Sustainability Matters Dec 2013/Jan 2014

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contents 4

December 2013/January 2014

Driving vehicle emissions standards in Australia

6 SA Water’s ‘game-changing’ interconnection project secures flexible, reliable future 8

Case studies

16

Green building addresses global change

20 Diamond facility for health and medical research 22

Sustainability still stacks up

24

Research & development

26 Cogeneration in food and beverage manufacturing 33 Resource centre

Legislation, governance, programs and industry links to help guide your sustainability development.

Cover pic: © iStockphoto.com/ Michał Krakowiak

34 Improving energy efficiency in facilities management

B

y 2015, the UN estimates that 70% of the world’s nine billion population will live in cities.

This will place new demands on the design of infrastructure, housing and facilities in order for them to cope with these anticipated trends.

Considerations for the environmental impact, safety and sustainability have also been increasingly added to the mix during the design phase of most product and infrastructure developments.

At the recent Australasian Waste and Recycling (AWRE) conference, which was in the beautiful city of Melbourne, some talk focused on improving product design to help improve recycling rates and reduce landfill. There are now not many OEMs that still consider the traditional linear economy (make, use and dispose) when designing products. Many factors, such as cost drivers, regulations and environmental concerns, have influenced designers to look at a circular economy model when designing products. By using this model, designs will consider how resources can be kept in use for as long as possible and how the maximum amount of resources can be recovered and regenerated into new product at the end of life. This ultimately improves recycling and landfill rates. Close the Loop is one company that has been instrumental in recycling product, with its toner cartridge recycling. The company is now looking at applying this business model, which is free to end users, to other products such as batteries and cosmetics.

In this issue, we take a look at the sustainable design of a number of interesting projects, including an SA Water infrastructure project and a new health and medical research facility.

Westwick-Farrow Media is committed to using environmentally responsible print services to produce our publications.

PAPER This edition is printed on recycled paper (FSC Mixed Sources Certified) from an elemental chlorine free process.

PRINT It is printed by Webstar (ISO12647-2, FSC COC and PEFC certified), using soy-based inks and CTP plate processing.

WRAPPER It is delivered in a totally degradable plastic wrapper.

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December 2013/January 2014 - Sustainability Matters 3

Leading the way

Driving vehicle emissions standards in Australia

C Meg Argyriou is Head of Engagement at ClimateWorks Australia.

She leads a team that is informing policy debate on vehicle emissions standards, encouraging energy efficiency for large industrial users and SMEs across the supply chain and logistics sector, and supporting building owners and tenants to use environmental upgrade agreements.

She previously led the development of low-carbon growth plans for Melbourne, Geelong, Gippsland and Macquarie Park.

The analysis shows that if we introduce strong standards in the next few years, within 10 years we would be paying less for fuel than we are today - even taking into account rising fuel costs.

urrently, there are over 15 million passenger cars and light commercial vehicles in Australia, and 1 million new cars are bought every year, making us the 11th-largest car market in the world. Unfortunately, new cars, which are manufactured or sold in Australia, are particularly inefficient by world standards, in part due to a lack of strong vehicle emissions standards.

For example, Australian new cars are far less efficient than those in South Korea, the European Union, Japan and China. Without standards, the United States - home of the gas guzzlers - will continue to outperform us in the next few years because of the strong standards they have adopted.

The ClimateWorks’ ‘Low Carbon Growth Plan for Australia’ shows the light vehicle sector provides the lowest cost opportunity for reducing Australia’s emissions. Our analysis shows the introduction of strong vehicle emission standards for Australia would reduce emissions as well as provide significant benefits for our economy.

The analysis shows that if we introduce strong standards in the next few years, within 10 years we would be paying less for fuel than we are today - even taking into account rising fuel costs.

Strong standards could achieve more than a 50% reduction in the average vehicle’s fuel use by 2025 compared to current averages. This means Australia would save about 3.7 billion litres of fuel each year, worth $7.9 billion by 2025 (assuming a 50% increase in fuel prices over this time).

In an efficient vehicle, the average private vehicle owner would save $852 a year (based on 14,000 kilometres a year), while a driver averaging about 20,000 kilometres a year (the average distance for a NSW Government fleet vehicle) would save $1218 a year.

From a consumer’s perspective, strong vehicle emissions standards make sound economic sense but they are also good for the environment.

Currently, the transport sector makes up about 17% of Australia’s

4 Sustainability Matters - December 2013/January 2014

emissions with cars and light commercial vehicles contributing 62% of the sector’s emissions. Australian cars and light vehicles produce an average of 199 grams of CO2 per kilometre. If we introduced strong vehicle emissions standards we could reduce this to 95 grams of CO2 per kilometre within 10 years while still delivering financial savings to households and businesses.

If Australia implements strong standards, by 2020 it could save 4 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent which would be a 7.7% reduction in emissions compared with business as usual.

And the motoring enthusiast need not fear the drive to reduce vehicle emissions. The introduction of strong emissions standards does not mean that everyone has to start driving a ‘smart car’. People can still choose to drive larger cars but they will simply be more efficient and there will be a greater mix of smaller cars in the market, in line with trends in consumer preferences.

Our analysis shows that it is also important to act quickly to implement new vehicle emissions standards.

Even if the standards were introduced this year, 30% of cars built before 2014 would still be on the road in 10 years’ time.

