Message from the CEO

The context of ‘going green’ may vary from one individual to another, depending on the extent of their knowledge and adaptation of the green lifestyle. Generally, most people would refer to this as helping protect the environment through choosing ‘green’ products and practicing the three Rs – reducing, reusing, and recycling.

In my view, the term ‘green’ extends beyond the above mentioned denition. Green covers a wide-range of sustainable and renewable way of living. It refers to the new way of thinking and modifying the way people live to transform their environment into a more ecient and livable space, to save time, energy and implement innovative solutions.

From green buildings to green oces, green cars, green banking, green food to green society, indeed, every element of our day-to-day lifestyle can be generally attributed to becoming green.

Green banking is an innovative solution most nancial institutions have implemented. Online banking is now widely accepted and applied by consumers which eectively help save time and energy mutually. Green vehicles are now developed which further contributes to a greener society. It consumes less petrol than conventional cars and uses renewable energy sources to fuel its engine.

Once found only in health food shops, organic foods are now staple grocery and supermarket items. The popularity of organic food continues to grow as more people learn about its health and environment benets, eectively making it a green food. The term ‘organic’ comes from the farming practices used to grow produce. It is the all-natural process of growing agricultural products such as fruits, vegetables, grains, dairy and meat. It is designed to encourage soil and water preservation and to reduce pollution. Today, organic products do not only refer to food but also include consumer goods like clothing, footwear, cosmetics and skincare products, and even furniture.

Recently, Dubai has been named one of the top 10 green cities in the world. The cities were ranked based on four categories: city-wide green building landscape; green building policies and targets; green city culture and environment; and green building eciency and performance, where Dubai scored strongly.

One of the most obvious testaments to this achievement is the Dubai Airport. The construction of one of the world’s busiest terminal is so strategic it oers comfort to every traveler. It is a green development as there’s no wasted time and energy for anyone who uses the facility, the Metro is connected, and transportation going to and from the terminal is eciently planned.

We at SGT are fully committed to contributing towards a green environment. Our facility in National Industrial Park in Jebel Ali supports the green concept through a number of features namely through its reghting system, advanced lighting and water technologies and its plant scenery.

Since safety and longevity is of paramount importance, all levels of our facility are equipped with sprinklers whereas the government didn’t obligate us to tout all of the oors. Even if this has increased our expenditures, the long term savings is much more valuable to us. Another green feature of our building is its auto presence and DSI system lighting technology with which the lights automatically turn on or o upon the thermal sensor’s detection of human presence while the DSI system assesses the available natural light and dims accordingly to balance the brightness, which ultimately leads to saving energy.

The use of solar panels holds the same philosophy. Our facility has solar panels which help reduce our operating and energy cost since the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) deducts the equivalent generated power from the electric bill. The cost of the solar panels may be high but the return on investment can’t be underestimated especially that it also decreases carbon footprint.

The facility’s sewage treatment is recycled and used to water the trees within the area, which also have excellent landscaping as the plants produce oxygen and help keep a green environment. What also makes a building green is the maximum use of space and construction components in which SGT’s facility have a fully-tted place designed with an ecient logistics ow. These features may be a huge investment but the generated savings in the end is incomparable with the expenditures.

Thinking, living and practicing a green lifestyle largely contributes to a number of positive eects towards the environment, society and nancial wellbeing of businesses and the society. There is lesser pollution with hybrid cars, healthier society with organic foods, more energy ecient and value for money with green buildings and generally a safer environment to live in.