Sustainability winners in commercial construction

By Rebecca Casson – CEO, MBAV

The start of the calendar year is an excellent time to highlight achievement in sustainable construction. Too often, this work can go unrecognised, even as its importance grows every day.

There were two projects submitted to our annual Excellence in Construction Awards last year that we chose for the ‘Best Sustainable’ award title. For commercial builds, which have so many stakeholders and expectations, this can be a difficult standard to meet.

The entries in 2019 continued show the growth and variety of sustainability measures incorporated into projects and demonstrated their inclusion in infrastructure projects as well. Comparing an office building with a section of rail line can be a challenging exercise, but these projects were judged by evaluating what they delivered against what was possible, and the difficulty associated with achieving that.

In Geelong, One Malop Street, by Built Pty Ltd, reflects ‘World’s Best Practice’ in sustainable construction by achieving a 6 Star Green Star As-Built rating. This project has WorkSafe as the primary tenant. One of the main construction challenges was integrating the new facilities within the existing heritage façade of the historic Dalgety & Co building.

Our other winner in sustainability is a project that might never capture your attention — which, in a way, is the point. The Caulfield to Dandenong Level Crossing Removal Project, by CPB Contractors, is a landmark project that removes nine dangerous level crossings on the Cranbourne/Pakenham line. It also rebuilt five train stations with modern facilities, upgraded signalling and power along 72 km of track and created new, public, open space.

We’re very proud to have our commercial builders share work that represents the many forms sustainable construction and design can take and demonstrates the ways in which our industry makes Victoria a great place to live and do business.

Clayton Station interior,

Left: Murrumbeena Station exterior. Right: One Malop Street interior by Built Pty Ltd.