Green Development News – New Synergistic Trend in Building: Wedding Security and Efficiency

After September 11, more and more commercial builders, particularly those in high-risk urban areas, became more and more concerned with securing both public and private buildings. At the same time, global leaders became equally worried about the state of the environment and so builders worldwide were encouraged by both national entities and consumers to develop energy efficient building strategies. Fortunately, these two desires need not be in competition; a new synergistic trend among builders is creating sites that are at once more secure and energy efficient.

Making buildings more energy efficient makes sense in terms of global security for several reasons: reducing our reliance on foreign oil and gas makes us less vulnerable to political instability on foreign shores; the same sensing and control capabilities needed to manage a building in an emergency can also enhanced building’s energy-efficiency on a daily basis; and creating a tighter energy envelope not only reduces heat loss in winter and heat gain in summer, but can also contain biochemical attacks. Some trends in security, like reducing glass exposure, can be counter-productive to energy efficiency since daylighting reduces energy use, but a building can be rendered more secure by simply replacing traditional windows with impact-resistant windows and/or adding security window films.

Here are some specific ways in which newer safety and energy efficiency measures are synergizing in today’s emerging international building trend:

•	More sophisticated management building air distribution systems allow us to rapidly respond to emergency situations. It also creates an energy efficient building under normal conditions.
•	Improved thermal and fresh-air distribution means we can detect and contain airborne toxins while also improving energy efficiency.
•	Tighter building envelopes reduce energy losses while also making it easier to pressurize a building and therefore reduce airborne hazards released outside the building from entering.
•	Improved particle air filtration likewise helps protect building occupants from a biological or chemical agent attack, but it also can help prevent allergies among inhabitants and keep HVAC systems cleaner and therefore running more efficiently. Adding UV lights in air handling systems will also prevent mold while protecting against biological attacks.
•	Periodically inspecting HVAC systems to ensure security can be combined with energy performance and indoor air quality inspections.
•	Improving blast resistance via window replacements or protective window films can also create a more airtight envelope, thereby increasing energy efficiency.
•	Using motion sensors to control exterior lighting provides better security than leaving lights on at night, since a motion-triggered light is an obvious alert to security personnel. Likewise, only using light when it’s needed conserves energy.
•	Security measures taken during initial site planning, like creating a wide buffer zone to keep vehicles away from a building’s exterior simultaneously provides opportunities for better solar access and for creating landscaping that lowers on-site temperatures through direct shading, evapo-transporation, channeling breezes toward the building or buffering cold winds.

Taken together, these synergistic strategies will create buildings that are at once more impervious to physical and biochemical attacks while also reducing energy consumption and waste. While such strategies are predominately being adopted in high-risk areas and in government buildings, the lessons learned will soon be applied to commercial properties across the globe as we redefine our goals as both builders, consumers and global citizens.

To schedule a free consultation to develop a security plan that is also eco-conscious, please contact MyPlanet immediately.