528 Journal July, 2014
Centennial Campus Buildings that
528 Journal July Centennial Campus
The Centennial Campus Schools are more than the sum of their building parts. Primarily, they are here to teach. In this issue, we are very honored to have invited Professor John Malpas, the former Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President (Infrastructure) of HKU to share with us the green features of and stories behind Centennial Campus, a remarkable and fresh building complex in HKU. By LAW Cheuk Fung, Samuel FAN Pui Hung, Patrick P.2
Origin Back in 1998, the University came up with a “Millennium Master Plan� on expansion and development of new spaces and facilities for teaching and learning. It was the initial prototype of Centennial Campus. According to the Millennium Master Plan, the best possible site for the expansion was the flat land to the West of Main Campus. At that stage, a Strategic Planning Taskforce led by Prof. John Malpas was formed. Among the guiding principles of the project, sustainability is one of the targets which the University aimed to promote and achieve in Centennial Campus. In this issue, we would focus on how sustainability is approached in Centennial Campus.
528 Journal July Centennial Campus
Integrated Sustainability Culturally, Prof. Malpas told
Environmentally, Prof. Malpas told us that two apporoaches
were adopted, including: us that the site of Centennial Campus embraces three historical 1. Mitigation heritage buildings of Water Supplies Department (WSD) built To r e d u c e t h e e n e r g y between the period of 1910s to consumption used in air 1930s: conditioning, wind tunnel tests were conducted to ensure that the position and orientation of Centennial Campus fits the regional weather pattern, so that natural breezes are introduced while avoiding strong gales. Senior Staff Quarters (Grade II)
Workmen's Quarters (Grade III)
Also, the building materials should have least neg ative impacts on the environment. In particular, Prof. Malpas told us that bamboos are selected where possible to reduce use of woods, for their faster growth and recovery rates. If woods are to be used. FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified wood products are employed.
2. Efficiency Here, we would talk about Water and Energy Efficiency. Water Efficiency Each year, around 75,000 m3 of water, equivalent to the size of 30 standard Olympic swimming pools, is saved. Prof. Malpas told us that one of the methods is by collection and recycling. Grey water from toilets is collected. Going through screening chambers and biological treatment tank, the recycled water will be used to support the water supply in the cooling towers. Similarly, rainwater, air conditioning condensate and waste water would also be collected, screened and reused for daily cleansing, irrigation and backup for the cooling towers.
Elliot Treatment Works Building (Grade III)
The Senior Staff Quarters have been revitalized to the University Press showroom while the Workmen's Quarters are now HKU Visitors' Centre. For the Elliot Treatment Works Building, its future function is still under consideration. P.3
528 Journal July Centennial Campus A) PV Modules (Mono Crystalline)
Energy Eifficiency Each year, around 6,500,000 kW h of energ y is saved, equivalent to annual consumption of 4,500 households, and CO2 production is reduced by 4,000 tonnes, the quantity absorbed by 160,000 trees.
B) BIPV Modules (Thin film amorphous silicon)
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The following systems/ devices are used for energy efficiency enhancement: • Photovoltaic (PV) System1 • Wind turbines • Waste Heat Recovery System
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• Air Purging System2 • Heat Recovery Wheel System • Chilled Water Storage Tank3 • Displacement AC in Grand Hall4
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• Lift Regenerative Power •Food Waste Decomposer
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528 Journal July Centennial Campus
Devices with the function of automatic adjustment, such as photocell sensors and auto-dimming ballast, also operate in areas such as Chi Wa h L e a r n i n g C o m m o n s and public corridors to save energy consumption of lighting. Variable Speed Drive (VSD) is also used in building services with motors, such as electric escalators and air pumps to adjust the output power according to demands detected.
"Supply on Demand" air pumping model Application in Centennial Campus
Certifications Centennial Campus received a variety of recognitions for its innovative designs and practical achievements in sustainability, such as: • LEED Platinum • HK-BEAM Platinum • Green Building Award 2008 • U Magazine Green Awards 2012: Favourite Green Campus Here, we would like to introduce LEED, an American-based rating in which Centennial Campus received the highest Platinum certification.
LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is issued by the US Green Building Council (USGBC) to recognize buildings worldwide for their green features and energy efficiencies. Prof. Malpas told that LEED is a wide-ranging certification which assesses the entire project. Centennial Campus is rated based on 6 criteria: • Sustainable Site • Water Efficiency • Innovation
• Energy and Atmosphere • Material and Resource • Indoor Environmental Quality P.5
528 Journal July Centennial Campus
Challenges Faced The project was divided into two phases: 1. Re-Provisioning of the WSD Utilities and Infrastructure Works 2. Construction of Centennial Campus Before the Centennial Campus was built, the land was originally occupied by the Water Supplies Department (WSD) for the past 70-80 years. It was the only available site which fulfilled the guiding principles of Centennial Campus.
