Lighting

Lighting accounts for one-third of the energy used in commercial spaces.  About half of the lighting is wasted either through inefficient bulbs, poor design or improper maintenance.

The main reasons are:

Older incandescent  bulbs and reflectors use inefficient technology and give off more heat than light (which in summer has to be removed by the air conditioning system, using more energy)

Companies don’t effectively plan their lighting needs when they design their buildings or offices

Tenants don’t move existing lighting to suit their changing layout needs

Over-lighting is a waste of energy.

Pointers

Plan your lighting carefully

• Look for opportunities to maximize natural light by placing offices in areas that get the most natural light.  Placing open plan offices around the building perimeter maximises daylight.  Cellular offices block out the light to other areas.  Place cellular offices and meeting rooms near the core, or middle of the building so they don’t block light.

• Work out how the office is going to be used and then allocate areas by:

–  general lighting to illuminate the office (the Green Star guide is 400 lux)

–  task lighting for desks or work stations to localise light to where it is really needed

–  accent lighting if required to create mood or to highlight a feature.  Be economical with accent lighting as it generally isn’t efficient to run.

Install a lighting control system

• Timers that switch lights off after a preset period are a suitable solution in open plan offices or large conference rooms where it is difficult to make a particular individual responsible for turning off lights.

• Occupancy sensors are another solution.  These sensors turn lights off when they

have not detected movement for around 15 minutes.

• Daylight dimming control systems can be very cost-effective over time.  Ask your electrical engineers about DALI (Digital Addressable Lighting Interface) and similar systems.

• Ensure that switching to individual areas is provided and labelled so that during afterhours use, a whole floor doesn’t need to be switched on.

A Guide to Sustainable Office Fit-outs  31Upgrade fittings or bulbs

• Install reflectors into fittings to redirect light.  Without them about half the light from a fluorescent tube is absorbed by the inside of the fitting.

• Clean fittings regularly.

• Install ‘occupancy sensors’ in rooms that are infrequently used (toilets, store rooms, meeting rooms etc).

• Install electronic control gear and more efficient new-generation lamps to increase efficiency.

• Replace bright lamps with lower power ones in over-lit areas, or remove some lamps altogether.

Encourage energy saving behaviour

• Obtain “Switch Off when not in use” stickers for light switches from the Energy

Efficiency and Conservation Authority.

• Remind people to switch off lights in meeting rooms and other rooms that are used only part of the time.

Case study: Lighting

Lighting accounts for about 30% of the total energy consumed by an office building. Most of the fittings  T5 fluorescents running off high-frequency ballasts with a highly reflective (KRN) fitting which maximises the amount of light reflected.  The building’s lighting control system includes occupancy sensors for intermittent-use areas such as stairs, toilets, utility areas and meeting rooms.  Large numbers of switches for different areas enable  specific sections of lighting to be turned off and on as required, rather than having to light entire floors.

Installing a lighting  control system that would enable automatic sensing of daylight conditions, variable control  in different areas and so on.  The Digital

Addressable Lighting Interface (DALI) system originally envisaged for the building:

Allows lights to be individually dimmed from 1% to 100%

Automatically dims lights near windows

Use predetermined levels in meeting rooms so users can choose a level suited to the need sets reduced lighting levels (usually 15%) for cleaners, security rounds and so on.

Glazing

Glazing plays a role in the lighting, noise, insulation and glare of an office.  Natural ventilation can be used as an alternative to air conditioning systems.  Although not always an option in all office fit-outs, windows that open offer passive heating/cooling options.

Issues

• Air conditioning systems require energy to run (10%-50% of energy consumption).

Sealed windows have been identified as a factor in Sick Building Syndrome (SBS).

Personal control over temperature and ventilation positively influences work

performance.

Access to daylight is associated with more positive moods, stress reduction and increased job satisfaction.

Pointers

•         Utilise existing opening windows.

•         Consider replacing some, or all, non-opening windows with opening windows.

