< PreviousCover story 10 | June 2021 | Commercial Designwww.commercialdesignindia.com The Brigade Tech Gardens (BTG) campus designed by NBBJ, Seattle, USA. Brigade’s office infrastructure and its buildings are a manifestation of the company’s forward-thinking approach and processes. Could you give us an insight into company’s design approach? Brigade’s competencies across multiple real estate asset classes, developed over more than three decades, are manifested in the developments that are best in class and offer superior value propositions. We can gain significant advantage in terms of leveraging our core-competencies and create connected communities- be it a residential, commercial, or retail development. Our marquee Brigade Gateway development in Bangalore is a demonstration of highest- class mixed-used development of how we have transformed neighbourhoods and continue to impact the lives of the community. As a brand we have successfully achieved seamless integration of residential, commercial, retail, hospitality and education. Starting from the first office space development, ‘Brigade Towers’ completed in 1986 to the iconic ‘The World Trade Centre’ at Brigade Gateway our properties have been trend setters in the design and development of office spaces. Our focus on ‘Building for tomorrow, today’ motivates us to such create landmark developments by consistently challenging our own thoughts and benchmarks. In order to harness the immense collective capabilities within the organization, we have crystalized our ethos under the six tenets: creating landmarks; building for tomorrow, today; design first philosophy; green thinking at the core; community vibrancy that fosters wellbeing and exceptional facility services and management that are the foundations of our inspire next philosophy. We partner with designers and architects of repute from across the world who create enviable Cover story Commercial Design | June 2021 | 11www.commercialdesignindia.com designs that are modern, creative, innovative, and collaborative working environments based on our ‘design first’ philosophy. To quote a few, World Trade Centre, Bangalore and Chennai designed by HOK – the largest US based architectural firm; Brigade Tech Gardens designed by NBBJ - an internationally renowned architectural firm based in Seattle, USA, and Brigade Signature Towers designed by Venkataramanan Associates, are some of our developments that dominate the city skyline. Given that Brigade gives immense emphasis on people- centric workspace, could you give us some insights on the key aspects that are incorporated within its buildings? We place strong emphasis on people-centric approach, creating communities and positive workplace experiences. Our sustainable and futuristic design right from the reception to the offices are built on ergonomic principles to ensure maximum productivity for its occupants. We aim to offer our tenants and their employees an invaluable sense of pride of operating and doing business from our bespoke workspaces. We take utmost care to ensure we give our tenants healthier and in fine fettle workspaces. In the design of people-centric workspaces Brigade follows certain key aspects to provide effective real estate solutions, such as ensuring convenience in terms of mobility and office arrangements. This entails well-designed parking with safe and quick access to the office, optimally designed vertical transportation, and building core and large span column grids to enable flexibility of spaces that evolve with the tenant’s requirements. In addition, most of our large office buildings have a Brigade Tech Gardens’ activated lobbies catalyse human interaction, and the central atrium serves as the nerve centre for all social interactions. The organic arrangement of BTG in a north-south direction with a central landscaped spine helps reduce energy usage by minimizing solar heat. gainCover story 12 | June 2021 | Commercial Designwww.commercialdesignindia.com central core design that allows for maximum ingress of natural light through high-performance glazing. We also have in place soft services and digitally accessible food and beverage ecosystems. We believe in adopting a long-term holistic approach to stress management which is why at Brigade we have dedicated spaces that are aimed at wellness and wellbeing and encourage collaboration and connection. For instance, forming the focal point of the World Trade Centre in Bangalore lies a man-made lake. Similarly, Brigade Tech Gardens’ activated lobbies catalyse human interaction, and the central spine serves as the nerve centre for all social interactions. A botanical garden and garden theatre, a 75-year-old banyan tree that serves as an outdoor breakout area, innumerable food and beverage options available in our state-of the-art cafeteria and food courts, an open-to- air amphitheatre to encourage creative expression, and a dedicated Amenities block that houses a unique health and fitness centre which includes a swimming pool, aerobics and yoga studio, and spa services are the endeavours we undertake to encourage the community spirit. Our philosophy of ‘creating vibrant experiences to foster wellbeing’ orients us towards designing our premises with the overall community in mind. The advent of technology- induced designs has led to radical changes, not only in the built space but also, on how people work. What are the specific strategies that Brigade has adopted to reconcile with the constantly upgrading changes? Technology is ever evolving, and what might be current today may be obsolete tomorrow. It is important to be predictive in our design viz-a-viz technology as it is not easy to provide a fail-safe solution to keep up with technological