Indian school inspired by innovative 'green' buildings at Jubilee campus

25 March 2014

A UK based entrepreneur has taken inspiration from the sustainable buildings at the Jubilee campus, where he successfully completed an MBA in 2009, to construct a new 'green' school in India.

Shail Chauhan is a leading figure in a newly formed family education trust, the Captain Chauhan Foundation, which focuses on school education. The Foundation recently launched the Pearson School in Jaipur in partnership with Pearson Education Services. The school offers quality world-class K12 education and the launch of the primary section marks the first phase in its construction.

Shail explained: "When our Trust embarked on construction of first phase of the 90,000 sq ft school campus, inspired by the innovative green buildings of Nottingham University, we made a decision to make our building green and energy efficient, something which is done very well in buildings at Jubilee Campus.

"In its first phase 31,000 sq ft energy efficient primary school building is operational. Jaipur, located in the west of India, experiences hot weather for majority of the year, so it was essential for us to use innovative design and technology to keep the building cool and reduce use of energy especially in the peak summer months. After research we agreed on using Geo Thermal Energy to cool the air which is being pumped in the building via wind catchers and use of innovative architecture to keep away direct sun glares but without losing the sunlight. The use of geo thermal technology to cool air in this way is being used for the first time in entire state of Rajasthan."

The new school building boasts numerous green initiatives including:

Air Flow - geo thermal energy

Natural air flow through combinations of slits and atrium voids making air lose its temperature due to pressure change. For peak summer months, mechanical airflow system cools air via Geo Thermal Tunnels, keeping the overall temperature of the building down by 10-12%.

Eco-friendly materials

Use of fly ash bricks that provide better insulation and are also eco-friendly.

Innovative energy efficient design

Building orientation in a specific direction to avoid solar cut i.e. direct sunlight thus reducing heat gain.

Indoor (classrooms) glare protection

Orientation of windows in a way that avoids any direct sun glares in classrooms eliminating any need for artificial lighting during the day.

Water conservation

Rain water harvesting and water reusing facility.