Climate & Sustainability Brochure by Introba

We are the curious Unlocking potential

Building Systems, Sustainability Strategy, Digital Advisory, and Analytics

Introba is a global building engineering and consulting firm with over 1,000 engineers, planners, designers, and consultants in offices across the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Serbia and Australia.

History

Introba was formed in 2022 by the coming together of Integral Group — pioneers of deep green engineering — and Ross & Baruzzini, a leading technology, security, and engineering firm, founded in 1953.

Mission

To transform the built environment by designing Living Systems.

Living Systems are dynamic, responsive, intelligent, resilient, adaptable, and interconnected.

We work with our clients to envision, analyze and design the next generation of buildings, districts, and communities with these vital attributes embedded.

Practices

Our Living Systems approach supports our clients across the entire project life cycle: from strategy, through design and construction, to asset performance optimization.

We offer a unique and cohesive range of services across building systems engineering, sustainability strategy, digital advisory, and analytics.

Our services include:

• Baggage Automation Design

• Climate & Sustainability

• Design Analytics

• Digital Advisory

• Fire Engineering

• Lighting Design

• MEP Engineering

• Security & Resilience

• Technology Systems

1,000+

Employees and growing

70+years

Company history

100+

Net Zero Energy projects

700+

Certified projects under LEED, BREEAM, Living Building Challenge, and Green Star sustainability rating systems

Learn more about Introba: introba.com

Have a challenge for us? hello@introba.com

VanDusen Gardens Visitor Center © Perkins&Will

UniverCity Childcare @ Courtesy of UniverCity

Boulder Commons – Colarado, USA © Bruce Damonte

Designing Living Systems Transforming Built Environments

A Better Way of Tackling the Most Complex Challenges

Think big

At Introba, we take a different approach. We look at the whole system, instead of focusing on the parts.

Welcome

Living Systems.

Be inspired.

Our Living Systems approach is inspired by the resilience of natural, living systems.

They are characterized by high levels of interconnectivity, interdependency, resource sharing, and constant change.

The same attributes are key to transforming the built environment at all scales, from the city block down to the intricacies of designing and equipping an operating room.

Inquiring minds

We are the curious. We thrive when challenged. Rather than see problems, we see opportunities for better.

Whole systems thinking

Buildings are not standalone. They are connected parts of complex systems. By understanding the connections, we can improve a system’s performance as an integrated whole.

Unlocking potential

For every project, we ask, “what if?”

To break away from business as usual requires creative courage. Each project presents unique opportunities to be harnessed with distinctiveness.

Embracing change

As context changes, living systems adapt and evolve. We design for a dynamic future by embedding resilience, adaptability, and flexibility into our clients’ projects. We face up to uncertainty and harness disruptive innovation.

Get in touch to begin a conversation about how Introba could unlock potential for you: hello@introba.com

Discover the power of Living Systems: introba.com/about/living-systems

Regenerative mindset

Living systems are self-sustaining. We are committed to protecting and enhancing the natural environment through our work and as a business.

TELUS Garden – Vancouver, BC, Canada © Ema Peter

Google Bay View Campus – Mountain View, CA, USA © Iwan Baan

Huntington Medical Research Institutes Biomedical Research Building – Pasadena, CA, USA © Nico Marques

Hackbridge Primary School – London, UK © Jack Hobhouse, Architype

Vancouver International Airport Pier D Expansion – Vancouver, BC, Canada © Ema Peter

Climate & Sustainability

Deep Green Pedigree

Using the latest thinking, technology, and research, we champion the health and well-being of communities and the planet by integrating the natural environment with the built environment to tackle the complex challenges of climate change and foster a resilient future for all. We blend creative problem-solving, thoughtful engagement, and comprehensive qualitative research with the technical rigor expected from a best-in-class engineering firm.

We have designed our practice to maximize impact and deliver work across all scales, from developing international standards for Net Zero carbon development to optimizing individual building components to minimize their resilience and whole-life carbon impact.

The climate and sustainability landscape challenges both public and private sectors to stay ahead of the curve, requiring strategic thinking rooted in analytics and innovation. We know this because we’re at the table, shaping policy, regulations, codes, and industry standards.

We share our insights through expert-led advisory, design analytics, assurance, and performance consulting services, that are complementary to each other and to our engineering services.

Advisory

We shape effective sustainability policies, regulations, codes, standards, and development strategies for both public and private sector clients.

Design Analytics

We empower design teams to make better-informed integrated decisions — founded on comprehensive analysis and supported by empirical modeling — ranging from driving whole building performance to optimizing the performance of entire districts.

Assurance

We lead the integration and certification of sustainability and wellness targets for buildings, portfolios, and organizations.

Performance

We act as performance advocates for our clients, empowering building owners and occupiers to operate and maintain their buildings efficiently and effectively.

Net Zero Carbon projects

Leading publications and reports

Have a challenge for us? hello@introba.com

View our capabilities: https://www.introba.com/work/solutions/climate-sustainability

Clayton Community Centre, Vancouver, BC Canada © Catherine Chan

TELUS Ocean, Victoria, BC, Canada © Diamond Schmitt Architects

Advisory Services Trusted Counsel

Shaping strategic pathways towards green goals for organizations

24+

Number of decarbonization planning & strategies for governments and cities in UK/ Europe

15+

Peer industry training sessions delivered

Goal Setting

We shape effective sustainability policy, regulations, codes, standards, ESG frameworks, and development strategy for both public and private sector clients.

At the same time, our advisory team accelerates the achievement of sustainability goals for organizations, at all levels of government, and for infrastructure, district, and masterplan developments.

In-depth

Insights

We have experience across all aspects of sustainability planning, from transportation solutions to waste and materials recovery programs, urban ecology, water conservation and reuse to energy and whole life carbon reductions.

