How Renovation is Leading the Charge in Sustainable Urban Development
Global architecture, engineering and consultancy firm Ramboll is spotlighting the pivotal role of renovation in reducing carbon emissions, cutting costs, and meeting sustainability goals in its new Renovation and Transformation Assessment Guide. BRJ speaks to Huang Yu, Director, Buildings, Ramboll, to see how repurposing existing buildings is becoming the smart choice for property investors and owners.
As urbanisation accelerates and sustainability becomes a pressing concern, Ramboll’s newly launched Renovation and Transformation Assessment Guide emerges as a crucial tool for property owners and investors. With the built environment contributing significantly to global CO2 emissions and waste, the guide advocates for a shift from new construction to renovation and transformation. By focusing on regulatory, financial, and sustainability drivers, the guide helps stakeholders assess the business case for repurposing existing buildings, identifying risks, and uncovering opportunities.
The case for renovation is compelling: it not only curtails carbon emissions and operational costs but also aligns with Singapore’s Green Plan 2030, which aims for a greener, more resource-efficient built environment. Through a range of case studies, the guide demonstrates that renovation can be both environmentally and economically advantageous, challenging the conventional belief that new construction is always the better option. As cities grapple with space constraints and rising costs, transforming existing structures is proving to be a sustainable and strategic solution.
Building Review Journal (BRJ): What are the main benefits for property portfolio owners and investors in Singapore when prioritising renovation and transformation over new construction?
Huang Yu (HY): Renovating existing buildings not only reduces carbon emissions and waste compared to building new but can also be more cost effective and attractive to tenants. This combined with legislation demanding smarter construction resource management, impacts real estate portfolio owners and investors.
There are of course regulatory requirements when it comes to heritage buildings, such as the unique and charming Singapore shophouses, which are managed under the Heritage Conservation Act by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) and Building & Construction Authority (BCA). The ability to preserve them while also transforming them is an important way to conserve this architecture that is representative of Singaporean culture.
Sustainability is another benefit. Upgrading existing buildings with greener features to achieve greater efficiency in operation is key to realising BCA’s ambition to make 80 percent of Singapore’s buildings green by 2030. This presents an ambitious backdrop to encourage the renovation and transformation of building assets to achieve greater sustainability performance.
BRJ: How does the cost-effectiveness of renovation compare to new construction?
HY: Using lifecycle analyses and lifecycle cost analyses, Ramboll experts performed a comprehensive assessment of 16 cases ranging from family homes and terraced houses to tower blocks, commercial buildings and public buildings. The buildings also represent a wide range of building functions, choice of materials and locations. The main findings were that:
- Renovation is both greener and more cost-effective than new-builds
- Carbon emission in new construction depends on the materials used
- The level of renovation determines the extent to which carbon impacts from operational energy can be reduced
- Carbon impacts occur at different life cycle stages for new and mature buildings.
All 16 cases in this analysis show that renovation is advantageous both financially and in terms of climate impact. Whole lifecycle calculations of the scenarios reveal that in five of the cases, it will be more than twice as expensive to build new than to carry out extensive renovations over 50 years. This goes against the common assumption that it is not worthwhile to preserve and renovate buildings because they will be more expensive to operate.
In the realm of Singaporean projects, Ramboll has effectively executed transformation projects, including substantial structural modifications to five-star hotels and top-tier office buildings. Incorporating fresh usable space via lightweight construction methods, which leverage existing foundation systems, not only expedited construction timelines but also yielded substantial cost reductions.
BRJ: How are rising construction costs influencing the shift towards renovation and transformation in Singapore?
HY: There is no shortage of funding for infrastructure and built environment projects. The scrutiny is more around bankable projects. Investors are increasingly looking at the bankability of projects through multi-dimensional lenses, adding environmental, social and reputational issues to the traditional financial aspect. Renovation and transformation present opportunities to meet these requirements.
BRJ: Can you provide examples of projects where renovation has proven to be more environmentally sustainable than building anew?