advancements. The tenets we have in place, allow for us to keep up with the latest in technology making it easy to plug into our design. We partner with companies that are leaders in design technology in their fields. All our new commercial spaces are equipped with infrastructure such as dedicated server and BMS control rooms and optimally designed MEP plant room spaces that can be upgraded with the latest technology to meet the evolving customer requirements. Superior air quality is maintained throughout the building through app enabled air quality monitors. At the World Trade Centre, Chennai, right from the beginning we deployed real time water management systems that aim to reduce water wastage. We work closely with the end user to create niche work models and ensure that their technological design requirements are fulfilled. Given sustainability is at the forefront of the company’s agenda, what are some of the various measures taken by the company? Our sensitivity and unwavering commitment to sustainability has gone beyond just creating Subrata K C Sharma, COO - Commercial, Brigade Enterprises, The interior landscape of Brigade Tech Gardens. Cover story Commercial Design | June 2021 | 13www.commercialdesignindia.com of interaction among office users. We pride ourselves on retaining green spaces through our tree replantation program, though an expensive endeavour, is a valuable investment for the environment. We design energy-efficient buildings with optimum window- to-wall ratio and use high- concrete structures. From our site selection to construction practices, water, and waste management to name a few, we boast of being green, thinking at the core. All our developments are LEED certified with select of our marquee developments Brigade Tech Gardens, Brookfield, and Brigade Opus, Hebbal achieving Platinum certification. Reducing our carbon footprint and promoting energy conservation and renewability is at the core of our work. All our commercial office spaces are either USGBC, or IGBC certified. For example, our 3 million square feet office campus - Brigade Tech Gardens in Bangalore is a LEED Platinum- certified building and it is a benchmark for sustainable office design in the country. Several ultra-modern sustainable features have been incorporated into the building design such as solar rooftop gardens & dedicated green wall, efficient usage of natural light & terrain, lush vegetation & gathering spaces on top of each office tower and a water system with unique ways to recycle. The organic arrangement of Brigade Tech Gardens in a north-south direction with a central landscaped and vehicular free spine. This helps reduce energy usage by minimizing solar heat gain and creates cool and shady recreation spaces in the central spine, becoming a hub Interior landscape of Brigade Tech Gardens. BTG incorporates several ultra-modern sustainable features such as solar rooftop gardens, dedicated green wall, efficient usage of natural light and terrain, lush vegetation, etc. Cover story 14 | June 2021 | Commercial Designwww.commercialdesignindia.com performance low-E glass to maximize natural light and reduce heat gain; provide lift and toilet cores with the latest destination- controlled elevators to reduce waiting time and ensure optimum energy usage based on frequency patterns. We also offer toilet fixtures with low-flow WCs, waterless urinals, and basins, and real time water management to help water conservation. Furthermore, our MEP and HVAC systems, along with electrical equipment, are designed based on rating and sizing as per the NBC and the monitored energy usage patterns (gathered from our various office buildings) that most multinational companies follow. Leading the technology curve, how has Brigade used IoT to its benefit, especially from a facility and building infrastructure point of view? We are one of the first builders to use IoT-based applications to monitor and control the real- time usage of utility systems. Currently, we monitor all vital utility parameters such as indoor air quality, energy usage, water usage, potable water quality on a real-time basis, taking corrective measures when necessary. Apart from this, we use IoT platforms to assign customer complaints, maintain job schedules, analyse footfall, and ensure covid precautions. Moreover, we use IoT integration with our CCTV systems for improved security surveillance as well. What are the systems and software the company has in place to monitor the structures operations and functions? We use state-of-the-art software called Proleaz, E-facility, Facilio, and SAP for facility management; cloud-based software - Focus-i, for accounting and billing Novapro, Delbi, and Security Centre for CCTV and security operations. When working on and managing commercial campuses what are the common challenges? Maintaining our premises to the impeccable standards has been one of our key focus areas. Hence, it does not end at the finish line. Our world class office spaces provide end-to-end property management as a part of our tenant experience. We want our tenants to focus on their business while we ensure that their workspaces are maintained in optimal condition. Safety at the workspace has always been a focal point and even more so now due to the brutal second wave of the pandemic. As part of our business continuity plan, we have identified and developed hazard controls to prevent and mitigate transmission of Covid-19 and taken actions Brigade Signature Towers designed by Venkataramanan Associates. (left and right page).Cover story Commercial Design | June 2021 | 15www.commercialdesignindia.com and streamlines processes. The upkeep and maintenance of our campuses is an ongoing activity. Strict