Have a challenge for us? hello@introba.com

View our capabilities: https://www.introba.com/work/solutions/climate-sustainability

Driven by Data

Our ability to model, test, and evaluate impacts provides a robust evidence base for informed decision-making.

Forging Connections

We are experts in workshop facilitation and stakeholder engagement, helping our clients to communicate effectively to both internal and external audiences.

Energy & Comfort Analytics: Process Guidance

Context

The design of high-performance is an iterative process – it cannot linear. While models and analyses important, the most critical contributor the design process is the way are evaluated and communicated; the decisions are made.

The design of high-performance is an iterative process – it cannot linear. While models and analyses important, the most critical contributor the design process is the way the are evaluated and communicated; the decisions are made.

Introba outlined an energy and analytics process to provide the design team regular opportunities on project objectives, establish and key deliverables, and continue identify potential challenges and opportunities as the building design progresses from concept design through construction documentation

Introba outlined an energy and analytics process to provide the design team regular opportunities on project objectives, establish and key deliverables, and continue identify potential challenges and opportunities as the building progresses from concept design through construction documentation

Energy & Comfort Analytics

Need

There is a need for a clear process arrives at recommendations for strategies across design disciplines reinforce and build on each other, result in comprehensive design

The design of highperformance buildings is an iterative process – it cannot be linear. While models and analyses are important, the most critical contributor to the design process is the way the details are evaluated and communicated; how the decisions are made.

There is a need for a clear process arrives at recommendations for strategies across design disciplines reinforce and build on each other, result in comprehensive design

The strategies must leverage and climate, and align with any system approaches, towards client’s workplace design criteria, performance expectations, and experience, health, energy efficiency, carbon free energy.

The strategies must leverage site and climate, and align with any system approaches, towards meeting client’s workplace design criteria, performance expectations, and experience, health, energy efficiency, carbon free energy.

Document

Our document details a recommended part design analytics process with suggestions for

Our document details a recommended part design analytics process suggestions for

Our document details a recommended part design analytics process with suggestions for

Our document details a recommended part design analytics process suggestions for

(a) the types of analysis models calculations that should be completed,

Design Analytics outlined an energy and comfort analytics process to provide the entire design team regular opportunities to align on project objectives, establish timelines and key deliverables, and continue to identify potential challenges and opportunities as the building design progresses from concept design through construction documentation.

(a) the types of analysis models calculations that should be completed,

(b) the types of deliverables and that should be communicated,

(b) the types of deliverables that should be communicated,

(a) the types of analysis models calculations that should be completed, (b) the types of deliverables that should be communicated,

Design Analytics Harnessing data

Using the power of science to solve the most complex challenges in the built environment

Unique Approach

Designs and Masterplans

5M mtCO2e/yr in the past five years

We elevate what's possible in the built environment through a data-driven approach to design and engineering that gives our clients the confidence to take bold action. We help clients optimize the performance of entire districts, enhance the quality of space between buildings, develop climate-responsive building skins, and drive whole-building performance.

Empowering Decision-makers

Our analytical expertise makes possible the achievement of ambitious resource conservation, climate, resilience, comfort, and health targets. Through a collaborative focus on ideation and implementation, we provide design teams with comprehensive analysis supported by empirical modeling that empowers real decision-making around highperformance system selection, building enclosure performance, lighting and external solar shading integration, indoor and outdoor environmental conditions, and occupant health and well-being.

Our building performance analysis uses established modeling tools and methods to evaluate design iterations for building designs and masterplans. We can then offer evaluation and design assistance for criteria such as thermal and visual comfort, passive and active solutions for demand & energy reduction, and renewable generation. We also provide energy and emissions analysis, consulting, and engineering assistance for buildings, portfolios, neighborhoods, and cities from a carbon and economic strategy standpoint.

Cross-disciplinary Solutions

Our team comprises architects, engineers, urban planners, and user experience designers, reflecting our commitment to integrated design. We know that the most creative solutions emerge from cross-disciplinary collaboration when different perspectives come together to solve the most complex problems.

Learn more on our website: https://introba.com/work/solutions/design-analytics

VanDusen Gardens Vistor Center, Vancouver, BC, Canada © Perkins&Will

Assurance Certifying Excellence

Sustainability and wellness goal-setting for buildings, portfolios, and organizations

30+

Certifications scheme expertise across 10 countries, across buildings, infrastructure and ESG

Industry leaders

Largest LEED BD+C v4 Platinumcertified project in the world (Google Bay View)

Largest Passive House green building in Canada (Clayton Community Centre)

Google Gradient Canopy, one the largest LBC Materials Petal certified projects in the world

First Passivhaus Plus educational building in the UK (Hackbridge School)

First Zero Carbon building certified Firehall in Canada (Vancouver Firehall #17)

Objectives and Metrics

We help clients identify and set sustainability goals and then we monitor, manage, and certify delivery against those agreed targets. We have experience in certifications across the whole built environment: for buildings, infrastructure and ESG.

Our sustainability management services include providing support to project teams, criteria and credit interpretation, training, submittal review, and gap analysis.

Leading Experts

Our team works across recognized national and international energy, sustainability, wellness, and corporate reporting standards, many of which we helped to develop, such as WELL, Living Building Challenge, Fitwel, Green Star, and LEED. We constantly work with local institutions and green building councils to continue to improve local standards.

Cost-Conscious

We draw on our extensive experience leading the sustainability assessment, audit, and certification of complex projects to help our clients quickly identify cost-effective strategies to achieve their performance goals.

Strategic Alignment

We also create custom frameworks aligned to corporate vision and strategy, and to address unique project opportunities or constraints. These include KPIs across projects, portfolios, and organizations.

