The battle against climate change has become one of the most important issues in recent years for global citizens and corporations, such as Siemens and the Taipei 101 Tower, which have recently offered to team up to fight against global warming at the local level.

After enthusiastically participating in Earth Day and Earth Hour campaigns in recent years, as well as implementing measures for saving energy and cutting the carbon footprint of elevators and equipment, the Taipei landmark building announced yesterday its application for 'LEED' (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification as a 'green building.'

Although Taiwan industries are relatively unfamiliar with the eco-friendly rating systems, LEED is the biggest building rating system in the world. About 70 countries follow this system developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) to map out their architecture construction -- totaling nearly 400 million square meters.

“Climate change is changing our environment and [exacerbating] the scarcity of resources,” said Andreas Schierenbeck, CEO of Siemens Building Technologies Division's Building Automation Business Unit.

“As buildings are using so much energy, I think it is essential for us to take a position in trying to save money and costs,” he added.

Architecture which acquires LEED certification, for instance, limits its impact on the environment and is operated in an energy-saving manner to provide higher-efficiency space for helping the proprietor and tenants save power expenses and take the responsibility to fight against global warming.

Obtaining LEED certification, on the other hand, means the accomplishment of green architecture being approved internationally -- for new buildings and building stocks as well.

“The existing building stock is where the biggest opportunity is and also the biggest challenge,” said Peter Halliday, vice president of Siemens Limited's Industry Sector Building Technologies Division.

“Doing LEED in an existing building -- that's the big challenge; you have 10,000 people working in this building everyday, and to put in new processes and address air quality, environmental control, purchasing of materials and sustainability, that's a big challenge,” he added.

Siemens Building Technologies Division provided Taipei 101 with a holistic, comprehensive building automation and energy management system, as well as a unique water distribution system for HVAC controls.

With over 3,400 terminal box controllers located throughout the construction, Asia's largest water distribution system controls the temperature and climate inside the building.

The system produces and stores ice at night to save the cooling load during the day time. Producing ice through the night when the external temperature is lower helps to minimize the usage of energy and thus the impact on the environment and it also saves energy costs because of lower power rates at off-peak hours.

Siemens is also Taipei 101's major contributor for the categories of “Energy and Atmosphere” and “Indoor Environment Quality” of LEED EBOM, and provides the consultancy and implementation of the necessary strategies, plans, and engineering works for energy saving and the improvement of indoor air quality.

In order to promote such LEED certification, Schierenbeck remarked that there is a need for changing existing legislation on green buildings, set up incentive system to encourage landlords and tenants to invest in such technologies, and set an example, such as Taipei 101.

The Taipei landmark is a 101-story super high-rise located in downtown Taipei City. The multi-purpose complex incorporates a collection of retail shops, restaurants and prestigious offices. It demonstrates prominent design combining modern enthusiasm, cultural influence, artistic fine works and advanced technology.