Viridis, a small design agency closely involved their team in choosing a new office to match their sustainability principles, and closely monitored electricity loads. By giving staff more control over equipment and using daylight and fresh air they cut thousands off energy bills and enhanced staff well-being.
After taking steps to improve the energy efficiency of their office, see how Tank calculated and offset their remaining emissions to become carbon neutral, including going beyond the boundaries of the office, by taking into account the company’s emissions in relation to activities such as flights and vehicle usage.
Ozwide completed an energy assessment on their new office and with the help of CitySwitch identified a number of areas that they could improve on including upgrading lighting which resulted in a 60% reduction in energy bills and installing an energy meter to monitor and drive a staff education and behaviour change program.
WTS took the opportunity, when fitting out their new office in North Sydney, to use in-house expertise and knowledge in integrating sustainable design and construction practice and initiatives. They successfully achieved their goal of a 6 Star NABERS Energy tenancy rating and now have an energy consumption level of 78 per cent less than a typical office.
Steensen Varming used their office move to select a green building with strong credentials and enter into a green lease with their new landlord. Selecting a suitable building, plus an approach that maximized daylight, used zoned air-conditioning and recycled office furniture resulted in savings from day one. Staff were engaged in all stages of the move.
AMP Capital's behaviour change competition saw staff across seven floors of their Sydney office battle it out to reduce energy and increase recycling. The 'Floor Wars' campaign resulted in energy savings of 15 per cent and supported the roll-out of lighting upgrades.
Goodman Group have increased staff collaboration, job satisfaction and achieved energy savings of 46 per cent as a result of transitioning to an activity-based workplace. The CitySwitch award-winner cites an innovative staff change management program and technology upgrades as the key to the fitout's success.
Climate Friendly are striving for energy efficiency excellence by applying the simple philosophy of 'measure, offset, reduce and review'. The consultancy is ensuring effective ongoing measurement using technology such as PowerMate and FutureSwich, and has successfully created a switch-off culture at their Sydney office to meet a target 6 star NABERS Energy rating.
Baenziger Coles, an architecture and interior design company, has further optimised office energy efficiency by investing in renewable energy. As a result of feed-in tariffs and a reduction in energy use, the Melbourne office is enjoying a good return on investment, along with annual CO2 savings.
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Eligibility Criteria
Submitted projects should:
Judging Criteria
It’s easy and free to join the program. Your good-will commitment to the program is an acknowledgement of the business sector’s role in contributing to environmental sustainability and your intention to reduce your own energy consumption and associated carbon emissions. As part of this, Signatories to the program commit to achieve an accredited NABERS Energy tenancy rating (between 4 and 6 stars) and work with CitySwitch to improve their tenancy’s environmental performance. Find out more about how obtaining a NABERS Energy rating ensures you can benchmark your performance, better manage your progress over time and promote your star rating achievement.