Webinar: Improving water efficiency in buildings to drive sustainability

About the webinar

There is rapidly growing scrutiny on the management of water in large buildings as part of a holistic sustainability strategy.

Building owners and managers are now prioritising advanced water management practices, including smarter monitoring and leak detection. In this webinar, industry experts will share proven strategies to reduce water intensity and optimise consumption.

Participants learn how to maximise NABERS Water ratings, enhance tenant engagement regarding water usage, and explore opportunities for cost recovery through chargebacks.

The expert panel

• Karl Welsch, Technical Officer, NABERS
• Dale O'Toole, Sustainability Innovations Delivery Manager, GPT
• Howie Mann, VP of Product, CIM

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Transcript

Anthony:

Hello, I'm Anthony Caruana. On behalf of CIM, I'd like to welcome you to today's webinar. Before we start, I'd like to respectfully acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land on which we meet and recognise that these have always been lands where learning has taken place. By storytelling and through the sharing of experiences, we pay our respects to elders past, present, and emerging.

Today's topic is the rapidly growing scrutiny on the management of water in large buildings as part of a holistic sustainability strategy. Building owners and managers are prioritising advanced water management practices. In today's webinar, we'll hear from three industry experts who will give their take on how to improve water efficiency in buildings to drive sustainability. Our panel today includes Karl Welsh, technical officer at NABERS, Dale O'Toole, sustainability innovations delivery manager at GPT, and Howie Mann, VP of product at CIM.

Today's agenda includes three presentations. We'll start with Karl talking about NABERS water, followed by Dale discussing GPT's water master plan and Howie covering the role of technology in CIM's water capability. If you have any questions, please use the Q&A function in the webinar software. We'll address them at the end of the presentations and during the panel discussion. If your question is for a specific panellist, please let us know.

With that, I'm going to introduce our first speaker, Karl, who will discuss NABERS water.

Karl's Presentation

Thanks, Anthony. Hi, everyone. I'm really pleased to have the opportunity to talk to you today about NABERS water. I'll be discussing how NABERS water ratings are used in non-residential buildings and how they can improve efficiency. But before diving into the water summary, I'll provide a quick recap of the NABERS program, which is now 25 years old.

A NABERS rating is a simple six-star sustainability tool for the built environment, with three stars being the market average and six stars the market leader. The NABERS rating measures impact, not intent, using actual consumption data from a twelve-month rating period. The tools are technology-neutral, allowing buildings across Australia to compare themselves fairly, regardless of size, location, or operation.

Our five sustainability tools include energy, water, waste, and carbon neutral, which measure the impact a building has on the environment, and the indoor environment tool, which measures the impact on occupants. We've recently announced the launch of our embodied carbon tool.

The sectors for which we have rating tools are shown here, with the water tools in the blue box. We're working on an energy tool for retail stores and an energy and water tool for schools. Currently, offices are the only sector covered by mandatory energy ratings, but there is interest in expanding mandatory disclosure to other sectors and rating types.

Regarding the water tool, our NABERS-accredited assessors collect information about a building, such as floor area, location, and usage data, which is verified through utility bills and validated sub-meters. The assessor conducts a site visit to verify everything matches the paperwork, and the rating is lodged with NABERS. The algorithm compares the building details with actual consumption to provide a water star rating and report.

Our favourite saying is, "What gets measured, gets managed," and if it can be managed, it can be improved. With a baseline rating showing current performance, you can initiate capital works or operational programs to target water efficiency and improve your rating.

We've seen a growing number of rated premises year on year, with water ratings closely associated with energy ratings. If you're getting an energy rating and collecting building data for energy, you can add the water bills and get a water rating. NABERS offers a discount for doing both.

We've seen consistent reductions in water intensity in the office sector over the life of the NABERS program. For more statistics, I recommend visiting our annual reports section on our website.

I mentioned earlier that energy and water ratings tend to be linked. Using data from the past few years, we can see the close number of energy and water ratings. Here's the data expressed as percentages of water ratings to energy ratings, with the average around 90%.

We love a good case study at NABERS, and here's one from regional New South Wales. A mid-sized office achieved a four-and-a-half star energy rating and a two-star water rating in 2019. This prompted the building owners to focus on fixtures and fittings, installing data loggers to better understand water consumption patterns. After twelve months, they saw a three-star improvement in water rating, equating to a 70% reduction in water consumption.

