The new Eximbank Tower may be bringing some much needed greenery to Saigon’s skyline but Singapore’s new Tree House condominium building, which has set a Guinness World Record for largest vertical garden in the world, raises the bar to a whole new level.
The 24-story building’s garden spans 2,298 square meters, giving the structure natural insulation, simultaneously cooling the building while filtering pollutants and carbon dioxide from the air.
According to a statement from the designers, ADDP Architects, this should “…achieve air-conditioning energy savings of between 15% and 30%, or a total of approximately between $9,500 and $20,000 annually for the 48 west-facing master bedrooms that are insulated by the vertical greenery.”
Approximately 2.7 % of the cost for the building invested into green features, which, in addition to the garden include: heat-reducing laminated green tinted windows, lifts with Variable Voltage and Variable Frequency motor drive and sleep mode programming, T5 and LED lighting for common area, and lobbies and carparks while motion sensors at staircases activate lights automatically.
ADDP Architects are far from newcomers to the green construction game – they were named Green Architect of the Year by the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) in 2012.
While green building is starting to take hold in Saigon, it still has a ways to go.
[h/t Sourceable]
