Irene Yong is a Technical Director (Building Services) in Beca and the Section Head for the Centre of Excellence (CenEx) team in Beca Singapore, heading a team of Environmentally Sustainable Design (ESD) engineers in carrying out Green certification projects (Green Mark, LEED, GBI, etc.), Building Condition Audits and Diagnostics, Technical Due Diligence, Design Reviews and Feasibility Studies.
Irene Yong is a Green Mark Professional, Green Mark Facilities Professional and Singapore Certified Energy Manager. She has successfully completed more than 50 Green Mark projects and has vast experience in providing advice to clients intending to apply for Green Mark certification of Gold and above levels, in Singapore as well as overseas. She was involved in several R&D projects as Principal Investigator and Industry Collaborator on Green Building Technologies and Environmentally Sustainable Design (ESD)-related research works, funded by the Economic Development Board (EDB). She was also involved in a collaboration project with the University of California, Berkeley on Energy Benchmarking for Office in Singapore, and is currently a co-Principal Investigator with University of California, Berkeley and Nanyang Technological University in the Green Building Innovation Cluster (GBIC) R&D grant on the topic of Scalable and Smart Building Energy Management Systems.
Tell us about your technical approach to ESD and in managing clients’ expectations as Head of the ESD team?
Understanding the client’s need is key to managing their expectations as every client has different needs and priorities. Having a clear and open communication with the client and project stakeholders (including architects, engineers and end-users) at the onset of the project is important as it sets the rhythm to the project and allows all parties to better understand what are the challenges ahead and the possible solutions to explore. And throughout the project, such communications are always kept open as we understand that changes in design approaches are inevitable in each stage of construction. We always keep an open mind in handling project challenges to develop a solution that allows for a win-win situation as much as possible for all stakeholders.
Could you give an example of a recent and creative ESD solution that you have successfully implemented?
In the development of the Headquarters (HQ) for BSD City in Jakarta, the client came to us with a brief that their new HQ should be as energy efficient and water efficient as possible. We worked closely with the architect in the development of the building massing, orientation and façade design using computer simulation software to anticipate the outcome of the architect’s design and for refinement of the design. Transient spaces were designed for natural ventilation and daylit to achieve good indoor environment quality. The façade design, besides reducing thermal heat gain yet allowing it to capture prevailing winds and allowing sufficient daylight into the naturally ventilated five-storey atrium, has to be designed for rain protection. With the passive design in place, the design was further refined by having an evaporative water feature at the entrance of the atrium. Water used for the water feature is collected from the air handling units’ cool condensate. Hence, this would further improve the thermal comfort at the atrium, saving water used for the water feature at the same time.
What do you think is a major strength of Beca’s ESD team and how have you personally contributed towards its success?
Beca, being a global consultancy firm offering a wide range of consultancy services around the world, allows us to tap into the knowledge of our technical experts in the field. In addition, Beca places a strong emphasis on people development and training, hence other than knowledge sharing within the group, we ensure that our team of ESD engineers are constantly upskilled through both internal and external training and are updated on new technology trends.
Leading a team of ESD engineers in the firm, my focus is to ensure that the team of engineers is well-equipped with the knowledge to advise our clients in achieving their environmental sustainable targets, through constant guidance, mentoring and technical training. My team in Singapore is the Centre of Excellence for ESD in the Beca Group, having completed more than 80 projects certified with at least Green Mark Gold and above. I also ensure that such knowledge is cross-shared with other offices through keeping our Beca Knowledge Centre updated on the ESD experiences in Singapore.
In coming up with ESD solutions, what considerations come to mind at the onset of your engagement as well as discussion with clients and consulting partners, such as architects and engineers?
We need to consider design solutions that are practical, cost-effective and holistic to suit the project requirements. Our approach to ESD always starts with passive designs in mind to reduce energy and water usage. Discussions with the client and architect would be crucial to achieving the desired outcome. Thereafter, active design approaches will be explored with the engineers to complement the passive design and further reduce the carbon footprint of the building during operations. It is important to bear in mind that the solutions proposed should be user-friendly and maintainable for long-term operation of the systems. Otherwise, the installation would end up being bypassed and neglected over time.
ESD is the philosophy of designing physical objects, the built environment and services to comply with the principles of social, economic and ecological sustainability. This integrated and holistic approach encourages decisions at each phase of the design process to reduce negative impacts on the environment. What are some recent memorable projects that you have worked on?
