JTC Corporation (JTC) recently unveiled the masterplan for the CleanTech Park (CTP), Singapore’s first eco-business park for companies involved in clean technologies and sustainable urban solutions. The CTP also serves as a R&D and testbedding site for early adoption of clean tech products and solutions for the urban tropics. Besides clean tech companies, the CTP could also house companies providing eco-friendly products and services, and companies with strong CSR or green practices.

The 50-hectare CTP will be developed next to the Nanyang Technological University so as to enhance the integration between the academia, research institutes and the business industry, and provide synergies for the full value chain of the clean tech industry. The development will take place in 3 phases over 20 years. Phase 1 will commence in July 2010 and will provide about 17 ha of business park land when completed in 2018. Phase 2 will be developed from 2019 to 2025, and Phase 3 from 2026 to 2030. The CTP will house a working population of 20,000 when it is fully built by 2030.

In the masterplan, the CTP will be developed as the most sustainable eco-business park in Singapore with the implementation of green strategies and its emphasis on retaining the natural environment and biodiversity. The green strategies to be implemented in the CTP include:

1. Stormwater management

Making use of the existing topography of the site to channel stormwater into the low-lying areas for storage and reuse. The stormwater within CleanTech Park will be channelled into a central wetland where the water can be treated and be reused for irrigation or toilet flushing. The pond will also reduce the ambient temperature through evaporative cooling.

2. Sky Trellis

The sky trellis will be constructed between adjacent buildings and covered with plants. By shading open spaces between buildings, it can reduce heat gain by the buildings from the environment and enhance walkability within open spaces in the area.

3. Conservation of Green Zones

Conservation zones are demarcated areas within CTP where trees and plants are conserved. Development works are planned around these conservation zones to protect the existing trees and plants.

4. Protection of biodiversity

Keeping the existing trees in the park will help to retain the biodiversity, such as the birds and butterflies to remain within CTP.

5. Designated Green Corridors

The designated Green Corridors are green areas between the buildings and land parcels within CTP. These green corridors are strategically located to provide secondary greenery between the buildings and land parcels and are aimed at promoting enhanced walkability within the Park.

6. Building a Green Community

CTP will nurture the fist green business community and environment by way of introducing and inculcating green practices such as recycling programmes and car pooling programmes.

7. Green Features that reduce demand on resource utilization

Building orientation with minimum East-West facing facades; Creating the wind tunnel effect to maximize wind-capture within the buildings; Using recycled and green materials for infrastructure development.

Source and images credit: JTC

Continued from Part Two.

The second step to our 4 simple green strategies is to find opportunities to reduce unnecessary wastage and inefficient practices in your business.

Here, we present our third step:

3. Increase Revenue

More consumers are increasing aware of environmental issues, and some of them would even choose eco-friendly products over the normal ones, even though it costs more. The demand for green products and services present new opportunities for SMEs who are willing to explore this new green market.

SMEs can survey the needs of their existing customers (or even potential new customers) and find out whether there is a need for greener products and services. Next, look at your own products and services, and explore whether it is possible to make them more sustainable or even design new greener products.

Find ways to reduce the environmental impacts of your products throughout its life cycle. In addition, you can ensure that your products meet certified eco labels, such as the Singapore Green Label. This will enable your products to have a green premium over normal products but remember that it is still important to first meet the customer’s quality and cost needs.

By exploring the demand for green products and services and being proactive to meet this need, SMEs can gain a competitive advantage by offering greener alternatives first, and thus increasing their revenue.

To be continued in Part Four.

Image credit: mm904ut via stock.xchng

We visited the Siemens City of the Future recently to learn more about Siemens’ portfolio of innovative solutions for a sustainable future. City of the Future was inaugurated in March 2009 at the Siemens Center in Singapore, led by Siemens’ Center of Competence for City Management and working with other business divisions. It includes a public gallery and the City Management Solutions Center.

At the public gallery outside, visitors can use the interactive UBIQ touch screens to navigate the content using their fingers, like Tom Cruise in Minority Report. The gallery showcases Siemens’ innovative portfolio of Green, Smart, Mobile and Safe city solutions.