sanitization procedures are being enforced in all common areas, washrooms, elevators and lobbies, security, and seating areas. Deep cleaning of all air conditioning and ventilation areas and fumigation of all outdoor areas and basements is a daily practise. Fire Line Safety teams are available on site, round-the-clock. We have offered our common areas to conduct vaccination camps in support of the nation-wide vaccination drive, and our hotels and clubs have rooms available that serve as isolation facilities for asymptomatic and people needing quarantine facilities for the management of Covid-19. It is important to be predictive in our design viz-a-viz technology as it is not easy to provide a fail- safe solution to keep up with technological advancements.” to maintain a healthy work environment. Traffic and parking management is one of the challenges involved in managing commercial campuses, especially during rush hours, in the morning and evening where there is a prolonged wait time at entrance and exit gates, and at elevators. Additionally, each tenant has their own set of security checks in a multi-tenanted facility either at the external gates, common entrances at lift lobbies and specific entry points. This involves different visitor management SOPs making coordination among tenants a huge challenge. The cafeteria, and shared facilities, are also challenging in terms of management as requirements vary from tenant to tenant regarding the menu, cost, timings, and service standards. Your role requires you to work in tandem with several stakeholders as well as the service providers and vendors. Could you share with us the lessons that you have learnt in this process? Based on our vast experience in managing commercial spaces, we have put in place several guidelines and standards that require to be followed by all stakeholders, be it tenants, vendors, or visitors. Everyday activities and SOP’s to be observed are detailed and periodic review meetings are held with all stakeholders to discuss critical issues, which helps reduce conflict amongst Insight 16 |June 2021 | Commercial Designwww.commercialdesignindia.com Prevention is better than cure – the age-old adage counsels, but unfortunately, there are still stakeholders within the MEP industry that seem to overlook the “prevention” because it could burden their individual role on the project or due to the fact that they aren’t held accountable for the “cure” when it’s needed. Rather than addressing challenges at the pre-concept and MEP planning and design stages, it has almost become the norm for the industry to opt for “value engineering” at the late stages, despite the additional cost and time it requires – not to mention the energy consumption and other efficiencies on the project that could have otherwise been reduced. We spoke exclusively to a number of the top MEP contractors and consultants leading by example in the region, who shared their unfettered views on the need for “integrated planning” as well as the need to incorporate the latest technologies on every project. While planning is essential to construction, experts have pointed to how conventional planning models are becoming fragmented and futile. The director of MEP at AECOM, Cathy Christer says: “It is essential in design to plan ahead and to strategise what could happen, what could change, what we know, and what we do not know. The ‘thinking’ – and that’s the fun part of design, in my opinion – is how the design can adapt and evolve to suit the evolution of design and information flow.” The current conventional, sequential models of design and planning – which are unfortunately still being adopted by many stakeholders in the industry – are definitely convenient, but also repetitive. Such models also contain redundancies, cause clashes, retain construction conflicts, necessitate expensive fixes, lead to wasted materials, cause delays, with traditional 2D drawings often reinforcing “siloed, self-centred, and superseded” methods of construction on projects. Integrated planning aims to address all of these concerns by necessitating a fundamental change in the design planning process – calling for a more collaborative practice, early participation of all the stakeholders, with a constant comprehensive view of the overall lifecycle of the project in order to Leading industry veterans evaluate the need to address “integrated planning” as a digitised tool, as well as the untapped potential of people & processes spurred by the adoption of technology STRATEGIC THINKERSInsight Commercial Design | June 2021 | 17www.commercialdesignindia.com regularly monitor and verify the practicality and achievability of the project’s milestones and design. “Integrated planning could ensure that all key stakeholders are working towards the same goal in full knowledge of each other’s actions. The client, building occupier, design team, and the contractor need to be involved in contributing to the decision- making process for the project,” says the MEP team at China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC Middle East). “Early planning and early involvement of participants enables overlapping of design as well as design verification processes. Although, the time of each activity is not necessarily reduced considerably, the overall time can be drastically decreased.” Industry stakeholders have agreed that the time has come to add “integrated planning” as an essential digitised tool, because it can tie together all the key aspects of MEP while co-ordinating with the civil, mechanical, and building products teams to ensure optimal solutions. Listing out a set of hurdles that could easily be scaled through digitised and integrated planning, the managing