Schneider Electric: More than half of KL's offices urgently need modernisation to meet energy efficiency standards

• Quah said one of the most critical elements of building modernisation efforts includes using an advanced building management system (BMS). 

KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 8): Some 56% of existing offices in Kuala Lumpur need urgent modernisation to meet the current building codes energy efficiency requirements, according to French-based digital automation and energy management corporation Schneider Electric.

In Innovation Day Kuala Lumpur 2024 organised by Schneider Electric Malaysia on Tuesday at Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre, Schneider Electric global account executive and regional segment director of real estate Kusum Verma said about two-thirds of country's infrastructure is 15 to 20 years old, and about 56% of offices in Kuala Lumpur needs urgent modernisation.

“In Malaysia, about two-thirds of country's infrastructure right now is almost 15 to 20 years old and it does not meet the current building codes energy efficiency requirements or for that matter safety requirements. These infrastructures are supposed to stay in use till 2050. Now if you look at Kuala Lumpur, specifically the office market, it has 56% stock that is very old and needs urgent modernisation to meet the current office modern requirements,” said Kusum during the panel discussion entitled Intelligent Buildings Designs for a Smarter Malaysia.

The panel discussion, which explored modernising Malaysia's ageing buildings to support sustainable growth and reduce carbon emissions, was moderated by Kusum. The panelists were Rehda Institute chairman Datuk Jeffrey Ng, CapitaLand Investment Ltd chief customer solutions officer Alywin Tan and JLL APAC technology advisory senior director Alan Chin. 

In the session, Kusum also stressed that Malaysia needs to accelerate its agenda for intelligent buildings, as it is sustainable by being equipped with flexible energy assets and various electronic sources; resilient by being able to recover quickly; hyper-efficient by being seamless enough to be controlled by an end-to-end digital platform; and people-centric by being responsive to its occupants.

Therefore, she highlighted the need to prioritise retrofitting ageing buildings with advanced technologies. This, she said, would help attract tenants and increase property value. 

Meanwhile, commenting during a media brief, Schneider Electric country president for Malaysia Eugene Quah said one of the most critical elements of building modernisation efforts includes using an advanced building management system (BMS). 

“Today’s advanced BMS can future-proof a facility and meet the industry’s evolving demands including efficiency, sustainability, health, comfort and enhanced technical capabilities like IoT [Internet of things], cloud computing, AI [artificial intelligence] and analytics. These upgrades offer deeper insights and allow for more precise control at the room level instead of an overall view of a floor.”

In another panel discussion of the event, which was entitled Energy transition and way forward for 2030, panellists discussed the strategies and collaborative efforts to achieve Malaysia’s energy transition targets by 2030. The session was moderated by Schneider Electric vice president of Asia-Pacific (Energies and chemicals) Christopher Chan, while the panellists were Quah, Energy Commission deputy director of energy efficiency and conservation (Department of industry operation) Zulkiflee Umar, Petronas head of Borneo opportunities (Project delivery and technology) Mohd Faudzi Mohd Yasir, and Institution of Engineers Malaysia deputy president Yau Chau Fong. 

“Energy consumption contributes to nearly 80% of carbon emissions. Our immediate priority must be to fully leverage readily available technologies to avert climate crises and ensure safe, reliable and sustainable energy distribution and usage. In fact, 70% of carbon emissions that are generated by energy can be reduced using existing technology. 

“Electrification is one of the best approaches to tackle carbon and greenhouse gas emissions. We believe that a data-driven approach encompassing industrial automation, digitisation and digital twin technology, offers a clear pathway to Malaysia’s 2050 net-zero emission goals,” said Quah.

The full-day Innovation Day Kuala Lumpur 2024 also featured an exhibition showcasing Schneider Electric’s latest sustainability-related innovations. The exhibition showcased four main themes namely, “Leverage digital transformation in water sector for decarbonisation”; “Modernising ageing buildings to minimise carbon emissions”; “Grid modernisation supports the energy transition”; and “Digitise and electrify to drive decarbonisation of industries in Malaysia”. 

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