Inside the City Management Solutions Center, we found several interactive applications on city management:

City Game

This interactive game is to help participants understand the importance of cross-functional collaboration across city departments and agencies, when building and managing a sustainable city. They must consider aspects such as water, energy, transportation, finance and security, which is dynamic and changes according to the decisions made.

Green IT Solutions

A holistic approach towards exploiting IT across communication, energy, real estate and other platforms can help individuals and companies reduce costs and be green at the same time. One solution is the use of smart energy meters and appliances that can monitor energy and water consumption, and suggest usage during periods when the energy prices are lower.

Smart Solutions

City authorities can use information technology to help deal with the complex and growing challenges within a city. One solution is the City Cockpit, which is an integrated Management Information and Decision Support System to assist authorities in managing the growth of a city based upon key performance indicators such as traffic, environment, and finance, and to ensure that the city is sustainable for the future.

Mobile Solutions

Mobile solutions, from intelligent real-time information systems and fleet management for public transportation to traffic offence management, can help to reduce a city’s transportation and congestion problems. One solution is the Mobile Parking, which allows car users to pay for parking fees using their mobile phones, instead of using parking coupons. This solution is convenient for car users, and helps the authorities to reduce the infrastructure and maintenance costs.

After touring the Siemens City of the Future, we gained new and better insights on how cities can manage their challenges and growth, and plan for a sustainable future through the use of innovative IT solutions across different industries and platforms. We look forward to seeing some of those solutions being implemented in Singapore in the near future.

Source and images credit: Siemens Pte Ltd

ISBN: 978-0-470-68436-8

Hardcover; 350 pages

Published in March 2010 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Recommended Retail Price: US$27.95 / S$49.17 including GST

Available at all major bookstores

Book Review

John Grant, the award winning author of The Green Marketing Manifesto, is back with his latest book called Co-opportunity, which explores “what co-operative solutions to sustainability challenges could look like.” He explains that the possibility to “co-operate may lead to a better human society”.

The book tackles five key sustainability challenges, introduces co-operative solutions through case examples in practice, and suggests tactics for application:

1. Creating a climate for change: Engaging the public to recognise the problems and take action together

… ideas about new forms of social organisation and campaigning, beyond passive media audiences.

2. Relocating the dreams: Going beyond consumerism and exploring a better future

… ideas about creating desire for brands, campaigns, movements that heal the world.

3. Making organisations accountable (and hence responsible for wellbeing): Being more transparent and taking responsibility

… ideas about new kinds of eco-label, social change campaigns or consumer co-operatives to create change through what they buy.

4. Economic resilience: Rethinking economic growth and switching to co-operative economic systems

… ideas for anything from restoring trust in banking, to a community scheme to support renewable energy.

5. Abundance rather than ‘lean and mean’: Shifting from productivity to wellbeing return on resources

… new ways of organising for service or supply systems – or equally use it to think differently about the design of the organisations themselves.

Promotion for Green Business Times Readers

Readers in Singapore can now buy the book from John Wiley & Sons (Asia) Pte Ltd at a 20% discount from 23 Mar 2010 to 23 Apr 2010.

1. Place your order to this email address: csd_ord@wiley.com or call: +65 6463 4604

2. Quote the ISBN of the book title

3. Quote the 4 digit promotion code to be entitled to the 20% discount – Promo Code 2478

The inaugural International Green Building Conference (IGBC) 2009 was held recently in Singapore as part of the Singapore Green Building Week. The conference theme was “Build Green. The Future is Now.” and drew about 1,000 delegates from more than 20 countries to focus on sustainable building issues, green building technologies and designs.

During the conference, the new Singapore Green Building Council (SGBC) was launched to help lead and coordinate the building industry’s efforts, together with the government, and accelerate the development of green buildings.

As part of the Singapore Green Building Week, there was also a building exhibition, BEX Asia 2009, which showcases green-related products and services for the building industry. Here are some photos taken at the exhibition:

HDB Green Living

Green Roof System

Green Wall

Wood and Plastic Composite

Recycled Concrete

Solar Roof

Solar Street Lighting

Wind Turbine

Greywater Recycling System

LED Lamps

Dry-cleaners, laundromats and other businesses give out hundreds of thousands of wire and plastic hangers every year. Imagine the resources saved if these hangers were replaced with the bloomerHang, which is 100% recyclable and is collected after use for recycling. The bloomerHang also acts as a new environmental advertising platform, which provides environmental messages or targeted marketing opportunities for businesses, and helps to keep the price of bloomerHang competitive so that they are attractive to laundromats, drycleaners and other distributors.

