|
|
Green Square South Tower, Brisbane, QLD
|
|
The Green Square South Tower is the first 5 Green Star Rated commercial building in Queensland.
Artist's impression of Green Square South Tower, Brisbane (south elevation)
Source: Leighton Contractors
Contents
Summary
The $120m Green Square South Tower includes approximately 17,000m2 of office space over five levels, 360m2 of retail space with adjacent plaza area and two levels of basement car parking. There is also an integrated fitout of 13,200m2 being undertaken for Brisbane City Council. Construction commenced in January 2006 and will be completed in mid 2007.
Green Square South Tower is the first commercial building in Queensland to be awarded a Green Star rating from the Green Building Council of Australia and has set new benchmarks for sustainable commercial construction within Queensland. The project was awarded a 5 star Green Star rating for Office Design in July 2006 representing Australian Excellence.
Developer: Leighton Properties Pty Ltd
Builder: Leighton Contractors Pty Ltd
Tenant: Brisbane City Council
| Acoustic |
Bassett Acoustics |
| Contamination |
Butler Partners Pty Ltd |
| Architectural / Interiors |
Cox Rayner |
| Landscape |
Edaw Gillespies |
| Carpet |
Fiona Davies Consulting |
| ESD/ Electrical / Mechanical |
George Floth Pty Ltd |
| Land Surveyor |
LandPartners |
| Hydraulic /Fire |
Lincolne Scott Australia Pty Ltd |
| Facade |
Meinhardt Façade Technology Pty Ltd |
| Services |
Norman Disney Young |
| BCA |
Philip Chun & Associates Pty Ltd |
| Structural / Civil / Sewer / Stormwater |
Robert Bird & Partners |
| Traffic |
TTM Traffic Pty Ltd |
Checklist of sustainable features
| Management |
- Green Star Accredited Professional on consulting team
- Extensive commissioning and involvement of an Independent Commissioning Agent
- Provision of a Building Users Guide
- waste management plans (80% diversion from landfill).
|
| IEQ |
- Carbon dioxide monitoring and control
- Daylight glare control
- Lighting system incorporating high frequency ballasts and limiting electric lighting levels to 400 Lux maximum at the working plane
- Superior thermal comfort of Predicted Mean Vote within -0.5 and +0.5
- Acoustic performance within recommended limits
- Low-emission formaldehyde products and low-VOC finishes
- Dedicated tenant exhaust riser
|
| Energy |
- Predicted Australian Building Greenhouse Rating of 4.5 stars (CO2 emission reduction of 300,000 kg annually), affording annual savings in energy costs of 320,000 kWh, which is equivalent to energy used by 50 households
- Energy efficient T5 lamps used for the office lighting;
- Lights installed on 3000 x 2400 grid, rather than traditional 2400 x 2400 grid, whilst providing illumination and glare control that exceed the requirements of Australian Standards
- Electric lighting density of less than 2 W/m2 per 100 lux
- Perimeter lighting switched separately to take advantage of the good natural light from the façade
- Amenities lights on office floors activated by movement sensors in the access corridors
- Lighting in car parks operated after hours by movement sensors
- Separate air handling units for each façade and the interior zone to eliminate reheat and maximize "economizer" operation
- Night purge to reduce the air conditioning load
- Outside air quantity is controlled by CO2 sensors to minimize the air conditioning load
- Low space humidity to reduce supply air quantities and thus conserve fan power
- Variable speed car park ventilation fans controlled by CO sensors
- Un-occupied areas isolated to prevent air conditioning to these areas
|
| Transport |
- Cyclist facilities (secure bicycle storage, changing rooms, showers and lockers) for staff
- Visitor bicycle storage
- Excellent public transport amenity
|
| Water |
- Full points achieved for occupant amenity potable water efficiency via water-efficient fittings and fixtures resulting in estimated water savings of 1,700,000 litres per year;
- Rainwater captured in 90,000l tank and used for landscape irrigation and toilet flushing
- Reuse of fire system test water
|
| Materials |
- Dedicated and adequately sized recycling areas
- 75% of NLA delivered as an integrated fitout;
- 40% cement replacement in concrete mixes
- 60% of steel with recycled content of 50% or beyond
- 100% of timber either reused, recycled or from certified sustainable sources
|
| Land Use & Ecology |
- Effective redevelopment of a site
- Preserving ecological value of the site
|
| Emissions |
- Zero-ODP refrigerants and insulants
- No light pollution from exterior lighting
- Flow to sewer reduced
|
Waste management and sustainable timber usage posters on site (left);
Construction waste separation for recycling (right).
