Search results

The use of green wall technology in green buildings is a growing trend; however, more research is required about their maintainability, taking into account that maintainability at the design stage is a valuable strategy in achieving building efficiency and sustainability. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to determine the issues in operating and maintaining green walls, particularly in tropical areas like Singapore, leading to the development of a green maintainability framework.

This research uses a qualitative method that combines a thorough and systematic literature review, multiple case studies, field observation surveys and selected instrumental case studies with building plan appraisal and interviews to investigate the potential issues associated with the maintainability of green walls in tropical areas like Singapore.

The findings show that technical and environmental issues/defects are prevalent in the operation and maintainability of green wall technologies applied in green buildings located in tropical regions. Proper considerations of these findings will encourage green building designers and facilities managers to collaborate in the effective implementation of operations and maintenance of green building technologies.

This research gives new and significant information while identifying a clear knowledge gap. The paper recommends the formulation of a green maintainability framework with a set of design criteria that will serve as a benchmark in the future design of green walls. The green maintainability framework would be a valuable addition to green facilities management in ensuring the long-term maintainability and sustainability of existing and new green walls in tropical areas specifically in Singapore.

Nanostructured titanium dioxide (TiO₂) coatings can potentially address the current surge in façade cleaning cost, maintenance and labour problems. The purpose of this paper is to investigate potential maintainability issues and design challenges concerning the effective performance of TiO₂ façade coatings’ hydrophilic properties, especially in tropical environments such as Singapore. This paper aims to establish a list of green maintainability design criteria to help minimise future TiO₂ façade coating issues when this coating is applied on commercial buildings with concrete and stonemasonry façade materials.

A mixed-mode approach that includes a literature review, site investigation, instrumental case studies and expert interviews is used in this study.

TiO₂ coatings help improve façade performance whilst offering environmental benefits to society. This study reports that green maintainability design criteria are vital requirements in designing sustainable buildings at the outset. The identified defects and issues will aid in ensuring the effectiveness of TiO₂ application in building façades.

This study acts as a foundation for future researchers to strengthen this little researched area, serves as a useful guide in preventing possible TiO₂ coating issues and promotes industry awareness of the use of TiO₂ façade coatings.

The maintenance of green building technologies such as building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) is a challenge due to the non-existence of maintainability considerations during the design stage. This led to building defects which accounts to high expenditures throughout the building's lifecycle. The use of BIPV in buildings is an emergent trend, and further research is requisite for their maintainability. This paper assesses the performance and maintainability of BIPV façade applications based on the green maintainability design considerations.

Qualitative method is undertaken in this study, which includes field surveys, instrumental case studies and stakeholder interviews to probe the issues linked with the BIPV's maintainability.

Findings have shown some technical defects discovered in BIPV applications in tropical areas, as well as issues on cost, aesthetics and implementation are the main causes for the low adoption of BIPV in Singapore.

Understanding the research outcomes will embolden designers and allied professionals to team up in ensuring the long-term maintainability and sustainability of green building technologies. This research gives recent and important information in the design, installation and maintainability of BIPV, as well as good practices that would add value to facilities management and to the design of green building technologies.

This paper highlights a crucial public safety issue due to falling objects from tall residential buildings in Singapore. A systematic façade inspection regime and a system of evaluation of severity for the detection and assessment of potential falling objects from tall buildings are presented.

The research uses qualitative case study approach with 450 tall residential buildings sampled for the study. The common materials, elements, components with high risk of falling objects, the nature and type of the falling, the critical factors affecting the falling, the respective level of severity, and the effectiveness of various diagnostic techniques and protocols, are summarised.

Façade for tall residential buildings in Singapore comprises mainly cementitious materials cast in situ or precast, with fixtures and architectural features, all of which have potential of falling. The common anomalies arising from each material and fixture/features are identified, the causes evaluated and their implications to future design, construction and maintenance analysed.

This study provides original and significant information to a crucial public safety issue, setting design and construction criteria that will serve as a benchmark for new and existing facades, applicable to all cities dominated by tall buildings. The paper presents original figures, checklists and guides as a basis for readers' consideration to use according to their respective unique conditions.

Designing for the future sustainability and adaptability of building assets contributes to waste and emission reduction. Moreover, sustainable design and conservation principles are necessary for achieving sustainable and adaptable built heritage. The purpose of this paper is to introduce the improved adaptSTAR model in regards to maximising the future adaptive reuse and sustainability of existing built heritage and its surroundings.

A comparative study of two iconic nineteenth century heritage assets in Australia and Hong Kong is undertaken to highlight the need to forecast the future adaptation of heritage buildings in order to guarantee their continuous reuse and sustainability in an urban context.

Findings show that the functional, technological and legal attributes of these two nineteenth century heritage buildings require improvement so as to ensure their future adaptivity. The upgrading of heritage buildings for environmental sustainability is also deemed necessary.

The originality of this paper pertains to the advancement of the adaptSTAR tool in evaluating the future adaptivity of existing built heritage as well as new built environments whilst considering their economic, environmental and social values.

Vertical greenery systems (VGS) have been a widely accepted design strategy that contributes to creating sustainable built environments. However, green building technologies (e.g. VGS) have grown in complexity which poses maintainability challenges. Designing with maintainability in mind is crucial in delivering efficient and sustainable buildings. This paper aims to assist designers and allied professionals in terms of integrating maintainability and sustainable design in developing high-rise VGS directly from its design inception.