•         Office Partitioning

•         Office partitioning contains various materials, including:

•         Aluminium componentry

·        structural steel

·        pinex softboard

·        whiteboard MDF

·        gypsum board wall

·        clear and opaque glass

·        panel finishes such as wool, wool blends, vinyl, upholstery and other synthetic fabrics.

·        Issues

·        Issues for partitioning are similar to those for office furniture and gypsum products outlined in

·        the relevant checklists and may include:

·        unsustainably harvested wood products

·        possible emissions from formaldehyde, adhesives, binding agents, paints or finishes used in the  product.  Processed wood and wood waste products  such as particleboard,  chipboard, and hardboard often utilise formaldehyde-based resins as a binder or adhesive.

Formaldehyde is considered a ‘probable’ carcinogen based on animal testing data.

Formaldehyde-free particle boards are now available  high quantities of heavy metals from mined gypsum, gypsum from the processing of flue gas in coal-fired power station, glass wool from recycled glass, and mineral wool from  rock.  These also create problems in the recovery of materials from these products

Environmental impacts associated with gypsum mining  toxic smoke given off during a building fire.

Pointers

• Design your layout carefully.  Most wastage comes from poor initial designs that are quickly changed.

• Use a flexible partitioning system that can be adjusted and repositioned easily.  Avoid systems that cannot be moved without destroying most of the components.

• Timber systems offer some flexibility and have the lowest embedded energy, followed by steel and aluminium.

• Avoid using treated timber where possible (eg, for purely internal partitioning

systems).

• Use formaldehyde-free particle boards.

• Partitioning systems that include recycled materials are now available, as well as ones Using materials with very low embedded energy, such as bamboo.  Use these where practicable.

Most of the partitioning used for the offices  in Environmental House is  glass/steel stud.

However significant amounts of reuse occurred, including Huppé doors in the large meeting rooms and individual desk partitioning in open-plan areas.

Technical checklist

Key ingredients to avoid: Formaldehyde; high-VOC adhesives paints and finishes.

To help compare different products, use the  following questionnaire with suppliers and/or manufacturers, when products with an  ecolabel (eg, Environmental Choice New Zealand) are unavailable:

If timber products are not certified, can you provide other evidence that the wood is sourced from sustainably managed forests or plantations that limit adverse habitat, biodiversity and toxicity impacts?

If the timber is from a local source, can you provide evidence that the harvest is in compliance with New Zealand environmental legislation?

Have low-VOC adhesives, paints and finishes been used on the product?

Does the product contain recyclable materials such as steel and aluminium as well as products with a

recycled content such as recycled PVC and post-consumer PET plastic?

Is the product easy to disassemble into separate components to make eventual recycling easier?

Does any gypsum board used include recycled gypsum content?

Does the product include other recycled raw materials (eg, fabric offcuts)?

What potential does the product have to release formaldehyde?

A Guide to Sustainable Office Fit-outs Floor Coverings

Floor coverings are a key item when looking for ‘big hits’ in sustainability – both because they

are always used in large quantities in fit-outs and refurbishments, and because there are good

options to chose between.

Carpet

Issues to consider

Manufacturing processes:

raw materials – artificial, recycled or natural fibres?

waste and toxic emissions energy use – both during the manufacturing process and for transport of the finished goods locally made or sourced from overseas?

ISO 14001 or other accreditation for manufacturers.

During use:

appeal to staff

ease of installation and maintenance

adhesives – levels of VOC emissions

durability

flexibility – can you make small changes easily?

reusability

look for natural latex, jute or woollen felt backing and underlay

value for money.

After use:

disposal options: recyclable or designed for disassembly?

Pointers

• Ensure any adhesive used has the lowest possible VOC emissions.  Water-based

latex ones are typically best.

• Can you lease instead of buying the carpet, with a life-long servicing contract?

• Is it possible to use recycled product for underlay (if used)?

A Guide to Sustainable Office Fit-outs  37Useful resources and information

Technical checklist

To help you compare different products, use the following questionnaire with suppliers and/or

manufacturers:

Wool scouring process

Does the scouring plant comply with any acts, regulations, bylaws and regional plans relating to the

environmental impacts of the operation, eg, consented discharge of heavy effluent and meeting the consent

conditions?

