PRD Megacity Study Tour
25/07/2018
As one of China's leading economic regions and a major manufacturing centre, The Pearl River Delta economic zone (PRD) is experiencing rapid change in various aspects.

During 19th July to 21st July, a tour guided by me, provided the Guangdong context in briefing students from Penn State University on urbanisation and sustainable development issues in the PRD.
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The skyrail and vehicle range at BYD headquarters Shenzhen. Image: BWPI
BYD was born of Shenzhen, and is now leading the industrial and technological frontier of sustainable energy transportation and resulting urban development in China. Its electric buses and taxis dominate Shenzhen public transport provision and zero-emission energy solutions are the focus of its product range.
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BYD Dynasty Series. Image: BWPI
As a start-up of just 20 employees in February 1995, BYD has grown into a global mega-company with 220 thousand employees today. Through its high-speed growth, the company has established over 30 industrial parks across six continents and has played a significant role in industries related to electronics, automobiles, new energy generation and storage and now rail transit.
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BYD Truck. Image: BWPI
​BYD has developed a ‘7+4’ strategy, to produce electric vehicles for almost all the conventional and specialized vehicle markets.

There are 7 conventional vehicle areas that BYD will focus on: -
  • Transit Buses,
  • Coaches,
  • Taxis,
  • Logistics Vehicles,
  • Construction Vehicles,
  • Waste Management Vehicles,
  • Consumer Vehicles.
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4 specialized vehicle fields make up the group: -
  • Warehouse Logistics Vehicles,
  • Mining Utility Vehicles,
  • Airport Utility Vehicles,
  • Sea-port Utility Vehicles.
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BYD Skyrail. Image:BWPI
BYD’s SkyRail is a fully integrated, driverless, state-of-the-art straddle type monorail system that incorporates all of the features needed for rigorous line-haul urban transit applications.

To create a solution for urban traffic congestion, BYD invested a total of RMB 5 billion and mobilized more than 1,000 engineers in a five-year R&D project to create BYD SkyRail, a straddle-beam monorail system featuring proprietary technologies for switches, bogies, track beams and other core technologies across the supply chain.


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Thanks go to Marketing Manager John Gabarra for the excellent knowledge sharing at BYD. Image: BWPI
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Director of Sustainability & MEP-Plant Operation Syed Mubarak leads the tour at Sands Venetian. Image: BWPI
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students are provided with detailed information on Sands' sustainability drive. image: BWPI
A highlight of the trip is the back of house visit at Sands Venetian to learn about their sustainable building operations.

The world's largest single structure building has huge energy consumption issues to address. Sands energy efficiency programs, sustainability initiatives such as waste recycling and engagement programs provide a leading corporate vision.

​The strategy of Sands China consists of four parts:-
green buildings, green meetings, environmentally responsible operations and stakeholder engagement. 
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The chiller plant is an area where energy efficiency measures can be focused. Image: BWPI
Green Buildings

They focus on:
• New developments
• Remodels and renovations
• Innovative technologies
Environmentally Responsible Operations

They focus on:
• Natural resource conservation
• Waste management
• Supply chain sustainability

They continually monitor and measure their environmental footprint to develop challenging yet attainable objectives and targets. Through this, they manage their performance and continually focus on improving our operations.
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Food and material waste recyclling is making a substantial contribution to the bottom line. Image: BWPI
​Green Meetings and Events

​They focus on:
• Environmental footprint
• Community causes
• Wellness options
Stakeholder Engagement

They enhance the understanding of sustainability through engagement with their Team Members, and partnerships with stakeholders and local communities.
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​21/07/2018
​The Kowloon Renaissance Further Explored

14/07/2018
ICE-Urban Design And Planning Publishes Article

​22/06/2018
HKIUD Conference

19/03/2018
Amsterdam Meets Shenzhen 2018​
BYD Co Ltd is a Chinese manufacturer of automobiles, buses, forklifts, rechargeable batteries, trucks, etc with its corporate headquarters in Shenzhen. It has two major subsidiaries, BYD Automobile and BYD Electronic and was founded in February 1995.


BYD topped the 2010 Bloomberg Businessweek Tech 100 list, a list of large, fast-growing tech companies. 
Sands China Ltd. (HKEx: 1928) is the leading developer, owner and operator of multi-use integrated resorts and casinos in Macao. Macao is the largest gaming market in the world as measured by casino gaming revenue and is the only location in China offering legalised casino gaming. Venetian Macau Limited, our subsidiary, holds one of six concessions or subconcessions permitted by the Macao government to operate casinos or gaming areas in Macao.
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