Vleihuis Development in Linden

“Net Zero represents the beginning of the first true response to climate change from the building industry,” Chilufya Lombe, Sustainability Consultant and Director at Solid Green observes.

While it is evident that we cannot stop the development of new buildings as cities grow, it is possible to ensure that impact on the environment as a result of development is negated. A Triple Net Zero certification represents the pinnacle in environmental design with a structure that has zero impact on resources.

We are delighted to report that our footprint is growing into countries like Kenya, Ghana, Nigeria, Botswana, Mauritius and Namibia. This includes our collaboration with Enerxis Solutions on Mauritius’ first Green Star certificated project, the Mon Trésor Business Gateway.

Mon Trésor Business Gateway 2

We are particularly proud of our people, who have excelled this year in proactively contributing towards transformation in the property sector. Annelide Sherratt and Jesse Hamman were acknowledged for their dedication at the 2018 Green Building Council Leadership Awards when they were awarded Runner Up: Established Green Star and Winner: Rising Green Star respectively.

And, on 23 October 2018, at the national 4th South African Women in Property Awards (SAWIPA), Marloes Reinink was named Business Woman of the Year: Entrepreneur! The SAWIPA Awards recognise women who continue to influence and change the landscape of the property industry – which Marloes has achieved as founder of the largest dedicated green building consulting firm in South Africa, the only ambassador in the country for the Living Building Challenge, and tireless advocate for all things that contribute towards a healthier and more regenerative world.

4th SAWIPA National Awards: Marloes Reinink named Business Woman of the Year: Entrepreneur.

“It is crucial that cities grow in a sustainable manner,” Reinink says.

Cities today are nodes of opportunity to move green design beyond the building scale into the public realm. It is a great privilege to be acknowledged as SAWIPA’s Business Woman of the Year: Entrepreneur amongst such high-calibre professionals. Particularly because the SAWIPA Awards offers a platform for celebrating not only gender equity in our property industry, but also the important advances that the sector is taking to align itself with best practice worldwide.

At Solid Green, we believe in walking the talk and have committed to providing a healthy work environment for our team, together with lifestyle guidance and ongoing mentorship. Our office, which was awarded a prestigious LEED Platinum certification for Commercial Interiors and the first 6-Star Green Star SA Interiors v1 certification in 2016, was the first project in Africa to be featured on the Biophilic Map earlier this year.

Biophilic map.

A number of our staff members are activists for the circular economy, and challenge themselves daily to lead lives that are more in sync with available natural resources and cycles. We advocate for waste reduction, and Gavin Westbrook went so far as to set himself a plastic-free month challenge, with interesting results! We also educate our network around dietary choices and put programmes in place to enable our staff members to transition towards sustainable modes of transportation.

From its inception, Solid Green has taken the practice of mentoring young people very seriously; and we are constantly rewarded by their personal and professional growth and enthusiasm. Nomamfengu Mbele and Mapula Matlakala took time out to share their experiences of working with our team. Our mentoring work this year also included Chilufya Lombe’s work with start-up organisation, Khora Group – headed up by Katlego Mothapo – which was accepted into the Innovation Hub’s Climate and Innovation Centre (CIC).

Annelide Sherratt, Nomamfengu Mbele, Mapula Matlakala , Marloes Reinink at the 2018 GBCSA Convention Gala Dinner

All our achievements are only possible thanks to the loyal support of our clients, staff, colleagues, supporters and suppliers. We are encouraged on a daily basis by your commitment to furthering a fully sustainable built environment for current and future generations. We look forward to sharing the next stage of our journey with you, and wish you and your families a very blessed and enjoyable holiday season as we head towards 2019!

The Solid Green team.

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At the Awards, South Africa’s top-rated Green Star projects were announced, with Solid Green as the accredited professional on 78 Corlett Drive (owned by Legaro Properties), which received a Net Zero Carbon Pilot Rating at the end of November 2017 and won the Highest Rated Building category; and Linden Vleihuis in Johannesburg (owned by Marc Sherratt Sustainability Architects), which was the runner-up in the Net Zero Innovative Project Award.

