SMART ELEVATOR solutions for GREEN BUILDINGS

The concept of green building has always been associated with environment and sustainability-related features such as green walls and solar panels, but it is way more than that. Green building is one of the latest trends in the building and construction industry, which aims to reduce energy consumption through sustainable and energy-saving building design and using energy-efficient equipment.

With growing urbanisation and vertical development of cities, sustainable living has become extremely important. Energy consumption is high in cities, with the significant source of consumption being the buildings, manufacturing units, and transport. In the wake of global warming and pressing concerns of energy consumption, green building is becoming increasingly relevant to urban lives.

Challenges to promote green building

A popular view against green buildings involves higher operation and maintenance costs in comparison to conventional buildings. Rather, the truth is by optimising key systems such as lighting, air-conditioning, electrical and vertical transportation, green buildings can over a longer-term help reduce energy consumption and operation cost thanks to their higher operational efficiency.

Locally, popularity of green building is still hindered somewhat by funds and budget constraints of owners and developers, limited awareness on operation and maintenance requirements, and most importantly the environmental and financial benefits green buildings can offer in the longer term.

How can next generation elevator solutions contribute to the development of green building concept in the country?

Elevators allow cities to expand upwards instead of outwards, allowing us to effectively reduce urban sprawl and associated negative impacts of traffic congestion, pollution and other key issues that are concerns for many countries in Asia Pacific.

In today's times, buildings are responsible for 40% of overall energy consumption, and around 10% of the building's electricity is consumed by the traditional elevators. But this can be overcome with smarter and newer elevator technologies. Using TK Elevator's revolutionary TWIN elevator system as an example, with two elevators operating independently in one shaft, the TWIN offers the benefits of significantly increasing system capacity, without the need for extra elevator shafts.

The biggest advantage of our TWIN is its ability to park one of the two cars while the other stays in operation. This means when passenger volumes are low, very little energy is consumed by the non-moving cars. Additionally, the TWIN can be equipped with energy recovery devices that can feed about 30% of energy back into the building's power grid.

Digital and sustainable mobility solutions: The major game changer

Mobility solutions play a pivotal role in building a sustainable tomorrow. And TKE's solution for the future is MULTI, which allows the operation of multiple cabins in both horizontal and vertical directions, and frees tall building design from the constraints imposed by traditional elevators. As the world's first rope-free elevator system, MULTI gives architects the power to completely reshape our cities, and has the potential not just to connect floors but also buildings and cities as a more eco-friendly transportation means. The focus of our innovation is also on using the latest technologies to drive energy efficiency and minimise the overall energy consumption of the building.

In addition, all our elevators can be equipped with MAX, which provide the benefits of data analytics to facilitate predictive maintenance services. MAX is a game-changing predictive and pre-emptive maintenance solution that extends remote monitoring capabilities to dramatically increase current availability levels of existing and new elevators. Utilising the power of Microsoft Azure Internet of Things (IoT) technology, MAX predicts maintenance issues before they occur, and empowers elevator engineers by flagging the need to replace components and systems before the end of their lifecycle.

Our AGILE Destination Control (DSC), also improves system efficiency and passenger experience by effectively shortening wait and travel times. Compared to conventional elevator control systems, the AGILE DSC increases passenger handling capacity by up to 30%, minimises passengers' travel times to their destination and reduces crowding in lift lobbies. DSC also allows for much more flexibility in elevator grouping, lift core layouts and overall building design.

Why one should opt for digital elevator technology in building:

• Reduced energy consumption: By optimizing key systems such as lighting, air-conditioning, electrical and vertical transportation, green buildings can over a longer-term help reduce energy consumption and operation cost thanks to their higher operational efficiency.
• Reduce negative impacts of urban sprawl: Elevators allow cities to expand upwards instead of outwards, allowing us to effectively reduce urban sprawl and associated negative impacts of traffic congestion, pollution and other key issues that are concerns for many countries in Asia Pacific.
• Versatile elevator deployment: TK Elevator's next-generation elevator TWIN has the advantages of flexible zoning by operating the two cars independently, lighter in total weight, and the added flexibility to park one of the cars during non-peak hours to save energy, this is very important for modern green buildings
• Improves system efficiency and passenger experience: Compared to conventional elevator control systems, the AGILE DSC increases passenger handling capacity by up to 30%, minimizes passengers' travel times to their destination and reduces crowding in lift lobbies. DSC also allows for much more flexibility in elevator grouping, lift core layouts and overall building design - which makes it the ideal elevator control solution for modern green buildings.

Applications

Green building reduces the environmental impact of buildings by optimising the use of energy, light and other resources to reduce consumption and minimise carbon footprint. Next generation elevator solutions such as TKE's TWIN and MULTI used in newly-built skyscrapers and high-rises can effectively reduce urban sprawl and its associated impacts, but older buildings can also be turned into more sustainable or 'greener' ones by modernising its vertical mobility system. Digital solutions such as TKE's MAX and AGILE DSC can also bring the operation and energy efficiency benefits to older buildings by means of modernisation.

In a nutshell, the concept of green building applies not only to new state-of-the-art high-rises and newly developed urban areas, but to all kinds of buildings and infrastructures; thereby extending the benefits of reduced environmental impact and enhanced the health and wellbeing of occupants to people dwelling in less developed and older communities as well.

- Manish Mehan

CEO & MD, TK Elevator India

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