Page 16 - September 2015 Digital Construction Opportunities

COVER STORY for developers in Mumbai and Noida, and need for earthquake safety norms which elements into the intended structure at one in Kolkata. are sadly not applied or are defcient in high the concept and design stage itself. Te Architects and designers too are also getting rise buildings above 20 and 30 foors in the single greatest barrier to progressing increasingly innovative. In Mumbai, CRG National Capital Region which is classifed sustainability in tall buildings is the lack of Architects have devised Containerscraper, as a high-damage risk zone. According to performance reporting for which is their vision of a housing solution Sandeep Shah, Country Head, Miyamoto successful and unsuccessful for the irregular shaped and densely International, an earthquake and structural solutions. According to populated Dharavi. They employed engineering frm, all buildings in the NCR Tak Mathews, Elevator shipping containers as a volumetric unit of are currently only designed for the lowest Consultant, construction while designing two towers. category of earthquake performance, which Tak Consultancy, “99 per To achieve a height increase for the tallest is collapse prevention. cent of the builders in our tower to maximise foor area and to provide Says Manish Kumar, Managing Director, country do not understand views in all directions, they decided to use a Strategic Consulting, JLL, "Tere is a need elevator requirement and concerns. Tey cylindrical shape for the base of the towers. for a standard building construction code are only an aferthought and that works It is reported the core of both towers would which is not present in India at the moment to diminish the expected returns from the be built using containers placed vertically, for very high-rise buildings. Right now there building in terms of sustainability and user with elevators operating in the resulting is a big mismatch in that standards made for maximisation.” vertical cavities. nine to ten story buildings are applied for Constructing floors beyond 30 floors is “With greenfeld smart cities being planned mid- and high-rise buildings." where technology and special skills come all over the country high rises of various Against that background it is interesting that into play. Tat is where there is a defcit. categories – not to mention the supertalls the DDA which will sign a memorandum of For instance, a climbing form system is still – will fnd space. Te business prospects understanding with the National Buildings not very common in India and knowledge are enormous. Te sky is not Construction Corporation (NBCC) for the of new building technologies which the limit,” says Niranjan construction of the Kakardooma tower, a enhance interaction with architecture, but Hiranandani, Co-Founder completely government-funded project, has which also rigorously quantify and record and Managing Director, announced that the 120 foor building will environmental conditions over time is Hiranandani Group of have a strong pile foundation and will not necessary. It is also imperative that life in the Companies. be afected by seismic activity. Construction tall building should beneft from a vibrant of the tower is expected to begin within mix of activities, as well as green discipline, TALL SUNRISE two years afer all necessary approvals are both of which are closely tied to the building It is easy to see that the tall building oomph in place. owner’s operation and management skills. has begun to show around the national Fire safety too is being given a major It is therefore paramount to understand capital. With its glitzier neighbours like relook. In January this year fre in an under the qualifcations of the workforce before Gurgaon and Noida ahead in the high rise construction Mumbai high rise, which is starting work. aspiration race traditional low rise Delhi – part of a complex called Altamonte being Admittedly much of these failings also the tallest building in Delhi at present is constructed by Omkar Developers, took 14 come from an inborn reluctance on the the 112 meter MCD Civic Centre with 28 hours to douse. Te structure is supposed part of most developers to invest in the right foors – too seems to have woken up from to be 62 stories once completed. It emerged people, appropriate technology, and ofen its Lutyens hangover and appears keen to that it took a long time for the fre brigade to from niggardly inadequate knowledge of the make some sort of a statement. Te Delhi douse the fre since the building was under right solutions. Development Authority (DDA) has now construction and no frefghting systems had “India is still at the learning curve and all announced plans to build a commercial been installed in it. It is also equally true stakeholders must fnd the right solutions tower that might go up to 120 foors and that the fre brigade doesn't have equipment for the built environment if become the tallest building in north India. to reach fres at these heights. Against such they have to make quick and Te signature skyscraper containing ofces, a bleak background it is heartening that qualitative progress in terms retail outlets and hotels will be part of a 75 the Mumbai Fire Brigade has very recently of vertical construction,” acre cyberhub which will include other managed to acquire a new 90 meter snorkel avers Chetan Raikar, smaller residential towers that the DDA to combat high-rise fres. It is reported the Chairman & Managing is planning to create in the Karkardooma hydraulic platform can scale up to 30 foors Director, Structwel area. and has a turntable ladder and elevated Designers & Consultants Pvt water pumps to conduct frefghting and Ltd. SAFETY CONSCIOUSNESS rescue operations. Te fre brigade is also in Tere is no contesting that truth. India will What is also signifcant here is that such tall the process of acquiring an 81-meter ladder learn from experience, and the cues. ambitions, whether in Delhi or anywhere by 2016. On the strength of global best practices in the country, are now to be accompanied More important than everything else is supertalls like World One should show the by precautions. Te recent earthquake in the need for planning and detailing in all country’s construction industry the way to Nepal has only served to underscore the high rise projects. It is necessary to adopt a towering future. u 16 construction opportunities|sEPTEMBER 2015