What is a BASIX Certificate?

BASIX is a sustainability certificate in NSW that is required for Class 1 and Class 2 developments for both new builds and alterations/additions.

When are they required?

A BASIX is mandatory for all DA’s in NSW.

What does a BASIX Certificate cover?

A BASIX Certificate consists of three sections; Water, Thermal Comfort and Energy.

Water:

• Star ratings of showerheads, toilets, taps, dishwashers, clothes washers and more (if applicable).
• Requirements for a rainwater tank and volume (if applicable).
• Types of plants, indigenous or non-native.

Thermal Comfort:

• Insulation R-values to walls, floors and roofs.
• Glazing U-values and SHGC’s.

Energy:

• Hot water system types and star ratings.
• Control of bathroom and laundry exhausts.
• Air-Conditioning types and star ratings (if applicable).
• Gas or electric cooktops/ovens.
• Appliances such as dryers, clothes washers, dishwashers and star ratings (if applicable).
• Solar panels (if applicable).

We are proficient and accredited in the use of BersPro and FirstRate5 Softwares for thermal comfort calculation

We provide a draft of the BASIX Certificate before the completion and certification.

What is NABERS?

NABERS is a government piloted initiative which looks at existing buildings by assessing the actual energy and water consumption and calculating a star rating.

What is BEEC?

The BEEC is a federal requirement. It consists of a NABERS Energy Rating and a TLA (Tenancy Lighting Assessment).

When are they required?

A BEEC is mandatory for all existing offices over 1000m2.

What does a NABERS Cover?

There are two NABERS ratings we provide which are the office and apartment building ratings.

For NABERS offices, a base building, office rating or whole of building rating can be completed for both water and energy. The office rating considers three critical elements, which are NLA, office hours and energy/water consumption over the past rating period.

NABERS has introduced a new rating for apartment buildings which considers energy/water usage, apartment numbers, car parking spaces, centrally air-conditioned units, lift serviced apartments and more, to determine a rating score.

Different apartment buildings are not disadvantaged by having more services, rather they are benchmarked against other similar apartment buildings to provide an informative comparative analysis.

We can provide lunch & learn presentations to numerous architectural firms in the following areas:

• Section J Compliance;
• BASIX Compliance;
• NABERS Ratings;
• Proposed changes to Section J of the NCC 2019; and/or
• Introduction to Sustainability.

As the energy efficiency industry is developing and becoming more specialised, Certifiers are looking at industry professionals to ensure compliance.

We have provided numerous SJ and BASIX Compliance Statements whereby we complete site inspections and identify defects accordingly.

We liaise directly with the builder and resolve any outstanding issues in a cost effective and timely manner to ensure compliance.

BESS Reports

In Victoria SDA’s (Sustainable Design Assessments) and SMP’s (Sustainability Management Plans) are required to be submitted to council. A BESS Report (Built Environment Sustainability Scorecard) is used to show compliance with SDAs and SMPs.

It uses nine set categories such as Management, Water, Energy, Stormwater and more to calculate sustainability.

We can complete and submit BESS Reports to councils as required.

WELL

WELL Building Standard is the premier standard for buildings, interior spaces and communities seeking to implement, validate and measure features that support and advance human health and wellness.

WELL looks at eleven different criteria's ranging from air quality, water, nourishment, light, movement, thermal comfort, sound, materials, mind, community and innovations.

Certain preconditions must be met to achieve a rating. These along with optimisations can achieve a higher rating.

WELL has three different ratings which are Bronze, Gold and Platinum.

NABERS Commitment Agreements

A NABERS Commitment Agreement is at design stage whereby the developer enters into a commitment that the building, when it is finally operating after a year, will meet a certain star rating.

This is required by Council, especially for large office buildings. Essentially an energy rating is performed on the building from design stage with all the M & E specs. This gives an energy output which gives it a projected star rating. After the building has been in use for a full year, a year worth of bills are collected for an official NABERS rating to be conducted. The actual rating must align with the NABERS Commitment Agreement Rating.

https://www.nabers.gov.au/ratings/commitment-agreements

Greenstar

Greenstar - Design As Built is the top end design rating tool used for sustainability in Australia.

The rating basically looks at approximately 9 different categories running from water, energy, technology, indoor environment, materials, transport, greenhouse gas emissions and more.

Different credits are awarded for the different categories. The credits are weighted. A total of 100 credits are available.

The more credits achieved the higher your star rating, ranging from 0-6 Stars.

https://new.gbca.org.au/green-star/rating-system/design-and-built