This young company demonstrates that it is possible to green a normal insignificant product, through eco-conscious design and greening the production process,  and most importantly, adding functional and aesthetic value beyond its current purpose. The new bloomerHang hanger is not only made from sustainable material and processes but also provides a valuable platform for environmental messages and advertising from eco-conscious businesses. And best of all, it still hangs.

Find out more about bloomerHang at www.bloomerang.com.sg.

Source and image credit: bloomerang Pte Ltd

Launch of Sustainable Manufacturing Programme converges the efforts of SMa, SPRING, SEC and SIMTech to help Singapore manufacturers adopt sustainable manufacturing technologies and processes.

With industrial development rapidly expanding to support our burgeoning global population, SMa envisioned that the development of a conducive environment for the adoption of environmentally-friendly processes is crucial in ensuring sustainability of manufacturing in Singapore.

In pursuant of a clear goal towards sustainable manufacturing, SMa signed separate Memorandums of Understanding (MOU) with two prominent partners – SEC and Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology (SIMTech), a research institute of the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR); leveraging on their fields of expertise and professional skills and technology to identify, develop and promote the adoption of sustainable manufacturing practices among local manufacturers. This MOU ceremony was witnessed by Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry and Education, Mr S. Iswaran, as well as SPRING Singapore’s Deputy Chief Executive Mr Ted Tan at the Intercontinental Hotel.

It also marked the first-ever collaboration among three organisations to consolidate their efforts in conceptualising and developing customised sustainable practices suitable for manufacturers in Singapore. A slew of initiatives and methodologies are expected to be developed with a particular focus on sustainable manufacturing. Some of the notable benefits will include:

• Improved process flow efficiency
• Energy conservation
• Improved productivity and profit margins achieved by converting by-product waste into higher value-end products
• Achievement of sustainable growth
• Positioning as a good corporate citizen

“This unique collaboration between our specialised partners is the right step forward especially in this downturn where we can help our manufacturers cut on non-wage cost for business sustainability,” said Mr Renny Yeo, SMa President, “I believe through this Programme, they can enhance their competitiveness in preparation for the upswing of the economy.”

Commented Dr Lim Ser Yong, Executive Director of SIMTech, “This partnership aligns with our vision to transform and upgrade our manufacturers’ capabilities through the development of technologies. SIMTech, to-date, has assisted local enterprises to break new grounds and secure global markets using sustainable manufacturing technologies. Through this Programme, we aim to collaborate with SMa to reach out to more companies to develop and adopt sustainable manufacturing technologies for their growth.”

With a shared vision to transform and upgrade local manufacturers’ capabilities to meet future challenges, the first joint initiative launched is the Sustainable Manufacturing Programme. This new programme aims to help increase manufacturers’ efficiency by reducing energy and water consumption, by-product waste and carbon footprint through eco-efficient improvements to their manufacturing systems and processes.

The Sustainable Manufacturing Programme will draw on SIMTech’s capabilities and methodologies to review and assess current operations and processes of a manufacturer to trim its carbon footprint. Through its sustainable manufacturing technologies, SIMTech will assist industry to re-use and value-add the by-product waste from each manufacturer.

Meanwhile, SEC will serve as a qualifying body to provide audit and certification services, promote and reward companies for their environmentally-sustainable practices through an industry award scheme, and organise executive level training and learning programmes.

Mr Howard Shaw, SEC’s Executive Director, stated: “To date, the transformation of local manufacturing enterprises towards an environmentally sustainable model has undoubtedly left behind stragglers, due to lack of relevant expertise, resources, and awareness. This partnership between SMa, SEC, and SIMTech, will enhance the effectiveness of SEC’s existing programmes and facilitate the creation of new initiatives aimed at catalyzing overall change and filling these gaps.”

Besides being environmentally responsible, this programme will also enable manufacturers to attain additional revenue from converting waste from their products into higher value-end products. Through the reduction of energy usage and the improvised flow of energy efficiency, manufacturers are expected to achieve a return of investment (ROI) of up to 20 per cent.

