Sustainability
Climate first, certificate second
Most of our buildings are public buildings, paid for by public money and run for decades by people who did not design them. The most useful thing we can do is make them need less: less energy, less water and less upkeep. A rating follows from that.
Approach
The order of decisions
We settle the decisions that cost little and last longest first, and add equipment last.
- 01Orientation and massingBlocks set to shade one another and turn their long faces away from the low east and west sun.
- 02ShadeColonnades, deep overhangs, screens and roofs that reach beyond the walls.
- 03EnvelopeCavity and insulated walls, solar-control and low-E glazing, terracotta and brick.
- 04DaylightPlans shallow enough, or opened by courtyards, for rooms to work by daylight.
- 05Roof and groundReflective and insulated roofs, planted ground instead of hot paving, trees kept and added.
- 06WaterRainwater harvesting, low-flow fixtures and treated water reused for flushing and gardens.
- 07RenewablesSolar sized against a building that already needs less.
Rated buildings
Green-rated projects
- GRIHA 5-starIncome Tax Office, BhopalExemplary Performance Awards 2023, 2024 and 2025
- GRIHA 4-starApollo Ispat Super Speciality Hospital, RourkelaPollution Control Appreciation Award 2022, SPCB Odisha
- GRIHA 3-starAtal Cancer Care Centre, Ambala
- GRIHA 3-starIndian Institute of Skills, Kanpur
- GRIHA 3-starMaa Shakumbhari University, Saharanpur
- GRIHA 3-starAtal Residential School, Ayodhya
- IGBC Green HomesYEIDA Affordable Housing, Sector 22Dpre-certified
Evidence
In numbers
- 150 kWRooftop solar at the Income Tax Office, Bhopal, meeting about half of its yearly energy use
- 3,49,000 kWhEstimated yearly generation from the 2,950 m² solar roof at UNESCO MGIEP, slightly above the building’s estimated need
- 90%Of the working floor area at UNESCO MGIEP planned to be daylit
- 222 treesKept on the UNESCO MGIEP site, with 70 native trees added
- Every treeKept in the plan for Mahatma Gandhi Central University, Motihari
- More than halfOf the land left green at the NLCIL township, Sambalpur
Recognition
Awards for energy and environment
The Income Tax Office in Bhopal received GRIHA Exemplary Performance Awards in three successive years: in 2023 for renewable energy utilization, in 2024 for passive design and in 2025 for energy management.
In 2017 the practice received the Uttar Pradesh State Energy Conservation Award, third prize in the Architect sector, from the Uttar Pradesh New & Renewable Energy Development Agency.
In 2022 the Apollo Ispat hospital at Rourkela received the Pollution Control Appreciation Award of the State Pollution Control Board, Odisha, for its sewage and effluent treatment, water reuse and rainwater harvesting.
For clients
What we bring to a brief
Every project starts with the site, the climate and the brief, and with the rating the client is aiming for, whether GRIHA, IGBC or compliance with the Energy Conservation Building Code. We prepare the design and documentation the rating needs and coordinate it through construction.