Changes to the Commercial Building Disclosure Program
If you own or manage an office building you may be affected by changes to the Commercial Building Disclosure (CBD) Program coming into force from 1 July 2017. The Property Council sat down with HFM Asset Management UPM Manager Alex Sejournee to discuss how building owners can ready themselves for the changes ahead
From 1 July 2017, the mandatory disclosure threshold on commercial office space will be lowered from 2000 square metres to 1000 square metres. The effect of this change is that owners and lessors of smaller commercial office buildings may need to disclose the building’s energy efficiency when they sell or lease their property after this date.
Disclosure affected buildings or tenancies of 1000 square metres or more that are offered for sale or lease will require a Building Energy Efficiency Certificate.
The BEEC includes:
- a National Australian Built Environment Rating System (NABERS) Energy star rating for the building; and
- a Tenancy Lighting Assessment for the relevant areas of the building.
The Property Council sat down with HFM Asset Management UPM Manager Alex Sejournee to discuss how building owners can ready themselves for the changes ahead.
Q: Why is it important for office spaces to have a NABERS rating?
A: Many building owners and managers elect to constantly maintain BEEC certification by rating their buildings on an annual basis. The key benefits of doing so include; firstly, maintaining constant compliance so that should a sale or lease event arise there is one less thing to worry about. The information collected during the BEEC assessment process also provides a strong base for moving forward with energy performance improvement measures. History has shown that on average buildings achieve a 5% reduction in energy consumption by their second NABERS rating and that this only grows as the years go on.
Q: how does a building’s NABERS rating effect its attractiveness to tenants
A: Tenants and buyers respond to strong NABERS performance as they understand efficient performance can mean lower outgoings. A high NABERS performing building can be a more attractive, healthier building to work in as well, especially if they rate highly with the Indoor Environment tool.
WA state Governments accommodation standards stipulate any newly leases premises should have at least a 4.5 star NABERS base building Energy rating and at least a 4.0 star water rating. Similar policies can be seen in the other states and territories and in federal government procurement policies as well.
Q: what would be your top tips to save energy and get the best rating possible?
A: Improving building efficiency requires continual implementation and assessment of improvement strategies. HFM’s top tips for energy saving focus around their continual improvement model call the Utility Performance Management (UPM) Roadmap.
The UPM roadmap involves 6 steps:
- Review
- Verify
- Comply
- Procure
- Perform
- Upgrade
Q: WHAT DO BUILDING OWNERS NEED TO DO TO Ensure they comply with Upcoming changes to the CBD Program and can obtain an accurate NABERS rating?
A: HFM main tips they have been telling buildings include:
• Take stock of which buildings / spaces may become disclosure effected (floor plate size, extensive vacancies).
• Education
✓ Visit the CBD website (www.cbd.gov.au)
✓ Review and understand the exceptions and exemptions
✓ Speak to an expert
✓ Understand the assessment timeline (can take 6-8 weeks to complete)
• Review and monitoring
✓ Conduct an audit / review in respect to NABERS Compliance / Improvement options
✓ Implement an energy & water tracking program (indicative NABERS, flag issues)
• Understand what data you need to have on hand and regularly collect
• Upgrade and refurbish (to achieve NABERS target)
HFM is an engineering consultancy firm with offices in Perth, Sydney, and Brisbane. We are a privately owned, independent, fee for service company.
HFM are specialists in NABERS ratings & BEECs. They have one of Australia’s largest teams of highly experienced team of NABERS and CBD assessors ready to help guide customers through the assessment process. They have a diverse range of services all focussed around their primary goal of driving efficient client outcomes, whether it be through energy procurement, asset management, mechanical or electrical engineering services or project management
You can find out more about the changes to the Commercial Building Disclosure Program at our exclusive briefing on April 11.