Green by Design

The Charter Hall Group has been awarded WELL Certification at the Gold level for its landmark Adelaide office tower GPO Exchange, by the International WELL Building Institute (IWBI).

GPO Exchange &ndash; recognised as one of the most innovative and technologically advanced smart buildings in Australia &ndash; is the first ever project in South Australia to achieve WELL Certification.

This accolade was awarded through IWBI&rsquo;s WELL Building Standard, which is the premier global building standard to focus on enhancing people&rsquo;s health and wellness through&nbsp;buildings.

GPO Exchange was recently awarded a 5.5 Star NABERS Energy rating, 5 Star NABERS Water rating and 5&nbsp;Star NABERS Indoor Environment ratings.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=2407 project_image_fid=77658]

The following initiatives were introduced to lift GPO Exchange&rsquo;s WELL rating from Silver to Gold:

<ul>
	<li>Introduction of a green cleaning protocol focusing on the use of non-toxic cleaning materials to maintain healthy indoor air quality for occupants</li>
	<li>Attention to the design of high touch surfaces to enable them to be deep cleaned regularly to mitigate transmission of bacteria and viruses</li>
	<li>Introduction of specific cleaning equipment and storage of chemicals to enable the highest degree of cleanliness in the building</li>
	<li>Ongoing testing of building water quality</li>
	<li>Introduction of food policies that support the use of healthier eating choices</li>
	<li>Introduction of food policies that require nutritional information to be provided to occupants so that healthy eating choices are more easily made</li>
	<li>End-of-trip facilities enabling cycling to work and running during lunch breaks to support the physical health of occupants</li>
	<li>A report highlighting biophilic design features incorporated into the building to support the health and wellbeing of occupants</li>
</ul>

&ldquo;GPO Exchange is raising the bar for commercial sustainability in South Australia and has set a new benchmark for workplaces in this State. This incredible milestone is recognition of that,&rdquo; said Charter Hall Development Executive Mr George Roussos.

GPO Exchange was recently awarded a 5.5 Star NABERS Energy rating, 5 Star NABERS Water rating and 5 Star NABERS Indoor Environment ratings

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Charter Hall’s GPO Exchange achieves first Gold WELL Certification in South Australia

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<a href="https://www.urban.com.au/developers/cbus-property">Cbus Property's</a> office development for Medibank at <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/buildings/medibank-720-bourke-street-docklands">720 Bourke Street</a> in Docklands recently became the first Australian existing property to receive a WELL Certification, Gold Shell and Core rating. The WELL rating goes beyond sustainable building features with a greater focus on the health and well-being of a building's occupants.

The rating was awarded to 720 Bourke Street's design which enhances the health and well-being of workers via features such as increased natural air to the work environment, community gardens, ramp access for cyclists, bike-repair facilities and a new sustainability library. The <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/architects/hassell-studio">Hassell-designed</a> building already boasts a six-star Green Star rating.

The WELL standard was launched two years ago to recognise and encourage buildings that promote health, happiness, mindfulness and productivity based on scientific findings. Innovations in seven categories are measured - these include;

<ul>
<li>Air</li>
	<li>Water</li>
	<li>Nourishment</li>
	<li>Light</li>
	<li>Fitness</li>
	<li>Comfort</li>
	<li>Mind.</li>
</ul>
Under WELL’s ‘core and shell’ classification, building structure, window locations and glazing, building proportions, heating, cooling and ventilation systems and water quality are amongst the criteria considered for accreditation.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/160805_720_bourke_street_exterior_from_bourke.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="720 Bourke provides access to increased natural air and light to internally while community gardens allow workers to grow their own food. Images: Cbus Property"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="291" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/160805_720_bourke_street_exterior_from_bourke.jpg?itok=07QLN3-6" title="720 Bourke provides access to increased natural air and light to internally while community gardens allow workers to grow their own food. Images: Cbus Property" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>720 Bourke provides access to increased natural air and light to internally while community gardens allow workers to grow their own food. Images: Cbus Property</figcaption></figure>Cbus Property undertook a gap analysis to ensure the WELL rating’s 28 preconditions were achievable before embarking on measures to boost the well-being of the office building’s occupants.

An increasing number of commercial projects are embracing well-being as a fundamental principle in building design as they seek to boost their well-being credentials to lure top tenants and help them attract and retain the best employees.

The recent WELL achievement follows Cbus' recent commitment to becoming a global leader in sustainable urban development in launching its Green By Design brand which aims to put sustainability at the forefront of its approach to all existing commercial and future commercial developments investments.

The Green by Design Brand is based on 10 guiding principles including a people and place focused approach in addition to a requirement for innovation at all levels of the business.

Cbus Property plans to apply its Green By Design philosophy by continually seeking and adopting emerging technology and materials that boost the sustainable performance of both its new and existing commercial buildings. 
The company has already sought to exceed industry standards by pursuing Australian and international accreditations in green development and well-being, including the NABERs, Green Star and WELL ratings systems.

Victoria and Western Australia currently lead the nation in sustainable office space with 34 per cent of all offices achieving Green Star certification from the Green Building Council Australia.

Australia’s 1462 Green Star certified buildings produce 62 per cent less greenhouse gas emissions than average Australian buildings and use 66 per cent less electricity, 51 per cent less potable water and recycle 96 per cent of construction and demolition waste, according to the Green Building Council.

<blockquote>
We are very proud of 720 Bourke Street being recognised as one of the healthiest buildings in Australia for its workers. Our Green By Design brand is all about improving our cities for not only those that live and work in them today but also future generations.

We believe our company and the industry in general has an obligation to future generations to get this right. We understand the enormous impact that sustainable design, construction and building management has on improving the health and well-being of those who work or live in or around our investments.

We as an industry have to adopt a stronger focus on the future and do more to improve the built environment of our growing cities.

With more than half of the world’s population now living in cities, Australia has an opportunity to lead the world in creating urban environments that better the lives of all inhabitants.

- Adrian Pozzo, Cbus Property CEO
</blockquote>

Cbus Property's Collins Arch project, currently under construction is also targeting WELL Certification.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/collinsarch_rs.png" rel="gallery-all" title="Collins Arch is targeting a WELL rating. Image: Ryan Seychell"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="382" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/collinsarch_rs.png?itok=Yg7K--v1" title="Collins Arch is targeting a WELL rating. Image: Ryan Seychell" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Collins Arch is targeting a WELL rating. Image: Ryan Seychell</figcaption></figure>
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