Uplifting energy ratings at Property NSW by fine tuning

Every building will change over time from its original design intent. Ageing systems, altered layouts, upgrades to services and changes to the Building Management System (BMS) all impact on building performance.

Precise Air’s Building Performance Optimisation programme within the Property NSW MFE contract is delivering significant savings to a range of buildings, including 453-463 Kent St Sydney.

The collaboration of the major influencers of energy management at this site (Property NSW, JLL, Precise Air Group, Buildings Alive and Veolia) has resulted in substantial energy savings, improved NABERS ratings and building performance.

Although the property has ageing mechanical systems, 453 – 463 Kent St was operating at a level far below its capability. Previously rated at 1.5 Star NABERS Energy and Water, the building has achieved 3.5 Stars Energy and 3 Stars Water.

“The property has achieved a 3.5 Star Energy Rating without green power compared to a 1.5 Star rating 12 months ago,” explains Parag Shinde, Property NSW Senior Manager Energy and Sustainability. “This is a phenomenal improvement for a site over one rating period without any major Opex or Capex and was primarily achieved via building optimisation and fine tuning.”

It has resulted in a 26% reduction in annual electricity use since the last rating period.

“We’ve made considerable improvements by making the most of the Kent St building’s existing systems without the need for Capex or upgrades,” said Wissam Salama, Precise Air’s General Manager – Building Performance Optimisation. “The building has a proprietary BMS and we had the pleasure of working and collaborating with the service provider to really get the most out of the systems,” explained Wissam.

JLL’s Sustainability Manager – Property NSW, Paul Suter, explains that “the Precise Air team have worked closely with our facility managers to identify sensible, cost effective improvements for this site – adding to the energy savings we had achieved with the previous contractor.”

“The results that Precise Air’s BPO team have delivered through optimisation and fine tuning are not just confined to this one building,” said Sean McKeon, Contract Manager, Portfolio Management Group for Property NSW. “PAG’s Building Performance Optimisation team in consultation with Property NSW and JLL is making some great improvements in energy ratings and cost savings across the entire portfolio.”

Precise Air BPO doesn’t rely on software alone, but has in-house engineers who attend sites to monitor and review plant performance, and to coordinate with building owners, facilities managers, tenants, BMS contractors and Mechanical contractors. The more time spent on site working with these parties and off site analysing critical data, the more we learn about the building and the more energy we save.

Like all service contracting, the best results come from working together towards a common goal.

To read more, download the case study here: Case study – 453-463 Kent St – BPO

If you would like more information about what Precise Air’s Building Performance Optimisation solution can offer, please contact Wissam Salama on 1300 728 250.