JOIN USSustainable construction is the way to go these days. Ruth Dsouza meets Heimo Scheuch, head of Weinerberger, a player in the clay roof market and discusses whether sustainable construction is what companies need as well.
Sustainable construction has been a buzz word for a while now. As consumers, we have seen it primarily in the making of individual homes.
While we have remained in awe of such homes, there has always been a pre-conceived notion that the creation of such homes is an expensive affair and even requires expert people working on it.
With the volume of construction that is going on at present it would be a prudent choice for builders of commercial, retail as well as residential spaces to consider making use of sustainable construction materials.
Wienerberger (Austria) is the world's largest maker of clay (terracotta) building bricks and are at the top of the clay roof market in Europe.
The Wienerberger strategy is based on profitable and sustainable growth with a focus on products for walls, façades, roofs and surfaces. Group CEO of Wienerberger, Heimo Scheuch was recently in the city. We discussed the need for green bricks in commercial, residential and retail real estate segment in India/ Bangalore with him.
Where does Bangalore stand?
World over there has been a gradual shift to more sustainable forms of construction. In some countries and cities, the move has been widely accepted, in others there is a slight hesitation and yet for a few others the concept is alien. Bangalore definitely has begun the move a while ago, but where exactly do we stand.
Heimo Scheuch says, “Every city goes through various stages of construction. For India, the concept of eco-friendly construction is rooted in its history and has come down from ancient times. Over time however, the focus has shifted with high rises coming into play, large turnovers being expected and massive volumes being required.
Since needs change constantly, building requests too vary. The life spans in European countries right now are very high and therefore a lesser volume of construction is demanded. This gives builders there an opportunity to consider eco-friendly material.
In India, it is necessary that one has the ability to think of sustainability in the long run.
The benefits of sustainable construction for individual homes have been well touted. Several large MNCs have at least one campus that has been built with attention being paid to sustainable material. But in the long run, why would we need to consider the green factor in commercial and retail construction?
Heimo Scheuch says, “One of the main reasons is energy. All buildings require cooling and in the long run we are not going to have the energy resources required to sustain the heating and cooling of buildings. It is therefore important that buildings be able to do this themselves. If planned the right way.”
Most companies worry that the costs will be prohibitive. This is not something that Heimo denies, but he says that it is an obligation on the part of the companies working towards this cause to make it a viable option. Solutions today seem to be targeted only to a niche group of consumers and this should not be the case.
Clay, a substance easily found world over is believed to be the most sustainable construction material ever. Heimo Scheuch says that it has a long history of being used for cooling as well as heating in a building. It has to its advantage the fact that it is easily available.
The only thing is that it has to be mined in the right manner. World over this process of mining should be with an emphasis on saving agriculture. It is a process that has already been in play in several nations.
Bricks that are made of clay have a high level of compressiveness. They are extremely durable. They also bring down the levels of energy that are consumed in the process of production in any commercial building.
Sustainable construction should be the prerogative of every real estate player in the market. With the right kind of outlook, this becomes very achieveable.