Services

Energy Efficiency Consultation & Auditing

Electricity prices continue to rise and many businesses and strata plans are finding that relatively minor investment in energy efficiency initiatives in the short term will lead to major energy cost savings in the longer term.

The first step in an energy efficiency analysis is an energy audit to determine where energy is being used and how it can most effectively be reduced.

Sustainability Now can provide your strata plan or business with an energy audit in accordance with the key components Australian Standard 3598 that deliver targeted action plans that represent value-for-money. Comparatively minor expenditure on an energy audit in the short term will establish a baseline and identify targeted opportunities for improvement that result in major long-term savings in energy costs. Contact us for more information on how Sustainability Now can optimise your energy efficiency.

The key scope of work in an energy audit includes:

Site walkthrough survey to identify opportunities for improvement that will pay for themselves through electricity and gas savings within 10 years, with focus on ‘low-hanging fruit’ items with payback period of 3-year or less.
Calculation of capital cost of each initiative, annual electricity and carbon emission savings and payback period.
Electricity and gas tariff analysis.
Analysis of 12 months of 30-minute electricity interval meter data to identify daily, weekly and seasonal variations in load profile.
Analysis of quarterly gas meter and billing data to identify seasonal variations in usage.

NABERS for Apartment Buildings

NABERS stands for the National Australian Built Environment Rating System. A NABERS rating measures the operational performance of your building in the last 12 months by comparing it to other similar buildings in Australia. NABERS is funded by the Australian and State Governments and exists across many sectors (commercial office, hotels, hospitals, data centres etc). It is soon moving across schools and other building types. The rating is mandatory for commercial office sector only at this point in time. This means all office buildings must disclose their NABERS rating at point of sale or lease. The government is continually increasing this mandatory requirement to other sectors. Apartment Buildings are now in the voluntary stage. And you do not have to disclose your rating to anyone yet.

Research shows that owners and renters want energy and water efficiency information at point of sale or lease. This is seen as an indicator of running costs and good governance, in addition to being environmentally responsible.
All building types will soon be required to rate – if you get it done now, you are on the front foot as you can get your systems/information in order and be prepared when this is mandatory.
Leading Sydney apartment buildings are getting rated and some are disclosing it now.
Government rebates such as the NSW Energy Savings Scheme will provide some funding toward efficiency upgrades – accessing this money will be linked to annual NABERS ratings.

NABERS energy is about reducing your emissions; to do this you must increasingly become more efficient over time. There are significant cost savings associated with this. This report outlines projects to reduce costs and emissions. Improvement happens over time – as technology improves you will be able to improve your star ratings with upgrades/efficiencies that are not necessarily on the market right now.

NABERS typically includes 12 months of utilities (electricity, gas, diesel, water) paid for by the Owners Corporation. The ratings are awarded using a 0 to 6-star scale to provide a simple indication of a building’s operational performance. Rating annually helps to evaluate, track and communicate the impacts of energy & water efficiency and renewable energy initiatives.

In theory, NABERS creates a level playing field that allows residential strata buildings of all shapes and sizes to be objectively compared against each other such that the assessed star rating for a 10-lot scheme with no lifts, no car parking, no swimming pool and no central air-conditioning in Hobart can be compared with, say, a 300-lot building with, pool, gym, car park and central chiller system in Brisbane.

Solar Power Feasibility & Project Management

Undertaking a feasibility study prior to installing solar will develop a sound business case to assist in decision-making and identify and address potential issues before they become a problem. In additional to initial feasibility, we can also prepare a specification, issue tenders and project manage the installation.

Mechanical Services Optimisation

Is your heating, ventilation & air-conditioning (HVAC) running efficiently? More than likely there are opportunities for improvement that will have a rapid return-on-investment. Ask us how we can help.

Water Efficiency and Auditing

Water consumption is difficult to monitor as bills are typically only issued every quarter by water authorities. This means that you could have a serious leak that isn’t identified for up to 3 months.

Sustainability Now can assist by undertaking a Water Audit of your building or business, including:

Comparing your current consumption with benchmarking data;
Providing and analysing real-time water use monitoring data;
Identifying leaks and other opportunities for improvement; and
Developing site-specific solutions to help you save water and potentially tens of thousands of dollars per annum.