These choices included locally-sourced reused furniture (from the old Boogertman office across the road), FSC sustainable timber, and flooring containing post-consumer recycled content. The library staircase leading up to the upper level office area doubles as an auditorium; and includes an acoustic curtain which is opened or closed when conferences or staff education sessions are held. This multi-functional staircase also houses the materials library, which demonstrates a variety of materials to assist with design decisions.

Conceptual design for Building C was undertaken by Bob van Bebber, while project director was Quintus van Eck. The building was designed to ensure that maximum daylight entered the space, while ensuring minimal solar heat gains. This allowed for reduced electrical lighting requirements and reduced energy bills. The extensive use of glazing in the design allows for a feeling of direct connection to the outdoor environment, and the inclusion of indoor plants introduces biophilic elements that enliven the interior spaces.

All interior lighting utilises LED bulbs and is on occupancy sensors to ensure that unused lighting is switched off, further reducing energy consumption. The canteen area is fully equipped with kitchen and preparation areas where staff can prepare healthy, mindful meals to promote an atmosphere of wellness.

Building C also houses a crèche that provides all working mothers at the firm with on-site childcare. Due to budget limitations, all staff members helped to paint this environment thus creating a sense of ownership for all families working at the firm.

Building tours are conducted for all who are interested in viewing this innovative office space.

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Situated within walking distance of both the Gautrain and the Metro bus stops, the development is close to the Post House Centre, giving easy access to amenities such as retail outlets and restaurants. The building boasts various spaces to work privately and collaboratively, and to interact socially; and it facilitates employee wellness by incorporating spaces such as a canteen for daily meals and crèche for young families.

Green building features were incorporated from the outset, to demonstrate commitment to sustainability, enable employee wellbeing, and reduce resource consumption. Energy strategies were implemented to reduce the overall energy consumption of the building, thus reducing energy expenses as well as greenhouse gas emissions associated with energy generation from fossil fuels.

Lighting levels were designed to be 80% less than the prescribed standard, while still being above the Occupational Health and Safety (OH&S) requirements so that sufficient lighting is provided for specific tasks without wasting electricity. All individual or enclosed spaces are less than 100sqm in size, and are individually switched. This approach, together with light intensity and motion detector sensors used throughout the building, offers greater flexibility for light switching, making it easy to light only occupied areas.

All office lighting, both direct and indirect, is equipped with electronic programmable lighting ballasts, which allow the building management team to address each ballast individually. All ballasts are high frequency luminaires, eliminating the chance of discomfort to building users caused by the flicker of low frequency lamps.

The behaviour of occupants is critical to reducing the building’s overall consumption, and gathering information is key to understanding and managing building systems, and to assessing opportunities for water and energy savings. Accordingly, sub-metering of lighting, power and all substantive energy use items greater than 100kVA is provided, along with an effective mechanism for monitoring energy consumption. An integrated BMS system records and logs all energy and water usage within the building, and this data can be displayed in real time.

Management of water consumption was also a key consideration. The HVAC system is a cooled air system, which uses minimal water. Sanitary fittings were installed that reduce predicted potable water consumption by building occupants. Water meters and an automated monitoring mechanism are in place to effectively monitor and manage consumption. These measures have resulted in the building’s outflow from occupant usage being reduced by 50% against an average practice benchmark.

In accordance with the base build certification requirements, a waste recycling storage area was provided to encourage recycling of resources used within the building to reduce waste going to landfill – for paper and cardboard; plastic, glass and cans; metals; and general waste.

Jesse Hamman, Sustainable Building Consultant at Solid Green and the Green Star accredited professional on the project, says:

It was a pleasure to work with such an experienced project team. The developer sought not only to provide the tenant with lower utility costs, but tenant and occupant wellbeing was also of top priority – a philosophy that is being carried through to the project’s interior fitout.

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