The property industry is currently embarking on a greening program by establishing green buildings. Property management and consulting firm Santos Knight Frank (SKF) expects that the proportion of leadership in engineering and environmental design (LEED)-certified buildings in Metro Manila will increase from 22.3 percent in Q2 2022 to 32 percent by the end of 2025.
“Environment, sustainability and governance [ESG] is becoming integral to corporate real estate decision making. From ‘nice-to-have,’ sustainability and wellness are increasingly becoming ‘must-haves’ for companies,” Rick Santos, Chairman and CEO of SKF said in a recent press briefing.
According to Santos, landlords are quite aware these days that tenants will choose the best working environment for their employees and businesses at affordable rates. Santos said SKF expects 72.3 percent of upcoming office space between Q3 2022 and 2025 will be in LEED-certified buildings. As a result, there will be an increase in the proportion of green buildings in Metro Manila to 32 percent by the end of 2025.
SM Prime’s green magnum opus
SM Prime Holdings Inc. (SM Prime), a staunch advocate of sustainable architecture, green engineering and resilient future-ready offices, recently introduced this year the 50-story Mega Tower located in the SM Megamall Complex.
Changing the business skyline in the metropolis
Alexis Ortiga, vice president for SM Prime Commercial Properties Group SM Offices, SM Prime’s commercial real-estate arm, said the group has collaborated with Miami-based Arquitectonica, architect-on-record W.V. Coscolluela and Associates, and LEED consultant C.A. Tatlonghari, to accomplish the colossal structure’s innovative design and curvilinear and sculptural form. Ortiga said the Mega Tower has a core workspace of 92,055 sq m and minimum of 2,000 sq m of typical leasable space per floor to serve the various business requirements in the Ortigas commercial business district.
Ortiga said SM Prime believes in the importance of integrating green technology. In fact, he said SM Prime even before “sustainable urban development” became a byword in recent years, the company has been pushing the envelope by reducing the environmental impact of its operations and leasable spaces. The Mega Tower is the byproduct of their green initiative leading to the LEED Gold certification.
“Together with our partners, the successful completion of Mega Tower is testament to SM Prime’s ability to deliver quality green workspaces to the market. We are proud to contribute to the already impressive Ortigas CBD skyline and to bring to market an environmentally friendly and premium development that promotes the well-being of our tenants,” Ortiga explained.
Low carbon footprint
As part of its greening programs on their buildings, Ortiga said SM offices employs low-carbon strategies for its office and commercial developments.
He added Mega Tower is designed to be energy efficient utilizing 14 percent less energy, built with a double-glazed facade that keeps heat out while its office spaces use energy-efficient air-conditioning equipment, lighting fixtures, lifts, and escalators. By using water efficient fixtures and non-potable water for its landscape irrigation system, the Mega Tower has been able to reduce water consumption by 30 percent, through the use of water efficient fixtures.
Mega Tower will contribute a lot to the reduction of carbon footprint as its strategic location and proximity to SM Mega Mall, various institutional offices, public parks, and residential subdivisions and condominiums within the Ortigas CBD encourage its tenant-partners, business locators, and their employees to walk and/or bike to work. Ortiga said Mega Tower also allocates parking spaces for low-emitting and fuel-efficient vehicles, as well as access to alternative modes of transportation, including train, public buses and jeeps, and shuttle vans.
The future of offices
Ortiga SM Prime walks the extra mile in promoting sustainability giving a strong focus on wellness and community by offering business locators and their employees advanced office solutions through high-quality, comfortable, and ideal work environments.
With state-of-the-art features, Ortiga said the Mega Tower has established a reputation of being a premium office building—serving as a model of how future commercial developments should address social and environmental challenges.
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The article was originally published in Business Mirror and written by Rizal Raoul Reyes.
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