Development | Design & Construction - issue 10

Development Design & Construction issue 10 | December 2011

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Development Design & Construction

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THE COST OF FLOOD PROTECTION Having taken stock of the effects of this year’s flood disaster, Sansiri has unveiled its plans for 2012. Looking ahead with op mism, the leading Thai residen al property developer confirmed that be er flood protec on will be achieved through a combina on of more carefully chosen loca ons and improved design. However, such changes are not without their costs.

With the help of careful prepara on and planning, only four of Sansiri’s 168 residen al projects were affected by this year’s flooding. In achieving this remarkable feat, the company invested 50 million baht on pumps and sandbags, but the long-term implica ons of this year’s disaster are likely to incur far greater costs.

While there is universal agreement that Thailand’s city planning and zoning need dras c change in order to improve the effec veness and capacity of its floodways, Sansiri acknowledges its own responsibili es to its customers.

Topping the company’s list of priori es are more careful choice of loca ons for its projects and be er design of its construc ons.

But crea ng the peace of mind that comes with a floodproof home is not cheap. Land prices in flood-free zones are likely to soar, while more me and money will have to be spent on landfills to further ensure that proper es are above flood levels. In addi on, Sansiri has dra ed in floodlandscape design experts to oversee addi onal safety measures, such as the design of floodways around each project. The increased cost of crea ng sustainable, floodproof residences will inevitably be passed on to the customers.

Although its sales fell by around 20% during the third quarter of 2011, Sansiri is expec ng the market to fully recover in 2012. The company will launch 20 new projects, including 3 that were delayed in 2011 because of the flood situa on.

Despite pre-sales falling short of the company’s target of 27 billion baht in 2011, Sansiri is confidently predic ng a growth in this area to 30 billion baht in 2012.

HOTEL BOOKINGS IN THAILAND ON THE RISE

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are on the rise as the country recovers from its worst floods for over half a century. With the waters now receding and clean-up opera ons underway, the country’s tourism industry is showing posi ve signs as it nears the peak of what is tradi onally its high season. HotelClub recorded a 400% increase in bookings during the first week

of November compared with the final week of October, when the floods were at their worst. The same company also reported that transac ons during the final week of November were up 15% compared with the same period in 2010. Bangkok also enjoyed a high volume of hotel transac ons during the last week of November with

figures 40% higher compared architects, engineers, and building owners with a forum to discuss best prac ces and look ahead at the role of building envelopes in helping Asia grow on a sustainable and environmentally-friendly founda on.

“Buildings use 32 per cent of the world’s resources in construcƟon. They are responsible for around 40 per cent of global energy use and generate up to 30 per cent of global GHG emissions.”

Tony Arnel, Chair, World Green Building Council Boas ng a few of the world’s fastest urbanising centres, Asia faces a unique challenge: how to maintain the building mass growth while making it sustainable.

envelopes.

One such tool in achieving a sustainable built environment will be to integrate buildings with high performance envelopes. Efficient envelopes that are engineered to last their designed service life will surely be an asset to the building developer/owner/ operator by a mul tude of factors: reduced energy use, ease of maintenance and longer service life.

To be held in Singapore during 25 – 26 April 2012, the conference will feature presenta ons from Karan Grover, OMA, KPF, T R Hamzah & Yeang, Benoy, Aedas, UN Studio and other major architectural prac ces.

She said, “As primary stakeholders responsible for efficient building performance, architects and engineers need to con nually update their skills.

Every opportunity offered by new methods and The annual Building Envelopes Asia conferences technologies in making the growth sustainable, have always brought together the best minds in architecture and envelope engineering.” needs to be discussed, debated and shared.

Ms Gisete Tay, Divisional Director, IQPC Worldwide says that the 3rd annual Building Envelopes Asia conference will provide such a pla orm for the regulators, developers, architects and building engineers to discuss and share best prac ces/new trends in designing/engineering efficient building

Arup, Meinhardt, Aurecon, WSP, Ramboll and other leading engineering firms will also be presen ng new building case studies.

To know more about 3rd annual Building Envelopes Asia, email to enquiry@iqpc.com.sg or you can reach Ms. Rani Kuppusamy at +65 6722 9399 or email her at rani.kuppusamy@iqpc.com.sg

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RHOMBUS ADDS TWO NEW HOTELS TO ITS HONG KONG PORTFOLIO Hong Kong-based Rhombus Interna onal Hotels Group has confirmed that it will open two new hotels in Causeway Bay over the next 18 months, as it also begins to explore overseas op ons.

Both of the new bou que hotels will be located within walking distance of MTR sta ons, Times Square, SOGO, and Victoria Park, while the Hong Kong Conven on and Exhibi on Centre will also be easily accessible from either property.

The first of the new hotels will be an 80-room property due to open in late 2012 on Pennington

Street, while a 100-room hotel will open a few months later in early 2013 at Jardine’s Bazaar.

Rhombus currently has 4 proper es in Hong Kong as well as a recently-acquired

hotel in London. The company also plans to launch its first hotel in mainland China with the opening of the flagship Rhombus Fantasia Chengdu Hotel in 2012. 

DAVAO CITY TO GET THREE NEW HOTELS The southern Filipino island of Mindanao is set for a major tourism boost with the construc on of three new hotels in Davao City. Due to open over the next two years, the three new hotels will be developed

by Radisson, Ayala, and Red Planet Hotels—a franchise of Air Asia and part of the Tune Group. The three proper es will target different sectors of the market. The Park by Radisson is a 200-room business-type hotel. Ayala’s Kukun Hotel is a 180-room bou que hotel. Tune Hotel by Red Planet Hotels and Air Asia is a budget hotel with 150 rooms. Davao City currently has a capacity of approximately 5,000 rooms in a variety of price

ranges and styles. 

A BOOST FOR THE FILIPINO PROPERTY MARKET The property market in the Philippines has enjoyed a surprisingly good year in 2011.

Despite lower than expected growth in the na on’s economy, there has been good news in the office, residen al, and tourism sectors of the country’s property market.

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Metro Manila is now considered one of Asia’s most a rac ve property investment op ons for office buildings due to rental rates that compare favourably with other loca ons in the region. According to a report by real estate advisory company CB Richard Ellis (CBRE) Philippines, Manila now charges the third cheapest lease rates out of 16 central business districts the company compared across Asia.

Only Jakarta and New Delhi were less expensive.

Meanwhile, the boom that saw mid-priced condos account for 80% of all residen al developments in 2011 is believed to be a result of more a rac ve financing schemes. And in the country’s tourism sector, hotel developments in key tourist des na ons are already looking like sound investments with visitor numbers on the rise. D|D&C | 5

C O M I N G SOON ON D|D&C TV 2012 Prab Thakral Spencer de Grey Rohit Sachdev Shigeru Ban Simon Allison Ole Schereen Kevin Beauvais hear what the industry leaders have to say

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