Toyota WA Headquarters

31 Oct 2013

"We are absolutely delighted with the new head office facility for Toyota WA and the environmental design innovation statement it makes"

MARK LAUREN

Managing Director, Toyota WA Distributor

The project at a glance

  • First WA 5 Star Green Star - Office v3 building outside Perth's CBD90 solar panels and three 1kW wind turbines
  • Reduce the building's peak electrical energy consumption by 15%
  • Integrated blackwater treatment system produces water almost good enough to drink.

Project achievements

When Toyota committed to a new headquarters in Perth, the brief was clear: a building that matched the company's brand, would deliver environmental savings and achieve a 5 Star Green Star rating.
"We are absolutely delighted with the new head office facility for Toyota WA and the environmental design innovation statement it makes."
Mark Lauren, Managing Director, Toyota WA Distributor

Water

The project achieved 10 out of the 11 points available in the 'Water' category. To minimise water consumption, Wood & Grieve Engineers examined everything from the types of taps to water recycling and treatment systems. The project's integrated blackwater treatment system was designed to treat water before discharging it back into the aquifer below ground. WGE took the technology one step further, installing a treatment plant which produces water that is almost good enough to drink. In fact, 100 per cent of the wastewater discharge is reused on site.
"Our main challenge was to meet the WA Department of Health's very strict guidelines for wastewater reuse. We needed to work closely with the Department to achieve full approval and certification of the system," says WGE's Ralf Boepple, Hydraulic Project Engineer, Principal.

Materials

Concrete production can be one of the most energy-intensive manufacturing processes in the world, with a tonne of carbon dioxide emitted for every tonne of cement produced. Cement's ingredients - shale and clay, limestone and chalk - are burnt in a kiln to form 'clinker', which is then ground down into Portland cement. The chemical reaction resulting from this heating process and the energy used to drive the kiln creates the carbon dioxide. By reducing the amount of Portland cement used on the building by 69.2 per cent, the project team has reduced emissions at Toyota's headquarters by around 1,440 tonnes.
"The building was designed to be built with 100 per cent in-situ concrete, using a BORAL 65 per cent blend. This enabled the project to reduce the amount of Portland cement by nearly 70 per cent," says AECOM's Sustainability Consultant, Aaron Alexander.

Energy

The on-site generation of renewable energy through 90 solar panels (both on the roof and ground) is complemented with three 1kW wind turbines. "It is anticipated that the integration of on-site renewables could reduce the annual electrical consumption of the building by up to 40MWh each year - approximately 45 per cent of the anticipated annual electrical consumption. Energy savings are also anticipated through good architectural design of the building form, orientation and shading," Aaron Alexander concludes.