Australian Building Greenhouse Rating Scheme

Date: 1999 - 2002
Client: Sustainable Energy Development Authority of NSW (SEDA)

The Australian Building Greenhouse Rating scheme is an Australia-wide program that allows the developers, owners and occupants of office buildings to rate their greenhouse performance on a simple scale of one to five stars.  Buildings that perform better receive more stars.  A good rating can be a significant advantage in the commercial property market.  As a result, many developers and are now aiming for 4 and 5 star ratings on new office buildings.  The Rating was developed for SEDA, a New South Wales government agency that aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the State.

Exergy was involved in the program from the start, with complete responsibility for the technical workings of the Rating.  Exergy collected performance data on buildings from around Australia, and used this to develop an emissions rating system that corrects for the climate, occupancy hours, area and the amount of equipment in the building.  Exergy also developed guidelines for conducting ratings assessments, a process for accrediting assessors, and software to calculate the rating.  Many of the documents and tools developed by Exergy are now available on the Australian Building Greenhouse Rating website, at www.abgr.com.au.

Exergy maintains an ongoing involvement in the program by providing high-level strategic advice to SEDA on the operation and application of the scheme, and through the development of Starperformer, a diagnostic tool that helps building owners and occupants improve their Building Greenhouse Rating.

This project shows Exergy’s ability to work with government agencies and industry to develop, test and support a ratings system that is creating better greenhouse awareness and improved performance in the commercial property industry.