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SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE, BUILDING

& SCIENCE

BUILDING SCIENCE 1 (BLD60803)

PROJECT 1: Case Study

(Identifying innovative passive design strategies)

LOCATION

The Pinnacle @ Bandar Sunway, Malaysia.

PREPARED BY:

Alex Wong 0303228

Chew Wen Lin 1007c10646

Chin Pui Man 0310331

Daniel Yap 0309100

Gan Chin Bong 0313738

Teo Kian Hui 0310165

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No

Content

Page

1

Introduction

1

2

Detailed Information

2-3

3

Appendix

4-8

4

Climate Data

9-12

5

Wind Analysis

13-14

6

Sun Path Case Studies and Psychometric Chart

15-16

7

Passive Design Features

17-23

8

Conclusion

24

9

Reference List

24-25

TABLE OF CONTENT

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The Pinnacle @ Sunway is located in Sunway Resort City Bandar Sunway, which

developed by Sunway Property. This is a 27 storey building that is chosen to be the

leading business around the state especially Petaling Jaya and Subang Jaya. In

addition, it has a floor plate of 25 thousand sq ft net that allows this building to be one

of the largest in Kuala Lumpur and Klang Valley. The building is located at strategic

location that is well connected to four major highways with excellent acces to all parts

of Kalng Valley that are Federal Highway, New Klang Valley Expressway (NKVE),

Shah Alam Expressway (KESAS) and North-South Expressway Central Link

(ELITE).

INTRODUCTION

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Project by:

Sunway Group Sdn Bhd

Building Address:

The Pinnacle

Persiaran Lagon,

Bandar Sunway

46150 Petaling Jaya

Selangor Darul Ehsan

Architect:

Perunding Alam Bina Sdn Bhd

Photo scource from: http://www.sunwayproperty.com/pd/pinnacle.asp

Figure 1: The Pinnacle

Photo scource from: http://www.sunwayproperty.com/pd/pinnacle.asp

Figure 2: Site plan

Detailed Information

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The Pinnacle is located in Sunway Resort City that holds the title of The First

International Award-Winning Green Township in Malaysia. This is a 27 storey

building that has a premier A office development with MSC status, Green office

building with GBI and BCA Green Mark Gold Accreditation. Besides that, The

Pinnacle is designed with connecting carparks to Sunway Resort Hotel and Menara

Sunway in that area. A pedestrain bridge linking both building, Sunway Resort Hotel

and Menara Sunway improve permeability of the users. In addition, this building is an

energy and water efficient through the use of high performance glazing, efficient

chillier plant system design and LED lights fitted throughout the building. It also has

rain water harvesting for irrigation and water efficient for sanitary features. The

building uses material that has low VOC (Volatile Organic Compound) paint and

adhesives and sealants. The Pinnacle Sunway project uses Virtual Design and

Construction (VDC) technology that has the Building Information Modelling (BIM)

and Integrated Project Delivery (IPD).

Green Design Features of the Pinnacle @ Sunway

Green desgin features that can be found in the Pinnacle building are

I. Low-E Double Glazing High Performance Glass

II. Horizontal Brise Soleil (Horizontal Multiple Blade Shading System)

III. Efficient Chiller Plant System Design

IV. Rainwater Harvesting for irrigation and water efficient sanitary

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Figure 4: Mezzanine Floor plan

APPENDIX

Figure 3: Ground Floor plan

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Figure 5: Level 1-12 Low Zone office layout

Figure 6: Level 13 Facilities Layout

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Figure 7: Level 13A Low Zone office layout

Figure 8: Level 15 Low Zone office layout

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Figure 9: Level 16-23 High Zone office layout

Figure 10(i) & (ii): Overhang Shade

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Figure 12: Pedestrian Bridge to Sunway Resort Hotel

Figure 11: Open air staircase

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Malaysia is located in the Southeast Asia. Malaysia has coasts along the South

China Sea. The country lies near the Equator on Latitude 4.1936º N and Longitude

103.7249º E. Because Malaysia is located near the equator, thus it has equatorial

climate with uniformly high temperatures, relatively light winds, high humidity and

abundant rainfall throughout the year.

Malaysia's climates are divided into two different seasons, which are the Northeast

Monsoon, and the Southwest Monsoon season. These two seasons are separated by

two short inter-monsoon periods.

Climatic difference happened because Malaysia has different altitude and the

exposure of coastal lowlands to the southwest and northeast monsoon winds.

Figure 13: Daily maximum and minimum temperature (ºc) chart

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

Daily Maximum (º)

Daily Minimum(º)

Climate Data

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Monthly maximum temperatures in Kuala Lumpur (which is known as the federal

capital) in Malaysia range between 31.5ºc to 33ºc. While for the minimum

temperatures ranges from 22.5ºc to 24ºc. From figure 1, December was the coolest

month throughout the year.

Figure 14: Average Sunlight and Average Daylight Chart

Malaysia receives sunlight throughout the year and it is very rare for

Malaysia to have full day of clear skies. Malaysia temperatures are

varying less than 2ºc annually.