There is no doubt the Australian car industry is facing tough times with strong competition from international manufacturers and fears of local job losses. International research, however, shows that strong vehicle emissions standards can be implemented alongside efforts to revitalise a local car industry.

Stronger standards can be implemented in combination with other complementary measures that focus on raising awareness and providing incentives for consumers to purchase more efficient cars.

Strong vehicle emissions standards could achieve a range of positive outcomes, including financial savings for drivers, fuel savings and the lowest cost emissions reductions across Australia, in harmony with the revitalisation of the car industry. What then are we waiting for?

www.SustainabilityMatters.net.au

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SA Water’s ‘game-changing’ interconnection project Mark Dedman, NSISP Project Director

The North South Interconnection System Project (NSISP) has transformed the way SA Water’s entire metropolitan water supply network operates. It supplements the state’s existing water supply network and is part of an innovative, long-term solution to meeting the demands of drinking water needs in South Australia.

T

he NSISP combines new and existing infrastructure and integrates bulk water transfer into the same network that delivers to the customer tap across the entire city of Adelaide. The integration of the network makes it possible to take advantage of water availability, independent of source or network location.

This delivers an unprecedented level of flexibility and reliability of water supply essential to meeting demand beyond 2050, while also ensuring water security during events such as prolonged drought.

The project not only provides secure and flexible water supply to Adelaide to

beyond 2050, but is significant as a project that has been recognised nationally as being managed to the highest standards.

Early concepts for the NSISP suggested construction of a single bulk transfer pipeline, requiring an investment of $1.1 billion. During the feasibility phase, multiple project delivery options were evaluated using a sophisticated approach, where all possibilities were rigorously explored. An asset condition assessment program coupled with a complex, systemwide hydraulic model of the Adelaide water supply network enabled design optimisation of NSISP at concept stage.

This prevented unnecessary investments

6 Sustainability Matters - December 2013/January 2014

in capital and time and delivered clarity around specifications and new infrastructure requirements.

The large number of criteria to be evaluated and assessed for likely successful combinations of pipes, valves and pump stations would have been time- and cost-prohibitive using typical, manual engineering and desktop study techniques. The use of a sophisticated genetic algorithm technique was implemented as a necessarily powerful basis for generating a range of possible optimal solutions. These were further refined by multicriteria analysis using functional, economic, social and environmental

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Utility infrastructure

indicators. 32 options were reduced to four, with these going through detailed technical review to identify considerations relevant to the design of each option, such as functionality, hydraulic performance and constructability. The top ranked design was then taken to concept and detailed design, becoming the NSISP as we see it today.

The NSISP that was delivered utilises existing infrastructure where practicable for reduced environmental impact, durability, cost-effectiveness and efficiency with a construction cost of $403 million.

The NSISP is considered a ‘gamechanger’ not only for its transformative impact on South Australia’s water supply but for the outstanding project management undertaken to meet the complexities and challenges of a project of this scale. In the recent Australian Institute of Project Management awards, SA Water and the Waterlink SA joint venture comprising Parsons Brinckerhoff, MWH and Tonkin won the national award for construction/engineering projects greater than $100 million. This national award acknowledges both the dedication and skill of the many people across SA Water, the Waterlink SA joint venture group and the broader integrated team, as well as the use of an innovative and integrated approach to management of the project.

A strong community and stakeholder focus led to integration of ‘non-traditional’ skills in to the project delivery team. Architects, landscape architects, and noise and vibration specialists worked side by side with traditional engineering skills to deliver the final designs for above-ground infrastructure components of the project. Utility infrastructure has a reputation for looking somewhat utilitarian, lacking design flair and aesthetic appeal. In contrast, the NSISP infrastructure, designed with community input, integrates with the surrounding residential environments, minimises impact on the streetscape and enhances the amenity of each site.

The architecturally designed buildings feature a series of urban forms that are interesting, iconic and valued by the community - highly untypical of urban infrastructure delivered by a utility.

To manage community concern, the NSISP set noise targets for the new pump and valve stations well below standard

www.SustainabilityMatters.net.au

Utility infrastructure has a reputation for looking somewhat utilitarian, lacking design flair and aesthetic appeal. In contrast, the NSISP infrastructure, designed with community input, integrates with the surrounding residential environments, minimises impact on the streetscape and enhances the amenity of each site. The architecturally designed buildings feature a series of urban forms that are interesting, iconic and valued by the community - highly untypical of urban infrastructure delivered by a utility.

industry practice. The project’s acoustic engineers were given the challenge of making these buildings as quiet as possible, which resulted in advanced levels of acoustic attenuation being installed on these new pieces of infrastructure. This assisted with the high level of community satisfaction with the final result.

A more complex water distribution system means a more intricate operational environment. The new control system that accompanies the NSISP infrastructure is delivering benefits and operational insights that have exceeded internal and external expectations. It incorporates groundbreaking decision support tools that analyse the entire network, enabling real-time network monitoring and control and optimisation of operations due to short- and longterm network demand and configuration changes. This sophisticated operational management and control technology will also contribute to ongoing operational efficiencies, in turn delivering customer service improvements and minimising costs. Operators now have the flexibility to maximise efficiency of water transfer and supply using predictive tools which consider the weather, historic

consumption, power costs and local network status.

