The newly released ‘Awareness to Action: Insights for a Greener Built Environment’ report, jointly developed with SGBC Founding Member Schneider Electric, tracks a notable shift in corporate attitudes since its 2023 edition.
Although 74% of businesses plan to increase their use of green buildings in the next 1-2 years, up from 52% in 2023, implementation challenges are increasingly complex. Participants surveyed mostly favour retrofitting over relocation or newbuild construction, with building owners citing a desire to extend the life of existing structures and tenants hoping to avoid incurring relocation costs. The skew towards retrofitting was more marked among tenants, who would face challenges moving out of current premises into greener buildings. Landlords showed a more even split between a retrofitting and a newbuild strategy, with some citing newbuilds as a better way to incorporate green building technologies.
The study also suggests green building technologies are delivering both cost savings and emissions reductions, with respondents recording up to 20% in energy savings over the past 12 months. Digital twin solutions and AI solutions showed the most promise, with roughly a quarter of respondents reporting cost reductions of 30% to 49%. As technologies improve and implementation levels rise, respondents also expect savings to increase to as much as 45% over the next five years.
In light of these findings, the report lists three recommendations to further accelerate the adoption of green buildings in Singapore:
- Retrofitting must become a priority
- Business leaders should broaden their perspectives when calculating the costs and returns from green building adoption
- A larger pool of green building professionals, such as SGBC’s Green Mark Professionals, is needed to support companies in their green transition
