Dow Corning silicone technology helps to meet increasing demand for green buildings in Asia

Dow Corning’s silicone technologies were discussed as alternative materials used in the sustainable construction of green buildings at the Green Buildings Asia conference, a leading construction event dedicated this year to sustainability products, technologies and practices in green roofing, mobility and energy-efficient building systems, February 22–25, in Singapore.

Across Asia, governments seeking to balance rapid economic growth with environmental sustainability efforts have recognized that green buildings contribute significantly to energy efficiency targets. In Singapore, the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Sustainable Development (IMCSD) has set a green building target to have 80 per cent of all buildings certified as ‘green’ by 2030. With this in view, in December 2010, Singapore’s Building and Construction Authority revised the criteria for the Green Mark scheme, increasing the minimum energy efficiency standard for all new buildings.

As a global silicone solutions provider, Dow Corning’s silicone sealants and adhesives are a durable, long lasting choice for green building designs in Asia. “We’ve been involved in many of the landmark buildings around the world for more than 60 years. With the growing interest of Asia in energy efficient solutions for buildings, we believe that silicone technology can help meet the demand for the sustainable design and construction of more green buildings”, said Dow Corning Corporation’s Technical Manager, Narelle Skinner.

Dow Corning’s silicone-based materials are versatile and can be used in many aspects of a building to achieve design freedom. They are used in structural glazing, weatherproofing and insulating glass building applications that are subject to Asia’s extreme weather conditions, which include high winds, typhoons, earthquakes, acid rain, humidity, and regional high and low temperature conditions. They seal potential air and water leaks, promoting thermal efficiency, and improving the air and water tightness of facades, which lowers energy consumption thus reducing carbon dioxide emissions.

Construction teams across Asia have worked to implement best practices in building sustainability using Dow Corning’s silicones and other building materials. Our silicone technology solutions help customers achieve green building ratings or certificates through GBI, GBCI, BERDE, VGBC, LEED and similar agencies throughout the region. Dow Corning has been involved in major building projects in Asia such as:

• Petronas Towers, Kuala Lumpur. Dow Corning was selected as the exclusive provider of all silicone sealants used in constructing one of the world’s tallest twin buildings. Architecturally inspired by the symmetry of Islamic art and built to withstand environmental factors, Dow Corning’s durable silicone sealants helped contribute to sustainable structural design elements used to glaze, seal and install the aluminum, glass and stainless steel curtainwall units on the exterior.

• New Beijing Poly Plaza, Beijing. Dow Corning’s silicone sealants were used to weatherseal the world’s largest cable-net-supported glass curtain wall in the New Beijing Poly Plaza. Resembling a folded Chinese lantern, the plaza also has Beijing’s highest skyscraping atrium. Dow Corning’s silicone sealants were also used in the construction of energy efficient and environmentally friendly vertical stone sun blinds to ensure maximum sunlight during the winter and protective shading in the summer.

• Burj Khalifa, Dubai. Dow Corning materials were used in the construction of the world’s tallest building. An iconic and structurally challenging project, its design was inspired by the patterning systems embodied in Islamic architecture as well as the harmonious structure of the Hymenocallis plant, which is native to the region. Dow Corning silicone sealants were used to glaze the high performance reflective cladding panels which were specified to save energy. Dow Corning worked closely with the building’s structural engineers to provide the right products that met their project design standards.

• Kaohsiung World Games Main Stadium, Taiwan. Dow Corning provided products for the first stadium in the world powered by solar energy, which was awarded the “Green Building Certification” by Taiwanese authorities. Dow Corning provided four-sided structural sealant glazing products to bond the glass solar panels to aluminum sub-frame, which maximizes the daylight exposure for generating clean solar energy by the solar modules.

Dow Corning continues to offer its products, expertise and knowledge in silicone technology solutions to help its customers shape the future of energy efficiency and green buildings in Asia.

About Dow Corning

Dow Corning (www.dowcorning.com) provides performance-enhancing solutions to serve the diverse needs of more than 25,000 customers worldwide. A global leader in silicones, silicon-based technology and innovation, Dow Corning offers more than 7,000 products and services via the company’s Dow Corning® and XIAMETER® brands. Dow Corning is a joint venture equally owned by The Dow Chemical Company and Corning, Incorporated. More than half of Dow Corning’s annual sales are outside the United States.

Dow Corning Construction

For more than 60 years, architects, building consultants, contractors and construction material providers around the world have turned to Dow Corning for its expertise and its silicon-based, performance-enhancing materials and additives for glazing, sealing, and weatherproofing new and existing construction projects. For more information about Dow Corning’s complete line of products for the construction industry, contact http://www.dowcorning.com/construction/

Additional information on green building in Asia

Malaysia: Under the 10th Malaysian Plan, the government intends to promote environmentally-friendly housing by introducing guidelines, a green rating system and to take the lead in adopting green building standards. New government buildings will also be designed to meet green standards. Energy efficiency of existing buildings will be enhanced and as a showcase example, the Prime Minister’s Office complex will be upgraded to meet Green Building Index (GBI) criteria. Currently, Malaysia has a voluntary green building rating system known as the Green Building Index (GBI) which is modeled on international green building rating systems such as the US Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) and the Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM). Buildings that have been awarded the GBI certificate of any grade are eligible to be considered for GBI incentives including tax and stamp duty exemptions.

Indonesia: The Indonesian government has pledged to reduce carbon emissions by 26% by 2020. It released a voluntary decree on green building in January 2010, setting nine standards on green building from eco-label materials, low carbon fuel, water and waste management and indoor air quality. In June 2010, the Green Building Council of Indonesia (GBCI) launched the Greenship rating, a green building rating system used to assess new and existing buildings. The GBCI has said the rating is targeted at commercial buildings in the city due to their high energy consumption and will apply the rating to other parts of Indonesia such as Sumatra and Bali.

Philippines: The House of Representatives adopted a policy in 2009 to become the first green government building, A green building rating system, the Building Ecologically Responsive Design Excellence (BERDE), developed for the local market by real estate stakeholders, was launched in November 2010. However, the Green Building Bill that would establish a Green Building Management Standard for all government buildings has yet to be discussed among members of the House of Representatives of the Philippine Congress. In addition, the Philippine Board of Investments has proposed to remove “green” services from the list of business activities eligible for perks in 2011. The Makati city government has also said it was mulling whether to grant incentives or require the retrofitting of facilities in the area into “green” buildings.

Thailand: In 2010, the Thai government announced it plans to reduce Thailand’s energy consumption by 25% within 20 years, and cut down carbon emissions by 32 million tons per year. Currently, Thailand does not have its own green building rating system; developers currently rely on other standards such as the US LEED, Australia Green Star or Singapore Green Mark. The country is working towards the establishment of its own ratings system.

Vietnam: In the recent National Congress of the Vietnamese Communist Party, the government outlined an increased focus on the “green growth” model. The government has prioritized green policy, and proposed measures for sustainable development in the future, including investment to support green industries and technical guidance on green construction. The Vietnam Green Building Council (VGBC) has developed the LOTUS Rating Tools, specifically for the Vietnamese environment, which are based on existing rating systems such as LEED from the US, BREEAM from the UK and Green Star from Australia. Under the LOTUS criteria, the plan for the first ‘green’ government building in Ho Chi Minh City was approved in November 2010.