T

H
E
S
I
S

ENVIRONMENTALLY SENSITIVE HOTEL

Buildings, as they are designed and used today, contribute to serious

environmental problems because of excessive consumption of energy and
other natural resources. The close connection between energy use in
buildings and environmental damage arises when energy intensive
solutions are used to construct a building and meet its demands for
heating, cooling, ventilation, and lighting cause severe depletion of
valuable environmental resources.

However, buildings should be designed to meet the occupants need for

thermal and visual comfort at reduced levels of energy and resource
consumption and hence is the need for energy efficient buildings in all
building types.

Sustainable business practices are rapidly gaining visibility and

importance in the hospitality industry. Due to the increasing
environmental awareness there is a growing need towards Ecotels.

Ecotel is a hotel or accommodation that has made important

environmental improvements to its structure in order to minimize its
impact on the environment. The basic definition of a green hotel is an
environmentally responsible lodging that follows the practices of green
living.

S
Y
N
O
P
S
I
S

 To

design a hotel to achieve a strategic and

economic advantage through environmentfriendly operations, systems and processes,
by focusing the areas where the Green
aspect meets the Luxury.

S
Y
N
O
P
S
I
S

To study the principles followed in Green buildings and design a

Ecotel for Hyderabad Climatic conditions for its sustainable
future.
To study about the five Globes of Ecotel certification i.e., Energy
conservation, Water conservation, Solid waste management,
Employee environmental education, Environmental commitment.
Incorporate solar passive techniques in design to minimize load on
conventional systems (heating, cooling, ventilation and lighting).
Study and design energy efficient lighting and HVAC systems.
Use renewable energy systems( solar photovoltaic systems/ solar
water heating systems) to meet a part of building load.
Use low energy materials and methods of construction and reduce
transportation energy.

S
Y
N
O
P
S
I
S

Ensure that the design serves the Hotel functionally &

Environmentally and also satisfying the Luxury of the
customers.
Balancing all aspects of energy use in a building i.e.,
Lighting, Space conditioning and Ventilation by
providing optimized mix of passive solar design
strategies, energy-efficient equipment, and renewable
sources of energy.

S
Y
N
O
P
S
I
S

To design a 3 star Ecotel by satisfying all the

Architectural & Technical requirements of building.
Detailing the services like kitchen and Laundry
Detailing the Interiors of any one Zone/Space.

S
Y
N
O
P
S
I
S

ECOTEL is a certification that enables hotels to become

sustainable by primarily reducing the environmental impact of
their business and grow financially more viable and socially
responsible.
Managed by HVS(Hospitality Valuation Services) Sustainability,
ECOTEL was developed in 1994. Since then, it has evolved in
keeping with advances in global warming, resource conservation,
pollution prevention, building standards , and social responsibility.
Today, its criteria are commensurate with those internationally
recognised for sustainability.
Certification Eligibility and Validity
Applicable to any hotel irrespective of the applicant hotel's country
of origin.
Valid for a period of two years after which member hotels must
apply for recertification.

L
I
T
E
R
A
T
U
R
E
S
T
U
D
Y

A growing number of players define the certification market

today, each with their strengths.
LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is
considered among the leading certifications worldwide for
construction of green buildings.
ECOTEL, in addition to valuing green buildings, is proactive and
responsive to day-to-day hotel practices that lead to more
sustainable operations. It also trains staff on operationalising
sustainability while building symbiotic linkages in the community.
Meluha The Fern is both LEED and ECOTEL certified.

L
I
T
E
R
A
T
U
R
E
S
T
U
D
Y

L
I
T
E
R
A
T
U
R
E
S
T
U
D
Y

L
I
T
E
R
A
T
U
R
E
S
T
U
D
Y

To qualify for the ECOTEL Environment Commitment globe, a hotel is

expected to:
Have a policy in place that defines its environmental objectives, sets
targets, and accordingly programs, processes and best practices through
which it seeks to achieve these objectives,
Provide the appropriate training and resources to ensure that management
and staff are able to implement the environmental policy effectively,
Have programs and practices in place for reduction in generation of solid
waste and consumption of water and energy that have shown substantial
and measurable results,
Adopt environmentally friendly cleaning products and procedures,
wherever possible,
Integrate environmental considerations into purchasing decisions,
Have a green team that includes all staff whose input is critical to make
the program work, and that consists of one or more representatives from
each department,
Raise awareness among employees about climate change and need for
environmentally responsible behaviour, as professionals and as members
of society,
Encourage engagement with the local community to raise environmental
awareness and support the communitys green initiatives

L
I
T
E
R
A
T
U
R
E
S
T
U
D
Y

The Waste Management Globe aims to reduce the waste to landfill and
thereby the Solid Waste Diversion Rate by an efficient Waste
Management Strategy. This will also enable reduction in greenhouse gas
emissions. The strategy ensures greater operational efficiency throughout
the hierarchy of the hotel. ECOTELs Waste Management effort is
centered upon the 4Rs of reduce, reuse, recycle, and recover:
Identify waste generating areas in different departments and the
composition of the waste stream in each.
Reduce waste generation through source reduction which includes
strategies like reducing consumption and packaging, substituting by
products that are designed to last longer, reusing products and materials
recovered from the waste stream in their current forms.
Recycle, compost or recover materials for use as direct or indirect inputs to
new products that can be utilized in the hotel or the community.
ECOTEL will set up policies and procedures for handling waste and
recoverable material including separation, collection, composting,
incineration and land filling and establish training programmes as part of
the overall ECOTEL training schedule. ECOTEL will monitor waste
management over time and modify the system to optimise it for the
property in question.

L
I
T
E
R
A
T
U
R
E
S
T
U
D
Y

ECOTEL aims to assist hotels in reducing their consumption rate,

maintaining quality of water and reducing pollution in discharge
water by the following hierarchy of tasks:
Implement a responsible water management system on the
property.
Reduce water consumption through installation of low-flow
plumbing fixtures and efficient toilets.
Reduce water consumption through water efficient operations in
the hotel.
Reduce freshwater consumption through reuse (including natural
sources) and recycling of water (includes grey water treatment).
Ensure good quality of water is used in the hotel for drinking,
cooking and other hotel operations. Implement measures to
minimize pollutants in the discharge and ground water.

L
I
T
E
R
A
T
U
R
E
S
T
U
D
Y

For a hotel, training its staff to its environmental programme is no

less important than the programme itself.
A well-thought-out and well-executed education and training
effort is a prerequisite for environmental initiatives to be both
successful and sustainable.
The basic purpose of staff training is to instruct and guide hotel
employees about the procedures and practices they must follow,
for their department to achieve its environmental targets.
A hotels community awareness and outreach effort is a good
barometer of its environmental commitment.

L
I
T
E
R
A
T
U
R
E
S
T
U
D
Y

The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEEDINDIA) Green Building Rating System is a nationally and
internationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction
and operation of high performance green buildings.
LEED-INDIA provides building owners, architects, consultants,
developers, facility managers and project managers the tools they
need to design, construct and operate green buildings.
LEED-INDIA promotes a whole-building approach to
sustainability by recognizing performance in the following five
key areas:
Sustainable site development
Water savings
Energy efficiency
Materials selection and
Indoor environmental quality

L
I
T
E
R
A
T
U
R
E
S
T
U
D
Y