Solid Green was also EDGE Auditor on Belhar Gardens Rental Estate (owned by the Madulammoho Housing Association), which won the EDGE Innovative Housing Project Award.

We are especially proud of two of the dedicated, powerful women in our team who brought home Green Building Council Leadership Awards – Annelide Sherratt, who was named Established Green Star Runner-up, and Jesse Hamman, who is the Rising Green Star Winner!

We participated in kicking off the Green Building Convention on 3 October with Chilufya Lombe talking about Net Zero Energy in the #RaceToZero as part of the Green Café, which was facilitated by the Green Building Design Group’s (GreenBDG) Songo Didiza and C40 Cities’ Paul Cartwright.

This year’s conference conveyed a noticeable change in the way we are approaching climate change in South Africa,” says Lombe. “The idea of reversing effects rather than building ‘less bad’ was discussed several times. A number of consultants and clients seem up for the challenge, and hopefully there will be more success stories for the next conference.

Lombe presented together with Marloes Reinink on 5 October with ‘A Bird’s Eye View on Using the Scale of a Precinct to Contribute to Net Zero’. The session offered delegates access to the expertise of those who are leading the way with Sustainable Precincts; and demonstrated how tackling site-wide issues related to the overall urban plan, rather than just those of specific buildings, enables a broader approach and makes a significant contribution towards achieving Net Zero.

Reinink was impressed with the calibre of the Convention and says:

The 2018 convention exceeded expectations once again, from a super-inspiring talk by Paul Hawken, who presented a list of actions to be taken towards combating climate change, to a closing presentation on the Bullit Centre, a Living Building Challenge project. The convention this year had a great mix of international and local speakers, and it was encouraging to see such good attendance from the sector.

“It was an engaging and inspirational convention,” Dash Coville observes.

Presentations ranged from international case studies on new housing designs to deal with the high cost of housing in Hong Kong to creating vertical forests in new commercial buildings; and included discussions around what is happening in South Africa from government and commercial perspectives.

The convention is always a good time to catch up with friends in the industry and gain insights into trends and challenges that are featuring in the Green Building movement from around the world. The speaker line-up provided engaging and thought-provoking content and the break-away sessions enabled a more personal interaction with speakers.

“It was incredible to see that our projects are leading by example in the Race towards Net Zero,” comments Annelide Sherratt.

We were excited to have both 78 Corlett and Linden Vleihuis presented as case studies by their respective project architects in the session ‘Positioning the business case for Net Zero: new building projects’. Another highlight was when Paul Hawken introduced his book ‘Drawdown’ which announced Project Drawdown: the most comprehensive plan ever proposed to reverse global warming. We are thrilled to be one of the first South African project teams to take these steps towards reversing global warming.

We are tremendously proud of the excellent contribution that our team is making towards taking the #RaceToZero further and are looking forward to participating again at the Green Building Convention 2019.

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Solid Green‘s outstanding achievements were:

Highest Rated Building – Winner

Solid Green Offices
Project Owner: Marloes Reinink
Green Star SA Accredited Professional (GSSAAP): Jesse Hamman

Best Quality Submission – Winner

4 Stan Road
Project Owner: Sharmane Investments (Pty) Ltd
GSSAAP: Dash Coville

Best Quality Submission – Runner-Up

Alice Lane Phase II
Project Owner: Pivotal Property Fund
GSSAAP: Gavin Westbrook

Rising Green Star – Winner

Individual: Dash Coville
Company: Solid Green Consulting

Build a Better World Now

With the theme “Build a Better World Now”, the Convention advanced dialogue by change agents who have the expertise to guide Africa and the world towards a thriving future. We are proud to be part of this highly progressive and innovative community!

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The categories for which Solid Green was nominated and has achieved in are testimony to the excellent service that we continue to bring our clients. In a year where we achieved a record ten certifications, the quality of work that we provide has not faltered. Five years and twenty-two certifications later, we are proud to be recognised by our peers as beings leaders in sustainability.