Source: Leighton Contractors
 
Motivations and lessons
The tenant's view - an interview with Frank Riley, Manager City Property, Brisbane City Council
Mid 2007
What are the main reasons why your company chose to do sustainable buildings?
- The workplace environment of a leading sustainable facility is consistent with Brisbane City Council's 'Clean and Green' vision for the future of the city - Vision 2026.
- The Council was keen to establish a consistent standard of corporate accommodation across its major commercial premises.
- The Council was keen to set a high standard for commercial sustainable development in Brisbane and lead by example in facilitating this ESD development outcomes.
What are the best things that have come out of doing a sustainable building?
- For Council as tenant, the optimisation of outgoings and associated relatively low running / operating costs of a technologically advanced and sustainable building.
- The kudos and 'positive press' that Council has received by being associated with the first 5 Green Star Rated commercial building in Queensland.
- The collaboration that has occurred between the Developer, Builder, Architect, Consultants and Council as Tenant.
What are the things that you did that made the project work well?
- Developed a commercially viable 'packaged' approach to the land disposal at Green Square, incorporating the sale of selected parcels and the construction, lease and pre-commitment of other areas of the site. This was all 'packaged' to be a win-win outcome for Council and Leightons.
- Implement 'lessons learnt' from the Brisbane Square Project into the Green Square experience.
- Ensure the profile of Green Square was as high as possible within Council to ensure a very positive expectation by Council staff occupying the site.
What were the things that didn't work quite so well and how were they managed?
- Confirmation of Sub-Lease Areas and the timely preparation of those areas for market.
- Keeping the legal documentation up-to-date with the agreed changes to the project.
- Having a better 'handle' on the level of site contamination and the associated remediation costs.
The builder's view - an interview with Petie Walker, Project Director, Green Square Corporate Office Park, Leighton Contractors Pty Ltd
Mid 2007
What are the main reasons why your company chose to do sustainable buildings?
- Excellent commercial opportunity to gain expertise in sustainable design and construction
- Becoming a leader in sustainable construction gives you an edge on market, recruitment, staff satisfaction, etc
- Pace setting project's are highly attractive to us
What are the best things that have come out of doing a sustainable building?
- Market credibility in building green
- Pride of the team from the workers through to senior management about doing something good for the environment
- Promotion of our company brand
What are the things that you did that made the project work well?
- Collaboration of all project participants
- Education and communication to the workforce about how they contribute to building green e.g. material selection, waste management, etc
- Put it up in lights as a primary target to influence all decisions made on the project
What were the things that didn't work quite so well and how were they managed?
- Early perception of stakeholders that green means less comfort - need to educate stakeholders at grass roots level to help them understand that green is not only about energy and CO2 emissions, etc but also about quality of work space e.g. additional outside air, natural light, etc.
- Trying to grasp all aspects of the green star rating system with a starting knowledge base of zero - some certified design points were lost under as-built as we didn't understand them fully early enough e.g. sustainable timber, however going from Design to As-Built has both swings and roundabouts and we will submit with more points under As-Built than we did for Design
The investor's view - an interview with Mark Bassett, Portfolio Manager, ISPT Core Fund, ISPT Pty Ltd
27 June 2007
What are the main reasons why your company chose to do sustainable buildings?
- Corporate policy to minimise environmental footprint
- Future proof portfolio
- Meets stock renewal objective of the fund
- Reduce exposure to cost increases of power, gas, water, waste etc
- Reduce cap-ex liabilities of the fund
What are the best things that have come out of doing a sustainable building?
- Increased knowledge ... the most important
- Improved quality of investment/asset base ..... a close second
- Reinforcement of partnering/relationships
- Increased profile for responsible investment
What are the things that you did that made the project work well?
- Chose the right partners! The most critical by a long way
- All parties working to share knowledge
- Cooperative approach including the commitment of capital and human resources ie not acting "proprietary" in relation to intellectual property and process
What were the things that didn't work quite so well and how were they managed?
- Contract position limited to design ratings only
Other information and resources on Green Square South Tower
Australian Green Building Council Green Square casestudy
Green Square website
|
|
|
|
|
|
Add Comment