Menlo Gateway Development, CA, USA © Scott Hargis Photo

Performance Ensuring Asset Values

Empowering owners and occupants to operate and maintain buildings efficiently

Systems and Structure

We meet our clients’ needs for documented system resilience, maximized energy efficiency, improved indoor environmental quality, and reduced operating costs through a structured and auditable approach. We go beyond the traditional "checks and balances" approach of conventional commissioning engineers.

Hands-on Experience

As active participants across the commissioning process, from design review through installation and testing to monitoring, we have deep in-the-field experience installing, operating, and troubleshooting heating, ventilation, and cooling, electrical and plumbing systems, energy management controls, and building automation systems (BAS).

Operations, Finetuned

We offer testing, adjusting, and balancing (TAB) of air and hydronic systems for efficient operation, thermal comfort, air quality, and effective distribution. Our iPerform service takes finetuning to the next level with real-time data analysis used to benchmark performance and identify areas to improve building operations.

Standards and Reporting

We support property owners who must report asset performance against environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria for assessment for benchmarks as well as regulatory requirements.

Climate & Sustainability Projects

View Climate & Sustainability projects on our website:

Telus Garden, Vancouver, BC, Canada © Ed White Photographics

Google Bay View Campus

Award-winning campus showcases iconic architecture and highest levels of energy efficiency and thermal comfort

Google’s new Bay View campus, located adjacent to the NASA Ames Research Center, is built to the highest design and sustainability standards. There are 20 acres of open space, two office buildings, a 1,000-person event space, and 240 short-term employee accommodation units.

Bay View is the largest LEED BD+C v4 NC Platinum-certified project in the world and is expected to be the largest facility to attain the International Living Future Institute (ILFI) Living Building Challenge (LBC) Water Petal certification.

Bay View's immediate adjacency to the San Francisco Bay makes water an important focus for this project. Bay View will meet the LBC's definition of net positive water, and all of the site’s non-potable water demands will be met using the recycled water we generate onsite.

Bay View is a 100% electric building where even the kitchens are electric to decrease carbon emissions. Bay View will be powered in part by a first-of-itskind dragonscale solar skin, which has the capacity to generate 40% of its annual electricity. Combined

Publications and Awards

with power from nearby wind farms, Bay View will be one of Google’s first campuses to operate on 90% carbon-free energy.

Bay View also houses the largest geothermal pile system in North America to heat and cool the buildings, which is estimated to reduce carbon emissions by 48% and water used for cooling by 90%. By leveraging geo-energy feasibility studies for its districts, piloted ground-source heat pumps, and other natural heat recovery and thermal storage systems, Google was enabled to move away from using fossil fuels to heat its buildings.

Indoor environmental quality (IEQ) in Google’s workspace was also a significant consideration. In addition to a high level of particle filtration, carbon filters were used to remove gas phase contaminants like ozone and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Ventilation rates provided are far beyond industry standards since there are linkages between higher outside air rates and improved cognitive performance.

2022 ENR, Project of the Year and Best Office - Winner 2022 Silicon Valley Business Journal, Structures Award, Best Campus

LOCATION: Mountain View, California, USA

CLIENT: Google

ARCHITECT:

BIG Bjarke Ingels Group Heatherwick Studio Adamson Associates

STUDIOS Architecture

PROJECT SIZE: 1.1 million ft²

COMPLETION: 2022

SERVICES PROVIDED: Sustainability Consulting

Mechanical Engineering

Electrical Engineering

Plumbing Engineering

Energy Modeling

Materials Vetting Photovoltaic (PV) System

"Bay View epitomizes the growth we’ve experienced, not just in size but in capability, talent, and teamwork."

Eric Solrain, Senior Principal, Introba

© Iwan Baan

The Stack

Revolutionary development in downtown Vancouver raises the bar for future projects

Leading the way in sustainability, The Stack is Canada’s first commercial high-rise office tower to be awarded the Canada Green Building Council (CAGBC)’s Zero Carbon Building – Design Standard certification. It is also one of Canada’s only two highrise towers to be part of the Net Zero Carbon pilot program.

Our team future-proofed the building via the adoption of smart building technology with cutting-edge mechanical and electrical systems that help energy management, optimize building performance, and enable proactive maintenance.

This 550-foot tall tower is targeting LEED v4 Core & Shell Platinum certification, and at its full height, The Stack offers commanding panoramic views of Vancouver from its roof terraces that stretch from English Bay to the Pacific Ocean.

Its artistic and unique architecture will offer one-of-a-kind residency options for buyers and prime real estate for commercial and retail.

The lower floors of the building are well-suited for tech companies, with corporate and executive suites on the mid and upper floors.

The Stack achieving Zero Carbon status helps the City of Vancouver and the Province of British Columbia advance towards their shared goal of achieving Zero Carbon by 2030. Innovative features designed to reduce both carbon emissions and energy consumption were key factors, including low carbon building systems and a high-performance triple-pane glazing system.

Our team used an integrated design process (IDP) to ensure multidisciplinary coordination and project success. The Stack epitomizes our firm’s high-performance building experience and sustainable, green engineering innovation.

LOCATION: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

CLIENT:

Adamson Associates, Inc.

ARCHITECT:

Adamson Associates, Inc. and James K.M. Cheng Associates, Inc.

PROJECT SIZE: 670,000 ft²

CONSTRUCTION VALUE: CAD$500 million

COMPLETION: 2023

SUSTAINABILITY:

LEED Platinum target CaGBC Zero Carbon pilot project

SERVICES PROVIDED: Sustainability Consulting

Electrical & Mechanical Engineering Energy Modeling Fire Protection Security Technology

"It is the most responsive building I have ever done... to the environment, the city, the users, and the construction."

