Located in the heart of the CBD, 215 Adelaide Street is a major commercial tower that has graced Brisbane’s landscape for almost 30 years.

In 2008, Norman Disney & Young recommended a plan to the building’s property manager, Jones Lang Lasalle on behalf of the owners Pramerica, suggesting that the tenant services should be improved and energy consumption slashed to lift the energy rating of the building from 2.5 to 5 Stars.

Following the $5.4 million building services upgrade in 2010, the central CBD landmark has been elevated to ‘Green Building’ status, featuring advanced building services and management systems that deliver 5 Star NABERS Energy and 4.5 Star NABERS Water certified performance ratings in operation.

The benefits of this upgrade are measurable, with the building experiencing a 35 per cent drop in energy usage, 46 per cent carbon emissions reduction, and 46 per cent peak demand reduction.

By refurbishing rather than rebuilding, the project has delivered a 5 Star NABERS Energy Rating with the smallest initial carbon footprint, avoiding the creation of large quantities of waste to landfill. However, it is even more impressive to have done so while maintaining full occupancy, and ensuring that the building is adaptable to future technology changes and user demands.

The strength in the 215 Adelaide Street project therefore lies in its sustainable upgrades, as well as the fact that it has done so without disruption to the tenant’s business and their employees, showing that business and costs do not necessarily have to be compromised for sustainability.

INITIATIVES

  • New cooling towers include new water treatment with side stream filtration to reduce water consumption
  • Provision of air and duct separation on chilled and condensed water systems to improve water quality to reduce water consumption
  • Chillers and cooling towers sized for future tenant requirements including PCA premium grade equipment loads and additional outside air in line with Green Star
  • Majority of the existing chilled and condense water pipework, air handling units, ductwork etc were reused or recycled
  • Chiller replacement with new high efficiency machines
  • New smart metering system and provision of thermal energy metering
  • Replacement of existing twin tube lights with new single tube T8 fitting with Y5 diffuser, which has allowed lighting energy to be reduced by 60% with improved output and light quality
  • The new modulating outside air dampers complete with CO2 sensor system ensure that the outside air rates match the building’s occupation. This is in line with Green credit requirements. The indoor environmental quality is also routinely tested by independent specialists to verify that air quality benchmarks have actually been achieved