System optimisation has also been delivered through the inherent flexibility and adaptability of infrastructure delivered by NSISP. Other benefits include energy optimisation initiatives, energy recovery opportunities and an ability to model the impact of, and priority given to, capital expenditure projects.

This represents Australian best practice operational flexibility, efficiency and use of available resources, delivering an outstanding commitment to the short- and long-term performance of water services for the public by SA Water.

NSISP leaves a legacy that reaches far beyond its project boundaries. It has changed the way in which the SA Water business thinks, plans and operates, has delivered vital intelligence to guide future project delivery, workplace culture and team performance, and has challenged the norm. Critically, this $403 million project was delivered on time, to budget and achieved over 1.8 million hours worked without lost time injury.

SA Water Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/V580

December 2013/January 2014 - Sustainability Matters 7

case study

Jets to be fuelled by lemons

Dr Claudia Vickers says limonene one day could be a renewable, clean aviation fuel. Photo: David Sproule.

D

r Claudia Vickers, from the University of Queensland’s (UQ) Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, hopes to use a chemical found in lemons and other citrus fruit to make renewable jet fuel.

Dr Vickers explained that the volatile chemical limonene, which contributes to the smell of citrus fruits, “was first identified in turpentine oil in the late 1800s and is now used as a flavour and fragrance in foods, household cleaning products and perfumes”.

As well as holding promise as an anticancer agent, the chemical is also an ideal jet fuel component. In fact, limonene extracted from citrus peel had been successfully used in demonstration flights in the past. “However, large-scale limonene production from citrus peel is impractical,” Dr Vickers said.

That’s why Dr Vickers is modifying baker’s yeast to produce a synthetic form of the chemical; a process which should “provide a route to much greater yields

...the same technology could be used to make a variety of other sustainable products from limonene, including rubbers, plastics and paints.

of limonene which are easier to extract”, she said.

At present yields are not high enough to be commercially viable, but Dr Vickers plans to further modify the yeast to improve this. Furthermore, the same technology could be used to make a variety of other sustainable products from limonene, including rubbers, plastics and paints.

Dr Vickers recently received a UQ Foundation Research Excellence Award worth $80,000 for her work with lemons and yeast. UQ Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) Professor Max Lu congratulated her during the award ceremony, noting, “Chemicals derived from yeast can play a role in futureproofing the Queensland economy by capturing part of the $2 trillion global chemical market”.

8 Sustainability Matters - December 2013/January 2014

Her research into synthetic limonene builds on earlier Queensland Governmentfunded research which demonstrated that sucrose from sugarcane is one of the best biofuel feedstocks available in the state.

Dr Vickers noted, “Alternative energy sources … are unlikely ever to replace high-energy density fuels such as jet fuel.” Green chemicals, however, have relatively high prospects, particularly “as the amount of easily extractable fossil fuels decreases and the demand for alternatives to petrochemicals increases”, she said.

A United States Department of Agriculture report predicts that green chemicals produced using biomass will represent 22% of the chemical market by 2025.

www.SustainabilityMatters.net.au

case studies index

Sell your unwanted building materials and help the environment

 J ets to be fuelled by lemons 8

Western Sydney builder Neil Turrell has created an online marketplace that is changing the way in which Australians purchase, sell and dispose of unwanted building products. The BuildBITS app and online market allows tradespeople, renovators, homeowners and businesses to sell excess building products that would typically be thrown in skip bins and contribute to landfill.

Turrell and his wife were tired of seeing re-usable building materials taken off to the tip to the detriment of the environment and clients, who often had to pay hefty disposal fees. He said that many people, especially those outside the building industry, “would likely be shocked by the number of high-quality building products that go to waste from homes, businesses, construction sites and supplier yards - as well as by the expenses associated with disposal processes”.

“BuildBITS aims to mitigate these inefficiencies by providing Australians with a dedicated service to acquire building materials at low prices or for free, and to monetise leftover items for extra cash - providing a more cost-effective and eco-friendly disposal option,” he said.

Since launching in October 2012, BuildBITS membership numbers have risen by more than 300% and website traffic has increased by 670%, with average monthly visits now topping 50,000. Turrell said, “Corporate support has been a key driver behind the success of BuildBITS so far.” The company has attracted several brands as partners and sponsors, including Century 21, The Housing Industry Association (HIA) and Bendigo Bank.

Support has also come from several local councils, including Hume City Council, Yarra City Council and Warringah Council. Turrell noted, “Local councils are in a unique position to circulate information and promote services that stand to benefit their communities and environments at a micro level.

“By en c o u ra g i n g pe o pl e t o us e the service, councils may be able to substantially reduce the amount of waste picked up on scheduled clean-up days,” he added.

To maximise the recycling and conservation benefits of the service, Turrell

 S ell your unwanted building materials and help the environment

 Software to revalue assets based on climate science

 Auditing the energy

efficiency of compressors

 Pump problems solved at sporting club

10 12 12 13

 Turning waste into power

with anaerobic digestion 14

 Lighting up energy savings 14  Stormwater treatment

system combines filter media 18

 Fujitsu Data Centre achieves NABERS rating

18

 Vineyard installs solar in

its quest to become a fully sustainable business 19

 Remote control for pressure sewer system at Merricks Beach

23

research & development index  R e-usable wastewater treatment

 Solar PV research facility under construction

 C leaning sewage water with CDs

24 25 25

10 Sustainability Matters - December 2013/January 2014

is hoping to partner with government and environmental organisations, stating, “We are looking to actively build partnerships with governments at all levels, whether this means through cross-promoting our services on different websites or distributing information through our respective networks.”

