Cool solutions for green buildings

Can you imagine working in an office without an air conditioner all through the year in Ahmedabad?

What may sound impractical at the outset, given the city's extreme summer, is a distinct possibility, already practiced with ease by several in Amdavad.

The option is the extremely eco-friendly and healthy buildings, designed using Passive Downdraught Evaporative Cooling (PDEC) system, by city's veteran architects Parul Zaveri and Nimish Patel.

To further spread awareness about this option that saves you from massive electricity bills, the architect duo's initiative Abhikram, along with several international partners from five countries, is holding a two-day symposium in the city. The even begins from Thursday.
The meet here is the third and last in the series, preceded by one at New Delhi and Hyderabad.

Though attended mainly by architects, engineers, interior designers, members of the construction industry and public sector, the symposia, Patel said, is for the benefit of all those who wish to increase their option of saving electrical cost in their buildings. He said that by doing so they can also contribute to the national cause of reducing energy consumption.

Talking about successful use of PDEC system, Patel put forth the example of Torrent Research Center in Bhat, designed by Abhikram in 1997.

"The building has saved 200 million tones of air-conditioning  load, recovered the additional cost in less than a year and will recover the entire building cost in 13 years of its operation," said Patel.

He said the entire investment in pharmaceutical research by the owner will be recovered in 39 years through savings in air-conditioning costs and electrical consumption. The symposium will comprise presentations by the partners as well as a few Indian experiences for the local practitioners on 'cooling without air-conditioning' on the first day.

A technical workshop on the design and performance analysis of alternative systems will follow on the next day.

Abhikram is assisted by the Urban Management Centre, Ahmedabad for the symposia. 

(Amit Arora contributed to this report)