James Cheng Principal, James K.M. Cheng Architects

© Rico Marques/Introba

© James KM Cheng Architects

LETI

Low Energy Transformation Initiative spearheads UK’s drive to a Zero Carbon future

LETI — aka the Low Energy Transformation Initiative — has become the gold standard in the UK of how true industry collaboration can have a large and genuine impact on shaping the built environment. We at Introba are proud to have been the initiators of this transformational effort and continue to support its work.

Our team in London pioneered this initiative in 2017 initially to support the transition of London’s built environment to meet Net Zero Carbon requirements. Now LETI is a voluntary and still growing network of more than 1,000 built environment professionals who have teamed up to drive the UK and beyond to a sustainable, Zero Carbon future.

The network is a true industry cross section, featuring academics, architects, contractors, developers, engineers, facilities managers, housing associations, planners, and sustainability professionals. Originally formed as the “London Energy Transformation Initiative,” LETI’s new name reflects its work and success across all UK Zero Carbon policies and regulations.

Since its inception, LETI has wielded impact and influence. It has given voices in decisionmaking rooms to those who were previously unheard.

Over the years, LETI has published a series of publications. Highlights include the Climate Emergency Design Guide, which outlined requirements for new buildings to ensure they meet climate change targets, plus the Embodied Carbon Primer, which gave supplementary guidance on Embodied Carbon.

The Climate Emergency Design Guide drew widespread support and citations from architects, developers, lawmakers, and built environment professionals: 100,000 downloads in over 100 countries is testimony to its impact and acceptance. As of 2024, there are more than 30,000 homes and 1,000,000m2 of commercial floor space aiming to meet LETI's new build targets.

Most recently, LETI worked on the new Net Zero Carbon Building Standard alongside the Better Buildings Partnership, BRE, CIBSE, IStructE, RIBA, RICS, and UKGBC.

10+

Publications

1,000+

Volunteers

100,000+

Downloads in 100+ countries of the "LETI Climate Emergency Design Guide"

ONE YEAR AFTER PUBLICATION, OPERATIONAL ENERGY TARGETS MET BY:

+30,000 homes at masterplan level

"Thanks to Introba, this collaboration movement across London has influenced improvements to energy policy.”

Publications

Climate Emergency Retrofit Guide 2021

Client Guide for Net Zero Carbon Buildings 2021

Embodied Carbon Alignment 2021

LETI Climate Emergency Design Guide 2020

Clara Bagenal George, MBE Net Zero Specialist, Etude

Discover all the LETI publications and resources

Central Place Sydney

Pioneering development aims to redefine the future of work and sustainable workplaces in Australia

The Central Place project is a prime example of how strong collaboration can unlock industryleading sustainability outcomes that align with the ambitions of state governments and developers.

We are working closely with the main project team on the AUD$3 billion Central Place Sydney project, a 133,000m² premium office development (two commercial 37- and 35-story towers and a low-rise podium building anchoring the project). Adjacent to Sydney’s Central Station, the project aspires to the highest sustainability ambitions and will be the city’s new home for tech innovation.

As the leaders in sustainability strategy, certification, and design analytics, we are taking a proactive approach to this project by facilitating vision-setting workshops, building capacity within the wider design team, and creating compelling cases for the most impactful initiatives.

The development includes an all-electric central plant, mixedmode ventilation, a hybrid timber structure, a high-performance

façade, 100% renewable energy procurement, and a series of integrated circular economy strategies that will position Central Place at the forefront of holistic sustainability performance in Australia.

The design of Central Place Sydney is focused strongly on harnessing new technology, using 100% renewable energy, and featuring a number of healthy building initiatives, such as touchless entry points. The precinct will also include the world’s first closedcavity façade system powered by artificial intelligence and solar glass.

Once completed, Central Place Sydney will feature a rich selection of retail and dining options, complemented by public art installations and green spaces, and be the workplace for more than 15,000 people.

This sustainable precinct will enhance pedestrian amenities and connectivity to Central Station and serve as the significant gateway to the southern end of Sydney’s central business district (CBD).

LOCATION: Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

CLIENT:

Frasers Property + Dexus

ARCHITECT:

Fender Katsalidis + SOM

PROJECT SIZE: 1.432 million ft²

CONSTRUCTION VALUE:

AUD$3 billion

COMPLETION: Ongoing

SERVICES PROVIDED: Sustainability Consulting Circular Economy Strategy Whole of Life Carbon (LCA) Energy Modeling Design Analytics

It’s about transforming the way people experience that part of the city and creating new linkages."

Craig Baudin Partner, Fender Katsalidis

© Fender Katsalidis and Skidmore, Owings & Merrill

Johns Hopkins University

Campus-wide sustainability plan will drive university’s efforts to become sustainability leader and meet net-zero targets

Our team guided Johns Hopkins University (JHU) through a comprehensive stakeholder engagement effort to co-create a new vision for sustainability and to develop a clear roadmap for the future. Our work provided JHU with a continuous planning tool that allows the university to explore technical pathways to reduce energy and emissions across its campuses and inform decisionmaking for its carbon commitment.

A major part was developing an overarching 2030 Climate Action & Sustainability Plan, which addresses areas including built and natural environments, teaching and scholarship, responsible consumption, and mobility and transportation. This campus-wide plan will guide JHU’s efforts to become a leader in sustainability and climate action while taking steps to meet the university's 2040 net-zero commitment.

Our study helped JHU quickly assess and prioritize building efficiency upgrades across its campuses, estimating the impact of building energy efficiency measures. These ranged from low capital cost, low disruption, and short timeframe projects all the way to higher cost, reduction, and longer timeframe ones. Measures

included retro-commissioning (temperature resets), equipment upgrades (energy recovery ventilation), building electrification (switch building boiler to heat pumps), and envelope upgrades (upgrading windows).