BuildBITS can be accessed via www. buildbits.com.au or downloaded as an app for Android or iPhone. Once the app is downloaded, the user takes a picture of the surplus products, enters a short description and a desired price, and the product instantly appears for sale in the BuildBITS online marketplace. There are no commissions or fees for sellers and buyers on BuildBITS, and all partners of the service receive official recognition and cross-linking opportunities on the BuildBITS website.

The goal of the project, said Turrell, “is to expand the marketplace to a point where it makes a noticeable difference to waste reduction and recycling in Australia, and where building projects, for example, can be built mainly from BuildBITS excess materials”.

BuildBITS Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/V167

www.SustainabilityMatters.net.au

Sweet returns for dessert company.

When the thought of turning on the lights started to leave a bad taste in the mouth, multi-award winning dessert maker, Exquisine Pty Ltd, decided it was time to act. Like many companies the rapidly rising and fluctuating energy costs were severely affecting their bottom line. But as it turned out the solution to their needs was to be found in an overhead, literally.

Their Thornbury based factory has a large north facing roof space that was ideal for solar panels.

So in 2013 Exquisine Pty Ltd commissioned EnviroGroup, a leading commercial installer, to install a 80kW Yingli Solar PV system. They chose Yingli Solar high efficiency polycrystalline panels because of their proven ability to produce ongoing high energy yields under the harsh Australian climate, making them an excellent return on investment. In fact, this large solar PV system will not only offset a significant portion of the company’s electricity usage, approximately 300 kilowatt-hours per day, but will also help reduce carbon emissions by 139.7 tonnes a year.

Exquisine can now invest this energy cost saving back into the company to allow an expansion of production in the future. Sweet!

For more information please visit yinglisolar.com/au or call 1300 309 489.

YING0009

case studies Auditing the energy efficiency of compressors CHEP, a provider of pallet and container pooling solutions, has achieved significant energy savings through the installation of energy-efficient Atlas Copco compressors at its pallet production and repair sites in the UK. The savings from the installation have been measured at over 1000 tonnes of CO2 emissions.

CHEP has a network of service centre facilities located across the UK where pallets are returned, inspected and repaired before being reissued into the supply chain. Seven of these plants have installed Atlas Copco equipment, including 8-9 bar compressed air which is used to transport the wooden pallets around the inspection and repair process. There are also two air-driven nail guns on each repair bench and an average of 20 benches at each site. Together, these installations have helped to optimise the compressed air system used in all sites, as well as eliminate air leaks.

As a sustainable and environmentally aware organisation, CHEP is committed to minimise its energy demand and carbon footprint.

Subsequently, the company’s UK site managers undertook an 18-month review of energy efficiency and CO2 emissions at the company’s process plants. The project included the monitoring and assessment of compressor system efficiency at the seven service centre sites.

As part of this energy consumption and performance audit, Atlas Copco’s Manchesterbased distributor, Compressor Engineering, installed iiTrak datalogger units for a specific period at each compressor installation. From this data, the conclusion was reached that by installing more energyefficient compressors, backed by a program of planned, preventative maintenance, optimum performance could be achieved, along with reduced energy costs and increased carbon savings.

At the end of 2011, CHEP installed a number of Atlas Copco GA-series rotary screw compressors at five of its sites and transferred other existing units between the company’s remaining two sites. All of the Atlas Copco machines installed featured variable speed drive (VSD) technology that matches compressor output to fluctuating demand - with the potential to realise consequent energy savings in the region of 35%.

CHEP also chose to support the new VSD compressors and the existing machines with an Atlas Copco Comfort Air service and maintenance package handled by Compressor Engineering.

Atlas Copco Compressors Australia Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/U569

Software to revalue assets based on climate science Australian company Climate Risk has registered international patents for climate change adaptation software for property and infrastructure assets. Designed by scientists, engineers and financial risk specialists, the ‘Resilience Engine’ is used for pricing the inevitable impacts of climate change to specific assets and evaluating the benefits of adaptation.

The Resilience Engine technology has taken three years and US$2m to develop and analyse hundreds of infrastructure and building assets simultaneously, crossreferencing them with extreme weather maps and climate change data, to quantify the risks from hazards like extreme weather and sea level rise. The system automatically forecasts the annual costs of the impacts, insurance premiums and can even project the future change in value of the assets.

Dr Karl Mallon, director of Science and Systems at Climate Risk, stated: “The Resilience Engines address a fundamental gap in business intelligence: the chasm between climate science and asset planning. To cross the divide we turn maps and probability distributions into dollars, cents and cost projections. It might seem a small gap, but it takes serious maths, maps and computing power to bridge that divide. What currently takes months of expert consulting time, we have captured in sophisticated software that runs 10m risk calculations per minute.”

The company already has over 300,000 company assets on its servers being trialled by asset managers. One of Australia’s largest utilities is currently in rollout phase with a utility version of the software.

12 Sustainability Matters - December 2013/January 2014

“The technology could be a market game-changer,” said Dr Mallon. “Asset owners can now test the resilience of their own portfolio, adapt high-risk assets or get rid of them before the rest of the market has realised the liability. They can also identify the weaknesses in someone else’s portfolio.

