Case study - new office accommodation for Meridian Energy

Printable version of this document (PDF 95KB)

A new building on Wellington’s Waterfront at Kumutoto Site 7 is being built by Fletcher Construction for Dominion Funds, with Meridian Energy as the major tenant upon completion in September 2007. The building and fitout is designed to minimise energy and water use, features that closely reflect Meridian Energy’s renewable energy strategies and commitment to sustainability. The working environment will be particularly healthy and productive contributing to an outstanding user experience. This result is being achieved at a cost comparable to conventional A grade office buildings.

Introduction

This is the first of a two part series that looks at the new Meridian Energy office accommodation at Kumutoto Site 7 on Wellington’s waterfront. This first part covers how Meridian Energy turned the need for larger premises, and the desire for it to be as sustainable as possible, into a tangible project that is now underway. The second part will cover the building process and the move of Meridian Energy’s staff and operations to their new premises.

Background

Meridian Energy is a generator, trader and retailer of energy and wider complementary products and solutions. As an electricity retailer, Meridian has about 180,000 residential, industrial and commercial customers throughout New Zealand. It is one of the largest electricity generators in New Zealand, operating the Waitaki and Manapouri hydro schemes, the Te Äpiti wind farm in the Manawatu and has several other wind farm projects under development.

Meridian Energy is committed to developing renewable-only sources of generation to help meet New Zealanders’ increasing demand for electricity. This renewable-only commitment stems from a deeper commitment to sustainable development, and the belief in doing the right thing commercially, environmentally and socially for New Zealanders now and in the future.

Meridian Energy has offices in Wellington, Christchurch and Twizel. Since the company’s inception in May 1999, the company has grown substantially and this is reflected in the growing number of staff employed in Wellington. In December 2004 Meridian identified that it would outgrow its current Wellington office sites within 12-18 months and initiated a project to find new office accommodation which reflected its sustainability commitment.

ESD and offi ce accommodation

The need for new office accommodation was identified very early in the project as an opportunity to demonstrate Meridian Energy’s commitment to sustainable development. The company wanted more than just a new building – it had to be a healthy and productive working environment for staff that reflected the company’s values, all at a cost comparable to standard office accommodation. Ecologically sustainable development (ESD) was adopted as a guiding principal for finding an office accommodation solution that met Meridian’s cost and user experience requirements.

The following strategic framework was developed to articulate Meridian’s requirements:

Strategic Framework for Wellington accommodation

	Cost Effectiveness	User Experience	ESD
Goals	Demonstrate the value of ESD in a commercial context	Create a healthy safe and exemplar office building as a point of difference	Leverage our building to align with our brand and Renewables Strategies
Objectives	Total occupation cost neutral or better compared to a conventional (non ESD) commercial office development	Office environment that results in user satisfaction of + 5% Wowness factor	Energy usage of 80kwh/ m2/pa – 31kgCO2/m2/pa Water usage of 0.16m3/ m2/pa 4 ½ + Green Star equivalent
Defining Aspects	Cost Programme Commercial terms	Working Environment Indoor Environment Quality Aesthetics Amenities	Energy Effi ciency Water Conservation Materials Management & Operations Star Rating

 

Breaking the myths about ESD

The biggest challenge at the outset of the project was breaking the industry myths that ESD just costs more.“We had to create new ways of thinking about costs,” said Shayne Gray (Meridian’s Project Director for Project Kumutoto). “Before going out to the market, we did our homework and made sure that we were an informed client.”

This included talking to other New Zealand organisations who had been through a similar process (Landcare Research and Vodafone), training a member of the project team to use the Australian Green Star office building rating tool, and getting expert advice from experienced professionals. An advisory group comprising leading professionals from throughout the country was established, which covered a multitude of disciplines. “We wanted the team to work really well together, so made a conscious effort to ensure they really understood Meridian’s objectives and drivers. It was a great opportunity for them as professionals to help us develop something special.”

Being specific

The advisory group developed a building performance specifi cation that detailed the guiding framework with specifi c measures and targets for over 100 design and performance elements. This formed the basis of the Request for Proposals document that Meridian issued to the market. “It was great having the expert group on board from the beginning because we were able say to them, ‘if you received this on your desk, could you build it?’ They gave us the assurance that it could be done.” Meridian was in effect asking for an office building which required all aspects of architectural and engineering design, construction, commissioning and occupation to be developed within a context of ESD. To ensure there were no surprises in the proposals that were received, Meridian enabled a collaborative design process with potential building developers. Proposals were then evaluated by a team of both Meridian staff and the advisory group who recommended the building proposed by Wellington Waterfront on Site 7 Kumutoto (North Queens Wharf).

Detailed participation

Detailed commercial and design negotiations were completed and Meridian signed a development and long term lease agreement with Dominion Funds and Wellington Waterfront in December 2005. By incorporating the detailed performance specification into the Development Agreement everyone involved in the project has a crystal clear description of Meridian’s expectations as well as the ability to understand how each requirement contributes to the overall ESD philosophy. During detailed design and construction, Meridian has closely monitored compliance with the performance specification to ensure it will get the building it has specified, as well as assisting the building development team in being confident that it will meet or exceed Meridian’s expectations.

Don’t forget the inside!

While the building design was being developed, work continued on detailing the working environment which Meridian wanted to create inside its new office. In June 2005 Meridian undertook a building use survey of staff to find how the current office environment performed and what improvements could be made for the new office. The feedback from this was used as input into the interior design. Staff will be surveyed again following the move and a settling in period to assess whether the improvements have resulted in productivity gains.

Office interior architects Warren and Mahoney were appointed to design the office fitout to deliver the desired working environment within the same ESD context that applies to the building as a whole, and without adversely impacting the building’s performance. Staff workshops were used to ensure that the fitout design will cater to the needs of Meridian’s corporate office, which is dominated by knowledge workers, as well as making the most of the building’s location and leading edge design.

Next steps

Construction is well underway with Meridian scheduled to move into its new offices in September/October 2007. Part two of this case study series will outline some of the experiences of Meridian in the construction and moving phases of its office relocation project.

Project Directory

Meridian Energy Advisory Group

Working Environment and Property Strategy	Dow Group
ESD	eCubed Building Workshop
Services	Stephenson & Turner
Architecture	Warren and Mahoney
Commercial	Davis Langdon
Legal	Greenwood Roche Chisnall
Security	Stoks Limited
Technology	Telco
Project Management	Acuity Partners

Project Consultants

Developer	Dominion Funds
Landowner	Wellington Waterfront
Signature Tenant	Meridian Energy
Building Architects	Studio of Pacific Architecture + Peddle Thorpe Architects +
Interior Architect	Warren and Mahoney *
Structural Engineer	Dunning Thornton Consultants *+
Services Engineer	Beca *+
Construction	Fletcher Construction Company *+
Quantity Surveyors	Maltbys + David Langdon *
Project Management	Mallard Cooke + Acuity Partners *

* Contracted by Meridian Energy for fitout

+ Contracted by Dominion Funds for building development

Key Contacts

Shayne Gray
Project Director – Project Kumutoto
DDI: (04) 381 1263
M: 021 754 193
shayne.gray@meridianenergy.co.nz

Murray Pugh
Project Manager – Project Kumutoto
DDI: (04) 499 3336
M: 021 247 7730
murray.pugh@meridianenergy.co.nz
or mpugh@acuitypartners.co.nz

 

---

Site accessibility

Feedback or questions?
Email information@mfe.govt.nz

Legal statements