THE Energy Division at the Prime Minister’s Office will work with the Ministry of Development (MoD) to incorporate energy, efficiency and conservation (EE&C) features into the existing National Building Code, said the division’s head of EE&C yesterday.
Ahmad Hj Mohammad said the existing National Building Code needs to be updated to include EE&C features. He added that this is also applicable to house construction, as it is easier to manage and the components of equipment and design were limited compared to larger buildings.
During the “Seminar and Workshop on Modular Design and Construction For Housing Projects in Brunei Darussalam” at the Ministry of Development Training Centre, Ahmad emphasised the need of having energy efficient policies in current and future construction projects.
“This will help significantly for over a long period of time because I’ve mentioned in my presentation that most buildings could last more than the lifetime of the people who live in them,” Ahmad told The Brunei Times.
He added: “Investing in these energy-efficient technologies may cost a bit more expensive, figures disclose that it is two per cent more expensive compared to conventional buildings, but over a period of time, it is 38 per cent more efficient compared to conventional buildings, so it’s quite significant in the long run.
“Actually, we are more (focused) towards policies, so we’ll work together with the Ministry of Development to make more an energy-efficient building code, to be incorporated to the current building codes (MoD’s National Building Code),” Ahmad said, adding that the current building code emphasises on safety and health.
He said that they were several elements that need to be considered in the construction of energy efficient buildings, such as the orientation of buildings, efficient air-conditioning system and encouraging the use of energy efficient appliances such as hot water system and refrigerator.
Among the elements that need to be considered include maximising the use of natural ventilation other than air-conditioning systems, designing buildings with efficient use of natural lighting and the need for buildings to be effectively insulated with proper design and construction materials, he added.
The two-day seminar gathered 30 officers from the Housing Development Department and Public Works Department, involved in architecture, quantity surveying and engineers responsible in house designing, site preparation and construction services.
The seminar is organised to mark World Habitat Day, which is celebrated annually in October, and aimed at educating participants on how to diversify methodologies of constructing mass housing.
Brunei has been practising conventional construction methodology in the National Housing Scheme and Landless Indigenous Citizens Housing Scheme, a MoD press statement read.
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