Eco Facts

pradeep is this ok if we develop this thread for eco ideas? Zenrainman's annotations to the video ... This is a typical construction site in Bangalore. Earth has been excavated for the foundation. The beautiful red earth is enough for a ground plus one construction. Typically however burnt bricks like the one stacked will be brought from far away and this earth will be shipped out. Smart construction would mean using the most locally available material with the least embodied energy. Will e build the necessary expertise and the incentives to do this quickly and address climate change? Will our cities become ecological? Will it also mean more employment to construction workers? QUESTIONS,QUESTIONS. The opportunities are there for us to seize and be smart for ourselves and for our childrens sake. More on this from Krishna Rao Jaisim, who "With a grandfather who was the Palace Architect to the Mysore Maharajas till the 1940s, the architect genes in Jaisim made him develop far-sighted views on nature-friendly features, just as the love for Bangalore forced him to return to the city to start ‘Jaisim Fountainhead’ after a long sojourn with prestigious projects abroad." Other excerpts from that interview with Ranjani Govind of the Hindu Obsessed with anything that is earthy, passionate with every concept that is green, principled about material usage that condenses energy consumption and idiosyncratic about ingenious construction designs, Jaisim, Chairman, Indian Institute of Architects, is today the city’s guru in architecture who believes that “copying is not creativity.” “Modesty in brick and mortar should draw one closer to it,” he says. “That’s when buildings become approachable. After being ruled by kings, Mughals and the British, our minds have been conditioned to accept somebody else’s ideas.” Materials are like letters in a language. You put them together efficiently for building appropriate expressions. This is the premise with which architect Krishna Rao Jaisim built his triumphant career that has spanned more than half-a-century now, witnessing some astounding built expressions across the globe. Q: How much of market share can a brick expect in the coming years? Will the modest makeover get a contemporary avatar? J: The more one thinks about it, the more it becomes obvious that the human being is going to demand a whole new range and approach with the earthy brown matter, and with technology stepping in, the future of the brick looks fantastic. New soils and material additives will soon fuse into this historic material and a range beyond the present dreams will become possible. Clay will fundamentally be the core material and others will blend to emerge a product that will make an architect’s dream of realising built spaces more adventurous. Q: Where can we tap the natural resources and identify material not suited for agriculture that can be used for bricks? J: Care should be taken to see that valuable alluvial soil suitable for agriculture is not used for this purpose. The soil must come from dredging of lake fills and other areas where the soil is not suitable for agro-products, and there are areas where this is available in plenty. Agriculture not only demands a good soil but also approach for easy harvesting and labour which is economical; if any one of this is denied, it becomes unsuitable. Here the brick manufacturer steps in. Q: You recommend the use of eco-friendly materials only? Are you against steel and aluminium? J: What is glass, it is silica based, well the answer lies there. Brick used in combination with other products and elements will make the world of habitable spaces more enduring and have depth that can transcend time and space. Technology is the back bone of any built space. To deny it would be foolish. I love any material or element that can express space in a more meaningful way to reflect human aspirations. When you use a product, it should not have come from energy-guzzling units, but some small-scale entrepreneurs or from units which employ toiling hands for meeting their daily bread. Q: Bricks save on material cost or gain values? J: Judiciously used there could be a dramatic saving in both resources and time, even while adding to the abstract values which make life worth living. A material is eco-friendly or disastrous depending on the conscious choice one makes with one’s senses open and makes a resource into a product that can fulfil the dreams and objectives of life on this planet. The human being is always looking for a value-add in one’s actions and thoughts. This ambition and inner search can be achieved in the world of architecture and built environment and make it richer with positive and sensitive approaches.