Frasers Property Australia targets volume

24 Sep 2019

Andrew Thai, Sustainability Manager at Frasers Property Australia shares tips and tricks for achieving Green Star volume certification.

It’s no secret that Frasers Property Australia is continually on the cutting edge of innovation when it comes to sustainability in the built environment. Most recently, the company has been named as the overall Global Sector Leader among developers in the GRESB Developer Assessment rankings – and it’s no wonder. Among its impressive portfolio of Green Star commercial and residential assets, Frasers Property has benchmarked sustainability across its industrial projects through volume certification.

We recently sat down with Andrew Thai, Sustainability Manager, Commercial, Industrial & Retail at Frasers Property Australia to discuss the challenges and triumphs.


When did Frasers Property Australia embark on its journey towards Green Star volume certification of its industrial assets?

We kicked off the process in June 2015, engaging with the Green Star rating tool and mapping out a pathway to successfully implementing volume certification until we finalised a plan in January 2017.

How many projects have been certified under the volume certification?

I’m proud to say that Frasers Property now has 29 Green Star certified projects under its portfolio, an unprecedented feat for any business embarking on volume certification.  

What are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?

Our biggest challenge was interpretation of the Green Star - Design & As Built tool for the industrial sector. As the tool is largely used for commercial buildings, we often had to think carefully on how best to apply to a warehouse. As such, we frequently engaged in discussion with the GBCA on how certain credits would be applied.

And what about the triumphs?

Once we had the process and methodology set down, it gave us a clear direction of how to approach Green Star for our projects. This provided us the ability to integrate Green Star into our design more efficiently. A consistent approach was the cornerstone of delivering Green Star certification more efficiently.

Is there a particular project (or projects) that you’re proud of and why?

Horsley Drive Business Park in New South Wales, where we certified all facilities under the volume process and achieved 6 Star Green Star – Design & As Built certification. It was an outstanding achievement to finalise the last rating for that industrial park. 

What advice do you have for other businesses looking to use Green Star volume certification?

Take the time to think about how Green Star will apply to your projects and tease out any scenarios early on. I would also suggest that organisations approach Green Star volume certification as a measure of quality of their design, rather than a certification process. This ensures the right outcomes are integrated and achieved.

What’s the key lesson you’ve learnt from Green Star Volume Certification?

Although the process is largely set once the approach is agreed, always test and revisit the approach. We will continue to develop new learnings as the team encounters different types of facilities which can lead to the volume approach being evolved.