Environmental ratings will be included in the measure of building quality for the first time in the history of Australia’s office market.
The measures are part of the Property Council’s new Guide to Office Building Quality.
The Guide replaces the former Quality Grade Matrix, and is the culmination of an 18- month project to provide a contemporary measure of office building quality for all Australian markets.
Property Council CEO Mr Peter Verwer says that the Guide provides building owners, occupiers, managers and designers with two voluntary classification tools – one for new buildings, and the other for existing buildings.
“We believe this Guide to be the most advanced tool of its kind in the world,” Mr Verwer says.
“It breaks new ground by introducing eco-efficiency as a measure of the quality of an office building.”
“This is particularly relevant given the increasing importance of environmentally sustainable development to the industry.”
The comprehensive Guide was produced by a panel of experts in various specialist fields, including engineering, design, development, agency, property management and construction.
Four separate public drafts were issued, and more than 70 written submissions were considered.
The Guide classifies office buildings into grades – Premium, A, B, C or D Grade – according to criteria including size, design, configuration, environmental performance, location, communications, security, lifts, air-conditioning, mechanical, and other services and amenities.
The Guide to Office Building Quality uses more than 50 parameters to grade buildings.
The environmental criteria grades buildings against both the Green Building Council’s ‘Green Star’ tool, and the Australian Building Greenhouse Rating Scheme (ABGR).
“This Guide is an essential tool for anyone who owns, manages, occupies or designs office space in Australia,” Mr Verwer says.
“For the first time all of the major criteria that occupants and owners use to judge the performance of space – design, location, services and environmental performance – are specified authoritatively in the one document that belongs to the industry.”
Note to Editors: The Property Council of Australia’s Guide to Office Building Quality is voluntary. The Property Council does not classify buildings for public consumption.
For more information contact:
Mr Peter Verwer, CEO, Property Council of Australia, (02) 9033 1926 or 0407 463 842