Here's a snippet from a water efficiency fact sheet on our website, offering tips on water efficiency and common improvements. Even with modern plant and equipment, buildings can lose substantial water through undetected leaks, inefficient tapware, cooling towers, and landscape irrigation.

A NABERS rating shows how a building performed over twelve months, but further investigations may include adding sub-meters, smart meters, or data loggers to understand water consumption patterns better. Good management can lead to improvements; in twelve months, you can get another water rating to show those improvements.

There are also financial benefits, as seen in savings on the lower right side of this page. We offer a free training course called "Influencing Sustainability Outcomes in the Built Environment," providing tools for influencing decision-makers. It's popular among sustainability professionals, and I'm happy to discuss it further if you're interested.

On our website, we have several calculators, including a forward calculator to estimate a rating and a reverse calculator to calculate maximum water consumption for a target star rating. For example, improving from a three-star to a four-star rating in a shopping centre can significantly reduce water consumption and costs.

That's my section on how NABERS water ratings are used in non-residential buildings to improve efficiency. Back to you, Anthony.

Anthony:

Thanks, Karl. That was fascinating. It's interesting to see how much water can be lost through inefficiencies and leaks and how the NABERS system can help detect and improve these issues. Let's move on to Dale O'Toole, who will talk about GPT's water master plan. Over to you, Dale.

Dale's Presentation

Thanks, Anthony. I'll just share my screen. This afternoon, I'll speak about GPT's water master plan and some key focus areas related to water efficiencies.

As part of my role, I head up GPT's water master plan, which is comprehensive and covers all critical parts of our business. It provides a clear pathway for delivering our short-, medium--, and long-term objectives related to water management. One key deliverable is our public commitment to being water-neutral across our operations by the end of this decade. It's a big project, and 2030 is not far away.

To translate these aspirational goals into action, we've developed water blueprints that include metering, monitoring, non-potable water, stormwater management, and water efficiency.

It's crucial to integrate water efficiency across all stages of a building's life. The design and construction phase determines how the asset will perform over its life, so getting systems, plant, and fixtures right is essential. In the operational phase, regular inspections, servicing, maintenance, and fine-tuning are necessary to ensure optimal performance. During refurbishments and major redevelopments, replacing older, less efficient fixtures and systems is an opportunity for improvement.

I'll now discuss some findings from developing our water blueprints. In the design phase, cooling towers are a great example. They must have good airflow and proper installation to function efficiently. For instance, cooling towers should have inspection panels accessible for maintenance and be positioned to avoid airflow restrictions. Long return pipe runs should be avoided to prevent water overflow when pumps shut down.

In landscaping, specifying indigenous and drought-tolerant species reduces water requirements, and sensor-activated irrigation systems are more efficient than timer-based systems. Fire service systems should have sufficient isolation valves to reduce water losses during maintenance.

Metering is critical for water efficiency. Good meter coverage and accessibility are essential, as is having accurate and comprehensive metering schematics. Optimisation and leak management in the operational phase are vital. H VAC optimisation strategies should consider the impact on water consumption, not just energy savings. Regular site inspections and trend data analysis can identify leaks and inefficiencies.

Upgrades to older equipment, such as amenities, can improve water efficiency during refurbishments. We're exploring innovative solutions like vacuum toilets, which use 80% less water than conventional systems, potentially enhancing our NABERS ratings.

For broader capex projects, it's essential to consider the impact on NABERS ratings and include indirect costs like sewage, energy, and water treatment in business case planning.

That's my section complete. Back to you, Anthony.

Anthony:

Thanks, Dale. That was very interesting. Measurement and accessible metering are crucial, and it's fascinating to see the innovative solutions you're investigating. Our third presentation today comes from Howie, who will talk about the role of technology in water management. Over to you, Howie.

Howie's Presentation

Thanks, Anthony. I'll just share my slides. Hello, everyone. I'm Howie, and I lead product development at CIM. I'll discuss how technology can help manage water efficiency in buildings.

At CIM, we provide real-time monitoring of energy and equipment use in buildings. We work with customers worldwide across various asset types, including offices, shopping centres, hotels, airports, and museums. Our platform automates the identification and diagnosis of maintenance issues, helping operations teams move from outdated maintenance activities to data-driven and predictive maintenance. Our ultimate goal is to help teams run better buildings that are sustainable, reliable, comfortable, and resilient.