The pilot project of the Sustainable Manufacturing Programme involves a consortium of food manufacturers in Singapore. This project aims to improve their internal manufacturing processes, packaging usage and recycling of waste by-products such as used cooking oil or other food waste that will be collected for conversion into animal feed or bio-fuel.

Participating companies noted three main advantages of the Programme:

1. Reduction of operating costs such as utility cost through increased efficiency and recycling. As a comparison, the savings in utility costs may far exceed that of retrenchments.
2. Development of sustainable manufacturing technologies can also be a showcase and reference site for other sectors such as electronics and lifestyle, and a reference site for exports to overseas markets.
3. Reduction in carbon footprint for made-in Singapore products and services.
4. Position the company as a responsible corporate citizen.

Companies taking part in the programme will be able to tap on SPRING Singapore’s EnviroTech Capability Development Programme for suitable sustainable manufacturing projects. The support level is up to 70% of the qualifying costs for SMEs and industry projects.

Commenting on the potential benefits of the programme, Mr Ted Tan, SPRING’s Deputy Chief Executive said, “The Sustainable Manufacturing Programme will allow our SMEs in the environmental engineering sector to showcase sustainable environmental technologies that will open new global market opportunities for them. For the manufacturers, they can tap on these solutions to enjoy measurable energy savings, reduce their carbon footprints and improve their green branding for increased competitiveness in exports. This is a win-win business model that can be adopted across industries.”

Following the successful implementation of the Sustainable Manufacturing Programme with the food manufacturing sector, the various partners are also exploring similar executions with other sectors including electronics, precision engineering, chemicals and logistics.

Interested companies are encouraged to contact the official centre, EDC@SMa, at Tel: (65) 6826 3020 for more information.

Source: SPRING Singapore.

TEDxGreen is an independent TEDx event operated under license from TED, and is curated by Green Future Solutions with the theme: Ideas for a Green Future. Our mission is to share, discuss and spread ideas for a green future through monthly salons and annual conferences in Singapore. At our TEDxGreen events, TED Talks videos and live speakers will combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group.

Green Future Solutions is a Singapore-based business that promotes environmental awareness and action for a green future, through our network of green websites, events, presentations, publications and consultancy. We are the publisher of Singapore’s leading websites on the environment, including AsiaIsGreen, Green Business Times and Zero Waste Singapore.

.

About TEDx

In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TED has created a program called TEDx. TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience.

At a TEDx event, TED Talks videos and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x=independently organized TED event.

The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized (subject to certain rules and regulations).

.

About TED

TED is an annual event where some of the world’s leading thinkers and doers are invited to share what they are most passionate about. “TED” stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design – three broad subject areas that are, collectively, shaping our future.

And in fact, the event is broader still, showcasing ideas that matter in any discipline. Attendees have called it “the ultimate brain spa” and “a four-day journey into the future.”

The diverse audience – CEOs, scientists, creatives, philanthropists -  is almost as extraordinary as the speakers, who have included Bill Clinton, Bill Gates, Jane Goodall, Frank Gehry, Paul Simon, Sir Richard Branson, Philippe Starck and Bono.

TED was first held in Monterey, California, in 1984. In 2001, Chris Anderson’s Sapling Foundation acquired TED from its founder, Richard Saul Wurman. In recent years, TED has expanded to include an international conference, TEDGlobal; media initiatives, including TED Talks and TED.com; and the TED Prize.

TED2010, “What the world Needs Now”, will be held on Feb 9-13, 2010, in Long Beach, California, with a simulcast event in Palm Springs, California. TEDGlobal 2009, “The Substance of Things Not Seen”, will be held on July 21-24, 2009, in Oxford, UK and TEDIndia will be held in November 2009.

To learn more about this innovative product and its development, we have the privilege of interviewing Mr Peter Soh, CEO of HydroBall Technics (SEA) Pte Ltd.

About HydroBall Technics

Incorporated in January 2003, HydroBall Technics (SEA) Pte Ltd has since developed, manufactured and patented the HydroBall automatic tube cleaning system in many countries all over the world. The HydroBall system is a cost-effective solution that eliminates equipment downtime and optimises energy consumption of equipment by automatically keeping heat exchanger tubes perpetually free from scaling and fouling.

