Green technologies make Netcare Christiaan Barnard Memorial Hospital in Cape Town, South Africa, a model for sustainable hospital operations management, according to an article on the Cape Business News website.
A double-skin façade and electricity-generating elevators are some of the environmentally sensitive design features of the new facility that are expected to contribute to cost efficiencies.
The building's 'intelligent' exterior façade has an external glass skin with a void separating it from the building's internal glass windows. The double skin insulates the interior hospital environment.
The void within the two walls can be ventilated when the building needs to be cooled down, or closed to warm it up.