At the turn of the 21st century, the United Nations set out its Millennium Development Goals building upon more than 10 years of conferences and summits, which were further advanced 15 years later through the organisation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – a collection of 17 integrated ‘Global Goals’ that looked beyond economic sustainability to encompass social and environmental sustainability, as well.
Commonly known as the UN’s SDGs, these Global Goals raised the bar for what should be expected by companies at the forefront of their industries – with the SDGs 6, 7, 9, and 11, calling for specific and consistent action to improve clean water and sanitation; affordable and clean energy; industry, innovation, and infrastructure; as well as sustainable cities and communities, respectively.
Dubai-based “sustainable consultancy” and engineering firm, Consistent Engineering Consultants – which specialises in design, green buildings, retrofit projects, and sustainable energy solutions to enhance built environments – was among the first consultancies in the industry to identify the “state of crisis” within the construction sector.
Speaking in an exclusive interview, the managing director of Consistent Engineering Consultants, Sagar Kulkarni, said: “The change in Consistent’s approach to the market began as early as 2017-18. We realised early-on that the UN Sustainable Development Goals would define the future of the construction industry. Our role within MEP and HVAC became crucial, especially given that this sector within the built environment is a major contributor to CO2 emissions and global climate change.”
It’s no secret that the existing global building stock is a leading contributor to greenhouse gases (GHG), generating approximately 40% of annual global GHG emissions.
Kulkarni added: “The need to address the energy consumption and carbon footprints of buildings has become increasingly important. Within the projects that we were working on, we began to focus on improving the energy efficiency; lowering carbon emissions; reducing water consumption; and switching to renewable sources such as solar. This is how we moved from being an MEP consultant to becoming a sustainable consultant.”
Sustainable projects come to life
In terms of completed projects, Consistent was responsible for retrofit works on Dubai’s Oasis Mall, which witnessed energy consumption drop by approximately 20%. Consistent also focused on reducing energy usage and operational costs. Energy-efficient solutions including VFD controlled kitchen exhaust and make up air system; FAHU with 100% re-circulation; and LED lighting systems were executed and implemented on the Oasis Mall project.
Referring to recent projects, Consistent’s Kulkarni alludes to completing retrofit works on a 2.4 million square feet project near Zabeel Park in Dubai. Consistent modelled and analysed the project, and implemented a sustainable approach, which resulted in 23.8% energy savings with respect to the base model of ASHRAE 90.1.
In terms of ongoing retrofit projects for the existing building stock, Consistent’s energy retrofit project at Abu Dhabi’s Anantara Hotel Resort at Sir Bani Yas Island is expected to provide energy savings of 23% annually on the chiller system operations. Consistent divulged to MEP Middle East that the scope of the project will include a chiller upgradation feasibility study via energy analysis as well as the de-signing of a new energy-efficient chiller system focusing on better energy savings.
“When it comes to energy savings, data is key to bringing sustainable projects to life. One cannot make a claim of 20% energy savings without demonstrating that claim based on norms stipulated by ASHRAE, CMVP and the other such bodies. Consistent has grown and gained the required qualifications to demonstrate such energy savings within the market,” Kulkarni clarified.
“As a result, we are getting a lot of inquiries to provide solutions that will help improve energy savings on existing projects. Rather than constructing buildings and rectifying them afterwards, the time has come for projects to be implemented sustainably right from the start.”
Switching to “Sustainable Consultancy”
The shift to becoming a sustainable consultant was easier said than done. Consistent, as a company, had to undergo a lot of internal changes.
The company moved from the ISO 9001 certification – which demonstrates the firm’s ability to consistently provide improved products and services that meet customer and regulatory requirements – to the ISO 14001 certification of Environmental Management Systems, which recognises companies that demonstrate a consistent ability to diminish the environmental impact of their businesses including through emissions, waste-handling, utilisation of natural resources, and energy-efficiency.