director at Al-Futtaim Engineering and Technologies (AFET), Murali S, adds: “We have noticed the over- sizing of MEP equipment, as well as the oversizing or under-sizing of spatial requirements for various MEP plant rooms in the concept stages of design. “Moreover, in certain projects, lifecycle costs are not taken into consideration; there’s a lack of awareness of the various authority requirements such as that of SIRA, Civil Defense, DEWA, and ADWEA; there’s a lack of co- ordination between various MEP disciplines; and the commercial aspects are often not taken into consideration at the concept stage leading to inappropriate or over- budgeting.” The need for better integrated spatial planning and primary Furthermore, there is a growing need for buildings to address their contribution to climate change and monitor their carbon footprint and energy efficiencies. The associate director of Sustainability at AESG, Lindsey Malcolm, says: “The MEP industry needs to concentrate on life cycle impacts while pushing for net-positive performance. This requires much closer integration of the design team at the earliest stages of projects to ensure impacts and opportunities are fully understood and explored in a robust manner. “This is the biggest challenge for our industry right now, as engineering and environmental analysis are still often engaged at a stage that is too late in the design process.” Tackling another key hurdle at the pre-concept stage – in terms of realistic expectations and costs – the general manager at BK Gulf, Basheer Massad, says: “Many projects go through the full design stages, and then are stopped at infancy stage of tendering due to the unrealistic budget expectations. Therefore, Integrated planning could ensure that all key stakeholders are working towards the same goal in full knowledge of each other’s actions” services availability has also been echoed by other leading veterans in the industry. The senior estimation and procurement manager at ALEMCO, Robert McDonnell, says: “Space planning for plant rooms and risers at concept stage ensure that the MEP contractor does not have to redesign the tender to fit the MEP installation into the building. A carefully planned and coordinated design will allow the MEP contractor to spend more time on their engineering and procurement role rather than rushing to finish an incomplete tender design.” AECOM’s Cathy Christer adds: “If spatial planning and primary services availability can be well understood and integrated into the multi-disciplinary design from the earliest stage of a project, it could be a critical design element for the future progress and success of the designs. “From an MEP perspective, mapping out the incoming services, primary rooms, the horizontal and vertical distribution routes, and the constraints imposed by other disciplines is essential.”Insight 18 |June 2021 | Commercial Designwww.commercialdesignindia.com early contractor engagement through a formal process at the pre-concept stage would benefit clients in optimising their vision with realistic cost model.” To catalyse growth in the industry and spur the adoption of improved integrated planning, some industry experts have suggested the need to optimise processes with technological advancements, while others have highlighted the benefits of people – an upskilled and more knowledgeable workforce. It’s surprising that globally available digital technologies and capabilities such as parametric and computational design, performance simulation, BIM, digital twins, building data analytics, among others – which help bring stakeholders together to “arrive at the most optimised efficient building design” – have not yet completely replaced either spreadsheets or 2D designs. Such stagnation could tether the whole industry – pausing progress – especially given that conventional design strategies can have a dramatic effect on project timelines and costs if not addressed. “Unfortunately, many tenders and projects fall back on the conventional methods that naturally involve a series of handovers: from owner to architects, then to MEP designers, to contractors to occupants. Such a path, which does not invite stakeholders to coordinate from the onset, affects planning processes and fail to account for numerous needs and valuable expertise,” explains Omnia Halawani, the CEO and co- founder of GRFN. “In many cases, design issues are only discovered late in the process when changes become more expensive. If developers are to adopt a mindset that addresses this, the market will progress at a much faster pace. Developers remain the main driver of how the design and build team will operate and coordinate.” There’s no doubt that improved technology, if embraced by all and utilised correctly, can have major benefits in terms of time and cost savings for MEP contractors. “Although the cost of implementing the software can be high, the long-term benefits are obvious,” ALEMCO’s Robert McDonnell explains. “We have introduced many innovative software upgrades focusing on material management, site progress management, photo software, and crane time. ALEMCO – which leads MEP Middle East’s 2021 Top MEP Contractors rankings – now only works in BIM, no longer utilising 2D drawings. Referring to the impact that this has had on the business, Robert McDonnell adds: “Our services clash rate has dropped dramatically and our procurement quantities have increased in accuracy. “Unfortunately, it is not being embraced throughout the market, which means you can still receive a tender in 2D.” Among other firms, James L Williams has also prioritised BIM, Revit, and Navisworks to collaborate MEP design and works with structural and architectural trades. “Such collaboration