9 minute read
Industry Speaks
A green façade project (Studio Meraki)
materials will be booted entirely out and be replaced by selfrenewing materials like steel, brick, and aluminium, vows Ar. Dhawan. There is an overwhelming need for façades to conserve energy, and in the next fifty years, it can be assumed that the façade will be completely carbon neutral. Façades have also taken up a much more technological route. In future, they can maintain the internal homeostasis of the building operated through remote control or an app.
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“We are already witnessing how AI and IoT have touched almost every aspect of our lives. Energy efficiency and sustainability are the key factors driving façade design and, in the future, this is going to be more and more driven by AI. AI-controlled façade materials and systems will change the way we experience and interact with buildings,” say Ar. Nishanth & Ar. Veda. The façade, integrated with IoT, will start to become an extensive data collection centre, which can be used for the more efficient functioning of the complete built environment. For a simple example, a façade that can change itself based on the weather conditions outside & sense the occupant load inside can start talking to the automated shading device and the HVAC system to achieve maximum daylight penetration with minimal heat gain and ensure efficient cooling of the built space. The possibilities are endless. Architects from Katerra Design also add that use of recycled materials and biodegradability will start becoming important factors.
Ar. V Singal believes that kinetic façades can become a common practice within the next 50 years. The flexibility it provides in sustainable design, being aesthetically rich, is very promising. “We need to make the technology more viable in terms of availability and affordability. A kinetic façade enables us to control solar heat gain, daylight, and ventilation, regardless of the coordinates of the site or the season. Once designed and installed, the kinetic façade will adjust with the help of technology. And with the growing age of artificial intelligence, the horizon of possibilities has widened even more,” he is hopeful.
According to Ar. RK Gulati, integrated approach to building façades with integrated building systems is the way ahead, considering conscious energy usage and use of materials having least ecological impact. We also should look at providing improved sustainability goals for the mass consumers as well. The use of appropriate material and technology combined with passive systems has to be made mainstream. For example, use solar panels to provide shading and/or transparent solar panels as glazing. Increased use of vertical landscape features to moderate the microclimate is another method to improve overall reduction in energy use.
Ar. RK Gulati expects that full glass façades will no longer be representative of ‘global’ and ‘high-tech’ but is symbolises a ‘high-waste’ culture as it increases
3D view of a project – Cityspace 82 Architects
Fire-Safe Façades & Fenestrations for the future
DR. ANKIT SHARMA (PHD),
Post Doc Researcher in Fire Dynamics
Façade and Fenestration play an important role in the design of fire-safe buildings. Ventilation during a fire can reduce heat flow to the sprinklers and fire alarms and thus reducing their time of action. Ventilation also aids in fire spread as it provides fresh oxygen increasing the fire intensity. It has been observed in different research studies that fenestrations also have a greater influence on the height of window ejected façade flames and hence flame spread.
For façades, two important parameters which define the performance of firesafe materials are their combustibility and smoke production. The air cavity between the cladding and insulation, provided for maintaining proper ventilation in the façade, acts as a chimney and supports rapid vertical fire spread to top floors.
Therefore, future façade and fenestration need to be designed considering these important aspects of fire safety. Need of the hour is to follow a blended approach using both performance and prescriptive based design for a particular building based on its own specific requirements.
(NOTE: The views and opinions expressed are those of the author and are not linked to any agency, organisation, employer, or company).
Capex, increases demand on the energy used for air conditioning/ cooling etc. High-performance glass and shading devices on a full glass façade is a paradox abinitio. “We should not be waiting 50 years to change this mindset for the sake of reducing our carbon footprint. Research and application of our indigenous vernacular systems’ approach to the climate for contemporary façade design is an intelligent and sustainable way ahead,” adds Gulati.
