ITC Green Centre,

Gurgaon

Sustainable Practices in Built Environment

Course code: AUM CM 663
MBA RE&UI
Course Coordinator: Saurabh Verma

Dathan Chandrababu
A70058921008
Aishwarya Nimbekar
A70058921033

Image source: IGBC Twitter Handle

About ITC Green Centre
ITC Green Centre, Gurgaon, is one of the most energy efficient and prominent Green
buildings in the world.

It is designed by Rajinder Kumar and

Associates (RKA) and completed in 2004 to
house the offices of ITC and is currently
functioning as the headquarters of ITC
Hotels.

Location
• The iconic L shaped building is located in
Gurgaon, India close to Delhi-Jaipur
Expressway and the metro station.
• The atrium facade faces East direction
with two axis of the building oriented
along NE and NW directions

Image source: Google Earth Pro,2021

Physical Details
• Total Floor Area is 1,70,000 Sq.Ft out of which conditioned area is 100000 Sq.Ft and non-
conditioned area is 70,000 Sq.Ft
• The building is situated on a 2-acre property
• Intelligent L shaped design with tall 3 floor
high octagonal shaped central atrium
• AAC Blocks, Double glazing glass and many
Green materials used extensively throughout
the building
• Modern-Classical facade defined by red brick,
sand stone and glass curtain walls
• Two water bodies and landscaping in
front of atrium in East direction

Image source: RKA Associates, 2021

LEED Certification Details
• ITC green Centre was first certified with LEED v2.1 Platinum rating by USGBC in 2004 with a score of 53 out of 69
and recertified in 2012 in LEED v2009 with Platinum rating scoring of 99 out of 110. An area of 9,500 sq.ft was
further certified Platinum in 2017
• It was the largest LEED platinum rated office space in the world when it was first certified in 2004
• When recertified in 2012 it was the highest rated Platinum green building in the world

• In the 2012 recertification, the building scored full points in ‘Sustainable Sites Section’ of LEED v2009. It
also scored very high in water efficiency, materials and resources, indoor environmental quality and for
innovation.
Source: USGBC, ITC Sustainability Report
Key Green Features of the building
Double glazing Windows
• The building uses double glazed windows to reduce the overall heating of the
building interiors.
• The U value of double glazed windows is 0.6 to 0.7W/m2K which is much lower
than normal glazing, due to the vacuum or inert gas filled gap between the 2 glass
layers
• Higher Transmission Glass used on North facade for more daylight
• As a result the light easily passes through while windows keeping the heat out

• Reflective paint (high albedo paint) is applied on the

rooftop to reflect heat radiation
• Apart from the high albedo paint the roof is given an
ISO board layer to further reduce transmission of heat

• 250mm thick lightweight AAC walls with stone cladding is used in the facade
• AAC blocks with high fly ash content are light weight and better insulators of heat
compared to normal blocks

Image sources: www.windowsanddoors.build, 2021, high-performancebuildings.org, 2021

Key Green Features of the building (Cont)
Energy efficiency of the building
• The central atrium provides glare-free natural light reducing the use of artificial light
• The water bodies in front of the structure adds to the cooling
• All HVAC equipment are Chloro Fluro Carbon (CFC) free
• External air-economizer draws in fresh air from when temperature outside is low
• Fan-based night-purge system that draws out hot air keeping building fresh next morning
• Energy-efficient bulbs with motion-sensor lighting wherever required
• Solar panels for water heating and emergency lighting
Water Positivity of the building
• Recycled water from sewage treatment plant is used for flushing, horticulture, and AC
cooling tower
• Reduced the flow rate in the taps from 6 L/min to 2 L/min
• Waterless urinals that use bacteria to reduce odour
• Interlocking tiles placed across the landscape to harvest rain water

Image source: IGBC Twitter Handle, 2018

Key Green Key Green Features of the building (Cont)
Material Reuse and Recycling Air quality inside the building
• 10% of construction materials used were recycled • Copy-printer room in the building has separate exhaust
materials • CO2 monitoring system to maintain carbon dioxide level
• Carpets used are made from recycled yarn inside the building
• Use of Green wood- About 60% wood used is
sustainably harvested, forest-stewardship council- Night Sky Light Pollution
certified wood • Lampposts in the landscape are capped on top to
• Zero effluent discharge from the building reduce night sky pollution
Alternative Transportation facilities • Day time schedule of the building ensures minimal
• Bicycle parking and other amenities like shower facility light usage at night
for cyclists and electric vehicle charging facility
Key drivers of the Certification
From the scorecard, the key drivers of the certification are Energy efficiency, Water Positivity and also the presence of
alternative transportation facilities. This was collectively achieved by the following major aspects in the building:

L shaped design and atrium of the building

• L-shaped design helps with both lighting and heating efficiency of the
building
• The L-shape design helped to reduce the width of floor which allows
sunlight to fill 97% of interiors
• One of the facades is always in the shade reducing the use of HVAC system
• Design of the central atrium plays big role in the indoor lighting needed

 The 'Alternative Commuting Transportation' section scoring full 15 points

in itself is a huge contribution to the scores. The bicycle amenities and
electric vehicle facilities ensured full points in this aspect.