Are the detergents used to scour the product free of alkyl phenol?

Was the insect-resistance treatment during the scouring process free of synthetic pyrethroids?

Manufacturing process

Do you have an environmental or sustainability programme in place?

What chemical products are used for wool washing?

What finishes and stainblockers are used during manufacturing?  

Are the yarn-scouring surfactants readily biodegradable?

Is the washing and/or cleaning process free of the use of organic solvents?

What other chemical compounds are used in the treatment or manufacturing processes?

Is a minimum of 50% of process water recycled by the manufacturer or exclusively coloured using solution dyeing?

Does the manufacturer have an energy management programme aimed at reducing the use of fossil fuels?

Is the product accompanied by detailed instructions for proper application, maintenance and disposal

methods?

Do you offer a take-back programme at the end of life and/or recycling of worn carpet throughout its life?

Hard floor coverings

This category includes floor coverings such  as parquet, wooden planks, laminate, vinyl and

linoleum that:

are fixed to the floor and laid on top of an  underlying foundation of concrete or

wood/beams, and have no structural purpose.

Issues to consider

Manufacturing processes:

raw materials – recycled or natural fibres?

sustainably harvested?

waste and toxic emissions

energy use

locally made or sourced from overseas?

ISO 14001 or other accreditation for manufacturers.

During use:

appeal to staff

ease of installation and maintenance

adhesives for installation – formaldehyde and VOC emissions

moisture underneath the floor covering (avoid formation of chemicals, fungus and

bacterial growth, as found in ‘sick buildings’)

cleaning agents

maintenance and renovation methods (eg, sanding)

durability

flexibility – can you make small changes easily?

reusability

value for money.

After use:

disposal options: reusable, recyclable or designed for disassembly?

A Guide to Sustainable Office Fit-outs  39Pointers

• Ensure adhesives have the lowest possible VOC emissions.  Water-based latex

adhesives are most likely to be suitable.  Some flooring products are now interlocking

and require no adhesives.

• If looking at wooden flooring:

–  consider buying recycled or second-hand

–  choose sustainably grown timber – look for timber grown from New Zealand

sustainably managed forests or for Forest Stewardship Council certification on

imported wood.

• Ensure the product you choose is supplied with recommendations on underlay or

base, adhesives, cleaning agents and methods, maintenance agents and methods,

abrasion resistance treatment and renovation methods.

• Solid wood flooring, followed by linoleum (made of linseed oil, pine rosins, limestone

and wood flour rendered onto a natural jute backing), has the highest use of

renewable resources.  Vinyl flooring has the highest use of non-renewable resources,

but requires less land to produce the raw materials.

Useful resources and information

The Good Wood Guide – a guide to purchasing wood from

Case study: flooring/carpets

After considering the carpet tile alternatives, the Ministry made a policy to select from the range

of carpets available from Environmental Choice.

For areas such as kitchens, we selected a linoleum product rather than vinyl  and specified a

water-based adhesive with low volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions.

Technical checklist

Key ingredients to avoid: heavy metals, chlorinated/brominated paraffins, brominated flameretardants, organic tin compounds, phthalates or polybrominated diphenyl ethers.

 A Guide to Sustainable Office Fit-outs To help you compare  products,  use the following questionnaire with suppliers and/or

manufacturers:

Manufacturing process

Does the manufacturer have an environmental or sustainability programme in place?

Are the products used in manufacturing renewable or sustainably sourced?  (eg, wood from Forest

Stewardship Council approved sources)

What chemical compounds are used in the treatment or manufacturing processes?

Does the manufacturer have an energy management programme aimed at reducing the use of fossil fuels?

Is the product accompanied by detailed instructions for proper application, maintenance and disposal

methods?

Does the product meet the required emission rates of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) as specified in the

Environmental Choice New Zealand Trust licence criteria?

Does the manufacturer offer a take-back programme at the end of life and/or recycling throughout its life?

