Going green is going global. The rapidly growing “green building” industry epitomizes this, with more than 21 countries establishing rating systems for sustainable designs according to EarthTrends August 2007 monthly update. In Australia, the Green Star environmental rating system is fast gaining momentum—green buildings are no longer a “niche” incidence but fast becoming status quo.According to Green Building Council Australia (GBCA), 84% of Australia’s architects, contractors, and building owners support the drive for ecologically sustainable design (ESD). In the face of more than 200% growth in the projects registered and certified under Green Star, how can architectural designs remain innovative while meeting the demand for sustainability?
For Architectus, a multiple award-winning company with a track record in architecture, interiors, urban design and planning, the key is in embracing sustainability in their design philosophy and adopting building information modeling (BIM) as their core capability.
According to Rodd Perey, design technology director of Architectus’ Sydney office, Australia’s increased appreciation for ESD can be attributed to the government’s push for a heightened green agenda. “It is now risky to construct new buildings without considering the ‘green’ agenda. With the industry’s call to upgrade existing buildings to improve their sustainability performance, tenants and developers of new buildings feel the pressure to future-proof their buildings through ESD to enhance their buildings’ long-term commercial value,” says Perey.
As a long-time advocate for sustainability and a member of the GBCA, this is good news for Architectus. Perey adds, “it is gratifying to finally hear clients demanding for the same things we have been advocating, on their own initiative.”
Early Foray in Sustainable Design
Architectus’ foresight in sustainability is evident as early as the 1990s with its design of the Novotel and Hotel Ibis for the Sydney 2000 Olympics. Incorporating “green” features including solar panels, low volatile organic compounds (VOC) paints, natural ventilation, and automatic shutdown of air-conditioning when the windows are open, the four-star hotel exemplifies Architectus’ passion for sustainability even before the country’s Green Star rating was established in 2003.
Another example is the Gallery of Modern Art in Brisbane commissioned in July 2002 by the Queensland Government—Architectus’ winning entry from more than 300 submissions. The gallery’s pavilion was designed to seamlessly integrate with the site’s natural topography and location along the river. The winning design introduced sustainable features with the skillful use of river cooling, a 10.6 metre skylight to deflect direct sun rays, low energy lighting, plantation timber, and the consideration of indoor environmental quality at every design stage.
Transforming Sustainable Ideas into Green Designs
Architectus’ success saw its business grow by 50% in 2006 compared to 2005. The firm grew from 160 architects, designers, and planners in 2005 to more than 220 in 2006—with the Sydney office alone growing more than 50% from 50 to 80 staff members. Perey attributes the company’s success to the adoption of building information modeling to turn its sustainability ideas into finished designs that deliver better building performance. “Sustainability has always been a key feature of Architectus’ design philosophy, and we are very keen to extend our BIM approach into analysis that allows informed design decisions to be made,” says Perey.
The firm’s passion for sustainability drove its selection of Revit® Architecture software from Autodesk, which enables 3D object-oriented modeling to better predict the sustainability performance of its designs before they are built. “We are able to make better and faster decisions on factors that have a direct impact on the sustainability performance of the building,” explains Perey. These include choosing the right materials to reduce material waste to deciding on the dimensions or facing of a door or window to ensure adequate ventilation.
Maximizing Sustainable Performance Without Compromising Design
Architectus’ current One Bligh Street project in Sydney’s Circular Quay, also known as Space, is expected to be awarded a 6-Star* Green Star certification when completed in approximately 2009. Space, a 30-story office building, raises the bar in sustainable office building design with its elliptical design and the use of a double glass skin facade, among other innovative environmental design features.
Excited about the prospect of Space gaining a 6-Star Green Star rating, Perey explains how the use of Revit Architecture helps to streamline its Green Star certification process. “The Green Star certification, like other international rating systems, is developed along standard design guidelines. As such, it does not take into account ’out-of-the-box’ design concepts, such as the elliptical design proposed for Space. The analytical data we can pull from the Revit Architecture models helped us demonstrate and prove that the building’s sustainable design works. For example, it has helped us prove that the use of high performance glass for the double skin facade does not impact the building’s environmental performance. Without a tool like Revit, this would have been impossible.”
Perey adds, “For Green Star’s mandatory post-completion re-assessment, Revit Architecture also equipped us to prepare all the required documentation for the various Green Star rating categories. It helped us substantiate that the building is able to deliver the sustainable performance we have designed it to deliver.”
Building Faster and Greener
The quick turnaround time often set for design submissions for commercial projects was a great test of Revit Architecture software’s parametric change engine. As a database storing information about each design project, any design changes are replicated across all plans, schedules, and other related documents. With every design change, the Architectus team is able to quickly investigate the impact of the change on the building’s sustainability performance. This has given Architectus the competitive advantage to propose numerous design options to its clients to shorten their decision-making cycle.
This competitive turnaround time, combined with the company’s push for the green agenda, has resulted in a significant growth in the number of projects where customers are insisting on the use of BIM. “Customers often want to know how we can better balance the sustainable features we are proposing against the costs involved. They also wish to know the cost permutations if changes are being made. As such, many are now unwilling to work with architectural firms who cannot provide the same kind of information and the quick turnaround time we can offer,” affirms Perey.
Sharpening Acoustics Abilities and Environmental Friendliness
The design of the Sydney Hillsong Church allows Architectus to quickly turn around design changes to fulfill the church’s vision to combine 21st century design and functional facilities. From its initial design proposal, which was completed in six weeks with a team of five, Architectus was able to subsequently downsize the 3200-seat auditorium to 2700 seats in 8 to 10 weeks with just two team members.
Located in an open space where the surrounding park will help connect the church with the local community, the Hillsong Church is designed to achieve site harmony while ensuring safety, accessibility, sustainability, and environmental-friendliness. Though fitted with state-of-the-art sound, lighting, and media equipment, the building for Australia’s largest church is designed to reduce noise levels for its surrounding residents. Using Revit Architecture, the Architectus team can conduct interference detection to scan its building models for conflicts between user-specifiable elements and systems, thus avoiding costly rework and construction delays.
Making Headway with More Sustainable Success
Having distinguished itself with its sustainable successes, Architectus is gaining more accolades in high-profile projects for art galleries, universities, and museums. Naming Autodesk as its strategic business partner, Perey has this to say, “No other software developer has as much impact on our business as Autodesk. Autodesk’s intuitive BIM solutions help to fuel our passion for sustainability, making it easier and more efficient for us to turn our sustainable ideas into green buildings that truly contribute to a cleaner and greener environment.”
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