Just days before the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Formula One drivers Romain Grosjean and Pastor Maldonado, who drive for the Renault-powered Lotus F1 Team, electrified the world’s largest shopping and entertainment destination through 100% electric vehicle, Renault Twizy.
Renault has teamed up with Formula 1 drivers and The Dubai Mall to make an original film featuring Renault Twizy, a car which uses technology from the world of Formula One. Avant-garde design, fun to drive and easy to recharge, Twizy is the first electric car available in the U.A.E.
Through the electrically-powered car the drivers raced down the alleys of The Dubai Mall, while visitors were gazing at the unusual scenes. From the Fountains to the Aquarium and even the ice rink, drivers went around iconic places of the famous Mall.
Renault Twizy has definitely charmed Lotus F1 drivers and the visitors of The Dubai Mall!
Enjoy the first video fully shot with GoPro. Si2 first took to the skies in June, soaring across Switzerland and getting its first view of the Alps. The aircraft has now flown 21 times; with pilots seeking out the sun wherever possible at 8,500m. Co-Founders & Pilots André Borschberg and Bertrand Piccard are both confident in the capability of the aircraft and themselves to pilot Si2 for the First Round-The-World Solar Flight.
100 days from now, Solar Impulse will take off from Abu Dhabi for this pioneering journey. Between now and then, Si2 will be dismantled, packed into a cargo plane and reassembled in Abu-Dhabi.
Get more information about the project: http://www.solarimpulse.com
Environmental groups are accusing Walmart of falling short on a number of its well-publicized sustainability goals. The world’s largest retailer still relies heavily on carbon-intensive coal power in U.S. stores and facilities, despite a longstanding promise to invest in renewable energy, critics said in a report released Thursday. Only 3 percent of Walmart’s electricity use comes…
Take one outdated commercial building in Sunnyvale, California, one crack engineering and architecture team, some top Silicon Valley technologies, and one audacious design challenge. The result? 435 Indio. A building transformed from non descript 70s tilt up to sleek, modern, drool-worthy work space for any Bay Area startup.
Custom designed skylights bring in an abundance of natural light, complimented by Lunera LED lights and Enlighted lighting sensors. View glass automatically adjusts to heat and glare. Indoor air quality is optimized though operable windows and Big Ass fans.
John Picard, President & CEO, John Picard and Associates: “What’s amazing is the technologies all came from this area, are the drivers for the design, and the engineering drivers that are bringing the potential for the productivity.”
Interface carpets made from reclaimed fishing nets, zero waste bathrooms from Dyson, a fabric ceiling for acoustics and polished concrete floors for natural insulation. Last but not least, the net zero energy building is 100% powered by solar.
Gary Dillabough, Managing Partner at the Westly Group: “We designed this to have an exceptional tenant who can do something extraordinary in the world and this becomes the place they do that in.”
Visit 435indio.com for more information.
Last week the 2014 version of the ASHRAE 189.1 Green Building Standard was published and became available for use.
ANSI/ASHRAE/USGBC/IES Standard 189.1-2014, Standard for the Design of High-Performance, Green Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings, addresses site sustainability; water-use efficiency; energy efficiency; indoor environmental quality; and the building’s impact on the atmosphere, materials and resources.
Standard 189.1 is an alternative compliance option of the International Green Construction Code. When Baltimore City adopted the IgCC last week, its enactment expressly described that buildings designed in compliance with Standard 189.1 were exempt from compliance with the IgCC. Given the timing of the enactment, Baltimore adopted the December 2011 version of 189.1.
The 2014 standard incorporates 67 addenda, reflecting changes made through the public review process since the standard was last published in 2011. Appendix H gives brief descriptions and approval dates of the addenda included in this new edition.
According to ASHRAE, major changes in the 2014 edition include:
To appreciate the importance of a republished ASHRAE 189.1, note that the Department of Defense, the largest owner of buildings in North America, that is also the owner or more green building and more LEED certified building than anyone else, based its Unified Facilities Criteria 1-200-02 High Performance And Sustainable Building Requirement on 2009 version of the Standard.
This may also be the last time the ASHRAE publishes 189.1 as an independent standard. In August the International Code Council, ASHRAE, the American Institute of Architects, the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America, and the U.S. Green Building Council announced the signing of a memorandum to collaborate on the development of future versions of Standard 189.1.
To order Standard visit www.ashrae.org/bookstore.