We also developed a strategic carbon roadmap to ensure that JHU’s new goals for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions were technically and economically feasible. We evaluated multiple pathways toward decarbonization, considering the unique challenges and opportunities across the four main campuses and their respective energy systems.

We also led the creation of JHU’s high performance and healthy buildings (HPHB) requirements, which set out meeting emissions reduction targets in buildings for new construction, major renovations, and modification projects on campus.

Focusing on climate resilience, our team collected baseline data and future climate projections across JHU’s campuses and assessed the university’s risk for climate-related events. This data formed resilience strategies that were included in the overarching Sustainability Plan.

LOCATION: Baltimore, Maryland, USA

CLIENT:

Johns Hopkins University

PROJECT SIZE: 10.9 million ft²

COMPLETION: 2023

SUSTAINABILITY: Development of carbon roadmap

SERVICES PROVIDED: Sustainability Consulting Energy Modelling Research and Planning

"This plan embodies feedback from the full JHU community, along with Baltimore community partners, who share an ambitious and collaborative vision for a healthy, just, and sustainable future"

Julian Goresko JHU Director of Sustainability

© Introba

© Johns Hopkins University

TM65 MEP Embodied Carbon

Partnership with CIBSE helps set global standards and establish guidance for industry

Designing mechanical, electrical, and public health (MEP) systems that mitigate climate change not only requires minimizing operational carbon but must also consider the carbon impact associated with the materials’ use and their end-of-life needs, called embodied carbon.

For a long time, not knowing the embodied carbon impact of MEP design was a big knowledge gap for the industry. To address this our UK team partnered with CIBSE (Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers) in 2019 to create an embodied carbon calculation methodology specific to MEP equipment.

Our partnership yielded a new internationally applicable methodology: CIBSE TM65 (2020), which empowered our industry. This simple, robust, peer-reviewed, and conservative methodology enables consistent calculations.

We are proud to say that CIBSE TM65 is now used globally. The methodology has enabled firms around the world to make different,

Publications and Awards

more sustainable projects, with regulations for embodied carbon already being considered in the UK and elsewhere.

Since then, we have authored an addendum explaining how TM65 could be used internationally (2022), a version for Australia and New Zealand in partnership with CIBSE Australia and the Green Building Council of Australia, and we partnered with ASHRAE on a version for North America.

TM65 did not stop there. Having a consistent methodology at the product level enables us and our industry to explore reduction measures at the system level. We partnered with CIBSE again to explore the embodied carbon of heating in UK residential housing (TM65.1, 2021). It was the first time such studies were done.

Amazon commissioned us to explore the embodied carbon of MEP and handling equipment in logistic centers. That study's results were shared with the industry in CIBSE TM65.3 (2024).

2024 CIBSE TM65.3 Embodied carbon in building services: Logistic centres

2023 RICS Whole Life Carbon Guidance

2022 CIBSE TM65ANZ Embodied carbon in building services: A methodology for ANZ

2021 CIBSE TM65.1 Embodied carbon in building services: Residential housing

2020 CIBSE TM65 Embodied carbon in building services: A calculation methodology

Our expertise around MEP whole life carbon made us part of the authoring team who updated the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Professional Standard Whole life carbon of the built environment, which is mandatory assessment guidance in London as of July 2024.

DOWNLOADS: 4,000+

WEBINAR ATTENDEES: 1,000+

TRAINING COURSES: 11

"The TM65 work is a significant milestone in understanding the embodied carbon implications of building services."

Anastasia Mylona Technical Director, CIBSE

Discover all the TM65 methodology around the world

Lululemon Store Support Centre

Lululemon's new 13-story global headquarters will reflect the company’s focus on an active, healthy lifestyle, and fitness. We are working with them to align sustainability, health, and wellbeing metrics to the company’s target audience via education, consulting, and documentation. The building will showcase how healthy spaces that promote occupant wellness also contribute to a more sustainable built environment. The design will incorporate access to daylight, green spaces, and landscaped terraces.

Areas of focus include energy, climate, and water; materials, waste, and chemicals; human well-being; and community resilience. This will be achieved via amenities that encourage health and wellness, infrastructure that enables and inspires sustainable living (social and environmental), and clean air, water, energy, and climate for the building.

PASSIVHAUS TRAILBLAZER

Hackbridge Primary School

Our team spearheaded this transformative education project, a groundbreaking new build for 420 pupils aged 5-11. The school is the UK's inaugural true Net Zero Carbon educational facility. Materials had a focus on health, low embodied energy, and ease of construction and maintenance. The design implemented stringent Passivhaus building envelope insulation and air tightness standards.

The school features triple-glazed windows, which enhance thermal comfort and maximize daylighting. A ground source heat pump system, coupled with inter-seasonal heat storage, efficiently caters to space heating requirements and provides resilient cooling while operating in a reverse cycle in summer in response to climate change. The project's commitment to sustainability extends to its energy sources. A rooftop PV array seamlessly generates renewable electricity, which offsets the school's entire annual energy needs.

LOCATION:

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

CLIENT:

Morphosis Architects

PROJECT SIZE: 570,195 ft²

CONSTRUCTION VALUE: Confidential

COMPLETION: Ongoing

SUSTAINABILITY:

LEED v4 Platinum Target

WELL v2 Platinum Target

Zero Carbon Target

BC Energy Step Code Target

LOCATION: Wallington, Surrey, UK

CLIENT:

Archetype Ltd

PROJECT SIZE: 20,075 ft²

CONSTRUCTION VALUE: £10 million

COMPLETION: 2019

SUSTAINABILITY: Passivhaus Plus

© Morphosis

© Jack Hobhouse, Architype

Bendigo Law Courts

The Bendigo Law Courts have achieved world leadership in sustainable design and construction. Our team designed the building for zero net carbon emissions via sustainable and environmentally friendly initiatives to reduce energy use, water consumption, and waste management. The building is fully electric, which eliminates the need for gas power. The project design reduces operational energy, potable water demand, construction and operational waste, as well as stormwater discharge. Its superior indoor environment quality supports the health and well-being of its occupants.