HY: A project that most Singaporeans would be familiar with is the five-star Capella resort, which was originally constructed in the 1880s and used as an army barracks during World War II.
Following extensive restoration work designed by Foster + Partners, the resort was ranked as the top hotel in Singapore in Travel & Leisure’s World Best Awards 2023. Capella’s vision was to preserve the integrity of the original structure while integrating new elements. Most components were prefabricated offsite and tailored to fit seamlessly with existing structures, meaning that damage or modifications to the original structures were significantly reduced.
To construct the extension, an open-sided excavation was made behind the legacy structure where Ramboll incorporated one of the first permanent passive soil nail retaining systems in Singapore. Key to the functional viability of the scheme was the seamless integration of the old and new. To achieve this, structures were set out in such a way that allowed hotel guests to effortlessly move from one building and back without traversing different spaces.
The result was a heritage colonial building with a curvilinear extension successfully built within native vegetation that exemplifies Ramboll’s fusion engineering approach to rigorous and complex developments. For its considered design and successful implementation, the Capella Resort was a winning recipient at the URA Architectural Heritage Awards.
BRJ: Are there specific regulatory challenges that property owners face when considering renovation projects?
HY: There are no specific regulatory challenges when it comes to renovation projects. Initially, all buildings must be approached with respect, followed by a review process to pinpoint any potential engineering hurdles in meeting the latest prevailing codes and practices. Architects and engineers must collaborate to address these challenges, ensuring that the final proposal complies with local building authorities’ regulations and is suitable for use.
BRJ: How does prioritising renovation over new construction contribute to Singapore’s sustainability goals, particularly in reducing carbon emissions and waste?
HY: Singapore has an ambitious Green Plan. The Green Plan 2030 is a whole-of-nation movement to advance Singapore’s national agenda on sustainable development. The Green Plan charts ambitious and concrete targets over the next 10 years, strengthening Singapore’s commitments under the UN’s 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda and Paris Agreement, and positioning us to achieve our long-term net zero emissions aspiration by 2050. Prioritising renovation can add significant value to this plan.
For example, CO2 emissions from demolishing and building a new replacement building of the same size are on average around 35 percent greater than if a significant renovation of the building is carried out instead.
Transformation also taps into the DNA of buildings and urban areas. It informs the architectural approach and serves to preserve and enhance the heritage and cultural fabric that define a building and surrounding communities. In this way, transformation also makes an important contribution to social sustainability and Singapore’s shophouse culture.
BRJ: What role do green building certifications play in this shift?
HY: Certifications and advocacy on behalf of organisations like the Singapore Green Building Council (SGBC) are very important in educating our industry on the benefits of renovation. Aligned with the World Green Building Council’s vision of green buildings for everyone, everywhere, the Singapore Green Building Council aims to make the spaces we live, work and play in healthier, more sustainable, and more resource-efficient.
Ramboll is therefore delighted to have recently been certified by the SGBC for the provision of Environmental Sustainability Services at the highest Level 1 – Building projects with international stakeholders that seek to attain ambitious Green Mark ratings. This reflects our commitment to innovation in sustainable building design, including renovation projects.
These types of projects can dramatically reduce carbon emissions for our clients through circular and regenerative design. We look forward to continuing our journey towards building a greener and more sustainable future with the SGBC.
BRJ: What is the current state of the renovation industry in Singapore, and how has it evolved over recent years?
HY: Renovations traditionally focus on structural alterations in landed houses, shophouses and some conservation buildings. However, there’s a rising trend towards more intricate projects involving structural modifications and expansions in existing buildings, including high-rise. This trend is particularly notable in downtown areas where buildings already have deep foundations and basements.
BRJ: Can you provide an overview of Ramboll’s Renovation and Transformation Assessment Guide?
HY: Ramboll’s Renovation Assessment Guide is a practical handbook to help property portfolio owners and investors assess the business case for renovation. It also provides insights on how to mitigate risk and maximise rewards when renovating a building. To reach a more sustainable future, we must question the need for new construction, especially where existing properties can be repurposed. If planned and managed correctly, repurposed property assets can become attractive to tenants, more climate-resilient, and fit for multiple future uses.