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

Sunlight (Hours)

Daylight (Hours)

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Figure 15: Relative Humidity (%) chart

Relative humidity in Malaysia is in the range of 60% to 100% throughout the year.

Malaysia is a country where it has high level of humidity. It differs from 97% in the

morning and falls to 60% in the afternoon, when it is not raining.

Figure 16: Wet Days chart

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

Relative Humidity (AM)

Relative Humidity (PM)

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

Wet Days

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Malaysia is located on the near equator, thus the country experiences rainfall

throughout the year. As mention in the introduction, Malaysia climate is divided into

two seasons, which is;

A) Northeast Monsoon; which happens on the period of December to March. From

the chart, December achieved the highest value, which labeled as "wet phase" while

February has lower value that is labeled as "dry phase"

B) Southwest Monsoon; which happens on the period of June to September. From the

chart, this period has average number of wet days that rain usually last for most 2

hours.

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Wind Direction Percentage (%)

North 20

Northeast 14

East 6

Southeast 6

South 8

Southwest 5

West 16

Northwest 25

Table 1: Wind Direction for year 2013

Month Wind Force (kph)

January 6.8

February 6.4

March 6.2

April 6.7

May 7

June 7.3

July 6.6

August 7.7

September 6.9

October 7.3

November 6.2

December 6.6

Table 2: Wind Force for year 2013

Wind Analysis

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Wind Arrow of Malaysia

From the wind arrow chart, we can conclude that there is always strong wind

at the direction north-east while weaker wind at the direction south-east. The darker

blue represent longer period in hour, while lighter blue represent shorter period in

hour.

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Sun Path Analysis in the morning on 8 of May

Sun Path Analysis in the morning on 8 of May

Sun Path Analysis in the morning on 8 of May

Sun Path Case Studies

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Psychrometric Chart of Malaysia (same as Singapore)

From the chart above, we can conclude that to achieve thermal comfort, the

temperature and humidity of the place or area should reach within the yellow box

value showed above. The values inside the box stat that with the range of temperature

from 23 degree Celsius to 27 degree Celsius and the humidity value from 4 to 13 is

the thermal comfort zone. With the present data, a green building should have the

ability to maintain as a thermal comfort zone.

Psychrometric Chart

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Throughout this case study, two passive design features are pointed out from the

Pinnacle at Bandar Sunway. These two passive designs are:

I. Horizontal Brise Soleil (Horizontal Multiple Blade Shading System)

Figure 17: Shading devices of The Pinnacle

Tall building like Pinnacle often has a large exposing surface area towards

sunlight. Therefore, natural lighting is easier to obtain when compared to low rise

building in the surrounding. Meanwhile, it will also facing an important issue which is

the heat gain through the sun radiation. This problem can be solved by few different

methods. Two methods have been applied to overcome the enormous gain of heat.

Solar shading device is one of the passive designs that helps a building to admit

sunlight and to block it in a certain circumstance when it is beneficial. In Pinnacle, the

Passive Design Features

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Horizontal Brise Soleil Shading System is used on 70% of the surface of the building.

The shading is not extended out too much because of the orientation of the building

where sunlight does not shine directly at a low angle into the building. Extended light

shelf is used in Pinnacle to fully utilize the excessive sunlight as shown in the same

diagram above. Instead of providing shades, it also provides shading reflects the

direct sunlight into the in-door rooms to provide comfortable lighting.

Figure 18: Effect of Brise Soleil act as lightshelf

The figure 19 above show how the lightshelf works. As the material of the

light shelf is aluminium, the characteristic of create reflection have contribute in

lighten up the interior of the building. Thus, the beam of sunlight will not strike into

the building directly which create less heat radiation while produce a certain amount

of light towards the building. Therefore, electrical energy required for interior

artificial lighting can be gradually reduced which contributed in honoring this

building as a Green Building. Besides, in cooperate of using advanced glass

technology, Low-E Double Glazing High-Performance Glass, the sustaining of the

thermal comfort zone inside the building has greatly been achieve.

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Figure 19: Effect of Low-E Double Glazing High-Performance Glass

Figure 20: Effect of Low-E Double Glazing High-Performance Glass

High performance glass is essential to the energy efficiency. With most of the

Pinnacle building façade being filled with glasses, it certainly plays an important role

to how well it can save energy and at the same time being eco-friendly. At a tropical

country like Malaysia, most of the energy is consumed by using air conditioner to

cool our in-door building. Therefore, more energy is needed especially if the entire

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building facade is covered with glass because more heat will entire directly into the

building and thus the temperature will increase making the interior building feels

hotter.

Pinnacle has used double glazing that is not no common or suitable in tropical

country. When combined with low- Emission coating, it worked more than effectively

with U value of 1.2-1.8. (GBI).

Air is a poor conductor of heat; a double glazing had certainly done the job of

significantly reducing the heat from entering the building because heat is trapped

between the layers. Moreover, with the extra low-E coating, long wave infared

radiation is also reflected. In another way, it provides resistance to heat gain. Since

heat transfer cannot be stopped, it does drastically slow down the process of heat

transfer. This certainly cuts down the electrical bill when the spaces are cooler for

longer period of time and air-conditioning uses less energy. Besides that, lesser

greenhouse gasses are emitted therefore making it very environmental friendly.

