ISO Event on Standardization Discusses Buildings for a Sustainable Future
October 27, 2008 // Published as a news service by IHS
| |
| Construction Industry Tools |
IHS sells a full selection of standards, ICC building codes and Plan Analyst software to check compliance.
To learn more, and for a free quote, please complete the form below. |
|
An open session at the recent 31st International Organization for Standardization (ISO) General Assembly in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, addressed buildings for a sustainable future.
The event addressed the expectations on international standardization in this area and highlighted a number of examples around the world.
ISO said it was also intended to foster new avenues for the development of ISO standards supporting the incorporation of new technologies and best practice for the construction and operation of the sustainable buildings of the future.
The background to the open session was that with sustainability becoming a global imperative, the trade in products and services more open and the design and construction of buildings more subject to international competition, international standards must provide the means by which sustainable technologies and best practices can be disseminated and implemented efficiently and effectively on a global scale.
The keynote address was delivered by Louise Cox, president of the International Union of Architects, who spoke about "sustainable building for the global village: the vision and standards needs for architects and designers."
Cox pointed out that over the past decade, communities in cities and towns around the world recognize that large-scale efficiency and energy conservation programs and the introduction of revolutionary renewable energy generation technologies tangibly help to pursue visions of the future.
"Renewable energy technology and other carbon emissions reduction programs are being introduced most visibly, and at an increasing, ultimately global scale," she said.
"International standards in architecture, building and engineering, alternative energies and landscape design need to develop with this change and should not always be prescriptive. They could be performance based, to encourage innovation and adjustment to suit differing cultures and applications," Cox said.
"For the developed and developing world, heritage and sustainability issues, equity, social responsibility, cultural identity, resistance to natural disasters, all need to be considered in integrated sustainable design and in standards."
Two panel sessions addressed:
- Standards for energy efficient and environmental friendly buildings.
- Standards for security, safety and accessibility in buildings.
Source: International Organization for Standardization (ISO).