The awards comprise four categories:

• Buildings:
  • Highest Rated Building
  • Best Quality Submission
• Individuals:
  • Rising Green Star
  • Established Green Star

Annelidé Sherrat receiving the award for runner up in Highest Rated Building category for Upper Grayston.

Past success

In 2013, Solid Green‘s Marloes Reinink won both the Best Quality Submission for the Grahamstown National English Literary Museum and the Established Green Star individual awards. The National English Literary Museum was again recognised in 2014, being awarded the runner-up slot in the Highest Rated Building category. The 2014 awards then saw Chilufya Lombe follow Reinink in winning the Best Quality Submission.

2015 awards

This year, Dash Coville walked away with the Best Quality Submission award for his Accredited Professional work on the Monte Circle Building A development, while Solid Green gained recognition for work on the Upper Grayston Block F building (6-Star Green Star SA Office v1 As Built rated), which was awarded the runner-up slot in the Highest Rated Building category.

Dashiell Coville of Solid Green, winner of the Best Quality Submission award 2015.

The winner

Brian Wilkinson, CEO of the Green Building Council South Africa (GBCSA), had this to say about this year’s Highest Rated Building winner, Hotel Verde (Andre Harms – from Ecolution – the project’s Accredited Professional (AP)):

This award is given to the project that attains the highest points in the final rating for the 12 month period under consideration. Hotel Verde, with its 6-Star Green Star SA EBP rating, showcases some of the most advanced, environmentally conscious technological installations, construction methods, procurement and operational practices of any hotel in the country.

Hotel Verde, the 2015 Highest Rated Building winner.

Industry growth

Solid Green‘s ongoing performance at the Green Star Awards is particularly impressive given the fresh activity in the green-building industry. In 2009, the first green certificate was awarded by the GBCSA. By April 2014, 50 Green Star SA ratings had been awarded and, as of 2015, the number of Green Star SA ratings hit 140 certified projects. Solid Green has been a major contributor to this figure. In the four years from founding by Marloes Reinink in 2010 to December 2014, Solid Green completed 10 certifications – as of 2015, another 10 ratings have been achieved. Brian Wilkinson, speaking of the industry in his address at the Green Star SA Leadership Awards, notes:

Our convention this year aimed to Inspire Better Buildings, and this is exactly what our leading building professionals and projects are achieving. Like us, they constantly work towards designing, building and operating better, greener buildings that tread lightly on our stressed planet. These winners are at the forefront of making a difference in the built environment. They are leading by example in the greening and sustainability space. The significant growth in green building is thanks, in part, to the support of our sponsors. Having achieved 100 certifications in April this year, we have been overwhelmed by the commercial property sector’s commitment to sustainability and resource efficiency.

The ratings

The Green Star SA ratings are an attempt on the part of the Green Building Council of South Africa to create a common and objective language for green building, permitting close control of resources for the reduction of environmental impact, both in the short and long term. The categories under which a building is assessed are:

• Management
• Indoor Environment Quality (IEQ)
• Energy
• Water
• Materials
• Land use and ecology
• Emissions
• Innovation

Each area is weighted, assigned credits and a final rating (in a percentage score) is given to the building, with 4-, 5- and 6-Star Green Star SA Certified Ratings coming in at 45–59% (Best Practice), 60–74% (South African Excellence) and 75–100% (World Leadership), respectively. There are two stages in the awarding of a Green Star rating: Design and As Built. A Design rating is given after the submission of a design matching relevant standards; the As Built rating is awarded after that design is realised.

With such a high rating awarded, Solid Green‘s involvement in the 6-Star rated Upper Grayston Block F is a point of pride for the firm.

Upper Grayston Block F

Upper Grayston Block F in Sandton, Johannesburg.

