T H E S I S

ENVIRONMENTALLY SENSITIVE HOTEL

Buildings, as they are designed and used today, contribute to serious environmental problems because of excessive consumption of energy and other natural resources. The close connection between energy use in buildings and environmental damage arises when energy intensive solutions are used to construct a building and meet its demands for heating, cooling, ventilation, and lighting cause severe depletion of valuable environmental resources. However, buildings should be designed to meet the occupants need for thermal and visual comfort at reduced levels of energy and resource consumption and hence is the need for energy efficient buildings in all building types. Sustainable business practices are rapidly gaining visibility and importance in the hospitality industry. Due to the increasing environmental awareness there is a growing need towards Ecotels. Ecotel is a hotel or accommodation that has made important environmental improvements to its structure in order to minimize its impact on the environment. The basic definition of a green hotel is an environmentally responsible lodging that follows the practices of green living.

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design a hotel to achieve a strategic and economic advantage through environmentfriendly operations, systems and processes, by focusing the areas where the Green aspect meets the Luxury.

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To study the principles followed in Green buildings and design a Ecotel for Hyderabad Climatic conditions for its sustainable future. To study about the five Globes of Ecotel certification i.e., Energy conservation, Water conservation, Solid waste management, Employee environmental education, Environmental commitment. Incorporate solar passive techniques in design to minimize load on conventional systems (heating, cooling, ventilation and lighting). Study and design energy efficient lighting and HVAC systems. Use renewable energy systems( solar photovoltaic systems/ solar water heating systems) to meet a part of building load. Use low energy materials and methods of construction and reduce transportation energy.

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Ensure that the design serves the Hotel functionally & Environmentally and also satisfying the Luxury of the customers. Balancing all aspects of energy use in a building i.e., Lighting, Space conditioning and Ventilation by providing optimized mix of passive solar design strategies, energy-efficient equipment, and renewable sources of energy.

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To design a 3 star Ecotel by satisfying all the Architectural & Technical requirements of building. Detailing the services like kitchen and Laundry Detailing the Interiors of any one Zone/Space.

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ECOTEL is a certification that enables hotels to become sustainable by primarily reducing the environmental impact of their business and grow financially more viable and socially responsible. Managed by HVS(Hospitality Valuation Services) Sustainability, ECOTEL was developed in 1994. Since then, it has evolved in keeping with advances in global warming, resource conservation, pollution prevention, building standards , and social responsibility. Today, its criteria are commensurate with those internationally recognised for sustainability. Certification Eligibility and Validity Applicable to any hotel irrespective of the applicant hotel's country of origin. Valid for a period of two years after which member hotels must apply for recertification.

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A growing number of players define the certification market today, each with their strengths. LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is considered among the leading certifications worldwide for construction of green buildings. ECOTEL, in addition to valuing green buildings, is proactive and responsive to day-to-day hotel practices that lead to more sustainable operations. It also trains staff on operationalising sustainability while building symbiotic linkages in the community. Meluha The Fern is both LEED and ECOTEL certified.

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To qualify for the ECOTEL Environment Commitment globe, a hotel is expected to: Have a policy in place that defines its environmental objectives, sets targets, and accordingly programs, processes and best practices through which it seeks to achieve these objectives, Provide the appropriate training and resources to ensure that management and staff are able to implement the environmental policy effectively, Have programs and practices in place for reduction in generation of solid waste and consumption of water and energy that have shown substantial and measurable results, Adopt environmentally friendly cleaning products and procedures, wherever possible, Integrate environmental considerations into purchasing decisions, Have a green team that includes all staff whose input is critical to make the program work, and that consists of one or more representatives from each department, Raise awareness among employees about climate change and need for environmentally responsible behaviour, as professionals and as members of society, Encourage engagement with the local community to raise environmental awareness and support the communitys green initiatives

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The Waste Management Globe aims to reduce the waste to landfill and thereby the Solid Waste Diversion Rate by an efficient Waste Management Strategy. This will also enable reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. The strategy ensures greater operational efficiency throughout the hierarchy of the hotel. ECOTELs Waste Management effort is centered upon the 4Rs of reduce, reuse, recycle, and recover: Identify waste generating areas in different departments and the composition of the waste stream in each. Reduce waste generation through source reduction which includes strategies like reducing consumption and packaging, substituting by products that are designed to last longer, reusing products and materials recovered from the waste stream in their current forms. Recycle, compost or recover materials for use as direct or indirect inputs to new products that can be utilized in the hotel or the community. ECOTEL will set up policies and procedures for handling waste and recoverable material including separation, collection, composting, incineration and land filling and establish training programmes as part of the overall ECOTEL training schedule. ECOTEL will monitor waste management over time and modify the system to optimise it for the property in question.

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ECOTEL aims to assist hotels in reducing their consumption rate, maintaining quality of water and reducing pollution in discharge water by the following hierarchy of tasks: Implement a responsible water management system on the property. Reduce water consumption through installation of low-flow plumbing fixtures and efficient toilets. Reduce water consumption through water efficient operations in the hotel. Reduce freshwater consumption through reuse (including natural sources) and recycling of water (includes grey water treatment). Ensure good quality of water is used in the hotel for drinking, cooking and other hotel operations. Implement measures to minimize pollutants in the discharge and ground water.

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For a hotel, training its staff to its environmental programme is no less important than the programme itself. A well-thought-out and well-executed education and training effort is a prerequisite for environmental initiatives to be both successful and sustainable. The basic purpose of staff training is to instruct and guide hotel employees about the procedures and practices they must follow, for their department to achieve its environmental targets. A hotels community awareness and outreach effort is a good barometer of its environmental commitment.

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The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEEDINDIA) Green Building Rating System is a nationally and internationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings. LEED-INDIA provides building owners, architects, consultants, developers, facility managers and project managers the tools they need to design, construct and operate green buildings. LEED-INDIA promotes a whole-building approach to sustainability by recognizing performance in the following five key areas: Sustainable site development Water savings Energy efficiency Materials selection and Indoor environmental quality

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