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                    Program steps to retrofitting

                    Cropped view of the glass facade of a large commercial building
                    The 1200 Buildings Program encourages the environmental retrofit of around two thirds of the municipality’s commercial buildings, helping to improve energy and water efficiency in buildings.

                    Steps to retrofitting

                    This retrofit map outlines the steps required when undertaking an energy or water building retrofit.

                    Step 1: Baseline assessment

                    Rate your building’s environmental performance: This will determine how much energy and water your building consumes. Set yourself a benchmark by undertaking an energy / water baseline assessment.

                    NABERS ratings

                    The National Australian Built Environment Rating Scheme (NABERS) is a suite of tools used to rate the environmental performance of buildings. NABERS was formerly known as the Australian Building Greenhouse Rating (ABGR) scheme.

                    There are four tools in the NABERS suite for office buildings:

                    • energy
                    • water
                    • waste
                    • indoor environment

                    Each tool gives buildings a rating out of five stars, except for the NABERS Energy for offices tool which was recalibrated to 6 stars in 2011. Ratings are based on building performance data, not design documents and simulations.

                    Obtaining a NABERS rating

                    There are two types of NABERS ratings – self-assessed and accredited.

                    Building owners can self-assess by visiting NABERS. A self-assessment cannot be promoted or reported.

                    To promote a building on the basis of its NABERS rating and use the NABERS logos, an accredited rating is needed. These are performed by accredited assessors. Visit NABERS for a list of accredited assessors.

                    Green Star ratings

                    Green Star is a suite of building rating tools administered by the Green Building Council of Australia to evaluate the design of buildings.

                    There are six tools available:

                    • office design
                    • office as built
                    • office interiors
                    • health care
                    • retail centre
                    • education.

                    Each tool gives a building a rating out of six stars. A four star rating signifies best practice. Five stars signifies Australian excellence and six stars indicates world leadership.

                    One major difference between the NABERS scheme and the Green Star scheme is that the Green Star rates building designs, not building performance.

                    Green Star ratings are just as relevant to retrofit projects as they are to new buildings. The scope of the retrofit works will dictate which tool is the appropriate one to use. Visit the Green Building Council of Australia for more information about Green Star ratings.

                    Obtaining a Green Star rating

                    The Green Star rating tools can be downloaded free from the Green Building Council of Australia and building owners can enter their building data to get an indicative rating.

                    Step 2: Retrofit action plan

                    The Asset Improvement Plan: The plan will tell you how to improve your building’s performance. What energy, water, and dollar savings are possible? How long will it take to complete your retrofit and see a return on your investment? Seek Sustainable Melbourne Fund competitive financing. See Funding and incentives.

                    Step 3: Undertake retrofit works

                    Begin your energy / water improvement works: Implement your Retrofit Action Plan to improve energy / water efficiency. Have you communicated to your tenants the benefits they will receive? Apply for planning / building approvals if necessary at this point. Visit Planning and building services for more information.

                    When is a building permit required?

                    The Building Act 1993 and Building Regulations 2006 legislates that building permits must be obtained prior to undertaking work on a building. As part of the 1200 Buildings Program, building permits will be required for the following:

                    • changes to any essential safety measures (such as exit signs, fire sprinklers, emergency lighting, exit paths)
                    • structural works
                    • building works that project over street alignments
                    • change of use of a building
                    • new substation or changes to the size / construction of an existing one
                    • upgraded or new mechanical systems
                    • buildings included on the Heritage Register.

                    Who can apply for a building permit?

                    An application for a building permit may be made by the owner or on behalf of the owner of the building or land. Where the application is being made by the agent of the owner that person or company applying for a building permit must be authorised by the owner to act as their agent.

                    Who can carry out the building works?

                    A registered builder with an appropriate category (refer to Victorian Building Authority website), with a commercial builder’s registration, limited (CB-L) or unlimited (CB-U) or an owner builder can be nominated as the builder for works on a commercial building. There are some additional responsibilities for an owner builder: they are required to engage a registered building practitioner for any work over $5,000.

                    When is a planning permit required?

                    A planning permit is generally required where there are external changes proposed to a building, where there is a change of use proposed, or where there is to be an increase in floor area.

                    Where a planning permit is required for a project nominated as part of the 1200 Buildings Program it will normally be possible to fast track the planning permit process. Provided that all of the required information is submitted and that the proposal is consistent with the Melbourne Planning Scheme, a planning permit could be expected to be issued within 14 days.

                    Importantly, where a planning permit is required, this must be approved prior to the issuing of the building permit.

                    For any queries or to check if a planning permit is required, please visit Planning and building services.

                    Step 4: Annual update

                    ​Review your progress and let us know how you are going: Check how you are tracking against your Retrofit Action Plan. Are works proceeding on time and on budget?

                    Step 5: Complete works

                    ​Retrofit works are complete: Congratulations! Make sure that thorough commissioning of new plant and equipment is undertaken to achieve best results.

                    Educate building tenants, managers and contractors on how to optimise ongoing operational efficiency.

                    Step 6: Final assessment

                    ​Re-rate your buildings: Re-assess your building post completion of final works to quantify the extent of savings. More tuning and tweaking is often required at this point to achieve optimal operational efficiency. In fact, ongoing monitoring over your building’s life is advised to ensure that it continues to operate efficiently.

                    See also

                    • Project managing a retrofit

                      Every building retrofit project is different – there are no one-size-fits-all solutions to building energy efficiency. If you're a building owner, you should consult properly qualified building practitioners to work out which actions and technologies are right for your building.

                    • Finding the right advice

                      Consultants, contractors and service providers provide the expertise required to analyse the building, identify the opportunities for improvement, design any changes to the building and then implement them.

                    Managing operational performance

                    Facilities managers (FMs) are well positioned to influence the operational performance of commercial buildings. They can identify under-performing plant and equipment, make informed recommendations on potential retrofit options and manage the building post retrofit to achieve and maintain a high level of performance.

                    Facilities managers need to be excellent communicators as they are the middle person managing a complex set of stakeholder relations including tenants, contractors, consultants, property managers and building owners.

                    Videos

                    For more information about how to identify quick wins, secure owner and tenant support for retrofitting, and why it’s important to engage with FMs in the retrofit process, see the experiences of these Melbourne FMs who manage commercial buildings.

                    What next?

                    Please contact us if you have any queries or to register with the 1200 Buildings program.

                    Contact us

                    Contact name
                    1200 Buildings Green Building Coordinator
                    Telephone number
                    03 9658 842103 9658 8421

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