The following sustainable building features of Block F of the Upper Grayston building in Sandton contribute considerably to its 6-Star Green Star SA Office v1 As Built rating:

• Photo-voltaic system: Photovoltaic (PV) panels have been installed to meet 15% of the building’s peak demand at top production, with energy drawn from the panels before the mains.
• Rainwater harvesting, treatment and reuse: Rainwater is captured, collected, filtered, treated and stored. Rainwater is used throughout the building to reduce demand on the municipal supply. A solar-panel system provides hot water.
• Live metering display: Block F connects users to their energy and water use – providing a means to control that use – including automated billing, so that tenants pay for the resources they use.
• Green Star SA accredited professional team: The whole professional project team comprises exam-certified Green Star SA Accredited Professionals.
• Green Building Cycology Tours: The Upper Grayston Block F is designed around sustainable mobility. Electric bike tours are hosted every Friday – in conjunction with Solid Green, Cycology and the GBCSA.

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Developed by Brydens Commerial Property, Upper Grayston’s Block F was initially a speculative office development which is now fully tenanted a year after final completion. The building is situated at Upper Grayston Office park adjacent to Block E, which received a 5 Star – Green Star SA Office v1 As Built, which Solid Green also consulted for. The passive design features (orientation, shading, etc) have resulted in a good energy efficient building and efficient systems and renewable energy make the building even better. The building also implemented a number of Solid Green’s innovation initiatives, facilitating its achievement of the unprecedented rating. Find out more about what makes this breakthrough building super sustainable below.

Upper Grayston Block F in Sandton, Johannesburg.

Sustainable building features

1. Photo Voltaic System

Fifty-three square metres of photovoltaic (PV) panels have been installed on the roof, designed
to meet 15% of the building’s peak demand at its highest production. The system has no battery to store energy and works by first drawing energy from the panels before using the mains power connection to meet demand.

2. Rainwater harvesting, treatment and reuse

Rainwater is captured from the roof, collected, filtered and treated to potable water standards and pumped into storage tanks on the roof (9m³/ 9kL in total). Harvested rainwater is used for all applications in the building, including toilets, shower and taps. Municipal supply water is only used when the rainwater has been depleted. Hot water, generated through a solar panel system, is continuously circulated to provide hot water relatively fast when opening the tap.

3. Live metering display

Most green buildings have energy and water meters installed to monitor usage and indicate problems or leaks. Block F has gone one step further. By developing a simple way to connect users to their energy and water use so they have a means to control usage. Tenants could even compete and set targets, as well as use the data for reporting purposes. Block F then took it even further to automate the billing of each tenant, and to do so very accurately, so that tenants pay for what they use.

4. Green Star SA accredited professional team

Every member of the professional project team wrote and passed the exam by the Green Building Council and are now certified as Green Star SA Accredited professionals.
Team members can now be the principal participant in the design team on all current and future projects, assisting the other project teams to integrate Green Star aims and processes.

5. Green Building Cycology Tours

Upper Grayston block F makes provision for the platform to actively advocate Green buildings and sustainable mobility. This is done through hosting electric bike tours every Friday – in conjunction with Solid Green, Cycology and the GBCSA. The tour starts at Upper Grayston Block F and runs through-out Sandton to Green Star SA Rated buildings in the area. Providing educational tour with regards to Green buildings and first-hand experience on a sustainable transport mode.

Building Information

Address: 126 Ann Cresent, Strathavon, Sandton, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Total gross floor area: 2175 m²
Total commercial office area:  2175 m²
Car parking area: 2071 m²
Total usable area: 1635 m²

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We have the audacious goal of wanting to change the way the world is built – to inspire, design, build and operate better, greener buildings that tread lightly on our stressed planet. The winners of the Green Star Leadership Awards have stepped up and are making this happen, and doing so with extraordinary passion and flair.

Brian Wilkinson, CEO of GBCSA

Chilu Lombe of Solid Green Consulting, left, with Brian Wilkinson, Green Building Council of South Africa (GBCSA) CEO; Faieda Jacobs, a GBCSA board member; and, Marloes Reinink of Solid Green, at Green Star Leadership Awards 2014. Solid Green won the Established Green Star Award.