The company is also ISO 45001 certified for its focus on occupational health and safety, and ISO 50001 certified for its energy management capabilities.
“During 2020, specifically, we upskilled our whole team when the markets were down. The teams were also geared up with additional qualifications such as CMVP for measurement and verification; certified as managers; and certified as high-performance building professionals. Our workforce was uplifted as a whole to cater to our renewed focus and sustainability requirements,” Kulkarni added.
“We strongly believe that the market is not going to be the same as it was before 2020. The skill sets that will be required in the near future are different, and we’ve taken a proactive approach to align ourselves towards this direction that the industry needs to address.”
Consistent – which has been active in the UAE for more than 13 years – has not only gone above and beyond its green building regulatory mandates on ongoing projects; it has also gone a step further in addressing the need for the existing building stock to clean its carbon-heavy footprint.
Kulkarni explains: “When we analysed the market, we realised the importance of addressing the market in two segments – the new projects and the existing building stock. This is also because approximately 90% of the existing building stock was constructed at a time when the green building regulations were not in place.
“We noticed that new and upcoming projects attempted to demonstrate ‘better’ and ‘greener’ construction through modelling and visualisation methods. From traditional technologies such as AutoCAD, construction stakeholders began moving the implementation of new projects to better 3D-modelling technologies such as Revit. We took advantage of this tech-friendly market sentiment and began modelling on older projects to improve energy efficiencies.”
Need for a collaborative approach
As the UAE continues to push for positive action in the areas of controlling its contribution to climate change; improving the availability of clean water and proper sanitation; renewable energy adoption; as well as the responsible production and consumption of resources, the role of consultants within the construction industry has become just as important as the role that each citizen and resident within the country.
Aiming to reduce more than 1 million tonnes of CO2 by 2030 and achieve more than 1.7TWh of electricity savings by 2030 as part of its Dubai Vision 2030 plan, the emirate has mandated a 30% reduction in energy consumption by 2030.
“If you read between the lines, these goals provide a lot of clarity in terms of what needs to be done,” Kulkarni says.
“From our own homes and villas, expanding outwards to our buildings, our communities, and to Dubai as an emirate, it’s important to implement this 30% reduction of electricity consumption at each of these stages. This will require active participation from every stakeholders in each of these sections. This means a focus on three key tenets: Better products, better maintenance, and better utilisation at the end level.”
Implementing these three key tenets will mean a collaborative effort that involves everyone from developers driving the budgets on projects; to consultants, contractors and stakeholders working on the project; to manufacturers, suppliers and stakeholders fabricating, installing, and commissioning the products; to the operations and facility management teams maintaining the completed projects; to the owners and occupiers living or working on the premises.
“We are all responsible. Even if we design a green building, but do not maintain or operate it properly, it will not yield the required results. This has been witnessed on a number of projects, and over a period of two-three years, the results can be quite alarming.”
Having created awareness through a number of channels, including webinars, Consistent has increased the focus of its role in this collaborative effort.
“The systems of implementing energy efficiency measures are changing. The general guidelines and authority requirements – such as creating air conditioning systems that have a safety of 24-degree Celsius, irrespective of the climate – are getting outdated,” Kulkarni explains.
“For consultants, the time has come to establish and integrate performance-based designs. The industry needs to move beyond design-and-comply methodologies to models that analyse the implementation in order to make projects more sustainable.”
Furthermore, Consistent has registered itself with Etihad ESCO, which helps companies develop energy strategies and best implement energy-efficient methods of electricity consumption.
Kulkarni concludes: “We’ve decided to set a positive and proactive course for the future. It’s time for consultancies to go a step beyond preparing detailed ‘sustainability’-based reports and action plans, and become practically and actively invested in the implementation of these recommendations through retrofit projects.”
“With the UAE government taking the lead in such initiatives, even future financing models will take social improvisation into consideration. We believe that this will add further momentum to the sustainability dialogue going forward.”