The newly-opened Tune Hotel KLIA2 has received a double recognition for its green technology and energy-efficient features.

Beyond the conventional green products of LED lights and energy-efficient equipment, Tune Hotels has taken its green initiative further by employing a holistic sustainability agenda driven into its building design right from the beginning.

The hotel has been awarded a provisional Gold Rating by the Green Building Index (GBI) Accreditation Panel and subsequently submitted as the first demonstration project under the Building Sector Energy Efficiency Project (BSEEP), a national project implemented by the Public Works Department Malaysia in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and co-funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF). BSEEP has for its goal the reduction in the annual growth rate of emissions from buildings in Malaysia by promoting energy conserving designs of new buildings.

Tune Hotel klia2 was officially opened today by the Deputy Minister of Energy, Green Technology and Water Malaysia, Dato’ Seri Mahdzir Khalid.

Deputy Minister Dato’ Seri Mahdzir Khalid said: “I am very pleased to be here today to witness a very local homegrown brand making giant efforts in embracing the usage of energy and water efficiency, as well as green technology. Today, the need to care for our environment has never been more crucial. It is no longer a ‘special interest’ but a mission entrusted upon all of us to save our only planet we have got from environmental degradation. It is part of the Government’s objective to accelerate the national economy and promote sustainable development through efficient energy use. We want to improve the quality of life for Malaysians, increase national economic development by means of technology and safeguard the integrity of the environment.”

At the event, the Deputy Minister also presented the Gold GBI certification to Mark Lankester who received it on behalf of Tune Hotel klia2. GBI was represented by its Chairman Ar. Von Kok Leong.

Mark Lankester said: “We are elated with these recognitions. To be the largest hotel to be GBI Gold-certified is a fantastic accomplishment for our Projects team while as an ongoing BSEEP national demonstration project, we are very pleased to showcase how energy-efficient buildings can be operationally very cost effective, and most importantly benefit the bottom line of the business. As we have always said, being more cost effective allows us to pass on benefits to our guests.”

“Nonetheless, the comfort of our guests was our overriding priority when in the design stage for the Tune Hotel klia2. Great emphasis was given on the indoor environment quality, thermal comfort, lighting levels and luminosity, noise control, air quality and daylight availability, on top of energy and water efficiency, amongst many others,” added Lankester.

The construction of the Tune Hotel klia2 has demonstrated various key aspects of energy efficiency in buildings, providing unparalleled opportunities for both government and private sector practitioners in gaining practical information as a result of implementing energy-efficient building projects.

As a BSEEP demonstration project, Tune Hotel klia2 will provide real-time data to illustrate and improve confidence in the feasibility, performance, energy, environmental and economic benefits of energy-efficient building technology applications. It is intended to be an example in supporting the design and construction of other real-life energy efficient buildings.

Faber Group Berhad, through its subsidiary Faber Facilities Sdn Bhd, provided Environmental and Sustainable Design (ESD) Consultancy for the project.

Azmir Merican, Executive Director of Faber Group said, “The benefits of going green for hotels and resorts are obvious for the move would translate into savings in energy and water usage. More importantly though it reflects the proprietor’s commitment towards a sustainable future. With the increase awareness of ESD concept, we hope that more building owners in Malaysia will implement a green strategy and adopt the technology in reducing their carbon footprint.”

On the implementation of ESD for Tune Hotel klia2, Azmir said that during the design stage, extensive simulations were carried out to ensure the Tune Hotel klia2 is energy efficient with a projected Building Energy Intensity (BEI) index of 159KWh/m2/yr.

In Malaysia, the BEI benchmark for similar performance rating is at 200KWH/m2/yr for ‘up to 3-star’ hotels and 290KWh/m2/yr for ‘4-star and above’ hotel categories while the BSEEP benchmark is 187KWh/m2/yr. In comparison to the Australian hotel industry benchmarked ‘best practice’ performance indicator is 208KWh/m2 for accommodation hotels and 292 KWh/m2 for business hotels.

Another key highlight of Tune Hotel klia2 is water efficiency which is estimated at more than 40% water savings compared to a conventionally designed hotel building. This is attributed mainly towards the use of harvested rainwater for the water closet (WC), cleaning and irrigation purposes.

Landscape plant selection also played a key role in that, only native or locally adaptive plants which required minimal or almost no irrigation was planted. Notably, the landscape provision for this project exceeded the local authority requirements by 154%.

The 400-room Tune Hotel klia2 opened for business on 9 May 2014. The hotel is directly connected to the new Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 (klia2) terminal via a covered walkway and link bridge, allowing easy and convenient access to check-in counters as well as the Gateway@klia2 shopping mall.

Tune Hotels has innovatively transformed the guestroom experience into a modern-style accommodation featuring the all-new room design with a sleek writing table, luggage platform and a 32-inch flat screen LED TV, bringing about an improved, sophisticated but cool ambience throughout the Tune Hotel klia2.

To add to the guest experience and comfort, the hotel’s spacious lobby features a cool casual seating lounge with free wifi and an expansive open-air courtyard lounge, overlooked by a 24-hour restaurant and beverage centre. For guests with further transportation needs, the hotel includes a transport counter for overland transport needs and for flights, two AirAsia self check-in kiosks and klia2’s flight information displays are provided within the lobby for added convenience to hotel guests.

Guests at Tune Hotel klia2 enjoy great connectivity to the Kuala Lumpur city and its surrounding suburbs as the klia2 Terminal boasts not only bus and taxi services but also the Express Rail Link (ERL) train service that connects to and from Kuala Lumpur Sentral. For guests arriving at or departing from the KLIA Main Terminal, they can make use of the scheduled shuttle service via the ERL that costs just RM2 one way and stroll over to the hotel via its covered link bridge.

The hotel also features 167 parking bays which are conveniently located just a few steps away from the airport terminal. A portion of the parking area has been allocated exclusively for green, electric and hybrid vehicles.

With a projected annual capacity of 45 million passengers, the klia2 is the world’s largest purpose-built terminal dedicated for low cost carriers (LCCs). The new airport commenced commercial operations on 2 May 2014.

Tune Hotels is part of Tune Group, a lifestyle business conglomerate co-founded by Tan Sri Tony Fernandes and Datuk Kamarudin Meranun, who are the Group CEO and Executive Chairman respectively of Asia’s largest low cost carrier AirAsia.

There are currently 45 Tune Hotels available for booking across Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, England, Scotland, Australia, India and Japan.

For real-time updates and promotion alerts, guests can stay connected with Tune Hotels via Facebook at www.facebook.com/tunehotels and on Twitter via www.twitter.com/tunehotels.

For booking and further information, visit www.tunehotels.com.