Having several meetings with the WSD and consulting the project engineers, Prof. Malpas and his team finally decided on a method to vacate the land while preser ving the environment: To share the land with the WSD and build the re s e r v o i r s i n s i d e t h e caverns in the hillside of Lung Fu Shan.
To reduce impacts on the hillside, the tunnel excavation was done through drilling without any blasting. It was a win-win situation for both of the University and the WSD. The government leased the land to the University for Centennial Campus, while the University paid around 500 million dollars to build and re-provide three water reservoirs for the WSD in an environmentally friendly way while maintaining the water supply.
However, according to Prof. Malpas, it was the key site for water supply for residents in the Western District, Kennedy Tow n , t h e Pe a k a n d p a r t of the Southern District in Hong Kong Island. Facing this challenge, the University worked collaboratively with the WSD to see how to build Centennial Campus without disrupting the water supply. They once thought of relocating the reservoirs by cutting the slope in Lung Fu Shan. Yet, this plan was not adopted since it would sacrifice the natural vegetation and ecology there, violating the key principles of the project.
Original WSD site before construction (Benneath Tennis Court were Fresh Water Service Reservoirs )
Cavern works by mechanical excavation
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Construction works at the access tunnel to the two caverns
528 Journal July Centennial Campus
Afterword Other than geographical c o n s t r a i n t s, s h o r t a g e o f time was another headache when they started the project in 2006. According to the WSD, it would take at least seven years to relocate the water tanks even before the construction, but Centennial Campus had to be ready by September 2012. Racing against time, Prof. Malpas and his team remarkably completed the relocation successfully in around 2 years.
Speaking of the success, Prof. Malpas shared it with his team. Specifically, Prof. Malpas highlighted the importance of "day-to-day" management. In this aspect, he also praised the professionalism of quantity surveyors who managed the financial costs accurately and communicated effectively with other professionals over the construction process.
Besides, a severe landslide happened near Haking Wong Building during the relocation and additionally a massive rock was found to block the construction of Lee Shau Kee Grand Hall. Despite all the challenges, the construction of Centennial Campus completed with great success, addressing the needs and concerns of different stakeholders.
Prof. Malpas concluded that the central idea of Centennial Campus was to develop "Buildings that Teach". He reminded us to bear in mind that "The Earth is always our Best Friend." Not addressing sustainability is like neglecting a creeping disease such as diabetes. We do n o t n ecessa r ily feel th e effects immediately, but the consequences of not reacting can be disastrous. We may easily think that the Earth is robust, but in fact it is fragile and reaching thresholds at which it can no longer stand the burden. Prof. Malpas also sug gested that while the certifications are essential proof of the effectiveness of green methods used, the University did not develop Centennial Campus for the awards, which should not be the end of promoting and approaching sustainability. H u m o u r s l y, h e r e m a r k e d , "The Best Green Building is No Building."
Layout of the landscape garden above the new Fresh Water Reservoir
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528 Journal July Centennial Campus
If you are interested in k n ow i n g m o r e a b o u t t h e sustainability features of Centennial Campus, do try the Environmental Monitoring and Control System. The interactive display monitors across Centennial Campus will certainly tell you a lot more !
Environmental Monitoring and Control System
Last but not least, we would like to express our special thanks to Prof. Malpas, whose insightful sharings, patience and humour made our interview a really inspiring and fruitful one!
Acknowledegments Photo Credits to
1. Professor John Graham Malpas, President of Centennial College 2. HKU Centennial Campus receives LEED Platinum certification for high performance green buildings (March 2013) http://www.hku.hk/press/news_detail_9450.html 3. Re-Provisioning of WSD Facilities and Infrastructure Works for the HKU Centennial Campus http://www.edb.gov.hk/attachment/tc/curriculum-development/kla/pshe/references-and-resources/geography/ presentation%20slides%20-%20cavern%20development%20for%20wsd%20waterworks.pdf 4. The Three Water Supplies Historic Building in HKU Centennial Campus (2010) http://www.heritage.hku.hk/#
Other Sources
1. Buildings that teach: HKU's Centennial Campus, by Tam, A., HKIE http://www.hkengineer.org.hk/program/home/article.php?aid=6880&volid=151 2. Centennial Campus http://www4.hku.hk/cecampus/eng/index.php 3. Millennium Master Plan http://www.sppoweb.hku.hk/sdplan/2003_08/english/fs-mmp.htm 4. HKU Centennial Campus LEED Platinum Certification http://www.cpao.hku.hk/media/130326_fact_sheet.pdf
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