“The market has not really factored changing extreme weather and climate science into asset valuation but once the market has access to robust information we expect pricing to follow.”

Climate Risk is currently negotiating deployment arrangements with transnational cloud computing providers for commercial rollout in Australia and the US. Climate Risk Pty Ltd Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/V652

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case studies Pump problems solved at sporting club

During the redevelopment of Perth’s Kingsway Sporting Complex, the City of Wanneroo was looking to improve its irrigation systems. The City and Grundfos commissioned a control panel that would overcome the site issues by supplying a Grundfos MPC-EF controller.

Designed for cascade control of booster systems, the Grundfos MPC controller is

www.SustainabilityMatters.net.au

built to handle the hydraulic challenges similar to that at Kingsway. The MPC control unit, designed for the Grundfos booster systems, is easy to operate from installation to everyday surveillance.

A Grundfos MPC can help conserve water, adapting to any number of sprinklers at any pressure zone during the irrigation cycle. Its main task is to control the number of pumps in operation, as well as the speed of the pumps, in order to adjust performance to demand. With irrigation normally taking place at night where a higher pressure is required, the pressure can be lowered during the day.

This is managed through an automatic clock program.

The hydraulic data from the pump system is automatically stored in the controller, making it possible for the controller to calculate which pumps to run. The controller can be integrated with

common SCADA systems and has an ethernet connection so it can be operated from a remote computer. Remote monitoring and data acquisition is also possible.

The controller has a built-in function that reduces the risk of pipework damage.

Using the soft pressure build-up function, the system runs one or two pumps at a low speed after it receives a start signal from the irrigation control. The pipes fill slowly and build up the required pressure.

As soon as the MPC controller was installed, the system performed as expected.

The starting and stopping of pumps is now carried out in a safe and effective manner, with the controller calculating the most efficient combination of pumps to run to reach the set point in the most energysaving way.

Grundfos Pumps Pty Ltd Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/T483

December 2013/January 2014 - Sustainability Matters 13

case studies

The NSW Government’s Energy Savings Scheme (ESS) assists businesses to be more sustainable through various energysaving activities. To be eligible under the scheme, applicants must be a business located in NSW and create genuine energy savings through one of the scheme’s approved activities.

There are generous financial incentives available for lighting upgrades. The incentives are measured by existing lighting equipment, hours of operation and are converted into measured energy savings.

Listed below is a step-by-step guide to how it works: 1. Businesses invest in energy-efficient lighting equipment to reduce their energy use.

2. Energy Saving Certificates (ESCs) are generated through the reduction in energy use by an Accredited Certificate Provider (ACP).

3. Liable parties such as electricity retailers then buy those energy saving certificates.

4. The value of energy saving certificates is returned to the business that generated them, retrospectively or as an up-front discount.

Andrew Randall, Managing Director of Easy Being Green, explains: "The ESS is a terrific practical direct-action initiative of the NSW Government to assist

© iStockphoto.com/Marcello Bortolino

Lighting up energy savings

business to reduce their carbon emissions and significantly reduce their costs. All NSW businesses should be reviewing their energy usage and, in tough economic conditions, the ESS helps to make energy efficiency a very simple cost reduction.

“An energy efficient lighting upgrade under the ESS has to follow all relevant Australian Standards and guidelines set out by Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART)."

Easy Being Green is an accredited certificate provider through the scheme and recently upgraded the lighting throughout the Marriott Hotel in the Sydney CBD. The Marriott with 32 floors, 518 rooms, 45 suites, 21 meeting rooms and 1410 m2 of total meeting space was a high consumer of electricity for its lighting.

Easy Being Green installed over 6000 LED downlights and over 1500 T5 conversion kits which accumulate 746,790 kWh savings per year. This has provided an estimated cost savings in excess of $125,000 per annum.

“This is real money we can spend on upgrading our chillers and investing in other projects in the hotel," says Cyrus Tolentino Director of Engineering at the Sydney Harbour Marriott.

“For the new lighting equipment we chose a 6 W LED with 30,000 hour life span to replace 50 W halogen downlights and a 22 W-T5 Conversion Kit with 50,000 hours’ life span to replace our old 36 W fluorescent tubes in the car park, plant rooms and throughout the back of house.”

“This project has reduced approximately 800 t of carbon dioxide, which is equivalent to 160 medium-sized cars removed off the road.”

Easy Being Green Pty Ltd Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/V079

Turning waste into power with anaerobic digestion Biogas can be burned directly in boilers for heat recovery and used for manufacturing, heating or cooling; this is the simplest method of direct biogas utilisation on site.

Alternatively, it can be burned in engines to generate electric power (cogeneration).

Combining hot water recovery with electricity generation, biogas can provide an overall conversion efficiency of 65-85%.

There are three types of reactors used for anaerobic digestion of the biomass: covered lagoons, plug flow and complete mix reactors. Covered lagoons, though being the cheapest method, provide a very low rate of conversion; they are also very smelly and require a lot of space. The plug flow method is only used for dairy manure as it requires

a higher presence of solids. The material requires 20-30 days to convert the biomass.

Complete mix digesters, though implying higher initial investments, have significant advantages over the other types of reactors: High yield of biogas; minimum footprint; faster return of the investment; greater bioenergy conversion; reduction in solid waste; better quality of biosolids; and pacification of volatile organic compounds.