Our climate resiliency plan has risk mitigation strategies for extreme weather, such as higher temperatures, dry seasons, and heavy rain. The design incorporates the culture and knowledge of the traditional owners, the Dja Dja Wuurung people, making the courts a statement of reconciliation.

GROUNDBREAKING RESEARCH

LOCATION: Bedigo, Victoria, Australia

CLIENT: Court Services Victoria

PROJECT SIZE: 13,054 m²

CONSTRUCTION VALUE: AUD$152 million

COMPLETION: 2023

SUSTAINABILITY:

6-Star Green Star Fully electric

Report: Hidden Emissions of the Cloud

Data centers are large consumers of energy due to the high amount of computing power required to operate servers and networking equipment. Significant cooling is also needed to maintain optimal indoor temperatures to keep these servers and networking equipment operational. However, the environmental impact of data centers extends beyond operational carbon emissions: water use, ecology, land use, and embodied carbon emissions.

While operational carbon and energy savings are realized in the future, most embodied carbon emissions get locked in from day one. The study looks at the knowledge gap that exists within the design and construction of data centers and provides guidance on streamlining the whole building life cycle assessment of data center MEP equipment. It highlights the embodied carbon emissions associated with data center cooling technologies and finds optimization strategies to reduce those emissions.

IMPACT FUND:

This report is part of an Introba initiative for creating a positive global impact on the built environment: The Impact Fund. The fund supports thought leadership and transformational initiatives around sustainability and digital innovation and encourages collaboration with external partners.

We share our findings and insights with the whole industry to create collective knowledge and stimulate action.

Read the Hidden Emissions of the Cloud report in full

© Tim Griffith

NEXT-LEVEL PERFORMANCE

TELUS Ocean

Our team provided a wide variety of engineering and consulting services for this project. The 11-story tower includes nine stories of office space, two levels of rooftop amenity area, three levels of underground parking, a lobby, and amphitheater. The design anticipated high-caliber finishes and systems, including modular radiant ceiling heating and cooling, underfloor air distribution using a raised floor plenum, and extensive communications and smart-buildings integration. Heating and cooling are driven by an all-electric heat recovery heat pump plant.

The project includes a rooftop photovoltaic (PV) array and sophisticated lighting systems for façades, interiors, and landscape areas. It also included computational fluid dynamic (CFD) modeling for optimized mixed-mode ventilation systems, and daylighting/glare studies to maximize occupant visual comfort and experience.

AI-DRIVEN OPTIMIZATION

Whole-Life Carbon Forecast Tool

We worked with Perkins&Will to help them issue carbon forecasts to mitigate their buildings’ environmental impact. They wanted to understand a project's emissions from design, construction, and operations at the earliest stages of design and then identify bespoke steps to reduce those emissions. Our team developed a tool for more than 20 design studios, 200 active projects, and 2,000 designers to analyze whole-life carbon and then provide simple, robust, and directionally accurate carbon reduction pathways in less than five minutes.

Using this carbon forecast, they were able to add detail and reduce uncertainty as the design progressed, and to hand over detailed studies to in the later stages. The tool uses a fully automated AI “engine” that evaluates a full suite of options to identify optimization points for designers, building owners, and technology partners.

LOCATION: Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

CLIENT: CB Richard Ellis Liimited

PROJECT SIZE: 158,441 ft²

CONSTRUCTION VALUE: CAD$120 million

COMPLETION: 2024

SUSTAINABILITY:

CERTIFICATIONS TARGETED: LEED Platinum WELL Building CaGBC Zero Carbon Building

Learn more: Perkins&Will to Deliver ‘Carbon Forecasts’ to Help Clients Mitigate Their Buildings’ Environmental Impact

© Diamond Schmitt Architects

© Emily Hagopian

CONNECTION WITH THE COUNTRY

Bays West

Bays West is one of Sydney’s final strategic parcels of inner harbor land ready for urban revitalization. We worked with the integrated team to develop the project's sustainability framework, which identified the scope of environmental sustainability. The assurance of sustainability performance relies on strong governance. That governance enables the precinct to respond to a changing climate, new needs, and the increasing sustainability expectations of our built environment. We put forward four primary sustainability concepts to be reflected in the urban design and place strategy: restorative biodiversity, resilience, mobility, and water resources and systems. These concepts were framed by an overarching commitment to connection with the country — the recognition and responsibility that this place was, is, and will continue to be a place of cultural significance for Aboriginal Peoples.

COMMUNITY BUILDING

Oakridge Redevelopment

We provided sustainable master planning services as well as complete mechanical, fire protection engineering, design, energy modeling, and sustainability services for this inner-city shopping mall transformation. Our scope of work included optimizing passive design elements and identifying synergies between various building typologies to recapture and reuse energy and resource flows while reducing operational and embodied carbon associated with the entire site. We also conducted a low-carbon energy supply feasibility study, developing four options for energy system configurations. From there, we produced the schematic design of the low-carbon district energy system. We worked with a broader consultant team to develop a comprehensive approach for a wide variety of sustainability outcomes, including energy, water, solid waste, embodied carbon, envelope performance, and rainwater management.