A Guide to Sustainable Office Fit-outs  41Water

Issues

• Conservation of water and energy.

Health and safety issues for staff.

Saving money – more efficient water use will save money for your organisation in water

and energy bills.

Pointers

Nearly all offices have hot water available for hand washing, general kitchen use and in

some cases for showering.  There are plenty of ways of reducing demand for hot water:

Layout and design

• See if installing a hot water heater close to the point of use will improve the service

and be more efficient.

• Where possible, design for dual plumbing to use recycled water for toilet flushing or a

grey water system that recovers rainwater or other non-potable water for site irrigation.

• Minimise wastewater by using ultra low-flush toilets, low-flow shower heads, and other

water conserving fixtures.

• Often hot water temperatures are set at over 70

  Set the temperature to 65

• Insulate hot water pipes between the cylinder and the tap to reduce heat loss.

• Showers use the most hot water; so specify low-flow shower heads.  Specify low flow taps to conserve both hot and cold water.

• Stack kitchenettes, showers and toilets above each other to reduce the pipe runs and heat loss.

• Install a mixer valve to reduce the temperature of the water at the tap (also a good

safety feature).

• Meter landscape water usage separately from buildings.  Use micro-irrigation (which excludes sprinklers and high-pressure sprayers) to supply water in non-turf areas.

• Use state-of-the-art irrigation controllers and self-closing nozzles on hoses.

Use alternative energy sources

• Consider solar water heaters to supplement electricity.  They can be cost-effective in buildings with high-use facilities such as gyms.

• Heat pumps, which use a compressor, can heat water far more efficiently than

conventional heaters.

42 A Guide to Sustainable Office Fit-outs Use it wisely

• Ensure pipes and cylinders are insulated to reduce heat loss.

• Ensure the plumbing system is maintained to reduce wastage (leaky pipes and taps).

• If a dishwasher has heating elements, make sure the incoming water supply is cold

(unless you have gas fired or solar hot water).

• Always do full dishwasher loads.

Useful resources and information

Case study: water

The Ministry for the Environment opted for point-of-use filtered/boiling water systems in each

kitchen area to avoid the need for heating large amounts of standing water.

Solar options for bathrooms and showers were  considered.  However, this proved impractical

because use patterns mean hot water requirements are generally low but – with showers – peak

early when people arrive at work after cycling/walking and when solar-heated hot water is not at

its most efficient.

A Guide to Sustainable Office Fit-outs  43Waste

An effective  waste management plan is vital for planning and operating a sustainable office

building – right from the initial stages of a fit-out or refurbishment.  Much of the advice in the

Getting Started section relates to effective waste reduction, including materials reuse and recycling.

• On the construction site:

– ensure sub-contractors sign up to your policy of reducing waste, recycling and

‘measure twice and cut once’

– have recycling bins on site during construction

– Ask suppliers to avoid unnecessary packaging and take back reusable and recyclable

packaging

– whenever possible, design for and use prefabricated building materials

– ensure building materials are sorted and stacked, and offcuts saved for later use

In the building:

– design the fit-out for the material sizes to minimise waste

– design easily accessible areas for recycling bins inside and outside the building

– build recycling facilities into cabinetry, it looks good and makes for ease of use.

– re-use materials from previous buildings such as interior fittings and fixtures

– use materials with recycled content

– specify and use materials that are recyclable at end of life.

Useful resources and information

The Sustainable Business Network for case studies, resources and advice on planning

 A Guide to Sustainable Office Fit-outs Case study: waste

The Ministry found it  difficult to insist on waste recycling and minimisation during

construction.  Specific advice has  since been  developed to make it  easier to encourage construction teams in this area. 

Fit-out waste was minimised by reusing materials as much as possible.

Waste-reduction systems have been integrated into the fit-out and operating arrangements.  Staff  do not have rubbish bins at their desks.  Each person has a small (10cm x 10cm) box sitting on the desk for any non-recyclable rubbish. Paper goes into paper containers under desks, and then into recycling bins on each floor.

