engineers with with vast exposure and industrial experience totalling more than 50 years.

“We find that this collaboration between Academy of Project Engineering UK and ETS Solutions, a local engineering company, will give Singaporeans the opportunity to learn and understand more about Project Engineering and the synergy of engineering disciplines”, said Mr Craig Morisson, Managing Director, Academy of Project Engineering APAC. Academy of Project Engineering UK is authorised to provide CPeP certification and professional development industrial programmes in Multi-Discipline Project Engineering for students and working executives.

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Mr Mel Tan, Managing Director, ETS Solutions Asia Pte Ltd and Mr Craig Morisson, Managing Director, Academy of Project Engineering APAC, at the event held recently to launch training courses in Multi-Discipline Project Engineering.

NEWS

RMIT University and Kaplan Singapore collaborate to offer engineering programmes

At an event held in Singapore to announce the collaboration between RMIT University and Kaplan Singapore are, from left, Mr Stephen Li, Director, University Relations and Business Development, Kaplan Singapore; Prof Reza Nakhaie Jazar, Deputy Head, Mechanical & Auto Engineering, School of Aerospace, Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, RMIT University; Assoc Prof Firoz Alam, Associate Professor, School of Aerospace, Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, RMIT University; Prof Michael Austin, Head of School, School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, RMIT University; Prof Pier Marzocca, Deputy Head, Aerospace & Aviation, School of Aerospace, Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, RMIT University; Prof Peter Coloe, Pro Vice-Chancellor & Vice President, College of Science, Engineering & Health, RMIT University; Mr Rhys Johnson, Senior Vice President and Provost, Kaplan Singapore; Dr Adrian Orifici, Deputy Head, Learning & Teaching, School of Aerospace, Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, RMIT University; Miss May Soh,Vice President, Sales and Marketing, Kaplan Singapore; Mr Dave Kuah,Vice President, International Services and Offshore Development, Kaplan Singapore; and Mr Ramson Yap, Director, Sales, Kaplan Singapore.

RMIT University, one of Australia's original tertiary institutions, is bringing two of its leading engineering degree programmes to Singapore.

For the first time, the Aerospace Engineering and Mechanical Engineering programmes will be offered in partnership with Kaplan Singapore, which will include two residential visits to RMIT’s campus in Melbourne for hands-on experience with laboratory work.

As well as being a 5-Star University (based on the QS Stars International evaluation system), engineering courses are one of RMIT’s strongest offerings. The university is ranked sixth in Australia and amongst the World’s Top 100 for Mechanical, Aeronautical and Manufacturing Engineering (2015 QS World University Rankings by Subject).

RMIT University and Kaplan Singapore will offer a cuttingedge Aerospace Engineering programme to cater to the potential needs of this expanding industry as well as the popular Mechanical Engineering programme.

“We recognise the demand here for engineering graduates, especially with Singapore positioning itself as an aerospace hub in the region. In view of this, we chose to partner with RMIT University, which is reputed for its engineering courses, to offer the degree programmes in Singapore.

The programmes have a strong practical focus on making students work-ready and have an appreciation of the regional and world aviation scene”, said Mr Rhys Johnson, Kaplan’s Senior Vice-President and Provost.

“The courses not only cover the technical, operational and managerial aspects of the profession, they are both

contemporary and global in outlook. A major feature of the programmes is team and project-based learning - aimed at developing students’ practical capabilities, critical thinking and analytical skills. We also have state-of-the-art laboratory facilities for students to gain practical hands-on experience, in Melbourne, Australia”, said Prof Peter Coloe, RMIT University’s Pro Vice-Chancellor for the College of Science, Engineering and Health and Vice- President.

Through two, one-week residential visits to Melbourne, students get the opportunity to experience and learn through hands-on practical sessions using RMIT’s multimillion dollar laboratory facilities, and will also benefit from field trips to meet RMIT’s industry partners.

The first intake for the Aerospace Engineering (Honours) and Mechanical Engineering (Honours) programme is in September 2015.

RMIT RMIT is a global university of technology and design and one of Australia’s original tertiary institutions. The university enjoys an international reputation for excellence in professional and vocational education and outcomeoriented research.

Kaplan Ranked by JobsCentral as the number one Preferred Private Education Institution consecutively in 2012 and 2013, and by AsiaOne People’s Choice Awards in 2009, 2010, 2013, 2014 and 2015, Kaplan provides top-rated diplomas, degrees, professional qualifications and English language programmes to young and adult learners.

