Climate change & energy
Energy efficiency in new buildings
The major contributor to our carbon footprint is energy used in the buildings we own and manage as part of our Commercial Property business. Improving our energy efficiency is an important consideration in both our new developments and our existing portfolio of buildings.
Office
Our Commercial Property business has committed to a minimum NABERS Energy rating of 4.5 Stars for new office buildings and major refurbishments. Specifications for energy-efficient plants and equipment are now written into project briefs for new buildings and major refurbishments. Where better outcomes can be achieved for additional capital investment, cost benefit analysis is undertaken. Payback periods for investment in energy-efficient technologies consider improvement to NABERS Energy ratings and reduced operating costs as part of the decision-making process. Electricity sub-metering systems are specified for all new office developments and are installed at selected properties to monitor electricity and gas usage and enable facility managers to better manage energy use on the site.
Retail
Energy ratings for shopping centres remain in development. We work with the Green Star Retail Tool to guide our design decisions, particularly around energy efficiency. We have provided feedback to the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA) regarding the operation of the energy calculator and other aspects of this new tool. As refinements are made to the tool, we hope to adopt it as a standard by which we undertake retail development.
Additionally the Department of Environment and Climate Change is working on a NABERS Energy rating for retail and we are on the Technical Working Group.
Our UK portfolio
In the year to June 2009, two development projects were completed. One of these, 1 Tudor Street, has been certified as achieving a BREEAM Very Good rating. The BRE Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) is a measurement rating for green buildings, developed in the UK. Our development at St Andrew Square, Edinburgh, is being targeted at a BREEAM Excellent rating. We will continue to seek formal BREEAM assessments of all completed development projects.
CASE STUDY
Triniti
Our new office development in North Ryde, Triniti, has been designed to achieve a 4.5 Star NABERS Energy rating and has been registered for a Green Star rating. This development is being built in two stages with Buildings A and B being submitted for their first round Green Star in early FY10, whilst Building C will be completed in December 2009.
The builder, Baulderstone, is its major tenant in Building A, occupying 6,000 square metres. This development allows Baulderstone to showcase their building capabilities whilst creating its new home.
CASE STUDY
66 Waterloo Road
66 Waterloo Road is an office building located in Sydney's Macquarie Park. It was built as a 'typical' office building with a standard variable air volume air-conditioning system rather than chilled beams or a tri-generation system, and was originally designed to achieve a 4 Star NABERS Energy rating. Halfway through design, the targets were changed to achieve a 4.5 Star NABERS Energy rating.
In the first 12 months of occupation, the building surpassed 4.5 Star performance and, with some further building tuning to improve operational performance, achieved 5 Star performance in January 2009. 66 Waterloo Road demonstrates how a typical office building can be transformed into an energy efficient and well run building through good commissioning, controls and management.
Average NABERS energy rating (stars)
Average NABERS water rating (stars)