LOCATION:

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

CLIENT:

NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment

PROJECT SIZE: 8.29 million ft²

CONSTRUCTION VALUE: AUD$5 billion

COMPLETION: 2021 (framework)

SUSTAINABILITY:

Consulting/Advisory

LOCATION:

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

CLIENT: Bentall Kennedy (Canada) Limited

Partnership

PROJECT SIZE: 4.7 million ft²

CONSTRUCTION VALUE:

CAD$1.5 billion

COMPLETION: Ongoing

SUSTAINABILITY:

City of Vancouver Low Emission Green Building Policy

Low Carbon Energy System Step Code 3 LEED Gold Civic Centre

© Taras Vyshnya

© Westbank

CIRCULAR ECONOMY PRINCIPLES

Thornhill Primary School

This project expanded Thornhill Primary School from a one-form entry school to a three-form entry school. It also includes the refurbishment and remodeling of the existing building. We placed sustainability at the forefront of the design to create a healthy learning environment for the children and staff at the school.

Our team chose Passivhaus as the target certification to ensure the new facility’s construction quality, provide significant benefits to the whole life cycle cost, reduce its financial running costs, and improve thermal comfort and indoor air quality. We followed the principles of circular economy within the design, selecting materials for their low embodied carbon, and both materials and buildings were considered for their possible future uses and recyclability.

SUSTAINABILITY ICON

VanDusen Botanical Garden

As one of Vancouver’s renowned tourist destinations, VanDusen Botanical Garden creates a picturesque landscape year-round with its unique plant collection. The renewal project included a new Visitor Centre designed to support VanDusen’s vision of providing an inspiring and enjoyable environment for visitors by constructing a “living building” that has a net zero ecological footprint.

Our strategy involved considering the building’s natural surroundings to ensure a harmonious balance between the built and natural environment. We achieved Zero Net Energy performance by optimal passive design using heavy mass rammed-earth walls, providing thermal stability and comfort, as well as passive ventilation and cooling that is driven by the stack effect generated by the central atrium’s oculus. Its Living Building Challenge certification addressed development in seven performance areas: site, water, energy, health, materials, equity, and beauty.

LOCATION: Houghton Regis, Bedfordshire, UK

CLIENT: Central Bedfordshire Council

PROJECT SIZE: 21,528 ft²

CONSTRUCTION VALUE: £6.5 million

COMPLETION: 2022

SUSTAINABILITY: Passivhaus Scheme

LOCATION: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

CLIENT: City of Vancouver

PROJECT SIZE: 22,000 ft²

CONSTRUCTION VALUE:

CAD$21.9 million

COMPLETION: 2011

SUSTAINABILITY CERTIFICATIONS:

Zero Net Energy (ILFI)

LEED Platinum

Living Building Challenge Materials, Energy, Place, and Health + Happiness Petals

GIANT URBAN RENEWAL

Fishermens Bend Innovation Precinct

Australia’s largest urban renewal project is expected to support 80,000 residents and an equal number of jobs in an “internationally renowned centre of innovation in advanced manufacturing, engineering and design” by 2050. Our team is responsible for implementing the sustainability strategy; we are working closely with the design team and government agencies to navigate a complex stakeholder network, acting as stewards for the project’s elevated sustainability ambition.

The project team is finding opportunities to better align with state drivers, focused on making the circular economy an integrated part of the sustainability framework. We are focusing on identifying overlaps in energy, carbon, water, waste, and urban amenity to deliver better value for money, and to enable better outcomes for the precinct’s end-users.

MAPPING FUTURE ELECTRIFICATION

Urban Green: Grid Ready

Our team created an hourly resolution urban-scale energy model for the entire existing building stock of New York City. We first characterized the buildings into 27 typologies and calibrated building-level energy models to measure monthly energy use for each of those typologies. We used the energy models to explore the impact of four electrification scenarios on the city’s grid, ranging from basic electrification with heat pumps to electrification combined with low-cost energy efficiency and demand flexibility measures. We predicted the ratio of future peak demand to each network zone’s capacity for each scenario and electrification adoption level.

Our analysis found that citywide electrification will raise NYC’s peak power demand by 40% from current levels eventually. The outer boroughs, where low-rise residential buildings dominate, will require grid infrastructure upgrades first. Yet building electrification poses no immediate risk to the grid, given the existing spare capacity of the grid in winter months.

LOCATION: Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

CLIENT: Victorian Government: Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning

PROJECT SIZE: 230 hectares/ 485 hectares (whole site)

CONSTRUCTION VALUE: Confidential

COMPLETION: 2050

LOCATION: New York City, New York, USA

Read the report in full, including interactive map

© Introba

© TTstudio

Expertise Assembled

Right Team, Right Place, Right Time

Our work is delivered by four integrated practices.

We unlock potential for our clients at every stage of the built environment’s transformation: from strategy, through design and construction, to asset performance and optimization, backed by analytics at every stage.

Our regional teams understand deeply the needs of their local markets and are just as confident working collaboratively on projects further afield as part of our global network.

Buildings

Planning, consulting, engineering, and design.

We provide mechanical, electrical, fire protection, and water systems engineering for buildings and districts.

Our engineers design systems that enhance building performance for the benefit of owners and investors, occupiers, communities, and the environment.

These core MEPF engineering capabilities are supported by a continually evolving range of planning, consulting, engineering, and design specialisms.

introba.com/work/solutions

Architectural Lighting & Daylight Design

Baggage Handling

Building Systems Commissioning

District Energy and Smart Grids

Fire Engineering

Strategy

Translating bold ideas into action.

We develop innovative policy frameworks, performance standards, and delivery roadmaps.

We work with policymakers, government agencies, institutions, and businesses to develop strategies for organizations, projects, campuses, portfolios, districts, cities, and regions.

We put guardrails around strategic objectives while offering ongoing support to monitor their implementation.

Digital

Connecting the digital to the real.

We help clients to build better with digital insights and expertise.

We fuse the power of data, emerging technologies, intelligent buildings and transportation, and domain expertise to transform how buildings and communities work. From technology visioning to data-driven operations, our teams map our clients’ needs to deliver emerging solutions for impact, resilience, and success.