Image source: Own sketch referring Google maps

Key drivers of the Certification (Cont)
Water positivity of the building
• The water efficiency got 13 out of 14 points. This score achieved by the integration of storm water harvesting and the sewage
treatment plant to all parts of the building
• The building is water positive since the amount of rainwater harvested in the building exceeds the amount of water consumed. This
ensures every single drop of rain falling on the site is used effectively

Substantial load reduction in HVAC system due to high heat efficiency

• 'Optimizing Energy Efficiency Performance' Section scored an impressive 17 out of 18 points. The technologies of the building's walls,
roof and the double glazing windows helped in reducing solar heat gain by about 65 percent.
• This played a major role in bringing down the carbon footprint and the per annum electricity usage was down to 130,000 kWh
compared to 620,000 kWh in a conventional building.
• The effective use of sensors for controlling lighting has also added to the scores.

Since the building scored full in most individual marking points, a major driver of the certification that can't be ignored
are all the collective innovative efforts put by different stakeholders during the designing of the building in 2003, like:
• Educated more than 3000 people about green building practices since green-building before construction
• Energy use simulations for the building were done during design stage
• Unlike the usual practice in India at that time, LEED certification mandated the drawing should be were frozen before construction and it
was followed in ITC Green centre
Triple Bottom Line Benefits
Environmental and Economic Benefits
• Sustainable landscaping practices used like using low water consuming plants
• Night light pollution is reduction measures help the environment helps the surrounding fauna
• Zero waste output to the surroundings maintains the environment and nature undisturbed
• No over use of ground water which ensures the ground water in surroundings are not depleted

As per the LEED rating scores

• Solid waste generated by durable items could be managed more efficiently to improve sustainability
• Photovoltaic, and other renewable energy can be used to achieve net-zero energy rating of the building
• Monitoring system to monitor outdoor airflow could be setup to maintain proper airflow from the outside
• Using updated fittings like fittings and fixtures with the WaterSense label as per LEED standards
• Reduce particulates in air distribution by cleaning the air filters regularly and regular maintenance
• Water metering systems to monitor water usage and to effectively reduce water consumption
Triple Bottom Line Benefits (Cont)
Net Zero Energy concepts can improve the energy usage and thereby reduce economic impact
1) 25-30% reduction in yearly energy usage and a corresponding overall cost reduction
2) This is a reliable source of power that can be stored and used for future purposes of the building

Benefits for the society

• The central atrium provides pleasant ambience for the occupants
• Community friendly initiatives like bicycle parking and electric vehicle charging
• Trained about 3000 stakeholders about sustainable practices
• Touch screen systems in floors to improve awareness about sustainability among visitors
Social sustainability will improve the following aspects:
1) Equitable compensation and benefits will improve the overall satisfaction of the occupants of the building
2) Developing employable skills will lead to better manpower that can add value to the community
3) Financial and health stability of occupants of the buildings will improve the mental and overall wellbeing
Post COVID Resilience
COVID pandemic has brought many changes in the everyday lifestyle of people and therefore some of
the following sustainable changes can be adopted for post COVID resilience of the building:

• Use of open staircases in place of congestion prone lifts

• Following latest protocols and develop sanitation policies and build up the necessary
monitoring skills
• Adjust the workplace as needed to allow for adequate distance and hygienic practices
• Understand legal obligations and follow them
Determine what additional technology and tools are required
• Remove congestion using techniques like One-way circulation to minimize crowding
• Floor and wall graphics to keep a safe distance in the office that may attract crowds, such as
kitchens the community and building
Post COVID Resilience (Cont)
• Cleaning methods should be improved and other options, such as antimicrobial paint,
which can kill common pathogens for up to four years after application.
• Touch-less technologies in the workplace and other ergonomic work environments
• Access to both active and meditative exercise activity spaces
• Using sustainable options and cleaning methods to combat the Coronavirus is beneficial
• Team to manage Safety First measures and to ensure that indoor air quality systems are
functioning properly and make necessary ventilation adjustments to reduce the spread of
COVID-19 through the air
• Improve potable water quality for the surrounding community and the building to
improve general health
Conclusion
The ITC Green Centre is pioneer building for the green building movement in India
• We can see that steps were taken to ensure the building is truly sustainable and green
• Even though there was great requirement of technical expertise and hard work during the construction stage, since
its inception the company annually saved significant revenues in terms of electricity and water charges
• The building is successful in reducing the carbon footprint by about 30%
• One of the few sections the building can improve as per the LEED v2009 rating is On-site and off-site renewable
energy generation
• Other points that can improve as per the current scores are water performance monitoring, reducing particulates in
air, outdoor air delivery monitoring, and system-level metering of energy use.
• The building may benefit from the use of solar concentrators like in other platinum rated buildings under ITC Hotels
• Adoption of LEED V4.1 practices into the current systems can further improve the sustainable performance
References
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center-gurgaon-starting-a-revolution/
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14. Mitali, Gajjar, M., Patel, D., & Armi. (n.d.). ITC Green Centre Gurgaon, Delhi, Slide Player. Retrieved November 14, 2021, from
https://slideplayer.com/slide/12691206/
15. Reopening the workplace: The Resilient Leader's Guide: Deloitte global. Deloitte. (2020, May 21). Retrieved November 14, 2021, from
https://www2.deloitte.com/global/en/pages/about-deloitte/articles/covid-19/the-resilient-leaders-guide-to-reopening-the-workplace-covid19.html
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