Creating a sustainable future for Australia's buildings
22 January, 2015 by Cara RyanAcross Australia and the globe, buildings account for up to 40% of energy. Cara Ryan from the EcoBuildings Division of Schneider Electric comments on how she believes we can create greater efficiencies in our existing buildings throughout 2015 and beyond.
Engineers Australia releases energy security report
04 December, 2014Engineers Australia released the report 'Energy Security for Australia' today at Parliament House. The report draws attention to Australia's current energy security flaws and maps out a pathway to a stronger energy future.
Thin clients: a sustainable alternative to PCs
27 November, 2014 by Marc Doehnert, ANZ Business Development Manager, IGEL TechnologyThin clients are designed to provide a smaller, cheaper and more energy-efficient desktop computing alternative to traditional PCs, explains Marc Doehnert, ANZ Business Development Manager, IGEL Technology.
Bridging the gap between distributors and customer
15 September, 2014 by Matt Gleeson, Oracle Utilities Regional Vice President at Oracle APACRecent developments in the utilities industry have made one thing very clear: for energy companies, doing business the way they have until now no longer represents a sustainable course of action.
What does green retrofitting mean for you?
04 September, 2014The new trend for designing sustainable, energy-efficient buildings has taken a further step: green retrofitting of existing corporate properties.
Asteron Centre earns 5.5 Star energy rating
31 July, 2014Wellington's Asteron Centre - the city's largest single office building - has earned a 5.5 Star base building energy rating from NABERSNZ after reducing its base building energy use annually to 46 kWh/m2.
Food manufacturer improves sustainability with biogas recovery
30 July, 2014Food manufacturing specialist Wiley has designed and constructed an innovative biogas and water treatment plant for JBS Australia. The innovation has resulted in improved sustainability and a reduced carbon footprint for the meat processing company.
Water sector working with industry
23 July, 2014Degrémont, a subsidiary of water and waste management company Suez Environnement, has just signed a contract with Delta Electricity to operate and maintain the water reclamation plant at Vales Point Power Station in New South Wales. Sustainability Matters talks to Stuart Gowans, General Manager - Business Development at Degrémont, to find out more about the company's expansion into the industrial sector in Australia.
Developing urban efficiency through collaboration
14 July, 2014 by Joe Craparotta Vice President - Energy Business*City dwellers make up more than 50% of the world's population. Current urbanisation trends show that in the next 40 years, 70% of all people on the planet will be living in cities.
LEDs set to improve sustainability of Australia's street lighting
02 June, 2014 by Bryan Douglas, CEO, Lighting Council AustraliaBecause of their longevity, controllability and above all efficiency, LEDs are now an attractive substitute for conventional mercury vapour, high-pressure sodium, metal halide and linear and compact fluorescent technologies used in minor roads and other public spaces. A further major environmental advantage is that LEDs do not contain the toxic substance mercury.
Lighting technology - opening the new frontier
14 May, 2014 by Erik Zimmerman, Littil Pty LtdThroughout history, the advent of new technologies and discoveries has exerted a huge and ever more rapid impact on the way we live. Equally significant has been advances in lighting due to the development of high-efficiency light emitting diodes (LEDs), lasers and new light-conducting materials, which can miniaturise the form and transmission of light.
Auckland War Memorial Museum's sustainability journey
02 April, 2014Auckland War Memorial Museum is one of New Zealand's premier tourist attractions, with over 850,000 visitors each year. Established in 1852, the facility consists of a war memorial, heritage library, a vast collection of Maori and Pacific artifacts and an encyclopedic collection, totalling approximately 3.5 million pieces. It also attracts regular international exhibitions and provides educational services to over 60,000 school children annually.
ANU unveils the ACT's greenest building
13 March, 2014 by Lauren DavisThe Frank Fenner Building, located at The Australian National University (ANU), has become the first building in the ACT to achieve both 6 Star Green Star Office Design and As Built v3 ratings from the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA).
Improving building performance
12 March, 2014At Total Facilities 2014, sustainability engineer and accredited NABERS and CBD assessor David Odd spoke about the approach to achieve and maintain NABERS ratings in existing buildings using modern risk assessment techniques including dynamic thermal modelling, BMS, energy alarming and the shift from planned preventive maintenance to condition-based maintenance.
Why is electricity consumption in Australia falling?
14 January, 2014For more than a century, the quantity of electricity consumed in Australia was more than the year before. That all changed in 2010, as explained by Hugh Saddler, Principal Consultant, Energy Strategies, pitt&sherry, in The Australia Institute report 'Power down: Why is electricity consumption decreasing?'