Food scraps are put into bags in recycling drawers in each floor’s kitchen, and bottles and tins go into adjacent recycling bins.  From there they are taken by cleaning staff to the basement,where there is also  a large container for cardboard.  Extensive consultation with the cleaning company was carried out to ensure cleaners  understood what  was required to operate the system.  The organic waste bin is emptied once a week by a contractor who delivers to Living  Earth (a compost manufacturer).

A Guide to Sustainable Office Fit-outs  45Office Furniture

Office furniture includes chairs and other types  of seating, desks, tables, filing and storage cabinets and their associated components and accessories.  These can be made from a variety of materials including metal, wood and wood-based products, plastic and fabric.

Issues

Some of the environmental issues associated with office furniture include:

using wood from a non-sustainable harvest possible emissions from formaldehyde, adhesives, binding agents, paints or finishes used in the product

HCFCs used as blowing agents for polyurethane foam metal plating process for furniture that can contain toxic chemicals and human carcinogens such as hexavalent chromium and nickel.

Pointers

• Reuse existing furniture where possible.

• • Use the checklist (below) with suppliers and manufacturers if no Environmental

Choice products are specified.

A Guide to Sustainable Office Fit-outs Useful resources and information

Case study: furniture

Technical checklist

Key ingredients to avoid: formaldehyde, aldehydes, and 4-phenylcyclohexene , other volatile organic compounds, CFCs or HCFCs.

Use this  checklist with your supplier or a manufacturer if there are no product specifications with environmental criteria .

Do the timber products have a recognised Timber and Timber Product Certification Scheme, eg, Forest

Stewardship Council (FSC)?  (See Annex 2 of the Government Procurement: Timber and Timber Products Procurement Policy Guidelines for a full list of recognised schemes.)

If timber products are not certified, can you provide other evidence that the wood is sourced from sustainably managed forests or plantations that limit adverse habitat, biodiversity and toxicity impacts?

If the timber is from a local source, can you provide evidence that the harvest is in compliance with New Zealand environmental legislation?

Does the product contain low-VOC adhesives, paints and finishes?

Was the manufacturing process free of carcinogenic and/or toxic chemicals wherever practicable?  How?

Were CFCs or HCFCs used as blowing agents in manufacturing any foam components?

A Guide to Sustainable Office Fit-outs  47Can the product be remanufactured at the end of its life?

Does the product contain recyclable materials such as steel and aluminium as well as products with a recycled content such as recycled PVC or post-consumer PET plastic?

Is the product easy to disassemble?  Or does it contain co-injected plastics, ie, materials that contain two types of plastic or plastic and a fibre (which makes recycling difficult)?

A Guide to Sustainable Office Fit-outs Noise

Noise is an environmental and health issue of increasing concern, due, in part, to the move to open-plan design.  In a modern open-plan office, noise can be distracting and stressful.

Office noise can be separated into three categories; ambient, transfer and external.

Ambient noise is the background  noise associated with the office environment.  Typically ambient noise is a composite of sounds from many sources within an office, where no particular sound is dominant.

Transfer noise is noise transferred, either airborne or by direct transfer, through a surface such as an internal meeting room wall.

External noise is generated from the external environment, such as traffic noise.

Pointers

• Specify HVAC and other mechanical systems that generate low noise levels.

• Soundproof office and meeting room partitions, and ceilings, to prevent noise transfer.

• Separate desks as much as possible, and/or make offices available for phone calls.

• Design layouts with sufficient quiet rooms and meeting rooms so staff can have the opportunity for uninterrupted phone conversations and meetings.

Useful resources and information

Occupational safety and health service code of practice for the management of noise in sound levels and reverberation times for building interiors are available from Occupational

Noise

The Ministry chose an open plan layout for its new building which meant the issue of noise needed to be taken into consideration.  The planning for, and location of, the senior staff offices,quiet rooms, and meeting rooms in Environment House allows an opportunity for all staff to access quiet areas for phone conversations and meetings.  All of these spaces, and the ceiling on each floor, have been insulated with noise insulation to dull any sound generated by general office activities and the mechanical services installed in the ceiling cavities.

