ACREX Hall of Fame is an event eagerly awaited by the Indian building industry every year. It celebrates excellence in the industry; being inducted into the Hall of Fame is a coveted recognition.

The fourth edition of ACREX Hall of Fame – powered by Danfoss – was held at Sahara Star on the evening of March 1. This year, the focus was on buildings in the hospitality and healthcare sectors – two of the fastest growing sectors in the country, which are undergoing huge transformation.

ISHRAE President C. Subramaniam spelt out the rationale for instituting the Hall of Fame – to recognise iconic buildings that create benchmarks in energy and water usage as well as indoor air quality.

Ravichandran Purushothaman, President – Danfoss India and the host of the evening, spoke about the future of cooling, decarbonisation of cities, and the journey of Danfoss. He mentioned that energy required for cooling in India accounts for over 30% of total energy use, and over 90% of total greenhouse gas emissions. This has prompted the government to prepare a National Cooling Action Plan, and to announce the Global Cooling Prize. In the context of decarbonisation, he predicted that India’s 2.5 trillion dollar economy is heading towards 10 trillion dollar by 2030, leading to rapid urbanisation that would touch the 40% mark by the end of this period. This highlights the need for decarbonisation. He announced that Danfoss India has reduced its energy footprint by 40% in 20 years since inception, despite the large increase in its business. He declared that the company’s Chennai campus will soon become carbon neutral.

Padmashri Architect C. N. Raghavendran was the next to address the gathering. He said that the Hall of Fame is growing in stature year by year. He mentioned that there were five nominations before the jury: Avasa Hotels (Hyderabad), ITC Grand Chola (Chennai), ITC Maurya (New Delhi), Radisson Blu Atria (Bangalore), and Sir H. N. Reliance Hospital & Research Centre (Mumbai).

The hall reverberated with deafening applause when ITC Grand Chola was announced as the building worthy of induction into the Hall of Fame in 2019. The plaques symbolising the induction were presented by C. N. Raghavendran, Ravichandran Purushothaman, C. Subramaniam and V. Krishnan. Representatives from ITC Grand Chola, C. R. Narayana Rao (Architect), and Environmental Design Solutions (Consultant) were on the stage to receive the plaques. With over 1.6 million sq. ft. space, the ITC Grand Chola is the largest hotel of the ITC Group and the world’s largest LEED Platinum rated building. The hotel is a pioneer in the usage of heat pumps in the hospitality industry.

On this occasion, a coffee table book on ACREX Hall of Fame 2019 was released.

The Jury for the award was headed by Dr. Ajay Mathur (DG – TERI), and comprised C. Subramaniam, Sushil Choudhury, V. Krishnan, Pradeep Sureka, L. Nagahari Krishna, Ar. Sandeep Shikre, and Ar. Sheila Sriprakash. They were felicitated for discharging their onerous responsibility diligently.

ACREX 2019 Convenor Kapil Purandare proposed the vote of thanks.