Classification of sustainable buildings and identification of the appropriate project

There are a variety of sustainable building classification systems that promote health and well-being, although that classification may be somewhat confusing because of the multiple standards, so what is the Classification of sustainable buildings? How can you determine which one is suitable for setting up the project?

How can you take advantage of the synergies between these classification systems to choose the appropriate building materials? By increasing knowledge of all the available options, a more informed decision can be taken and achieving the best possible results for the private building to be created, in this article explaining the categories of sustainable buildings, and how the architect chooses which is better or more suitable for his architectural design.

Throughout history, construction requirements have changed to match the increasingly complex market needs and development of building materials. Along with these changes came a growing recognition of health and safety concerns, which led to periodic revisions of building codes. For example, the recognition of patient syndrome during the late twentieth century linked the link between health issues and the design of buildings in the foreground. Due to poor ventilation systems and a set of biological and chemical contaminants in the treatment of tenants or building users, symptoms including dizziness, headache, nausea and skin irritation. Building codes were revised to improve ventilation, as well as restrictions on hazards such as asbestos and radon.

Along these lines and in response to growing environmental concerns, voluntary sustainable building classification systems emerged in the 1990s to help designers create more environmentally friendly buildings. Even in older systems such as BREEAM and LEED, the programs looked beyond mere energy issues to include elements of the entire building site, such as indoor air quality, materials and waste.

“Wellness” has become the term promoted by sustainable building classification systems to include the comprehensive links between health, productivity and well-being of building occupants. Six dimensions have been identified to achieve Wellness: professional, physical, social, intellectual, spiritual and emotional. The University of California notes that “Wellness” is an active process for learning about and making a healthy and fulfilling life.

Maintaining health through building practices is crucial when people spend 90 percent of their lives in their homes. Or most of their day in their office work in administrative establishments and institutions, exposure to higher levels of pollutants, lack of natural light and stable habits reduces physical energy and destroys even mental health.

It has been found that following up on the design of buildings that resist these factors and work to promote wellness is beneficial to companies, which leads to increased productivity and job satisfaction and reduces absenteeism. In other words, sustainable health investment in buildings protects the greatest commercial assets: its employees.

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Building Research Foundation (BRE), the global resident of sustainable buildings. As mentioned earlier, the measurement and evaluation of sustainable buildings are many standards set by various organizations, most notably LEED, an international organization created by the American Green Building Council. LEED expresses the sustainability of the building with certificates awarded according to the evaluation obtained. LEED has designed four certificates categorized according to the total score of the points:

1. Platinum (80) points or higher
2. Golden (60-79) points
3. Silver (50-59) points
4. Green (40-49) points.

As for the evaluation stage, LEED has set six criteria to measure the sustainability of the buildings and expressed them with points that are obtained according to precisely defined steps, as the final score points reflect the level of certification that the building will obtain as previously. These standards encompass the entire building life cycle from design, construction, operation and maintenance to demolition and recycling, and here is a comprehensive look at sustainable building measurement standards:

Location and transportation:

He talks about how to choose the appropriate location for the project, and the ease of access to it in order to reduce the use of transportation or find alternative transportation and thus save time, reduce fuel consumption and save resources and health.

The land or site of the project:

It is the second step after choosing a site. This section explains how the surrounding environment can affect the project and vice versa, with details of the types of these effects.

Water efficiency

This section talks about how to increase the water efficiency in buildings, and thus to use the least amount of water possible. It also addresses the types of water in buildings and how they can be dealt with.

Energy and Atmosphere:

Here are strategies to reduce energy consumption and increase its efficiency. It also contains how to use renewable energies.

Materials and Resources:

It is concerned with environmentally friendly materials, how to preserve them, and the ways in which they are used. How can materials be disposed of in the event that they expire through recycling?

The quality of the internal environment:

The quality of the internal environment and its relationship to the comfort and health of users. And how it can play a big role in improving, deforming and corrupting the surrounding environment

One of the largest Dutch commercial real estate companies OVG has created the world’s most sustainable building, The Edge, or “Edge,” by employing innovative smart technology on an area of ​​40,000 square meters. Where a group of leading specialists participated in the design of the building, which set a new global standard for the built environment and gave priority to the comfort, health and productivity of its users. The building was awarded the highest degree ever, registered by the Building Research Foundation BRE, the global resident of sustainable buildings. The building in Amsterdam, Netherlands, has achieved BREEAM certification for the new building with an “outstanding” degree for obtaining 98.36%.