The New Zealand Green Building Council has given Samson Corp Ltds Geyser building in Parnell New Zealands first certified rating of 6 green stars for office design. Samson Corp general manager Marco Creemers said meeting the challenge took significant effort from all parties involved, but green-star ratings were a natural progression for Samsons business: We think green building practices are the future. Achieving the first 6 green star certification for Geyser is a result of doing things differently with more thought to choices during the design process.
Green Building Council chief executive Jane Henley said: A 6-star certified rating represents world leadership in the green star building rating system, which was developed to assess environmentally sustainable design initiatives. The Geyser project highlights how far green building has come in New Zealand since green star launched in 2007. And Geysers 6-star rating for office design sets an exciting new benchmark for the way buildings are designed & built.
This achievement reflects the growth of the council & its members & the ability of the industry to deliver world-leading green buildings for the benefit of tenants, investors & indeed all New Zealanders. Ms Henley said that much of the focus tends to be on easily measured benefits such as energy & water savings, just as important is the quality of the working & living environment of green buildings, boosting productivity, reducing absenteeism and acting as a major drawcard for tenants.
Geyser was designed by Patterson Associates Ltd. Tricia Love Consultants Ltd and Medland Metropolis International (NZ) Ltd provided Green Star NZ accredited professional services. Medland Metropolis project engineer Scott Hodges said the building was designed to:
use 27% of the energy of a typical retail/office building of its size
require only half the artificial lighting of a typical retail/office building (6 watts/m²)
use only half the water of a typical retail/office building of its size
provide 100% fresh air to occupants (compared to the average of 25% for air-conditioned buildings in New Zealand), and
have 70% of its building waste recycled.
Andrew Patterson, of Patterson Associates, said the achievement was a collaborative effort: Dozens of people from a huge range of disciplines were involved, from structural engineers to electrical engineers, hydraulic service designers, mechanical & façade engineers, all working in collaboration. We wanted to make Geyser holistic, not just about accommodation & technical performance but also about expressing an Auckland sense of place for people. The building will have 5040m² of primarily office space, set above a 180-vehicle automated carpark stacking system, and is due for completion in 2011.
Geysers green features
Geysers floorplates are divided into 5 individual sub-buildings set around a system of atriums with pedestrian linkages. This maximises natural daylight penetration into, and exterior views out from, the majority of the spaces.
Each sub building is wrapped in a dynamic 3-dimensional semi-reflective white twin-walled façade. This technology creates natural heating & cooling ventilation by way of thermal currents rising up through the void spaces between the 2 walls.
It naturally heats each building by trapping warm air between the 2 walls in the winter, significantly minimising heat losses overnight and pre-warming outside air during the day.
In the hottest months, the entire outer skin opens electronically to fully ventilate the cavity by creating cross-convection currents from the cooler southern elevations of the buildings.
The building will have its own rainwater harvesting system to store & supply water to low-flush toilets & irrigation systems, and low-flow sanitary fixtures are specified throughout the development.
The development encourages tenants & visitors to either cycle or walk, with the provision of showers & lockers at carpark level and visitor cycle park spaces at plaza level. 25% of the car parking spaces in the automated stacker carpark are nominated only for small cars. The development is also located very near the proposed Parnell train station and cbd public transport network.
