“Well planned buildings must, to minimize loss from natural or man-made disasters”, say experts

Press Release

“Well planned buildings must, to minimize loss from natural or man-made disasters”, say experts


New Delhi, March 30, 2006 : The Indian construction industry and all its facilitators like architects, engineers etc., should observe a strict disaster proof and eco-friendly building plan, which not only minimizes loss on account of natural or man-made disasters but also helps in energy conservation.

Professor Frederic Schwartz, a leading design critic and a Professor of Architecture at the Harvard Graduate School of Design, Harvard University, said this while addressing a seminar on “Rebuilding Cities after Natural or Man-Made Disasters”, here in Delhi on Wednesday. The seminar was attended by various architects, designers, engineers and students of architecture.

Professor Schwartz, who is also a practicing architect and a city planner in New York City was in New Delhi as part of the Rai Foundation - Rai Global Spark initiative.

He specifically advised against the rising exterior use of glass in commercial buildings coming up in various parts of the country like Delhi, Gurgaon etc.

“Glass should be best avoided as they are not suited to Indian weather conditions. In western countries including US, glass windows are used in buildings to trap heat from the sun as these are mostly cold weather countries. India is a hot weather country and needs to trap cold instead of heat,” he said.

“Most of the buildings should have proper walls with ventilation system instead of too many glass windows. This is the reason that none of the old architecture in India had glass-based construction. They rather had thick brick and mortar walls, which not only made them more safer but also led to energy conservation," he asserted.

“An ideal building plan should also focus on effective land use, water harvesting, using passive fire prevention systems with proper mandatory landscaping and solid waste management system. This apart, architectural design parameters should lay stress on insulation, daylight utilization, natural ventilation, shielding, acoustics, window area and its disposition,” he said.


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On the problem of country’s infrastructure and traffic problems, Professor Schwartz said, the solution to this lies in growing vertically instead of spreading out.

During his address Prof. Schwartz spoke about the 9/11 tragedy and how New York was slowly preparing to rebuild on ground zero. He said, that for a fast growing city like New Delhi, planning and development is the key and investment on infrastructure a must.

Prof. Schwartz who led the team of architects designing mega projects like the Westway State Park and Highway and the one of its kind Staten Island Ferry Terminal in New York, feels that, “The more you spread out, the more you have to worry about transporting and moving people.”

He further pointed out that “imagine how efficient the city would be if people don’t spend this much time traveling. City planners should work towards providing a public transport system that takes vehicles off the road. Every major city in the world has grown with its transportation.”

Prof. Schwartz insisted that, “any growing city needs planning and the planning initiative should be such that while building, it continues to preserve green spaces, historically important spaces, etc. City planners should think into the future when planning the infrastructure for the city, it should, not only meet the needs of today but also the growth possibilities of tomorrow.”

Rai Foundation with its apex aim to provide equal opportunities for education to all, has started a long term series of the event “Rai Global SPARK - A Lecture Series of Professional & Radical Knowledge” where Professors and renowned Academicians from various top-ranking Universities like Harvard University, New York University, Stanford University, University of Leeds etc from throughout the world, will be coming to India to enlighten students and people from related sectors or industry with current methodologies and best practices adhered worldwide.

As the name suggests, the aim of this exercise is to create a “Spark” of desire to excel and promote the linkage of theory to practice and encourage moral responsibility, life-long learning, and engaged citizenship from internationally acclaimed academicians, armoring people with knowledge and skills focused on Global Education and Trends.
This exercise of International level will be first if its kind to be held here in India to provide more and more students and aspirants to be able to interact, convene and listen to the crème de la crème of International Academia. The Professor is visiting metros like Delhi, Mumbai, and Bangalore.


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Rai Foundation will be working in tandem with these top-notch academicians in creating a regenerated society facilitating accessibility to global education and trends.


For Further Information, Please Contact;

Girish Singhal
Propel Communications
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