Shanghai Tower, the third and final installment of the trio of super tall buildings in Shanghai's Lujiazui district, has been awarded the Certificate of Green Building Design (China's Three Star Rating). The building has also received LEED Gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.
The Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development initiated the Chinese Green Building System to create a measurable, green building standard to encourage sustainable development. The Ministry's system rates buildings in six categories: land savings and outdoor environment; energy savings; water savings; materials savings, indoor environmental quality; and operations and management.
Gu Jianping, General Manager of the Shanghai Tower Construction and Development Co Ltd, said the award recognizes that Shanghai Tower will exemplify for the world green building on a large scale. When completed in 2014, Shanghai Tower will be a 121-floor mixed-use skyscraper that stands 632 meters tall.
"Shanghai Tower was conceived to demonstrate sustainable development practices," he said. "We have incorporated green thinking, energy-saving and environmental protection measures at every step along the way, from conception to design to construction."
Indeed, according to government standards, 33 percent of the building is designated as green space. Ninety-seven percent of building materials will be sourced locally, with 70 percent procured within 500 km of Lujiazui.
The facade of the building employs a 120-degree twist, which reduces wind load and significantly reduces structural materials required for construction, investment reduced by RMB350 million yuan. Its double-skinned facade provides a shading system to minimize cooling needs and maximize use of natural light in the building¡¯s eight "sky lobbies." Variable Air Volume (VAV) air conditioning systems and brightness sensors will help adjust heating, cooling and lighting needs while reducing energy consumption, and carbon monoxide sensors ensure that garage fans run only when CO levels reach unacceptable levels.
In all, the Tower employs 43 green and energy-saving technologies, which help the building cut total power consumption by an estimated 54.3 percent according to the Three-Star Standard of China. The Tower will recycle 235,000 cubic meters of water each year, and deploy another 20,000 cubic meters of grey and storm water. Multiple water treatment plants, chiller plants and storage tanks are located at strategic points throughout the Tower to help reduce pumping energy and allow gravity to maintain water pressure. A wind power system will provide the building with 1189MWH per year of green electricity. Intelligent building systems, such as sub-metering technology, help manage operations, measure performance and seek out additional efficiencies.
Designed by architectural firm Gensler from the US, this vertical community will embrace the most advanced technologies and green standards.
- Energy consumption rate of 64.3%
- Reduction of carbon emissions by 25,000 tons per year
- China Green Building 3 Star Rating
- USGBC LEED Gold Certification
Shanghai Tower is developed and operated by Shanghai Tower Construction and Development Co Ltd, which is an equity partnership between the Shanghai Chengtou Corp, the Luijiazui Finance & Trade Zone Development Co Ltd and the Shanghai Construction Group.
Shanghai Tower under construction (Photo: Building Journal)
