Environmental Rating
““A great building must begin with the immeasurable, must go through measurable means when it is being designed, and in the end must be unmeasured.””
Within our team, we have certified professionals for all rating tools in use in New Zealand.
Rating tools are used to benchmark a design or building’s sustainable credentials.
Our project experience extends from the international Living Building Challenge, to the now-familiar Green Star.
We were involved in the two highest-rated, six-star Green Star buildings in New Zealand.
Working with the design team, we advise on the best approach for a meaningful yet pragmatic sustainability target for your project.
In line with our aim to ensure buildings perform to their potential, and as efficiently as possible, we also carry out NABERSNZ ratings - a first step in measuring and then improving a building’s energy efficiency.
Green Star
Green Star is an environmental rating tool for offices, educational buildings and industrial buildings. The rating tool covers energy, water, waste, ecology, materials and management. Either the design and/or the final built product can be rated at 4 Star, 5 Star or 6 Star. We provide assistance with the Green Star process, from concept design and initial points target selection through to final accreditation.
Green Star Performance
As the New Zealand Green Building Council likes to repeat ‘The most sustainable building is one that already exists’.
In the history of building, people always built with what was nearby in the landscape. In the cities – where most of us live – the predominant source of materials at hand is existing buildings. Retrofitting an existing building for high performance is a great achievable ESD target.
For Green Star Performance, ratings are awarded from 0-6 stars, with 2 stars considered average practice, 3 stars good practice, through to 6 stars demonstrating a world leading green building.
Unlike other Green Star tools, a Green Star Performance rating is temporary, lasting three years, with an annual requirement to submit energy and water data. This ensures the rating is an accurate assessment of operations at the time, and allows building owners and tenants to improve their star rating over time.
Green Star Communities
Green Star Communities NZ works to support everyone from property developers through to policy makers to assess and promote the development of sustainable communities against best practice sustainability benchmarks.
Homestar
Residential buildings can be rated for their design or final built product using the environmental rating tool Homestar. The rating tool covers energy, water, waste, ecology, materials and management. Buildings can achieve up to 10 Stars.
We provide assistance on larger residential developments, such as apartment blocks, from credit selection at concept design through to accreditation.
Living Building Challenge
The Living Building Challenge is a rating tool developed by the International Living Futures Institute for regenerative building projects of any typology.
It includes social as well as environmental targets that must be met to achieve the full Living Building Challenge certification.
Petal certification and Net Zero Energy certification are alternative certifications available.
