Home » Construction » Ways to Increase Energy Efficiency of a Commercial Building
In This Post:
More Natural Light
Energy Efficient Lighting
Exterior Wall Insulation
Energy-Saving Lifts and Escalators
Add the Element of Greenery
Owing to the phenomena of climate change and global warming, both of which have been triggered by harmful human activities like wastage of natural resources and deforestation, eco-friendly practices are now also widely being adopted in the construction industry. Making the most effective use of the available resources, these practices are primarily focused on the factor of energy conservation. With a few structural changes and design modifications, these energy-saving strategies can also be put to the best use in commercial construction projects. Wondering how? To guide you further in this regard, we have come up with this post. In this blog, we are going to list down and discuss some of the best tips to make a commercial building energy efficient.
So, without further ado, let’s begin!
How to Make a Commercial Building Energy Efficient
Some of the most practical and useful ways to increase the energy efficiency of your commercial building project have been listed as under:
- Install Wider Windows to Allow More Natural Light
- Go for Energy-Efficient Lighting Options
- Cut Down Air Conditioning Cost With Exterior Wall Insulation
- Equip Your Building With Energy Efficient Elevators and Escalators
- Add Greenery to Make Your Building More and Environment-Friendly
In this piece, we’ll also elaborate on all the above-listed tips to make a commercial building energy efficient. Here we go!
Allow More Natural Light
One of the key highlights of modern architectural trends is that they are in line with eco-friendly construction practices. This is why you may have observed that skyscrapers and highrise buildings constructed these days are equipped with larger windows and other types of natural light inlets like skylights (also known as roof lights). Roof lights help illuminate the indoor environments, especially arenas of larger buildings like the ones you see in business and shopping centres, without the help of artificial lights.
Similarly, larger windows can light up individual business units and commercial outlets during the daytime, cutting the cost of electricity. This is a great way of coming up with eco-friendly commercial building design. On a side note, you can also take a look at our detailed blog post on the pros and cons of installing skylights at home.
Install Energy-Efficient Lighting
The next thing you should focus on when making your commercial building more energy efficient is to pick the right lighting fixtures. You may also be required to find eco-friendly ways to keep things adequately lit at night. This is when energy-efficient lights come into play.
You may have a few options to choose from, out of which LED lights and incandescent lights (commonly known as Energy Savers) may work best for you. Installing them is how you can increase the energy efficiency of your commercial building. If you want to learn more in this regard, check out our blog in which we have discussed different types of lightbulbs in Pakistan.
Pro Tip: You can also go for installing solar panels after taking permission from your concerned power authorities. This is another very important tip to make a building energy efficient. To learn more about the production and usage of solar energy in Pakistan, read this blog.
Use Exterior Wall Insulation
Insulation materials and eco-friendly construction practices go hand in hand. The exterior wall insulation works best for commercial construction projects. It involves the installation of insulation material. The surface of the exterior is then leveled with a special type of plasterwork or cladding. The final finish appears perfectly smooth, which is either tiled, painted, or textured.
Wall insulation helps you maintain the indoor temperatures, cutting down the cost of air conditioning. Working on the exterior wall insulation is how to make your commercial building more energy efficient. Along with energy saving, the insulation layer also protects your walls against dampness and makes them both water and weather resistant.
Install Energy-Efficient Elevators and Escalators
Large commercial and business centres necessarily require elevators and escalators for the convenience of the visitors. Nowadays, we see them in almost every newly constructed high rise apartment buildings and commercial projects. Elevators and escalators may consume a lot of energy, increasing the burden of your electricity bill. Fortunately, you can now go for installing the energy-efficient elevators that are easily available these days. You can also partially divert the electrical load of the lifts in your commercial building to the solar panels.
On the other hand, when it comes to the escalators, you can simply install the speed control system. It automatically sensors when someone has stepped on the escalator, it increases its speed and when not in use, the system automatically slows it down. This is one of the best tips to make a commercial building energy efficient.
Add Greenery to Your Building Design
Don’t forget to add the element of greenery to complete your energy-efficient commercial building design. You can dedicate a certain space in the surrounding of your commercial building for the plantation of greenery. Also, there are many different types of indoor plants that also survive well without sunlight. Indoor plant decoration can help improve air quality and is also aesthetically pleasing.
Plants can desirably uplift the look of your commercial building project. All these features of adding the element of greenery make it one of the best tips to make your commercial building more energy efficient. With a little magic of creativity, here are some of the best tips to set up a vertical garden indoor.
This was our pick of some of the best tips on how to make a commercial building energy efficient. We hope this piece has provided you with all the useful information in this regard. In case you have any questions or feedback, please feel free to contact us at blog@zameen.com.
Since you’re here reading about how you can utilize eco-friendly construction practices for making your commercial building more energy efficient, here are a few other blogs that may interest you. Take a look!
- How to Design an Energy-Efficient Home
- Popular Types of Eco-friendly Flooring Options
- Best Energy-Efficient Alternatives to Concrete
- Tips for Installing Solar Panel on Your Home
For more informative blogs on the latest construction and property trends in Pakistan, keeping following Zameen Blogs. Subscribe to our email newsletter and like our official Facebook page to catch all our latest updates.