The Zero Energy Building @ BCA Academy is one of the most memorable projects that I have worked on in my career. It is the first low-rise zero energy building in Asia and produces more energy than it consumes. As the M&E consultant leading the project, I had the opportunity to work along with the Principal Investigators from the National University of Singapore (NUS) to integrate and test bed various Green building technologies in the retrofitted building, including the installation of 189 kWp of photovoltaic systems that are grid tied to feed the energy needs for the building. Different photovoltaic systems were installed for test bedding such as crystalline modules, CIGS thin films, bi-facial modules and building integrated photovoltaic (BiPV) panels. Apart from this, other Green building technologies installed include mirror ducts, sun pipes and light shelves to bring daylight into occupied spaces, energy-efficient lighting control systems and displacement ventilation air-conditioning system.
Another memorable project that I have recently completed would be the mixed development in Marina One, which comprises two residential towers and two office towers seated atop a retail podium with four basement levels. The most interesting concept to the development of this project was the involvement of the ESD engineers even before the architects were on board. We were on the panel of the architectural design competition and evaluated designs submitted by the architects in terms of ESD inputs for passive and active strategies. This gave us a head start on what needs to be further explored with the architectural team before they were on board. The project not only went on to achieve the BCA Green Mark Platinum status, but also LEED Platinum certification for the office towers.
What do you think are the major challenges faced in managing the team and by the ESD industry in Singapore in general?
Talent acquisition and staff retention remain as constant challenges in this industry. Adoption of Green building design requires an open mind in exploration of alternative design solutions, going beyond the norm. To meet the technical design requirements, our ESD engineers come from mainstream mechanical and electrical engineering background to be equipped with the foundation of engineering design. As they join the ESD team, they are trained and equipped with computer simulation skills and Green building technologies design on top of learning the ropes in basic mechanical and electrical system design, which is a steep learning curve and challenge for graduates. Hence, proper guidance and mentoring is essential to ensure that the team members are able to deliver the projects effectively.
In addition, sometimes the ESD consultants are brought into the project team at a later stage when the schematic or concept design has completed. Therefore, there will be stress in the timeline for meeting tender dates to firm up the detailed design. Major changes to the design at this late stage will be disruptive to the project flow. Construction cost control is also a challenge if the ESD consultant is not involved at an early stage as design changes may be costly with Variation Orders to improve the tendered design, and the ESD consultant will need to make the design work to achieve the desired Green Building certification within such constraints. Therefore, we always encourage our clients and fellow consultants to involve our team early at the onset of the project for better project delivery outcome and cost control.
What are the main objectives that you try to meet in every design?
A sustainable design must be maintainable and kept going, which is the main objective that every ESD needs to consider. The system needs to be able to last its intended lifespan and life cycle, and it can only be so if it is correctly utilised and properly maintained. Many a times we see state-of-the art technologies being implemented, but shortly after commissioning of the building, these systems are bypassed or made defunct due to their complexity in operations and maintenance. Therefore, before hitting the state-of-the-art designs, I always believe in simplicity of design as a start and complemented by more complex design technologies that must be carefully studied for its feasibility before implementation.
How do you want your legacy to be remembered when it comes to your design?
Lessons learnt from projects, be it good experiences or challenges in a project, are good case studies and need to be shared for continuous improvement. Every year, I make it a point to carry out a two- to three-hour sharing session within the company on Green building technologies, project case studies, new technology trends and new Green building regulations to raise awareness among the engineers. This ensures that the information and knowledge will be propagated and good design practices can be continued.
What principles are fundamental to your work ethos and culture?
As no battle is ever won by one man alone, I strongly believe in teamwork in every project. Cohesiveness within the project team towards achieving the same vision and goal is half the battle won. Once there is good working synergy between the project stakeholders and respect for one another’s design, that would be the recipe for great success in the project.
What are some of the major accolades that you have won and how have they motivated you?
After more than 10 years as an ESD engineer, I have been personally involved in more than 20 Green Mark Platinum projects, each and every one having its own unique set of challenges and unique learning experiences. Apart from having the opportunity to work with other professionals in the built environment, each project that is successfully delivered helps to build on my knowledge to be applied to the next successful project. As an engineer, I believe in the importance of constant improvement. What is ‘state-of-the-art’ today will become ‘business-as-usual’ tomorrow, hence we need to ensure that the learning never stops.
As a professional engineer, what are your upcoming plans for 2018–2019?
With the news of the implementation of carbon tax, the next few years will be a time for us to step up and cut down on greenhouse gas emissions, and everyone has a part to play, from designers to developers and government agencies. The norm will need to be challenged to make way for smarter innovative solutions, instead of working within boundaries and constraints. Hence, in the coming years it is important to redefine our ‘comfort zone’ and push beyond the boundaries for holistic environmentally sustainable solutions.
