6 February 2013 — ISIS’ Canberra office is officially one of the world’s most liveable buildings.
The 2012 International Livable Buildings Awards listed the building as among the best in the world for providing healthy and productive indoor environments and best practices for sustainability and overall design.
It is the first time an entrant from outside North America has been shortlisted in the awards’ five-year history.
ISIS Sustainability, safety and quality group manager Joshua Bruce said as part of its commitment, ISIS commissioned CETEC to undertake independent analysis of the indoor environment quality of its offices in both Canberra and Melbourne.
The analysis involved assessment of the old offices as well as the new offices 12 months after relocation to minimise the “buzz” of the new office impacting on the results.
“Twelve months after the fit-outs were completed the post-occupation study found a major improvement in all categories of occupant satisfaction,” Mr Bruce said.
“These results were attributable to substantial improvements in thermal comfort, acoustic quality, lighting, office layout and measurable improvements in air quality, including CO2, formaldehyde and volatile organic compound levels.”
Mr Bruce said IEQ formed a major component of the Green Star assessment and the design and construction of both ISIS offices targeted a high performance in this area.
“As a contractor, the nature of our business makes it difficult to assess the direct impact of IEQ on productivity, but based on the level of improved staff satisfaction and findings from international research in this area we’re confident that the focus on IEQ has been a sound investment,” Mr Bruce said.
“The results of the Canberra and Melbourne IEQ assessments have informed the design of our subsequent office fit-outs and will assist our clients where appropriate.”
In 2007, the ISIS board mandated a minimum objective of a 5 Star Green Star (Office Interiors v1.1) rating for all its offices and has achieved these ratings at its Melbourne, Sydney and Adelaide offices, with Canberra, Darwin, Brisbane and Perth undergoing certification.