There are several mixing technologies used in the digesters, falling into two categories - liquid (sludge) mixing and gas mixing methods. The gas mixing diffuser method has numerous advantages over the liquid mixing, such as: Compact and highly reliable; ernergy efficient; can be retrofitted;

14 Sustainability Matters - December 2013/January 2014

no moving parts within the digeste; no need for decommissioning for routine servicing; heat from compression of gas increases overall efficiency; sizing and selection of equipment is based on digester design and floor geometry, allowing selection of the most suitable option; and roof-mounted manifold or ground-level installation are possible.

There are several organisations providing grants for construction of biogas plants and installation of digester systems, such as Low Carbon Australia and the Australian government’s Clean Technology Investment Program.

Hurll Nu-Way Pty Ltd Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/U752

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Toshiba Motor efficiency

costs Energy Saving Peak efficiencies provide maximum energy savings for each output Infinite Customisation Flexibility Extensive range of customisation options

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WESTERN AUSTRALIA Toshiba International Corporation Pty Ltd 10 Anderson Pl, Perth International Airport WA 6105 Tel: (08) 6272 5600 Fax: (08) 6272 5601

Green building addresses global change Lauren Davis

The University of Queensland’s Global Change Institute (GCI), officially opened in August, was constructed to be a hub for research into sustainable building solutions. The building’s purpose is reflected in its design, with environmentally friendly features meaning the institute is carbon neutral and consumes zero net energy.

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perations Manager David Harris explained that almost half of the $32 million building’s funds were donated by philanthropist and sustainability enthusiast Graeme Wood.

“After discussions with Graeme and the university executive,” Harris said, “we decided to try to provide an exemplar of sustainable design, construction and operation.”

International design practice Hassell was commissioned to design the building, with Hassell Principal Mark Roehrs saying the brief was for “a cutting-edge building that really pushed to nextgeneration design in sustainability … an exemplar sustainability office for the campus and to represent their commitment to issues around sustainability as a research organisation”.

The building is a “living experiment”, said Harris, with ongoing research into how its features function in response to different environmental conditions.

Sensors throughout the building log all physical data, such as changes in temperature, humidity, etc. The comfort levels of the occupants are also assessed,

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as is the functionality of the building as a whole. Harris said all the data collected is “creating a database of different parameters that can be used to judge the building’s success as a sustainable, liveable building”.

Meanwhile, said Harris, the GCI researchers conduct their own work into global change issues. The various researchers cover topics such as sealevel rise, ocean health, blue carbon and other green-oriented projects, all working towards addressing the challenges of a changing world. Roehrs said the building works as a central node, bringing people together for meetings, workshops, teaching activities and administrative activities. It also provides project spaces for different teams to work on specific challenges over periods of time and accommodation for international visitors.

The building is unique in Australia due to its use of structural cement-free geopolymer precast concrete, as opposed to conventional Portland cement. “The production of cement is a very energyintensive activity,” said Roehrs, “and by replacing the use of cement with a chemical reaction as the binder, you are creating a very low-carbon product.” The material saves up to 8 tonnes of CO2 per 10 tonnes of concrete.

As a net zero energy workplace, the building produces more pollution-free energy than it consumes. Solar power is gathered through a large solar collection system on the roof, supported by a battery storage system, as well as a solar actuator tube system to superheat the hot water used in the comfort conditioning systems.

When an entire building runs on solar energy, said Roehrs, “you have to minimise your energy consumption as much as possible”. Operable sun-shading and a louvred facade control light and airflow, so the building can be naturally ventilated for 88% of the year. This has “a very dramatic impact on your

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energy consumption”, said Roehrs. The air flows to the central atrium, which discharges warm air through its thermal chimney. The thermal mass of the building is cooled with chilled water flushed through the exposed sculptural geopolymer precast floor panels.

The translucent ETFE atrium roof allows natural light into the interior - supported by environmentally friendly LED lighting - while insulating from the sun’s heat. There is on-site rainwater storage of 60,000 litres, plus greywater treatment.

A cooling green wall also acts as an air filter; other features include a bush tucker garden and bio-retention basin.

The project design team comprised several different companies, led by Roehrs. He said the involvement of new technologies “put a lot of demands on the team to be research orientated in the way that they approached this project”.

The team worked together as a close collaboration to get all the various systems “to work together as a holistic entity ... [because] if you can get all the pieces working together in sync, you get an integrated response”, Roehrs said.

The designers aren’t the only ones who needed a new and innovative approach

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- GCI Director Professor Ove HoeghGuldberg said the building “challenges the GCI team to work in new ways and change their workplace behaviour”. Harris said the natural ventilation requires an open-plan design to maximise airflow, which means spaces are more communal than in a traditional office-style building and there’s less privacy. He expected this to be the most challenging aspect of the new building, but he was “surprised at how easily people have adapted to what is a non-traditional building operation”.

“Everyone is really engaged with the building; everyone’s supportive of the aim of sustainable operations and has adjusted their behaviour,” he said.

The building is targeting 6 star Green Star Education Design and As-Built ratings. Furthermore, it has been submitted for the Living Building Challenge, which can be achieved after one year of occupancy. This is “a particularly high benchmark,” said Roehrs, “because it requires you to be carbon neutral and it requires net zero energy and it requires that energy to come from a pollutionfree source”.

