Glass from Glass
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VERDE SW1 LONDON / UK GLASSOVERVIEW FROM Nike’s Greater China headquarters campus LEED® GOLD consists of a nine-story, Class A office The Li Na and Liu Xiang buildings have both GLASSbuilding, Li Na, and a five-story conference been certified LEED® (Leadership in Energy center, Liu Xiang, which houses conference and Environmental Design) Gold Core & Shell facilities, media rooms and exhibition spaces. v2009, which emphasizes occupant comfort LeadingNike’s 600,000 by sq. example: ft. (55,740 sq. Setting m.) campus a and well-being. is part of The Springs, Tishman Speyer’s precedentlargest development in the project construction in China, industryCONNECTING TO THE COMMUNITY situated in Shanghai’s Yangpu District, less The Yangpu District is one of four urban than eight miles from the central business submarkets in Shanghai, centrally located district. between the city’s two major airports. The Upon completion, The Springs will encompass Springs is conveniently situated along a 9.7 million sq. ft. (900,230 sq. m.) spread over major transit hub and important education a 66-acre site. The full-service community corridor, with three of China’s most offers an eco-friendly lifestyle and will provide distinguished universities nearby. A number approximately 900 serviced apartment units of sports centers, shopping, and mixed- and nearly 8 million sq. ft. (740,000 sq. m.) use and residential areas also enhance the of Class A office, retail, hotel, cultural and location. amenity space. CONNECTING TO THE ENVIRONMENT VISION As part of The Springs development, Nike’s Sustainability, flexibility and customization campus benefits from strong ties to the local were key goals from the outset. Nike signed community through public open spaces, as a long-term lease agreement with Tishman well as enjoying a soccer pitch, regulation- Speyer in 2012, leading the two companies to size indoor basketball court and easy access collaborate closely on the new project. The to the adjoining 33-acre ecological park result is a contemporary work environment reserve. founded on the latest sustainable design principles and tailored to Nike’s needs. VERDE SW1 LONDON / UK OVERVIEW ABOUT VERDE SW1 APPROACH Verde SW1 is a major refurbishment project in As a result of the findings of the LCA, 9,880 tCO2e REDUCTION IN the heart of central London comprising more Tishman Speyer proposed that the old EMBODIED CARBON than 282,000 sq. ft. of Grade A office space. façade should be recycled back to glass DURING CONSTRUCTION Completed in 2016, Tishman Speyer placed to maximize carbon savings. As this was occupant comfort, health and wellbeing at not common practice in the construction the heart of the renovations. As a result, the industry, Tishman Speyer worked closely building benefits from abundant natural light, with the recycling company to define the exceptional views, and excellent amenities process. The process was then embedded 11,600 tCO2e REDUCTION IN and services. into contracts and throughout the EMBODIED CARBON refurbishment program. ACHIEVED BY REUSING With its proximity to Victoria Station, Verde ORIGINAL CONCRETE SW1 is easily accessed by public transport. OUTCOMES STRUCTURE Active travel modes are encouraged with The refurbishment, which achieved 440 bicycle spaces, dedicated cycle access, BREEAM (Building Research Establishment showers, lockers and changing facilities. Environmental Method) ‘Excellent’ rating, LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT has extended the lifespan of the building 21,480 from ten to sixty years. Tishman Speyer’s tCO2e REDUCTION IN The starting point for the refurbishment EMBODIED CARBON OF was a carbon life cycle assessment (LCA) approach, reusing the original concrete THE BUILDING that analyzed the materials in the existing structure and careful choice of materials, building and the refurbishment process. The reduced the embodied carbon of the LCA identified the existing glass façade as a building by approximately 21,500 metric tons key contributor to the carbon calculation. of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e). This is in line with the emissions from 4,600 return In the UK, most waste glass from renovation flights from London to Hong Kong. 340 and demolition works is crushed into metric tons of façade glass was recycled; this aggregates for use in road building, or 55,000 saved a further 100tCO e in the downstream SQ. FT. OF FAÇADE sent to landfill. Although turning glass into 2 production of container glass. GLASS RECYCLED aggregates is categorised as ‘recycling’, its benefits are limited. Conversely, closed The lessons learnt will be applied to loop recycling, where glass is turned into future Tishman Speyer projects and used 100 tCO e SAVED BY to influence the approach