Zodiac Clothing Company (ZCCL) has won Gold certificate in LEED certifications for its energy-efficient office. A trusted name in men’s wear for the last 61 years, ZCCL had recently renovated its corporate building and laying emphasis on energy saving items.

The building has been designed in such a way that sunlight reaches each floor made possible through a pyramid like rooftop skylight. Then, the office light fixtures are suspended in such a way that they project light both upwards and downwards. This helps to utilise 90 per cent of the light through reduced glare. Energy consuming projectors have been replaced with LED televisions so that less energy is consumed. Even the elevator has been replaced by a glass one which has V3F drive, thereby saving 50 per cent energy.

Windows have been laid out in a manner that natural light flows inside. Daylight sensors dim the light when there is sufficient sunlight and switch them on when there isn’t. Cooling at peak hours is provided high-energy efficiency water-cooled central chillers that use 0.67 KW per tonne instead of the normal 1.5 to 2KW per tonne.

All this has been achieved in a conventional building design. As Salman Noorani, MD, ZCCL, says, ‘if all commercial buildings in India were as efficient as ours, the country could cut energy production enough to meet the demands of the Koto Protocol’. He also believes that energy saved in this manner through green buildings can be used by the country wherever there is a shortage.

The LEED certifications acts as an extension of the identity of the brand.