According to Roehrs, the project was Hassell’s “most adventurous” and its first

net zero-energy building. Harris says the occupants have had “no issues with heat or cooling”, allowing them to focus on the aim of the institute: developing solutions to global change for the rest of the world.

December 2013/January 2014 - Sustainability Matters 17

case studies Stormwater treatment system combines filter media Consulting company GHD has successfully implemented an innovative multibarrier stormwater treatment system, named the StormDMT, for a major mining company at the Port of Townsville in Queensland. The patented technology economically filters stormwater and is effective for a broad range of contaminants, including oil, grease, soluble nutrients and heavy metals.

The idea for the technology came from Kostas Athanasiadis, business development leader - Industrial Water & Coal Seam Gas in GHD’s Brisbane office. Athanasiadis said there is a “strong demand for solutions that are cost-effective and efficient at removing stormwater contaminants such as nitrogen, phosphorous and heavy metals”.

“However,” he continued, “there are few stormwater treatment technologies currently available to effectively and economically remove these contaminants, both in particulate and soluble forms, to desirable levels both here in Australia and in other key stormwater markets such as the USA.” Athanasiadis studied the properties of different filter media as part of his PhD. He created an innovative configuration of inexpensive filter media in a cartridge that removes heavy metals and other dissolved contaminants in a cost-effective way.

GHD Commercialisation Manager - Innovations Matthew Bowler said, “Our client sought a new way to deal with stormwater runoff. With Kostas’s solution, GHD put forward an option that nobody else had considered.”

Athanasiadis said the product “incorporates a filtering system (cartridge or other types of filtering configurations) that contains a combination of the following filter media: • Polypropylene flakes to remove oil and grease and particulate-bound contaminants; • A zeolite named clinoptilolite to remove positive charged dissolved contaminants such as heavy metals and ammonium nitrogen. clinoptilolite has been chemically conditioned to maximise its operational ion exchange capacity; • Laterire to remove negative charged contaminants such as phosphate, nitrate and arsenic, as well as heavy metals that have broken through the clinoptilolite layer.”

The product is easy to maintain - the filter media cartridges are designed to be replaced on-site and then recycled for re-use offsite. The system is capable of achieving low discharge levels for dissolved nutrients and heavy metals, and also has the flexibility to target contaminants specific to site requirements, meeting a range of permit licences.

Installed underground, the concept has a low-impact footprint for both retrofitting and new development applications. For a typical cartridge configuration, the system has the ability to treat flow rates ranging from 6 up to 100 L/s.

It is capable of achieving low discharge levels for dissolved nutrients and heavy metals, and also has the flexibility to target contaminants specific to site requirements, meeting a range of permit licences.

GHD carried out a trial at the client’s site, where the filter exceeded anticipated performance. The client has now adopted a site-wide solution based on the technology.

GHD Pty Ltd Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/V485

Fujitsu Data Centre achieves NABERS rating Fujitsu has announced its Noble Park Data Centre in Melbourne has achieved a NABERS Energy for data centres rating, making it the first in Australia to be certified using the NABERS data centres tools. Significantly, it has been assessed as a 4-star facility, which represents good performance on the NABERS 6-star scale.

Mike Foster, CEO of Fujitsu Australia and New Zealand, said, “NABERS is a comprehensive and trusted assessment that has provided our customers with validation of our application of best practices in this area. We are pleased to be awarded a 4-star NABERS rating, which

is an excellent reflection of the focus we have placed on this important aspect of our business.”

To m G r o s s k o p f , d i r e c t o r o f t h e Metropolitan Branch at the NSW Office of Environment and Heritage - which delivers the NABERS program across Australia - said, “This is excellent news for the data centre industry, for businesses and for the environment. By rating its facility with NABERS Energy for data centres, Fujitsu is demonstrating its commitment to sustainability and helping to make efficient centres the industry standard.”

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Green Global Consulting undertook the infrastructure audit for the NABERS certification. Its founder and CEO, Bob Sharon, said: “This achievement is due acknowledgement of Fujitsu’s understanding that efforts to reduce carbon emissions and pollution can also be used to boost the bottom line.”

Fujitsu data centres have a power usage effectiveness (PUE) target of 1.6 and the company reports all greenhouse gas emissions produced by Noble Park, as well as all others in its Australian data centre network, to the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting System (NGERS).

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case studies Vineyard installs solar Established in 1969 and one of the pioneers of commercial winemaking in the Bendigo Region, Balgownie Estate believes a healthy environment will enable it to grow the best fruit and make the best wine possible, in a sustainable manner.

Five years awgo, Balgownie’s owners, management and staff adopted the goal of becoming a fully sustainable business.

To date, it has substantially reduced its carbon footprint through the creation of composting systems, sowing organic cover crops to reduce chemical sprays, installing more efficient irrigation, hand tending of vines and other measures. A 25% reduction in energy use was achieved through the installation of LED lighting, insulating storage tanks, modernising the A/C plant and general staff awareness.

In July 2013, EnviroGroup installed a 90 kW Yingli solar system to help control energy production, reduce electricity bills and to further reduce carbon emissions (by approx 50%) with a view to ultimately becoming carbon neutral.

As the largest installation by a privately owned business in the City of Bendigo, the federal government gave Balgownie Estate a grant of $92,000 (34% of the total cost) for the groundmounted solar panel system.