in the UK in 2 other glass products, delivers far greater RECYCLING FAÇADE environmental benefits and carbon savings. collaboration with British Glass. VERDE SW1 LONDON / UK Recycling Process 1 How to recycle glass into new glass products TECHNICAL PROCESS OVERVIEW WHY RECYCLE GLASS INTO GLASS? The process of turning waste flat glass into cullet It preserves natural resources: Glass recycling saves (crushed waste glass for recycling) is classified as a significant amounts of raw materials. Every metric waste recovery operation and is therefore subject ton of crushed waste glass (cullet) used to make new to waste management legislation. This is deemed to glass reduces the need for 1.2 metric tons of virgin raw be more of a burden to the property sector than an materials (sand, lime, soda and additional minerals). opportunity for environmental and economical savings. As a result, waste glass is seldom recovered in building It saves energy and reduces carbon emissions: Cullet projects. melts at a lower temperature than virgin raw materials, hence less energy is used and the carbon impact When a building is refurbished, end-of-life façade glass reduced. Substituting one metric ton of cullet for raw is usually crushed and used as aggregates in road materials saves 322 kWh gas and approximately 0.3 construction. Whilst this is better than sending glass to metric tons CO2. A large proportion of raw materials landfill, the most effective use is to turn glass into new (35% or more) can be replaced by cullet/ recycled glass products: it can be recycled in this ‘closed loop’ materials if they are available at the right quantities, 340 metric tons of glass from the old façade was recycled indefinitely. quality and price. With 55,000 sq. ft. (5,100 sq. m.) of glass in the STANDARD PRACTICE (LINEAR) old façade at Verde SW1, comprising an estimated Building Glass placed in Crushed into Or sent 1,700 tCO2e, Tishman Speyer was keen to ensure this demolished mixed waste skips aggregate to landfill opportunity was not wasted. Tishman Speyer’s engagement and careful monitoring IMPROVED APPROACH (CIRCULAR) were crucial throughout the project, both in establishing the overall process and in driving key messages during the demolition process. Onsite ‘toolbox talks’ provided a forum to explain the key dismantling stages to the demolition team to avoid contamination of the glass. Glass transported off site for decontamination, sorting and crushing VERDE SW1 LONDON / UK Glass recycling process for Verde SW1 2 Decision to recycle the façade to maximize environmental benefits Recycling process requirements embedded in program and contracts CLOSED LOOP RECYCLING HELPS TO CREATE A CIRCULAR ECONOMY Glass is 100% recyclable, and can be melted down and remoulded an infinite number of Carbon savings Demolition contract times. The glass industry has the potential to calculated awarded be a perfect example of a scalable circular economy in action. Tishman Speyer is now working to change the perception of glass recycling within the construction community. CULLET RECYCLED GLASS PANELS INTO BOTTLES REMOVED 1,700 Cullet replaces virgin ‘Toolbox talks’ for raw materials to produce demolition personnel tCO2e in old façade new glass with lower to explain the glass environmental impacts recycling process 55,000 sq. ft. (5,100 sq. m.) glass removed DECONTAMINATION, FRAMES AND SORTING, CRUSHING FIXINGS SEPARATED 340 metric tons of glass recycled 100 tCO2e saved by glass recycling GLASS GLASS PLACED IN TRANSPORTED AND DEDICATED SKIPS CRUSHED OFF SITE Careful handling of Glass recycling process the glass to avoid managed by third party contamination VERDE SW1 LONDON / UK Leading by example Changing the status quo requires knowledge, commitment and tenacity. When Tishman Speyer decided to recycle the old façade at Verde SW1 back into glass, there was only one known precedent within the construction industry in the UK. Through careful management of the recycling process, Tishman Speyer successfully minimized the environmental impacts of the refurbishment. CIRCULAR ECONOMY IN CONSTRUCTION Close collaboration with partners from the outset Setting embodied carbon reduction as a goal within ensured that Tishman Speyer’s sustainability principles the refurbishment process led to a number of were embedded in their processes: contractor, decisions: retention of the existing structure, materials demolition contractor, recycler, LCA analyst. analysis and façade recycling. Early and ongoing engagement with the glass Recycling end-of-life building glass back to glass is reprocessing company was critical in the success of the currently outside best practice in the construction project. industry. Tishman Speyer quickly realized that relevant Embedding requirements in the process pre-tender experience and guidance was not available within