With an increasing global environmental consciousness, the necessity to ensure that every action we take as human beings has as little impact on the environment as possible, is becoming of utmost importance. This philosophy has extended into what has become known as ‘Green’ Architecture; and architects, property developers and property owners are seen as having a responsibility to the earth and humanity to create sustainable, ‘green’ projects.
By making environmentally friendly decisions from the word go that will reduce waste and pollution both during and after construction, architects and developers can make an enormous difference to the environment as well as reduce overall running costs of the completed development. While construction costs of environmentally friendly buildings may be slightly higher and require more innovative solutions than traditional construction processes, the end result is a building that runs more efficiently because energy conservation and active minimisation of waste forms part of the core design plan. In a recent US study, 84% of ‘green’ building owners reported that they had lower energy costs, with 68% reporting lower overall running costs.
So what does ‘going green’ entail in terms of commercial property development and construction?
The developers of Imbonini have taken many factors into account during construction to ensure an environmentally friendly development. Fundamentals such as choice of site and minimising waste and pollution during construction are certainly contributing factors to ‘Green’ architecture, however there is so much more that needs to be thought of.
The indirect effects of property development and construction include water and energy usage, impact on humans who will be living or working in the building and effective, efficient building maintenance post construction (to name a few).
There are 6 basic principles of ‘Green’ architecture, and construction, and design and daily maintenance at Imbonini applies as many of these as feasible to ensure structures that are both environmentally and people friendly.
1. Optimising Site or Existing Structure Potential
This includes reusing or renovating any existing structure (rather than demolishing and creating waste) as well as conducting studies of the site to make sure that it is optimally suited to the type of development proposed. Although the Imbonini site offered negligible usable existing structures, the developers located the estate in a way that it would make the best use of existing infrustructure, allowing for convenient access to the development without the need to deplete resources by building new roads. In fact, as a result of development at Imbonini (and enormous growth in the whole area of the North Coast in general), existing roads are being upgraded to allow for greater volumes of traffic, which will ease traffic flow and in the long term, reduce CO2 emissions from congested traffic.
2. Optimising Energy Use
In the design phase of development, it is imperative to find solutions that will reduce energy consumption. All of Imbonini’s factory designs incorporate solid white roofs. White roofs reflect the heat of the sun rather than absorbing it, which results in natural cooling within the structures. While the need for cooling systems is certainly not eliminated, it is drastically reduced – a huge cost saving initiative for tenants and investors.
3. Protecting and Conserving Water
Steps should be taken to ensure that any water existing on site is not contaminated during constuction, or once the building is in use. Both during construction and after, strict water policies have been in place at Imbonini. Large portions of Imbonini’s open space consists of natural wetlands systems, as specified by the DAEA, and every effort is made to protect these systems and make sure that water is not contaminated. Tenants are ‘policed’ to ensure that no oils or chemical substances are disposed of via the stormwater drains, and hefty fines of up to R1 million can be levied by the DAEA if necessary.
4. Using Environmentally Friendly Resources
Materials that have little or no negative impact on human health or the health of the environment should be used throughout construction. At Imbonini, a simple design choice such as white roofing doesn’t just save on energy costs – the reduced energy consumption also results in lower CO2 emissions made by the development as a whole. If every roof in the entire world was painted white, the result would be a reduction of 44 billion tons of CO2 gasses per year. Or to put it another way, it would have the same effect as removing every motor vehicle from the road for 11 years.
5. Ensuring a High Indoor Environmental Quality
The completed building should maximise the use of natural sunlight and ventilation, and as far as possible avoid the overuse of air conditioning systems that create an unnatural, unhealthy environment for people working within the building. Again, Imbonini’s white roofs create natural cooling, reducing the need for man made cooling systems – and ensuring a healthier indoor environment.
6. Optimising Operational and Maintenance Practices
By specifying materials and suggesting systems that reduce maintenance requirements, architects and developers ensure that maintaining a building requires less water, energy and use of toxic cleaning chemicals, which are harmful to the environment as well as human beings.
In addition to strict water policies, environmental maintenance is high on the list of priorities at Imbonini. Because of the wetlands systems that form part of the estate, ensuring that these areas remain unaffected by industry is very important. Dedicated staff are responsible for keeping the wetlands grounds free from alien plants, and all garden areas are kept indigenous. Stormwater controls are carefully maintained to ensure that there is no washing away of the topsoil or soil erosion. The detrimental effects of soil erosion are diverse, from creating harmful balances of chemicals in the soil that can contaminate water, to increasing the chances of landslides and compromising the stability of building foundations.
The developers of Imbonini have made every effort, right from the start, to ensure that the estate’s environmental impact is minimal. Even though the development is an industrial concern, seemingly at odds with nature, various principles of design and maintenance work together in an almost organic fashion to ensure environmental stability; reducing energy consumption, saving costs, lowering CO2 emissions, protecting water and ultimately resulting in a healthier working environment for all.
