USU PR - On May 11 and 12, 2023, the World Class University (WCU) Research Team of the Universitas Sumatera Utara (USU), Scheme 'Green Building Scientific Cluster to Realize Urban Environmental Quality' visited Universiti Sains Malaysia and Penang, Malaysia.

The team was led by Hilma Tamiami Fachrudin, ST, M.Sc, Ph.D., GP from the Department of Architecture, and members included Ir. Rahmi Karolina, ST. MT. IPM. GP from the Department of Civil Engineering and Mohammad Dolok Lubis, S.T., M.Sc from the Department of Architecture, Faculty of Engineering, USU.

In addition to targeting KPI 3 of Higher Education, namely lecturers doing activities off campus, this scientific cluster program also targets KPI 2 of Higher Education, explaining that students gain experience aside from campus. As a result, Devi Fahreza, S.T., a Postgraduate student in the Master's Program in Civil Engineering, was invited to participate in this program. The team left for Penang on May 10, 2023.

The team then held a Focus Group Discussion with Prof. Dr. Ahmad Sanusi Hassan about green buildings in Malaysia on Thursday, May 11, 2023. The team also met with the Dean of the School of Housing, Building, and Planning at Universiti Sains Malaysia to discuss faculty collaboration through MoA and AI.

"We welcome the activities of the scientific cluster," said Universiti Sains Malaysia's Dean of School Housing, Building, and Planning, Assoc. Prof. Ts. Dr. Mohd Rodzi Bin Ismail.

The collaboration will consist of joint research, publications, and conferences. During the meeting, Prof. Dr. Ahmad Sanusi Hassan invited the research team to a joint conference in Bangkok in January 2024 with other universities from Oman and Thailand.

The team also held a Focus Group Discussion with Mr. Baylon Tham of the Malaysia Green Building Council. Prof. Sanusi and Mr. Baylon explained the measurement of green buildings using Malaysia Green Building Council rating tools and examples of green buildings in Malaysia and Pulau Pinang at the meeting.

The team visited green buildings in Penang on Friday, May 12, 2023. The first structure seen was the Paramit Building in Bukit Minyak, Penang, Malaysia. Mr. Loh Chee Keong, the Paramit Building's Facilities Manager, greeted the team.

This structure serves as an electronics factory and has a forest design concept. The building prioritizes energy conservation by emphasizing natural lighting, a planned air conditioning system on the building floor, and air conditioning to keep the room temperature between 22 and 25 degrees Celsius. Energy savings can amount to up to 40% of normal energy consumption.

The team then visited the MBPP (Majlis Bandaraya Pulau Pinang) Night Shelter for the Homeless. Mr. Baylon Tham, the building's architect, accompanied the team. This structure is intended for homeless people on the island of Pulau Pinang. This structure consumes no energy, water, or waste. With roosters in the building, natural lighting, and ventilation are maximized.

Gray water is collected from taps and reprocessed for use in watering plants. Rainwater will also be collected and reused to flush toilets. This building's waste is collected and recycled into compost.

Hilma stated that the USU hoped that the Focus Group Discussion and Site Visit that the Green Building Scientific Cluster team had conducted to Realize Urban Environmental Quality would serve as the foundation for further increasing public awareness of the importance of green buildings in Medan City and Indonesia, as well as to support Indonesia's commitment to achieving Net Zero Emissions by 43% by 2030.

"Green buildings will benefit building users in particular and impact the environmental quality of urban areas in general," he said on Friday (19/5).