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NEWS

HDB calls for first solar leasing tender under EDB’s SolarNova Programme The Housing & Development Board (HDB) recently called for the first solar leasing tender consolidating demand across multiple government agencies for installation of solar panels. This solar tender at a capacity of 40 MWp is the largest to-date in both the public and private sectors in Singapore, and will see solar photovoltaic (PV) systems installed at eight Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and PUB sites, and an estimated 900 HDB blocks located across the island. HDB, MHA and PUB will take up 32.14 MWp, 6.73 MWp and 1.13 MWp, respectively, for the combined capacity of 40 MWp. For MHA, the solar PV systems will be installed at Tuas Checkpoint, Woodlands Checkpoint, Home Team Academy, Airport Police Division and MHA-HQ at Phoenix Park. For PUB, the national water agency, the installation of solar PV systems will be at Changi Water Reclamation Plant, Bedok Waterworks and WaterHub. The multi-agency solar leasing tender will close on 14 August 2015, and is estimated to be awarded in 4Q2015.

The installation is expected to be completed in end-2017.

The tender is called under the government-led solar lead demand programme, called SolarNova, which is spearheaded by the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB). Under this programme, EDB encourages government agencies to come together to harness solar energy to power their activities, which will in turn spur the growth of the solar industry in Singapore. This is the first tender to be launched under the programme which aims to have solar power contribute 350 MWp to Singapore’s system by 2020. More tenders under SolarNova will be called over the next four to five years.

Through HDB acting as the government’s central procurement agency for solar panels, SolarNova will enable agencies with smaller solar PV demand to benefit from economies of scale and enjoy solar energy at a lower cost. The individual government agencies will oversee the installation of the solar PV panels for their buildings.

Based on the current sustainable business model of solar leasing, HDB (and other agencies taking part in the bulk tender) need not fund any portion of the upfront cost for such solar projects. The user parties managing the respective government buildings and HDB blocks will enter into a power purchase agreement with the private sector developer, to pay for the solar power consumed, at a preferential rate that will not go beyond the retail electricity tariff rate.

Singapore’s solar industry The development of the local solar industry is evident through the growing participation from companies in HDB’s past solar leasing tenders. When HDB called the first solar leasing tender in 2011, there were only three company bidders. The most recent solar leasing tender awarded last year saw seven bidders.

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As the scale and capabilities in the local solar industry grow, the implementation of solar technology on a larger scale has become more cost-effective.

The increasing competitiveness of Singapore’s solar sector has also resulted in escalating private sector adoption. Overall, solar energy has become a commercially-viable source of clean and sustainable energy for Singapore, especially for larger installations which enjoy economies of scale.

Harnessing solar energy in HDB estates HDB’s efforts in building solar capabilities have also seen encouraging progress. Currently, about 55 MWp has been procured by HDB (excluding the 40 MWp tender mentioned above). By the end of June 2015, about 250 HDB blocks island-wide would have been installed with solar panels, while installation works are in progress for another 772 blocks. With this latest tender covering another 900 HDB blocks, a total of close to 2,000 HDB blocks will be ready to harness solar energy.

HDB will continue to test the various types of solar PV technology, to determine the most suitable and efficient technology to be used in Singapore’s climatic conditions.

For instance, HDB is testing Copper Indium Gallium Selenide (CIGS) solar PV technology which is designed to capture diffused sunlight better than conventional siliconbased panels. The CIGS panels are currently installed at a small number of HDB blocks. HDB will evaluate the suitability of the CIGS technology in Singapore’s context and assess the feasibility of future implementation of this technology at more sites.

ADVERTISERS’ INDEX BENTLEY SYSTEMS ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– PAGE 13 INTERNATIONAL LIMITED BUILDING AND ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– PAGE 35 CONTRUCTION AUTHORITY LAND TRANSPORT AUTHORITY –––––––– PAGE 3 & 25 LUMA GROUP LIGHTING –––––––––––––––– OUTSIDE PTE LTD BACK COVER MANAGEMENT DEVELOPMENT –––– LOOSE INSERTS INSTITUTE OF SINGAPORE PENNWELL CORPORATION ––––––––––––– PAGE 9 PRIME STRUCTURES –––––––––––––––––––– PAGE 11 ENGINEERING SINGAPORE INSTITUTE –––––––––––––––––– INSIDE OF TECHNOLOGY FRONT COVER WES 2015 –––––––––––––––––––––––––– PAGE 4,5,6 & 7

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