Mirvac and AMP Capital’s 200 George Street to go fully LED

Mirvac and AMP Capital’s 37-storey premium grade 200 George Street, Sydney building will become one of Australia’s first fully LED-lit commercial office buildings, the owners have announced.

The move is expected to reduce lighting energy consumption by between 30-50 per cent and reduce light replacements to once every 12 years.

Mirvac Group executive, commercial development David Rolls said the current T5 lighting technology had plateaued, and LEDs were the future of lighting.

“To ensure the best possible outcome for our customers, the joint venture building owners have decided to take the leap and make 200 George Street the most lighting advanced office building in the country – one of the first to include LEDs for the basements and plant rooms, as well as on-floor ceiling lighting,” Mr Rolls said.

“There will be tangible energy savings, but the most impressive gains are to be found in the life of the LED. The current standard T5 Troffer light tubes have a life of around two years, whereas LED lights have a greater than 10 year life cycle. This has major implications for reducing maintenance costs and will lead to a significant reduction in land-fill.”

He said the cost of a complete LED fitout would have been prohibitive just a year ago, but advancements in technology had now made it a cost-effective proposition.

AMP Capital Wholesale Office Fund manager Nick McGrath said the move would provide customers with “an energy efficient means of lighting, resulting in lower outgoings, and an improvement in overall building amenity and desirability”.

The building, designed by FJMT, is located in the norther CBD commercial precinct, and is targeting a 5 star NABERS Energy rating and 5 Star Green Star rating. It has 39,225 square metres of net lettable area, and is due for completion in mid-2016.

Other lighting technology being incorporated includes daylight harvesting, high levels of natural light and a central computerised lighting control system.

The building also features an Australian-first “closed cavity facade”, the partners said. While typical commercial buildings use double-glazed windows, 200 George Street will have three panes of glass – one exterior and two interior, incorporating timber blinds to increase energy performance further.

“Customers are demanding new buildings that are sustainable on every count – financial, environmental and social,” Mr Rolls said. “Such sustainable buildings have consistently demonstrated an outperformance of returns. With leading-edge light technology, we are future-proofing our asset for the benefit of our customers and investors alike.”

The anchor tenant for the building, global professional services firm EY, has pre-committed to just over 70 per cent of the commercial space within the building.

EY’s Sydney managing partner Lynn Kraus said the company was committed to “building a better working world”, including for its staff.

“We believe that any commitment to a more environmentally sustainable world has to start at home, so we are excited that our new premises at 200 George Street will be leading the way in sustainable office lighting technology,” she said.