The annual Green Star Leadership awards consist of four categories. For buildings, there are the Highest Rated Building and Best Quality submission, while individual professionals are recognised as either a Rising Green Star or an Established Green Star. The awards officially named No.1 Silo at V&A Waterfront, the new head office of Allan Gray, the winner in the Highest Rated building category of the awards.

Wilkinson explains that No.1 Silo was the highest rated green building in the country during the year, earning the most points in its final Green Star SA rating. No 1 Silo at the V&A Waterfront dazzled with South Africa’s first 6-Star As-Built rating. No.1 Silo is developed by the V&A Waterfront, owned in equal parts by Growthpoint Properties and the Government Employees Pension Fund represented by the Public Investment Corporation (SOC) Limited. The Green Star SA Accredited Professional for this project was Georgina Smit from ARUP.

The refurbishment of the Atrium on 5th offices at Sandton City won the best quality submission award. Formerly the Sandton City Twin Towers, this project was developed by owners Liberty Group and Pareto Limited and its Green Star SA Accredited Professional was Jeanne Butler from Aurecon. It received a 4-Star Green Star SA rating. No.1 Silo at V&A Waterfront was chosen as the runner-up in this category.

For outstanding and ongoing contribution to green building in South Africa, Chilu Lombe of Solid Green Consulting was awarded the Established Green Star. Jaco Kemp of Arup was named the runner up in this category.

“This award is given to people who have continually contributed to the green building economy and are actively changing the way the world is being built,” says Wilkinson. “The accolade recognises Lombe’s leadership, passion and contribution to the green building space.”

Lombe has been involved in developing energy and thermal modelling capacity in South Africa since 2009 and worked on at least 15 Green Star SA project submissions and certifications in the same time. Lombe is also a member of the GBCSA’s education faculty and its project assessment panel.

Sally Misplon of Misplon Green Building Consulting was named this year’s Rising Green Star. Etienne Terblanche of PJCarew Consulting was the category’s runner up.

Misplon has acted as Green Star SA Accredited Professional for eight buildings to date, including the first building to be submitted for an Existing Building Performance rating, which uses a tool that she helped to develop. She’s also in training to become an assessor for the tool and is on its technical advisory group.

The future is indeed bright with professionals like these working together for a better built environment.

In the last seven years the GBCSA has certified a million square metres of commercial space, and has another million in the wings. It has trained almost 6 000 professionals and nearly 1 000 of these have become Green Star SA Accredited Professionals. GBCSA has over a 1 000 corporate members and a reach of about 10 000 green building enthusiasts.

Wilkinson points out that this is thanks, in large part, to the Green Building Leader Network – an exclusive community of outstanding corporate citizens comprising Growthpoint, Liberty and Standard Bank. “Through their support of the GBCSA these companies capacitate the council’s goal of changing the way the world is built, for the better,” says Wilkinson.

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Leaders in green design and innovation were honoured and recognised at the 6th annual 2013 Green Building Council of South Africa Convention and Exhibition which took place at the CTICC from 16 – 18 October.

The sustainability event, revitalised with the thought-provoking theme “ReWire” – Connecting Minds. Building Value is one of the highlights on the South African sustainability calendar.

This year the event was integrated with the WorldGBC Congress – the largest international network influencing the green building marketplace, comprising 92 global councils – making this the most distinctive sustainable building gathering ever hosted on the continent.

Amongst the activities that took place over the course of the well-subscribed Convention was the launch of the latest Green Star SA PILOT Tool for Interiors and the much anticipated Existing Building Performance tool. Furthermore the global gathering saw the launch of the world-first PILOT Socio-Economic Category for suite of Green Star SA rating tools and the announcement of the Green Star SA Leadership Awards winners for 2013.

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To read more about the project, take a look at the GBCSA’s case study, or head on over to the Engineering News article.

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