For business case assessment, this guide centres around three key focus areas in the early planning stages of property renovation. Firstly, looking at the regulatory, financial and sustainability drivers, secondly, identifying and mitigating potential reconstruction, financial, and climate risks, and thirdly, assessing renovation opportunities and constraints to realise their full potential.
BRJ: Were there particular trends, client demands, or market needs that drove the creation of this guide?
HY: We can’t forget the megatrend of urbanisation, where 75 percent of the world’s population will be living in urban areas by 2050. In Asia alone, we are looking at 1.2 billion people who will be migrating to urban areas over the coming 25 years. The need for housing, infrastructure and buildings is immense.
In the meantime, there is the need to decarbonise our built environment. The built environment is responsible for 40 percent of global CO2 emissions, 33 percent of global waste, and nearly 50 percent of all extracted materials. Prioritising renovation and transformation over building new plays a vital role in decarbonising the construction sector and it is gaining momentum. The business case for renovation is clear – the time is now to respect, review and renew.
BRJ: How is the commercial property sector responding to this transformation?
HY: With commercial buildings, we see a clear trend towards organisations undertaking deep renovations of their existing offices. This is a win-win where they retain the benefit of the office being in an accessible and appealing location, whilst also optimising interior spaces, increasing energy efficiency, and creating a modern inspiring work environment. This in turn helps organisations attract and retain talent and typically reduces carbon emissions by 50 percent to 80 percent compared to new builds.
BRJ: What unique challenges do property owners and developers face when undertaking renovation projects in Singapore and how do they differ from those in other major global cities?
HY: I think one unique challenge for Singapore is the scale of the buildings, from high-rise buildings to large-scale developments, which brings an additional layer of complexity for engineers and designers. However, the impact of these large-scale buildings is worth the challenge. Singapore has its unique challenges as a city-state, such as land constraints, labour shortage and cost, which also presents itself an opportunity for innovation and ingenuity. I see opportunities for modular construction methods and Multi-trade Integrated MEP (MiMEP), which allows us to flexibly adapt and future-proof the assets.
BRJ: What future trends do you foresee in the renovation industry in Singapore, and how do you think policies will adapt to support these trends?
HY: When we know that the carbon savings from transformation initiatives are so large, as a minimum, we as advisors need to introduce a code of conduct that insists that we steer clients towards transformation. This means that we need to get better at recognising the economic, environmental, and social value of the assets they already have.
In my opinion, rapid large-scale decarbonisation calls for a significant decrease in demolition and new common regulations to support this. We already see protections in place for cultural buildings, but this needs to be extended to all buildings – especially those that contain large amounts of embodied carbon.
BRJ: What are the biggest challenges and risks for property owners and investors to maximize the benefits of renovation?
HY: Investors and developers must identify and manage risks from the very earliest stages of a transformation project before making major investments. This way they can ensure their business case stacks up and mitigate unexpected costs and delays.
Building plans from older buildings may be missing or incomplete, which creates uncertainty around the composition of the building. The condition, toxicity, and flammability of building materials may also be unknown and vary significantly depending on the type of building and when it was constructed. Conducting thorough early-stage architectural and engineering assessments, including laboratory tests and condition surveys, helps identify and minimise these risks.
A key challenge with transformation projects is that we want to preserve as much of the load-bearing structure as possible since this is where the carbon savings are greatest. However, this may place constraints on how the space can be reconfigured. Feasibility studies and creative thinking are needed to identify the options that can maximise the full potential of a transformation project and minimise the risk of it becoming a stranded asset. We are also actively looking into how AI can play a role in this.
Digital tools can play an important role in informing early-phase decision-making and at Ramboll we have developed applications that generate thousands of iterations of the possible MEP and façade configurations to identify the most cost-effective and optimal option.
All images from Ramboll’s Renovation and Transformation Assessment Guide. Click here to download your copy.