HydroBall Technics is engaged in the generation of intellectual property relevant to energy conservation in the area of air-conditioning systems. HydroBall Technics aims to deliver practical conservation solutions with a strong, measurable impact on energy cost management. Spearheading this effort is the Company’s proprietary HydroBall automatic cleaning technology, which the Company aims to make available for commercial distribution in all parts of the world.

1) How do your products help to reduce energy consumption?

The HydroBall System is the only non-powered automatic tube cleaning system which does not require pumps, flow diverters and compressors to circulate sponge balls to keep the inner tubes of the condenser perpetually clean and subsequently consume less energy. Instead the system simply utilises the difference in water pressure to circulate the sponge balls in the condenser.

The only component which uses electricity is the 3-way motorized valve which costs around SG $2 to function every month. As the system has only one moving component, this is the lowest maintenance cost among all the systems. The system is able to maintain the heat transfer capacity of the condenser at peak efficiency, which contributes to energy saving for central air-conditioning systems.

2) Can you provide some case studies on the energy savings?

The Nanyang Technological University case study which was completed in March 2006 shows succinct evidence that the HydroBall system is superior. The six months independent study was conducted on the effectiveness and performance of the system.

In summary, the HydroBall system efficiently cuts down the energy usage of the heat exchanger by a substantial average of 18 percent and also managed to obtain an annual savings of more than SG $14,000.

3) How did you come up with the HydroBall idea?

The exponential increase in world crude oil prices, electricity tariff and energy consumption initiated the inventor to come up with an energy saving product. In addition, before the HydroBall system, there has not been an automatic cleaning system that is able to function without any prime-movers such as pumps and compressors or flow-diverters. In 2003, the HydroBall system was invented and it functions solely based on the difference in water pressure.

The HydroBall system helps the building owners to save their company’s electricity bill by cutting down on energy wastage and improving the chillers’ efficiency, and also reduces the usage of anti-fouling chemicals which may be harmful to the environment.

4) What advice would you give to entrepreneurs who are interested in developing new green products?

Entrepreneurs must have a clear vision of the goals that they are trying to achieve. They must have a strong belief for their own products in order for them to succeed. Being opportunistic and creative also plays an important factor. They have to bear in mind that global energy conservation is through constant innovation.

5) Please describe your company’s green practices.

One of the company’s main policies is to reuse, reduce and recycle. All employees are encouraged to reuse collected paper that has been used on one side for draft printouts and photocopies, and use refillable pens and tape dispenser. Likewise, employees reduce the usage of papers by making all photocopies and printouts double sided, reduce margins widths of the printouts and previewing documents carefully before printing it to avoid wasted paper.

HydroBall also uses mostly energy saving lights to reduce the amount of energy consumed. All employees are also required to switch off all electrical appliances whenever unused. Lastly, HydroBall office has paper, can and glass recycling bins to promote environmental friendliness.

6) What advice would you give to companies and organisations who are interested to go green?

The first consideration in designing a green product should be one of environmental sustainability. It is no longer sufficient to take care of the products you make from cradle to grave. At the end of their useful lifespan, their parts must not end up as non-recyclable wastes or environmentally harmful wastes.

Companies need to consider taking care of their products from cradle to cradle. In the process of manufacturing their product, there must be waste minimisation and conservation of valuable resources such as raw materials and electricity. By doing so, companies not only lower their costs of manufacturing but also help save the Earth from rapid unsustainable depletion of natural resources and accumulation of unwanted materials.

Companies which are not into manufacturing can also do their part through energy conservation. They can be more effective in doing so by monetizing potential wastages and calculating the costs. Staff should be incentivised to cultivate good habits like saving water and electricity, reduce wastage and to recycle useful waste materials.

With climate change and rapid environmental degradation all over the world, it is everyone’s responsibility to go green as it is no longer an option.

This interview is conducted with Mr Peter Soh, CEO of HydroBall Technics (SEA) Pte Ltd. Visit HydroBall’s website at http://www.hbt.com.sg/.

This 50-min video on Waste = Food would be useful in giving you an idea of cradle to cradle design popularised by William McDonough and Michael Braungart in their book, Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things. Learn about waste becoming food for nature or to be used as technical nutrients for making new products. Learn about designing things that are more efficient, safe, environmentally friendly and producing no waste.

Click here to view the embedded video.