Post pandemic, the focus has most evidently shifted to occupant wellbeing, health and comfort, observes Ar. Kaw. “I personally foresee that non-sustainable façades will be a thing of the past soon and strict guidelines will have to be adhered to regarding the efficacy of the façade in terms of thermal control. Also, in tune with the new age contemporary design aesthetics, façades will no longer remain just a functional skin, but shall unveil a sense of awe, beauty, complexity and be able to due to interpret an architect’s imagination as perceived due to the augmentation in digital fabrication technologies as well as computational design software, thereby enabling more accuracy and a plethora of possibilities”, explains Ar. Kaw. The diverse reiterations possible now will greatly impact the building science jargon likewise. Also, the dynamism in façades will be in tune with the environment and the microclimate at the site. Façades will also become a natural habitat for nurturing flora and fauna empowering the green building movement. The vertical gardens are making their way in urban life to save mankind from harsh conditions of the environment while saving the planet itself, predicts Ar. Kaw.
Ar Badan too forecasts parametric façades, façades that are technologically controlled to entirely open a building, façades that adapt to the climate, and green façades as some of the future façade designs that will become extremely popular. The architectural design of the building envelope shall move towards sustainability and energy efficiency. Solutions like recycled bricks, recycled plastic, recycled windows & doors, etc., shall become more prominent. Technological advancements also allow for an automated, climate-responsive façade design, he adds.
CONCLUSION
With the manufacturers offering state-of-the-art intelligent materials that can respond to the environment, architects have begun their adoption in the buildings they create. These dynamic material solutions along with the latest in software technologies to create the most sustainable building using computational analytics can provide the optimal solutions. Moreover, the Internet of Things (IoT) can be integrated with the overall building management system to build intelligent buildings that are efficient in use and easy to maintain. It is a matter of time and an increasing rate of adoption before the futuristic building becomes commonplace in the Indian skyline. Continuous innovations bring in products and solutions and serve the façades of today and tomorrow in an intelligent, energy-efficient and sustainable manner. It is this sense of agility from manufacturers, curiosity and sense of experimentation from designers that will help us leapfrog into the arena of ‘futuristic façades’.
Cityspace ‘82 Architects – 3D view
FARAZ AQIL
Managing Director, aluplast India Private Ltd Faraz Aqil is the Managing Director of aluplast India Pvt. Ltd., a 100% subsidiary of aluplast GmbH. aluplast is a world leader in uPVC doors and window profile systems. Faraz Aqil, armed with a Master’s in International Business Management, has more than 20 years of senior management experience, with the last 13 years directly heading a German multinational company Mehler Technologies' Asian operations. He has an extensive record of accomplishment in sales, general management, and communication. Aqil oversaw the growth of the company since he started as the first employee. He also had the opportunity to oversee their business in Asia in the last few years. In an interview with WFM Media, Faraz Aqil talks about the products offered by aluplast India, the company's contribution in bringing about the current revolution in the façade and the fenestration sector, and their recently completed /ongoing projects. He also elaborates his journey with the company aluplast India Private Ltd, and their success stories in India in the recent past.
Please tell us about the company aluplast India Pvt Ltd and yourself?
aluplast is not a new name in India and has always been known to be a top and premium brand. We have been active in India for the last 15 years. In 2015, we decided to set up a manufacturing unit in Vadodara with the purpose of manufacturing some of the uPVC profile systems to make it a hub in Asia, and to cater to the rest of Asia and Oceanic.
How long have you been in this business and the Indian market?
I joined aluplast India Pvt. Ltd. in Dec 2021. Before this, I was in a different industry for almost 15 years and worked with another German MNC as Regional Sales Head for the Asian region.
Tell us briefly about your journey with the company over the years? I am one of the new babies in the fenestration industry as I come from a different industry altogether. However, the last year has been quite eventful. Despite the challenges that we faced
aluplast-extrusion plant at Baroda
due to COVID, the company has come out very strongly posting wonderful sales and production results, all thanks to the great team that we have at aluplast India and all thanks to all our partners who have worked very hard all through this year to post good sales.
Tell us about your major success stories in India in the recent past?
We have recently launched a fantastic range of wooden and aluminium surfaces uPVC profiles in India with textures, which are one of the latest in India. Both these assortments (aludec & woodec) have been received with an overwhelming response from customers across India. In the last month, we displayed our aludec and woodec systems in the Zak Windows and Doors Expo - 2021, Mumbai and we received an amazing response from the visitors.