Friday, 7 October 2011
IMBONINI AT THE NEXUS OF THE NORTH COAST INDUSTRIAL BOOM
If you haven’t noticed that KZN’s North Coast is booming, you’ve been hiding out in a hole on Mars. And right in the middle of this incredible commercial, industrial and economic upswing – and perfectly positioned to take advantage of the many exciting opportunities that it presents – is Imbonini Park.
Imbonini Park – the second phase of which will be launching soon – is an industrial and commercial property development comprising a variety of development opportunities within a single, secure, upmarket industrial estate. A large cross section of industries have already made Imbonini their home, and the park now includes a number of mini factory, warehousing and large manufacturing concerns.
The development offers an ideal location just 10 minutes from KSIA and the Dube Tradeport, and 1km from the N2 freeway. This extremely accessible location, coupled with superb main road signage opportunities, makes the park appealing to both end users and investors alike. Imbonini’s location midway between Richard’s Bay and Durban is becoming all the more appealing to businesses in search of commercially viable and convenient premises.
Currently, the ports of Durban and Richard’s Bay handle nearly 80% of the South Africa’s cargo tonnage. The development of KSIA and the Dube Tradeport are only the first signs of new growth and expansion in one of South Africa’s fastest growing regions.
With a location literally at the crossroads of industrial and commercial infrastructure on KZN’s North Coast, development at Imbonini Park is progressing rapidly. Phase 1 – approx. 141 000m2 of serviced and platformed land – saw investment predominantly by end users. Of a total of 42 sites, only 6 remain available for purchase. 5 sites are currently being developed, and 14 are complete.
Ed Peen (Chairman of Imbonini Park and Amber Dawn Developments) is excited about the success of Imbonini Park thus far and the development’s future prospects. He says “We are delighted with the success of Imbonini Park and look forward to its continued success when we launch Phase 2”.
Phase 2 of Imbonini Park will be launched soon, comprising 400 000m2 of high end industrial land as well as a residential and commercial component. A phased approach will be adopted in the sales of Phase 2. The first portion of the second phase to be unlocked will be approx. 4 Ha in size, comprising 4 sites of 6 000, 8 000,
11 000 and 16 000m2 respectively. At the same time, plans are in place to widen the R102 all the way through to Stanger to enable the road to cope with increased traffic flow – granting further benefits to investors and owners at Imbonini Park.
As Ballito establishes itself as the new commercial hub of KZN, the time has never been more perfect to invest in KZN’s North Coast. Both for investors looking for secure, guaranteed growth; and end users in search of the ideal business premises near Ballito, Imbonini Park offers the perfect opportunity to succeed.
Imbonini Park – the second phase of which will be launching soon – is an industrial and commercial property development comprising a variety of development opportunities within a single, secure, upmarket industrial estate. A large cross section of industries have already made Imbonini their home, and the park now includes a number of mini factory, warehousing and large manufacturing concerns.
The development offers an ideal location just 10 minutes from KSIA and the Dube Tradeport, and 1km from the N2 freeway. This extremely accessible location, coupled with superb main road signage opportunities, makes the park appealing to both end users and investors alike. Imbonini’s location midway between Richard’s Bay and Durban is becoming all the more appealing to businesses in search of commercially viable and convenient premises.
Currently, the ports of Durban and Richard’s Bay handle nearly 80% of the South Africa’s cargo tonnage. The development of KSIA and the Dube Tradeport are only the first signs of new growth and expansion in one of South Africa’s fastest growing regions.
With a location literally at the crossroads of industrial and commercial infrastructure on KZN’s North Coast, development at Imbonini Park is progressing rapidly. Phase 1 – approx. 141 000m2 of serviced and platformed land – saw investment predominantly by end users. Of a total of 42 sites, only 6 remain available for purchase. 5 sites are currently being developed, and 14 are complete.
Ed Peen (Chairman of Imbonini Park and Amber Dawn Developments) is excited about the success of Imbonini Park thus far and the development’s future prospects. He says “We are delighted with the success of Imbonini Park and look forward to its continued success when we launch Phase 2”.
Phase 2 of Imbonini Park will be launched soon, comprising 400 000m2 of high end industrial land as well as a residential and commercial component. A phased approach will be adopted in the sales of Phase 2. The first portion of the second phase to be unlocked will be approx. 4 Ha in size, comprising 4 sites of 6 000, 8 000,
11 000 and 16 000m2 respectively. At the same time, plans are in place to widen the R102 all the way through to Stanger to enable the road to cope with increased traffic flow – granting further benefits to investors and owners at Imbonini Park.
As Ballito establishes itself as the new commercial hub of KZN, the time has never been more perfect to invest in KZN’s North Coast. Both for investors looking for secure, guaranteed growth; and end users in search of the ideal business premises near Ballito, Imbonini Park offers the perfect opportunity to succeed.
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