Thermal and acoustic environmental requirements for green buildings in Malaysia

Passive design concepts as a strategy for achieving energy efficiency as well as optimum indoor thermal comfort in workspaces are being increasingly applied with the increased awareness of Green Buildings. The challenging task for the building designers in the hot-humid tropics is the provision of indoor thermal comfort for the occupants of the building while reducing energy consumption in the office spaces. Acoustic quality is also an important element in ensuring a healthy working environment. One of the aims of a green building is to minimise its impact on health and performance of the occupants of the building. This has been emphasized in most green building rating systems under requirements for Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ), highlighting the four main points for achieving an improved indoor environment, viz., indoor air quality, acoustics, visual comfort (lighting) and thermal comfort. Although acoustics was mentioned in the IEQ criteria, according to previous surveys and studies acoustic quality in green buildings are not improving. Acoustics performance is bound to be relegated unless it is considered early in design stage. This paper makes an attempt at how green building design strategies contribute to the degradation of acoustical environment in green office buildings. The design strategies implemented to cater for green building requirements such as provision of natural ventilation, daylight, reduction of finishes and office layout leads to an unintended decrease in the acoustical quality. This needs to be addressed and corrected by the building professionals.