Innovative six green star building opens in Parnell
New Zealand’s first new-build six green star rated office building has opened in Auckland's Parnell.
The Geyser is owned by NBR Rich Lister Michael Friedlander’s Sampson Corporation and has 24 offices and six retail/hospitality spaces.
Sampson Corporation general manager Marco Creemers declined to comment on the cost of the build.
The property consists of several separate buildings. It is this innovation which has scored a six green star rating from the Green Building Council.
Pattersons & Associates director Andrew Patterson says getting a five green star rating is based on an empirical system, where buildings got points for features such as bike racks or water recycling capabilities.
“But to get that sixth star you need to have an international innovation. We sliced the building and then ended up with a building of separate parts. This creates light and air around the whole tenancy.”
This development means the property uses half the amount of artificial lighting and water, and nearly two-thirds less energy than a typical building of its size.
"But because of the cost of the system our clients chose not to use it."
Other features of the property include state-of-the-art eco technology which enables the building to heat itself by trapping warm air in the walls.
It also has an automated car-stacking machine and encourages cycling to work by having bike racks, lockers and showers.
Green Building Council chief executive office Alex Cutler says businesses in New Zealand will start to make a statement about their commitment to the planet.
“Much of the focus of green buildings is on benefits such as energy and water savings but just as important is the quality of the working and living environment.”
However, Mr Patterson says there are other new eco-friendly buildings in Auckland which have not been assessed for a green star rating simply because the developers chose not to bother with it.
“We design a lot of buildings which have no green star rating, such as the Anvil building. I would be hopeful that Anvil would receive a rating if it was assessed."
"Because of the cost of the system some of our clients choose not to use it."
Back to home
Back to top
Print
Latest
NBR SERVICES
SUBSCRIPTIONS
Sign up for NBR subscriber content or email alerts
Comments and questions5
I applaud any investor building anything in the current days, but time will tell whether these are truly innovative or just eco greenwash with a target tenant likely some govt or council embracing Al Gores nonsense with other peoples money. I predict the air con and ventilation guys will be in demand as a humid hot summer looms. Worked once in an eco building and it was a big fail.
Your poorly written gibberish marks you out as a run of the mill idiot. Al Gore has not somehow managed to brainwash the majority of climate scientists for his subversive green agenda. The facts are the facts - climate change is happening and it is probably our fault. Whether building really groovy new offices like this one will actually make any difference to the health of our planet is something I too am yet to be convinced of, perhaps we can both agree on that.
Wow, what's with this defensive and over reacting comment? You sound like you have a vested interest in this story.
The first comment has a point. Most energy efficient design claims to achieve a certain return on investment (ROI) via energy savings. In practice, they often fall short as the real world saving is often less than the exaggerated figures on a glossy report.
I am currently working at 80 Queen St (another over hyped eco building) - not today though, its my day off. When a subsystem/part fails, the replacement cost is high. Any impressive lifecycle costing goes out of the window. It is analogous to buying the latest BMW 7 series that claims a mileage of 4L/100km. When that baby breaks down on the road, it will cost you an arm and a leg to get that rectified. The high repair cost itself negates any decades of fuel saving you may had.
This scenario applies to 'eco building'.
Sorry for the bad English. I'm Korean.
How about a real picture?
That is how the building looks.