Homegrown chain receives gold rating from Green Building Index
Good job: Lankester (left) receiving the Green Building Index (GBI) Rating Certificate from Mahdzir (centre) witnessed by GBI chairman Von Kok Leong.
THE newly-opened Tune Hotel klia2 has received a double recognition for its green technology and energy-efficient features.
Beyond the conventional green products of LED lights and energy-efficient equipment, Tune Hotels has taken its green initiative further by employing holistic sustainability in its building design.
The hotel has been awarded a provisional Gold Rating by the Green Building Index (GBI) Accreditation Panel and subsequently submitted as the first demonstration project under the Building Sector Energy Efficiency Project (BSEEP).
At the hotel’s launch, Deputy Energy, Green Technology and Water Minister Datuk Seri Mahdzir Khalid said: “I am very pleased to witness a homegrown brand embracing energy and water efficiency, as well as green technology.
Today, the need to care for our environment has never been more crucial. It is no longer a ‘special interest’ but a mission to save our planet from environmental degradation.”
Mark Lankester, who received the Gold GBI certification for the hotel, said: “We are elated with the recognition. To be the largest hotel to be GBI Gold-certified is a fantastic accomplishment.
As an ongoing BSEEP national demonstration project, we are very pleased to showcase how energy-efficient buildings can be operationally very cost effective and most importantly, benefit the bottom line of the business. As we have always said, being more cost effective allows us to pass on benefits to our guests.”
“Nonetheless, the comfort of our guests was the priority in the design stage for the Tune Hotel klia2. Great emphasis was given to the indoor environment quality, thermal comfort, lighting levels and luminosity, noise control, air quality and daylight availability, on top of energy and water efficiency,” he added.
As a BSEEP demonstration project, Tune Hotel klia2 will provide real-time data to illustrate and improve confidence in the feasibility, performance, energy, environmental and economic benefits of energy-efficient building technology applications. It is intended to be an example in supporting the design and construction of other real-life energy efficient buildings.
On the implementation of Environmental and Sustainable Design for Tune Hotel klia2, Faber Group executive director Azmir Merican said that during the design stage, extensive simulations were carried out to ensure the hotel is energy efficient, with a projected building energy intensity (BEI) index of 159KWh/m2/yr.
In Malaysia, the BEI benchmark for similar performance rating is at 200KWH/m2/yr for “up to three-star” hotels and 290KWh/m2/yr for “four-star and above” hotel category while the BSEEP benchmark is 187KWh/m2/yr.
Another key highlight is water efficiency, which is estimated at more than 40% water savings compared to a conventionally designed hotel building. This is attributed mainly towards the use of harvested rainwater for the toilet, cleaning and irrigation purposes.
Landscape plant selection also played a key role. Only native or locally adaptive plants that required minimal or almost no irrigation, were selected.
The 400-room Tune Hotel klia2 opened for business on May 9, 2014. The hotel is directly connected to the new Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 (klia2) terminal via a covered walkway and link bridge, allowing easy and convenient access to check-in counters as well as the Gateway@klia2 mall.
The hotel has an expansive open-air courtyard lounge and 167 parking bays with a portion of the parking area allocated exclusively for green, electric and hybrid vehicles.