A Guide to Sustainable Office Fit-outs 

Safety

More often than not people’s safety during the construction and end-use phases of a building project are seen as  separate issues.   However, decisions  made during the development and design stages of a project can have an impact on the downstream safety of contractors and endusers.  Safety should be made a priority from the very beginning of any building project and by bringing together architects, designers, contractors and end-users, devastating and costly accidents and delays can be minimised.

Issues

Some of the safety issues associated with a building project are:

construction workers are three times more likely to be killed and twice as likely to be seriously injured than in any other occupation  proactive contractors have fewer costly accidents, which results in fewer project problems

and delays.

Pointers

Safety, or other organisations such as Site Safe.

• Bring all parties together early to consider how safety issues can be managed.

• During the design phase, consider how you will provide safe access to work areas and safety features (such as anchor points), for all maintenance and cleaning activities.

• Only use contractors and suppliers with a good health and safety record.

• Ensure the building is well maintained to minimise accidents associated with faulty or loose fixtures and fittings.

• Ensure there is a fire safety strategy in place, including fire drill training, and that all staff are familiar and comfortable with it.

• Provide first aid equipment, facilities and training.

Glossary

Carcinogen  A chemical capable of causing cancer in humans or animals.

CFCs  Chlorofluorocarbon, a chemical compound found in many aerosol

products or manufacturing processes and believed to be responsible for

depleting the Earth’s diminishing ozone layer.

Embedded energy The energy used to manufacture a product.

Embodied energy The energy used during the entire life-cycle of a commodity, ie,

manufacture, transportation and disposal.

EMF

electromagnetic field

Low-energy radiation that comes from the interaction of electric and

magnetic fields.  Sources include power lines, electric appliances, radio

waves, microwaves, and others.  Also called electromagnetic radiation.

Emulsion paint  A coating comprised of an emulsion of a resin binder in water.

Formaldehyde  An organic, carbon-containing gas chemical.  It is a volatile organic compound.  It poses health threats including headaches, fatigue, and

moodiness, irritation of mucus membranes, respiratory problems, and

cancer.

Halogenated solvent

Formed by substituting one of the halogen elements (chlorine, bromine,

or fluorine) into a chemical compound to change both the physical and

chemical natures of the compound.

HCFCs  One of a class of compounds used primarily as a CFC substitute.  Work

on CFC alternatives began in the late 1970s after the first warnings of

CFC damage to stratospheric ozone.  By adding hydrogen to the

chemical formulation, chemists made CFCs less stable in the lower

atmosphere enabling them to break down before reaching the ozone

layer.  However, HCFCs do release chlorine and have contributed more

to atmospheric chlorine build-up than originally predicted.

ISO 14001  A series of international standards for environmental management

systems (ISO 14001), life-cycle assessments, environmental audits,

environmental labelling, environmental performance evaluation and

environment-related terms and definitions.

Mutagen  Anything that can cause a change (or mutation) in the genetic material of

a living cell.

Passive design strategies

Passive design is energy efficient design which makes the most of local

conditions to make your building more comfortable while reducing your

bills.

Polyvinyl chloride

(PVC)

Widely used plastic and one of the major end-uses of chlorine.  It is a

polymer consisting of thousands of vinyl chloride monomer (VCM)

molecules joined end to end in a chain.  The pure polymer is hard, brittle

and difficult to process, but it becomes flexible when plasticizers are

added.

 Solvent

  A liquid capable of dissolving another substance to form a solution. 

Water is sometimes called “the universal solvent” because it dissolves so

many things.  Organic solvents are used in paints, varnishes, lacquers,

industrial cleaners and printing inks, for example.  The use of such

solvents in coatings and cleaners has declined over the past several

years, because the most common ones are toxic, contribute to air

pollution and may be fire hazards.

Volatile organic

compounds

(VOCs)

Carbon-containing compounds that evaporate into the air (with a few

exceptions).  VOCs contribute to the formation of smog and/or may

themselves be toxic.  VOCs often have an odour, and some examples

include gasoline, alcohol, and the solvents used in paints.