With this, the comfort zone of 25ºc-28ºc can be easily obtained with a good

insulator such as the low-E double glazing to avoid heat transfer from outside the

building. In addition, thermal comfort is achieved.

II. Sky Garden @ level 13

The sky garden at Pinnacle, Sunway offers unobstructed views of Sunway

Resort City that is located at one corner of the building facing South-west. The sky

garden placed at level 13 provides a new relaxation to new height that facilitates

natural ventilation and free flowing air. The main function of this garden is for the

worker and nature to interact with each other. Because of the environment we live in,

there aren't much plantation and greenery around us, therefore, this building provides

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some greenery which can't be found throughout the city. In addition, it is able to

provide some fresh air and beauty towards the building itself.

(source: http://www.iproperty.com.my/propertylisting/1643414/bandar-sunway-office-forrent)

Figure 21: Sky garden; Sky lounge

Figure 22: Ventilation of wind at sky garden@ level 13

Due to the sky garden is facing the South-West, thus the sunlight is being

controlled during daytime. Therefore, the placing of sky garden plays a role on how it

can save energy and at the same time have high aesthetic value by providing a cooling

effect towards the surrounding of the garden.

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Malaysia is located in the Southeast Asia, the designed location of the sky

garden which is located towards South-west direction have maximize utilize the wind

ventilation during Southwest Monsoon. Therefore, an intensive green roof concept is

used to design the terrace surrounding the sky bar. The plants is based on the climate

and weather condition such as crawler types based plant for design, flowering plants

for beauty and small trees for cooling effects. With the carefully selected types of

plants and design, maintained is being reduce therefore the cost and hiring worker is

also being reduce at the same time. The density of the plants provide some shelter

from the rain which is also slowing down the heavy downfall especially during the

monsoon season.

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After some site visits to Sunway Pinnacle Office Tower, we found out that the

building is not fully completed for the wiring and electrician part. Due to that reason,

the building manager, Mr Kurma, can allow us to visit some part of the building.

Although we were limited from some spaces of the building, we still manage to

interview Mr Kurma. From what we were told, the building has a gold standard from

the Green Building for a reason. From the outside of the building, it doesn't look

much of a standout but when you reach the interior and take a closer look, the

building actually has the design and technology to support it as a green building. In

addition, this building is one of the first Green Building in Malaysia from what Mr

Kurma had said. From the visitation paid to the site, we get to know that this building

is a sub-branch from the main building at the side with an addition of Green

Technology apply into it. We were expecting the building to be done by the end of

last year 2013 but when we got there, it is only 95+% complete. Since then, we are

not allow to go up to experience the spaces on top. We suggested that they should

provide more shading effect from the main building to the new building because of

the weather in Malaysia. In addition, the ventilation for air is not as ventilated as we

thought and most of the lighting is not natural lighting but artificial lighting.

Conclusion

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1. Climate of Malaysia. (n.d.). Climate of Malaysia. Retrieved April 27, 2014, from

http://www.eoearth.org/view/article/151260/

2. Malaysian Meteorological Department. (n.d.). Malaysian Meteorological

Department. Retrieved April 27, 2014, from

http://www.met.gov.my/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=75&Itm

mid=1089

3. www.weatheronline.co.uk/weather/maps/city?LANG=en&CEL=C&SI=mph

MAPS=over&CONT=asie&LAND=MM&REGION=0027&WMO=48647&UP=

&R=0&LEVEL=160&NOREGION=1

4. Sunway SBN. BHD, December 2013, The Pinnacle Building Handbook,

Introduction, page 1, 5

5. Sunway Property, December 2013, The Pinnacle, Concept, (6 May 2014),

Retrieved From http://www.sunwayproperty.com/pd/pinnacle.asp#

6. Starproperty.my, 22 November 2013, The Pinnacle Sunway, A Prime Green Office

Building, Property News, (6 May 2014) Retrieved From

Reference List

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http://www.starproperty.my/index.php/articles/property-news/the-pinnacle-sunway-a-

prime-green-office-building-with-excellent-connectivity/

7. The (perfect) Pinnacle. (n.d.). Retrieved May 1, 2014, from

http://www.sunwayproperty.com/The_(perfect)_Pinnacle.aspx

8. Retrieved May 1, 2014, from

http://wongcy.iagent.my/default.aspx?p=ShowListing&pid=2580268

9. The Pinnacle Sunway, a prime green office building - Malaysia Premier Property

and Real Estate Portal. (n.d.). Retrieved May 1, 2014, from

http://www.starproperty.my/index.php/articles/property-news/the-pinnacle-sunway-a-

prime-green-office-building-with-excellent-connectivity/

10. Rainwater Harvesting Systems | Rainwater Harvester Tanks | OASIS. (n.d.).

Retrieved May 1, 2014, from http://oasis-rainharvesting.co.uk/