Analytics

Putting data behind decisions.

Our design analysts combine expertise from the fields of architecture, engineering, physics, computer and data sciences.

We work closely with our buildings, strategy, and digital practices to undertake parametric performance analyses, create specialized modeling tools and develop new ways to visualize, explore and understand data.

We equip clients and design teams with the insights they need to make well-informed strategic decisions.

Policy and Planning

Masterplan Visioning

Climate & Sustainability

Corporate ESG Strategy

Circular Economy

– Sustainability Certification & Assurance

– Building Health & Wellness

– Digital Advisory

– Digital Transformation – Reality Capture

– Digital Twins

– BIM

– Immersive Applications

– Automation & AI

– Smart Buildings, Mobility and Infrastructure

– Policy & Infrastructure Analysis

– Building Energy Modeling

– Climate Resilience Assessment

– Life Cycle Analysis

– Whole Life Carbon

– Computational Fluid Dynamics

– Data Analytics & Visualization

– Microclimate Assessment

– Building Envelope Optimization

– Indoor Environmental Quality

Your projects Our passion

An award-winning portfolio of commissions at every scale

Our sector leadership model combines our technical expertise and local specialist knowledge to best support the needs of our clients.

Market Sectors

We provide our full range of services across six sectors, tackling developments involving multiple building types by assembling cross-sector teams:

Mobility

– Aviation – Rail & Transit

– Highway Facilities

– Maritime – Port Facilities

Commercial – Offices

– Residential – Retail – Hotels – Hospitality – Sports – Leisure – Stadia – Entertainment – Mixed Use – Arts & Culture – Industrial

Government

– Justice – Civic – Federal Healthcare – Defense – Workspace

– Public Safety

– Mission Critical – Law Enforcement

– Policy & Code Advisory

Science & Technology

– Laboratories – Data Centers

– Pharmaceutical

– Advanced Manufacturing – Research Facilities

– Clean Rooms

Education – Schools – Colleges – Universities – Campuses – District Energy – Student Accommodation

Healthcare – Clinics – Hospitals – Medical Offices

– Medical Research

– Surgery Centers – Cancer Centers – Care Facilities

Have a challenge for us? hello@introba.com View our project portfolio: introba.com/work/projects

Roam Transit Operations and Training Centre – Banff, AB, Canada © PCL Construction SFO International Airport Consolidated Administration Campus

Inspiring Change Empowering Changemakers

Leading by Example, Walking the Talk

Thought Leadership

We give clients access to internationally recognized thought leaders in their fields.

We identify talented young professionals with the potential to become changemakers, providing a platform for them to grow and achieve impact.

introba.com/people/thought-leaders

Industry Engagement

Introba plays an active role in support of professional bodies and industry initiatives.

We are active members of US, Canadian, Australian, and UK Green Building Councils and regularly contribute time and expertise to taskforces, working groups and research initiatives.

Defining Best Practices

We work with professional bodies, industry partners and independently to advance the current state of knowledge across the fields in which we practice. Recent contributions include:

– PARAS 0016 : Airport Security Vulnerability Assessments

– Refrigerants & Environmental Impacts: A Best Practice Guide

– The Radiant Whole Life Carbon Study

– Whole Life Carbon of PV Installations

– CIBSE TM 65 : Embodied carbon in building services

– Renewable Natural Gas : What Role Will It Play in Decarbonization in B.C.?

– World Green Building Council : Beyond Buildings

Click on the links above to access these resources. introba.com/news

Impact Fund

Running on an annual basis, our Impact Fund supports thought leadership and transformational initiatives around sustainability and digital innovation, and encourages collaboration with external partners.

introba.com/impact-fund

Net Zero Carbon Buildings Commitment

We are founding signatories of the World Green Building Council (WorldGBC)’s Net Zero Carbon Buildings Commitment. Introba is Net Zero Carbon for Scopes 1 and 2.

MEP 2040 Challenge

We are signatories of the Carbon Leadership Forum’s MEP 2040 Commitment to advocate for and achieve net zero carbon in our projects: operational carbon by 2030 and embodied carbon by 2040.

introba.com/news/

ESG

We published our first annual corporate social & environmental responsibility report in 2017.

We are now leading the development of the ESG program of our parent company, Sidara. This will provide a platform to share our ongoing performance, alongside other companies within Sidara.

introba.com/esg

CONNECTED TO SUCCESS

Introba is part of a global alliance whose members are consulting and engineering firms with unique and complementary specializations, serving the buildings, transportation, and water sectors.

Together we provide our clients with the resources and reach of a truly global company and the innovative thinking and deep focus of a best-in-class specialty firm.

INTROBA OFFICE LOCATIONS:

Canada

Calgary Edmonton Kelowna Toronto Vancouver Victoria Serbia Belgrade

OUR LEADERSHIP TEAM

Ali Nazari

Vice President, Energy & Sustainability, Canada

Pia Engel-Moss

Managing Principal, Sustainability, USA

United Kingdom London Oxford

Ireland Dublin

Australia Brisbane Melbourne Sydney

Our alliance enables us to tailor and scale our solutions to our client’s specific needs. Through technical excellence, local knowledge, and future insight we empower positive change in our communities and for our planet.

United States

Atlanta

Austin

Chicago

Dallas

Denver

Houston

Indianapolis Kansas City Los Angeles

Miami

New Haven

New York

Oakland San Diego Seattle St. Louis Washington

Andy Stanton Senior Principal, Head of Sustainability, UK & Europe

Kanika A. Sharma Principal, Director of Sustainability Innovation, USA

David Barker

Managing Principal, Sustainability, Australia

Shreshth Nagpal Vice President, Design Analytics, USA

Louise Hamot Lead, Sustainability Innovation, Global

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