Sustainability is an important topic these days and for good reason. At McLundie Architects, we love sustainable architecture, so we’ve decided to define why incorporating it into your commercial or residential building design is important, how it can be beneficial to you as well as to the environment, and some ways sustainability can be incorporated into your next building project.

Benefits of Sustainable Architecture

There are a plethora of reasons why sustainable architecture is making a big impact in the building design world today.

• Environmental Benefits: reduced water consumption, improved air and water quality indoors and out, lower emissions, better energy efficiency, and less waste of natural resources equate to better overall preservation of the natural environment where a new building is constructed.
• Economic Benefits: Protecting the environment through sustainable building design and construction can be less expensive, especially in the long-term. It can increase the longevity of the building, require less on-going maintenance, and increase a home or business re-sale value. For businesses operating out of a sustainable building, you can also add to this list the reduction of operating costs and increase in productivity for those working there too, all of which directly and positively affect expense.
• Social Benefits: There are a number of social benefits to investing in sustainable architecture too. It’s more aesthetically beautiful, more comfortable, and healthier for those who live or work in it, which directly factor into the environmental and economic benefits sustainable architecture provide.

Choosing sustainable architecture in your building design is a win-win situation for all stakeholders. You, your community, and the environment will all benefit from it in a number of ways and there’s no real negatives to incorporating any sustainable feature into your building design. It’s not a difficult thing to do either, as while there are some high-tech ways to make your building more sustainable, often all that’s needed is some professional guidance and thoughtful design planning!

Incorporating Sustainable Architecture Into Your Design

• Sustainable Building Locations: Choosing where to build can very much be a part of your sustainable architecture plan. A building site with easy accessibility to roads and public transport can mean less travel time and expense for materials and people who will be living or working in it, cutting costs and emissions at the same time. Renovating an existing building instead of building a new one from the ground up can sometimes (but not always) be a more sustainable option too.
• Building Shape: Creating spaces that incorporate as much natural light as possible with considered building shape and orientation not only boosts mood, motivation, and productivity of people in both residential and commercial buildings, it can greatly reduce the need for artificial lighting too, cutting costs and reducing electricity usage. In fact, here in Gibraltar and the Costa del Sol, optimising your natural lighting can cut electricity and energy bills by up to 75% – all while improving the environment we live in.
• Local Materials and Landscaping: Using materials that are local to the region a building will be built in mean less transport time of those materials which is not only better for the environment, it’s more cost effective too. Incorporating local materials into building construction here on the Costa del Sol also means that they are well-versed in the natural weather patterns, extreme heat, and microclimates we experience here which can keep your building standing longer and with less need for expensive maintenance or repair. In landscaping, this can also mean not having to worry about intrusive species damaging or destroying your gardens and the environment.
• Use Energy-Efficient Materials and Features: Certain products and materials can dramatically reduce the amount of energy your building requires, cutting on-going costs to you while helping the environment. Talk to the expert architects at McLundie Architects about the use and placement of windows, incorporating dimmable lighting or lighting sensors indoors, and adding solar panels to your rooftop design to optimize energy efficiency in your building design.
• Conserve Water: Outdoor irrigation systems that recycle water or utilize rainwater are an ideal sustainable building practice if your building design has any outdoor space. Indoors, modern architecture design can incorporate a grey water plumbing system too, to cut back on water usage.
• Build and Decorate with Recycled Materials: Quality recycled materials can be less expensive, more environmentally friendly, and just as -or more, stylish than new. At McLundie Architects, we provide architecture as well as interior design services, so please feel free to ask us about ways we can incorporate recycled materials into both aspects of your building design.

If you are building on the Costa del Sol, contact McLundie Architects to discuss how we can make

it not only better for the environment and the people who live and work there, but better for you and your bottom line. With decades of experience in quality architecture in Spain, Gibraltar, and abroad, a  prestigious portfolio of clients and projects, and a complete team of experts in building design, construction, engineering, interior design, and more, McLundie Architects will work with you to design and create the most impressive, most luxurious, and most sustainable commercial and residential building projects to your exact specifications  from start to finish.

We love bringing new projects to life and look forward to helping bring beauty, innovation, and sustainability to yours. Please  get in touch today to get started.