Our solution operates across four pillars: collecting data, diagnosing issues with AI models, creating tooling for action and repair, and helping people benchmark and report on performance. In water efficiency and smart monitoring, there are four core benefits: stopping leaks, avoiding bill shock, improving sustainability ratings, and maintaining meter uptime and reliability. Additionally, accurate cost recovery from tenants is increasingly important.

We integrate with smart water meters, standardise the data, and provide real-time visibility on usage. Algorithms diagnose leaks, high baseload meters, faulty meters, and unreliable meters. The improved phase involves making issues actionable and facilitating collaboration among teams, ensuring genuine issues are addressed efficiently.

Having data allows benchmarking and reporting, helping identify patterns and areas for improvement. We're developing new features, including centralising sustainability ratings, alert notifications, impact labels, and self-generation of water usage reports.

A quick case study illustrates the practical application of our technology in a large shopping centre. They had three core goals: tenant engagement, leak detection, and improving sustainability ratings. With smart water meters installed, they identified and addressed leaks, engaged tenants in water usage behaviour changes, and initiated a cost recovery program.

Knowing the largest water consumers in a building is crucial. Cooling towers, for instance, can account for up to 50% of water usage. Identifying and addressing leaks in these areas can significantly reduce water consumption.

I'll stop sharing and pass it back to you, Anthony.

Panel discussion and audience Q&A

Anthony:

Thanks, Howie. We've had a couple of questions from the audience. One is for Karl: "Do you anticipate that NABERS water will become mandatory for offices?"

Karl:

That's a great question. It would be great to see that within the NABERS water team, but it will be industry-led. The CBD team has a consultation paper out to gauge interest in expanding the CBD program. The outcome will depend on the industry's appetite.

Anthony:

Thanks, Karl. Dale, one question for you: "Who are the main teams you work with to implement your water master plan at GPT?"

Dale:

Mostly it's our operations people, including our key contractors, mechanical services, cleaning staff, BMS contractors, capital works teams, development teams, and leasing teams. Working with tenants is also crucial, as lease structures play a significant role.

Anthony:

Thanks, Dale. Another question for Karl: "How does NABERS water complement other rating schemes like GRESB and Green Star?"

Karl:

NABERS water adds to the environmental component of GRESB, energy and environmental performance in Green Star, and water quality, accessibility, and conservation in the WELL standard. A high NABERS water rating can support these standards well. The NABERS water rating also complements energy, waste, and carbon neutral ratings within the NABERS suite.

Anthony:

Thanks, Karl. Dale, from a property owner's perspective, what are the primary drivers for prioritising water efficiency across the portfolio? How do investor and tenant pressures influence these initiatives?

Dale:

We consumed roughly 1.25 billion litres of water across the group in the last twelve months, correlating with significant water-related costs. Financial benefits drive us to reduce consumption. Tenants and investors increasingly look at our assets' water performance, including NABERS ratings. Investors are also interested in our assets' resilience to water scarcity under climate change, and we prepare climate adaptation plans for all assets.

Anthony:

Thanks, Dale. Howie, can you talk about some of the new features CIM is exploring to simplify water management for building owners?

Howie:

We’re launching several new features, including our ratings feature to centralise ESG ratings, alert notifications for issue management, impact labels to highlight water-related issues, and self-generation of water usage reports for cost recovery. These features aim to streamline water management and improve efficiency.

Anthony:

Thanks, Howie. We've got time for one final question. Karl, do you have any track on how COVID impacted NABERS water ratings for office buildings?

Karl:

Yes, we saw that water ratings were affected more than electricity ratings, especially as occupancy rates changed. The reduction in water usage was noticeable as fewer people used office facilities during COVID.

Anthony:

Thanks, Karl. I want to thank everyone who attended today’s webinar. We had many questions from the audience, which kept the discussion engaging. Thank you to our panellists, Karl, Dale, and Howie, for sharing their insights and expertise. There will be a short survey at the end of the webinar, and we appreciate your feedback to improve future events. Keep an eye out for our next webinar on CIM's LinkedIn page or your inbox. Thanks, everyone, for your time and attendance, and we look forward to seeing you again in future webinars.