tools are important to our business as they allow us to co-ordinate properly and install once, rather than find clashes at site which results in material wastage, time lost, and labour inefficiencies,” told the JLW engineering team “As we utilise off-site prefabrication more on our projects, these tools allow us to digitally perfect each of our MEP service modules in our REVIT models. “This further allows us to perfectly position each module at site using our laser Robotic Stations and laser setting out technology, all of which are aimed to accelerate construction and increase quality and efficiencies during the construction project.” Experts have also called for the need to look past BIM as a particular software, but rather implement it as a process that could maximise its potential within the industry. “The benefits of implementing BIM are beyond any doubts. The experience of the managers, engineers, and supervisors lead to the delivery of top quality projects”Insight Commercial Design | June 2021 | 19www.commercialdesignindia.com However, those benefits are overshadowed by some professionals who turn BIM from a process that supports construction into an aim of its own,” BK Gulf’s Basheer Massad says. “Such a narrow-minded approach alienates a wide spectrum of projects participants and makes BIM a role for the “super-techies” driving computers in the office. The full benefit of BIM can only be realised when implemented through cross- functional teams and throughout project life cycle.” The impact of incorporating a technological innovation at such scale, where it becomes part of every-day operations across multiple projects, cannot be understated. GRFN’s Omnia Halawani says: “BIM has proven to be an essential and influential advancement to the industry. “While it is not deployed everywhere, it is being increasingly adopted on major construction projects.” Halawani adds: “The challenge with BIM and advancing technologies varies widely. Engineers who adopt BIM as a daily engineering tool – as it should be – would not face issues with the widespread use of the technology. That would be a struggle to others who treat it as an add-on.” The MEP divisional manager at Khansaheb, David Duffy, says: “Planning is key to the success of any project. However, despite programmes being locked into the contract, there are contractors who continue to fail by not planning in the short-term. “The introduction of technologies such as Primavera, BIM, Revit are good tools if used correctly, however, it is the experience of the managers, engineers, and supervisors that lead to the delivery of top quality, on-time projects.” Meanwhile, the growing dependence on technology has also highlighted the value of skilled employees with the experience, knowledge – and as some industry experts say “the common sense that’s not so common anymore” – within the industry. The associate director at Cundall, Issam Hammad, says: “BIM and Revit can be integrated with other softwares to enhance deliverables and speed up the design process. This can help teams collaborate, innovate, and connect with clients in more productive ways. “However, the level of understanding among construction professionals varies; not everyone understands how these tools can be utilised for the benefits of the project or the client. Therefore, planning projects to use these tools will result in different outcomes across construction teams in the industry. Until everyone has a common understanding of how the tools can be used, more upskilling is needed.” AFET’s Murali S adds: “As of now, even with high adoption rates, these technologies are being used sub-optimally. I believe in the next two years the industry will further develop, and we shall put into full use all the new technologies available.” AECOM’s Cathy Christer even goes so far as to say: “In our team we have “Strategic Thinkers” who can plan out a building from scratch – even through a sketch – which can go on to form the strategy for the development of services within the building.” “BIM and Revit technologies are wonderful to represent 3D designs at a certain stage of evolution and to translate this into a virtual reality experience, but I think that there is nothing yet that can match the pace of a multidisciplinary design team session, collaboration, thinking, and sketching.” Stitching together the viewpoints of tech-driven processes and skilled, experienced people, AESG’s Lindsey Malcom says: “Technology is advancing at a rapid pace and as specialist consultants riding this digital wave, it is this seamless interplay that drives high-performing engineering solutions. For us to see this advancement and quick uptake in the industry, we need to reset our perspectives and mindsets. From an engineering context, I believe the industry needs to accelerate our design approach at the same pace as the development of technologies.” Malcom adds: “There would be a far greater outcome and benefit to all stakeholders if we are engaged in that development process in the most effective manner possible. “There is certainly greater potential that can be leveraged from these tools, and this would support a more integrated design approach and the shift to a whole- life perspective throughout the design-build-operate phase.” All in all, if the industry needs to lift itself out of the doldrums – characterised by constant echoes of “delayed projects” and “cost overruns” – it will need to take the advice of these veterans to push for integrated planning and improved adoption of integrated technologies. Space planning for plant rooms and risers at concept stage ensure that the MEP contractor does not have to redesign the tender to fit the MEP installation into the building”Next >