The adaptive reuse design of the University of Auckland’s 50-year-old Social Sciences Building (B201) has been awarded 93 points by the New Zealand Green Building Council (NZGBC) – the highest score since the inception of the 6 Green Star Design rating. The renovated building is due to open in 2024.

University of Auckland Director of Property Services Simon Neale says this puts the building in the ‘world leader’ category. “The project sets new benchmarks for low-carbon design and sustainability. It will send less waste to landfill, create less pollution through its construction and operation, and provide healthy, comfortable and functional spaces for the many thousands of students and staff who will work, study and socialise within its walls.”

The university’s Estate Strategy (Te Rautaki Tūāpapa) – to develop innovative campuses as sustainable, equitable, accessible and resilient ecosystems – also drove the design focus of reducing carbon and increasing energy efficiency. Jasmax project lead Chris Scott said that achieving 6 Green Star certification was a priority from the very early stages.

“The design of B201 includes the adaptive reuse of an existing structural frame and the addition of a new timber atrium to house the Faculty of Education and Social Work and the Faculty of Arts,” says Scott. “The building’s concrete cladding will be replaced with a new lightweight system, ensuring the existing structure can be reused, while the weight-saving allows the addition of extra floor area. Replacing the façade with a lightweight curtain wall gives the building adequate earthquake resistance for another 50 years.”

The design includes high-performance solar glazing, low-emission paints and coatings, 50 per cent greater ventilation rates from electric heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems, and a predicted 75 per cent reduction in water use, thanks to a rainwater harvesting system.

More than a tenth of the building’s renewable energy will be generated on site and the university will measure and report the environmental performance of at least 80 per cent of the building’s floor space, with electrical and water metering and monitoring built in.

Scott says that Jasmax is committed to setting industry-leading carbon targets in response to the 2019 New Zealand Climate Change Response Amendment Act. “This Green Star certification marks a real milestone in our efforts to partner with our clients to meet net-zero carbon across new buildings over the next decade and we’re particularly pleased to have received this rating with the university, which shares our commitment to sustainable design,” he says. “As a practice, our aim is to ensure our projects have longevity and are part of the solution to reducing the impacts of climate change.”

NZGBC chief executive Andrew Eagles says the project highlights “how we can avoid bowling our existing spaces and, instead, adaptively reuse them – massively slashing our carbon emissions while creating spaces fit for the future”.

The project was supported by the New Zealand government’s Covid-19 (shovel ready) response fund through the Infrastructure Reference Group.