The study is grounded on the “Green Maintainability” concept which link maintainability, sustainability and facility management right at the outset. The Green Maintainability factors are translated into critical design criteria which are used to analyze the selected instrumental case studies to evaluate the high-rise VGS performance and maintainability potential. A qualitative approach via the triangulation of data collected from relevant literatures, field surveys and walkthrough interviews is undertaken.

Findings have shown that the major VGS defects which are mostly occurring in the case studies are issues concerning fallen leaves and dirt accumulation; safety issues during cleaning and repairs; insufficient maintenance access; algae/ mould growth; withering plants; water stagnation/ ponding; poor/faulty irrigation and water dripping and unavailability of natural elements. Best practices and lessons learned revealed few design oversight and technical issues concerning high-rise VGS façade implementation. While maintenance cost, biodiversity and lack of coordination among involved professionals are the additional issues which emerged during the stakeholders’ walkthrough interviews.

Current researches conducted on the maintainability of green building technologies (e.g. high-rise VGS) are still few. This research study is the first comprehensive assessment to determine the green maintainability potential and performance of high-rise VGS in tropical conditions.

From earliest times the land and all it produced to feed and sustain those who dwelt on it was mankind's greatest asset. From the Biblical “land of milk and honey”, down through history to the “country of farmers” visualised by the American colonists when they severed the links with the mother country, those who had all their needs met by the land were blessed — they still are! The inevitable change brought about by the fast‐growing populations caused them to turn to industry; Britain introduced the “machine age” to the world; the USA the concept of mass production — and the troubles and problems of man increased to the present chaos of to‐day. There remained areas which depended on an agri‐economy — the granary countries, as the vast open spaces of pre‐War Russia; now the great plains of North America, to supply grain for the bread of the peoples of the dense industrial conurbations, which no longer produced anything like enough to feed themselves.

The lengthy review of the Food Standards Committee of this, agreed by all public analysts and enforcement officers, as the most complicated and difficult of food groups subject to detailed legislative control, is at last complete and the Committee's findings set out in their Report. When in 1975 they were requested to investigate the workings of the legislation, the problems of control were already apparent and getting worse. The triology of Regulations of 1967 seemed comprehensive at the time, perhaps as we ventured to suggest a little too comprehensive for a rational system of control for arguments on meat contents of different products, descriptions and interpretation generally quickly appeared. The system, for all its detail, provided too many loopholes through which manufacturers drove the proverbial “carriage and pair”. As meat products have increased in range and the constantly rising price of meat, the “major ingredient”, the number of samples taken for analysis has risen and now usually constitutes about one‐quarter of the total for the year, with sausages, prepared meats (pies, pasties), and most recently, minced meat predominating. Just as serial sampling and analysis of sausages before the 1967 Regulations were pleaded in courts to establish usage in the matter of meat content, so with minced meat the same methods are being used to establish a maximum fat content usage. What concerns food law enforcement agencies is that despite the years that the standards imposed by the 1967 Regulations have been in force, the number of infringements show no sign of reduction. This should not really surprise us; there are even longer periods of failures to comply; eg., in the use of preservatives which have been controlled since 1925! What a number of public analysts have christened the “beefburger saga” took its rise post‐1967 and shows every indication of continuing into the distant future. Manufacturers appear to be trying numerous ploys to reduce the content below the Regulation 80% mainly by giving their products new names. Each year, public analysts report a flux of new names and ingenious defences; eg, “caterburgers” and similar concocted nomenclature, and the defence that because the name does not incorporate a meat, it is outside the statutory standard.

Government appointed and sponsored committees of every description—select, ad hoc, advisory, inquiry—such a prominent feature of the public scene since the last War, are understandable, even acceptable, reflect the urgency of the times in which we live. In the gathering gloom of more recent twilight years, they have flourished inordinately, especially in the socio‐political field, where most of their researches have been conducted. Usually embellished with the name of the figure‐head chairman, almost always expensively financed, they have one thing in common—an enormous output of words, telling us much of what we already know. So much of it seems dull, meaningless jargon, reflecting attitudes rather than sound, general principles.

Some months ago a national organisation established to keep a watchful eye on the Nation's diet expressed concern over the eating trends of people in what to them appeared to be developing inbalances of necessary nutrient factors and the inadeuacy not so much of calories and energy values but in the nature and quality of main food factors. It was recommended that the national diet should be improved, but the authorities pointed to the National Food Survey results to show that the diet was not deficient; that the average daily intake of protein, vitamins, minerals and overall energy requirements were satisfied; all of which is true for the not‐too‐generous levels set. Even the pensioner households included in the Survey sample appear well‐fed. What causes concern is the year‐by‐year decrease in staple foods consumed—milk, red meat, bread, fresh vegetables—and the heavy reliance on refined, processed foods. In its annual reports on NFS reviews, the BFJ has almost monotonously referred to this downward trend. Individual NFS Reports do not reveal any serious deficiencies, as yet, but in the trend over the years—and herein lies the real value of the Survey and its data—few if any of the changes have been for the better; movements in food groups have tended to be downwards. If these trends continue, the time must surely come when there will be real deficiencies; that substitution within a food group cannot make good essential foods severely rationed by high prices.