Plumblink is a specialist plumbing, bathroom, and kitchenware business currently operating from over 140 branches throughout South Africa. While industrial buildings are typically assumed to be unsustainable or not particularly considerate of their environmental impact, Plumblink’s new Head Office and Distribution Centre in Woodmead shows us otherwise.

BREAKING THE INDUSTRIAL MOULD

The building complex includes a warehouse, showroom, and office space, spanning over three floors. It’s far from your typical ‘box-type’ warehouse design Developed by Attacq and designed by Empowered Spaces, the building stands out with its contemporary and geometrically striking features.

The clever design delineates the conventional warehouse ‘box’ by carving into the structure to create window reveals, balconies, and decorative ‘window boxes’. While the building makes use of traditional industrial materials like corrugated sheeting, cladding, and tinted window glazing, it looks like anything but a warehouse.

REDUCING RESOURCE CONSUMPTION

Energy strategies at the Plumblink facility are geared towards cost savings and, of course, fewer greenhouse gas emissions. Key initiatives include:

• Solar Panels: The building is equipped with a 1600 kWp photo-voltaic system, generating an impressive 397.3 MWh of electricity annually.
• Sub-Metering: Major energy-consuming systems have sub-metering capabilities, enabling precise monitoring and management.
• LED Lighting: LED lighting, lasting up to 50,000 hours, reduces maintenance and disposal issues.
• Smart Lighting Systems: Office lighting power densities are kept under 1.5 W/m² per 100 Lux, with occupancy sensors for individual spaces enhancing energy efficiency.
• Heat Pump System: The hot water system uses a heat exchanger and heat pump system to ensure efficient hot water availability at up to 60 degrees Celsius.

Water efficiency has been prioritised to reduce potable water use and use this valuable resource responsibly. Apart from sub-metering for accurate usage data and the use of water efficient fittings, strategies include smart irrigation metering and waterwise plants, and stormwater management that minimises stormwater runoff and the pollution of natural watercourses.

ENVIRONMENTAL STRATEGIES

The project’s environmental strategies focus on enhancing the wellbeing of occupants with the goal of improving work performance and productivity. This is something which sets this project apart, says Solid Green Sustainable Building Consultant, Cebisa Mafukuzela.

Because industrial buildings are usually designed for function, they seldomly focus on the human element. This makes the Green Star credits centred around human comfort a bit hard to achieve. This means the design team needs to provide additional elements that are not mandatory or standard in order for these credits to be achievable. For this project, we had to make major adjustments to the lighting and the finishes specifications to ensure certification was achievable.

Key measures include:

• Visual connections and daylight: 80% of office usable areas have direct visual connections to the outside, and 72% of occupied spaces receive ample daylight to minimise artificial light use.
• Thermal comfort: Internal operative temperatures stay within ASHRAE Standard 55-2004 limits for at least 98% of occupied hours.
• Safe cooling systems: The design eliminates evaporative cooling towers and systems that risk legionella contamination.
• Indoor air quality: Minimisation of indoor Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) to reduce indoor pollutants.
• Environmental Management Plan (EMP): A project specific EMP was developed to establish guidelines to minimise the environmental impact associated with construction activities.

MATERIALS & WASTE MANAGEMENT

In modern construction, sustainability begins with the materials, and every effort has been made to ensure that the building’s footprint is as light as possible. Any new construction should aim to achieve 40% reduction of the quantity of Portland cement in all concrete mixes. This significantly reduces the carbon emissions commonly associated with concrete production. On top of this, all the steel should have at least 60% recycled content of by mass.

A Waste Management Plan was developed to minimise the contribution of waste going to landfill and reduce the project’s environmental impact. This ensures responsible waste management is ongoing. The facility features a 78 m² waste recycling storage area to encourage building users to recycle all waste where possible. The aim is to recycle or reuse 5% of the waste generated each month.

INNOVATION POINTS

The project earned innovation points for the Green Star SA Accredited Professional (GSSAAP) team, where five professional team members and four members of the main contractor completed the Green Star New Build course, enriching their understanding of the Green Star rating tool.

Mafukuzela adds:

Working on Plumblink was a new and exciting challenge as it was the first time I worked on a custom tool certification. As the project progressed, we did find some unexpected challenges that required us to re-evaluate the strategy to achieve the targeted certification. This was ultimately successful, thanks to the support of the client and the team.

At Solid Green, we are dedicated to helping our clients achieve their sustainability goals. If you’re inspired by the Plumblink Head Office & Distribution Centre’s success story and keen to realise your own green building aspirations, please get in touch.