The key benefits of the system are an approximated 50% reduction in electricity bills - potential to produce 128,000 kWh of power per year; and the CO2 reduction is equivalent to taking 40 cars off the road. The solar system is also a visible sign to customers, partners and staff of Balgownie Estate’s commitment to its goal of becoming a fully sustainable business.

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“As the current custodians of this land, we believe it is our responsibility to care for it and conduct our business in a way that is both sustainable and beneficial to the environment around us,” said Balgownie Estate Director Des Forrester.

“Our aim is to become carbon neutral by 2016 - EnviroGroup’s installation of the Yingli solar system is a vital step in

achieving this goal. We are looking forward to seeing our electricity bills and carbon emissions dropping drastically.”

Yingli Green Energy Australia Pty Ltd Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/V262

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Ph: 1300 669 981 December 2013/January 2014 - Sustainability Matters 19

Diamond facility for health and medical research Construction is almost complete on a new innovativ e diamond-shaped 25,000 m 2 purposebuilt facility for the South Australian H e a l t h a n d Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI).

The impressive ‘intelligent’ facility, on Adelaide’s North Terrace adjacent to the Royal Adelaide Hospital, has been designed to foster researchers’ creativity and productivity.

A Because all components communicate with one another, the system allows the facility manager to monitor and control heating, ventilation, air conditioning, humidity, lighting, access control, video, lifts and other security features across the facility.

lready destined for icon status on the Adelaide city skyline, SAHMRI’s diamond-shape construction, elevated on flower columns, features a pine cone-inspired transparent skin to allow plenty of natural light into the building. It also features wet and dry laboratory areas, modern research areas and even a medicinal garden.

“We need environments that encourage creativity, the right temperature, right lighting and right systems to ensure researchers are at their best, most creative and productive,” says Professor Steve Wesselingh, executive director, SAHMRI. It is a theme reiterated by Michelle Gheorghiu, SAHMRI project director, “We are creating a hub of knowledge to instil passion into the young generation about research.”

An integrated building system approach The project engaged Schneider Electric and its EcoStruxure architecture to provide a clear view across process, building control and physical security during the design phase. EcoStruxure integrates the building systems into a single platform that includes heating and cooling, energy

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management, security and lab controls to provide efficiency and flexibility throughout the facility’s life cycle.

The backbone of the EcoStruxure architecture is the Integrated Building System (IBS), providing maximum efficiency through a collaborative design, construction and delivery process. The system design uses 3D building information modelling software to avoid design changes and rework. Because all components communicate with one another, the system allows the facility manager to monitor and control heating, ventilation, air conditioning, humidity, lighting, access control, video, lifts and other security features across the facility.

Integrated security solution The control of access and security was of critical importance for this project.

Schneider Electric’s integrated security solution included smart card access control, close circuit video management and high-definition cameras, and monitoring. The Video Management System deploys the latest in Pelco by Schneider Electric’s high-definition cameras, which provides increased capabilities for video analytics and identification - more than standard resolutions.

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Facilities management

Intelligent lighting control Another key component of the EcoStruxure architecture is Clipsal by Schneider Electric’s DALIcontrol lighting control system, designed to maximise energy efficiencies in the building. Although there are key scenes programmed into the building, the system also allows for customised programming in research areas that require constant lighting to simulate daylight levels of light.

DALIcontrol also includes an emergency lighting solution. Test sequences have been scheduled into the operation and provide reports to the facility operator to confirm that the evacuation lighting is functioning properly. Clipsal

by Schneider Electric has also supplied energy-efficient exit light fittings for the entire building.

Reliable emergency power supply It is critical in medical facilities to have the assurance that the backup power system will perform in an emergency.

Schneider Electric’s Emergency Power Supply System (EPSS) test solution provides automated analysis and accurate reporting as well as complete power system information. It tests the back-up generator supply and provides reports on the precise timing of transfer switches and the condition and health of the generator, and monitors EPSS load levels and duration of test. It makes manual testing obsolete, saving time and also collecting data during real outages.

This ensures that the system is healthy and will perform if and when needed.

Power interruptions also have the potential to create data loss and hardware

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damage to all communication and computer equipment. With 18 communication hubs located throughout the SAHMRI building, Schneider Electric is providing uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) to maintain power continuity and protect vital communications equipment.

Monitored power network Many facilities now require functional energy monitoring and reporting capabilities as part of their electrical distribution network and SAHMRI is no exception.

Schneider Electric included its StruxureWare Power Monitoring 7.0 (SPM7) energy management software platform to better integrate SAHMRI’s energy metering. To achieve even better power quality (PQ) and reliability outcomes for the facility, Schneider Electric collaborated with electrical contractors Nilsen to upgrade the metering hardware to allow for better PQ event diagnostics and therefore ensure a shorter ‘mean time to repair’ should any electrical network issues arise.

SMP7 will allow the facility to monitor its entire installation, from the utilitygrade PQ meter on its main incomer to the PQ meters on its subsectional feeders; and via low-voltage Masterpact air-circuit breakers and compact NSX moulded case circuit breakers fitted with Micrologic control units installed on key submains.

The project’s design team, including electrical services consultant Aurecon, also ensured submetering was installed strategically in specially designed dis-

tribution boards, to separately meter the power and lighting chassis.

Schneider Electric partnered with local energy solution integrator AZZO to deliver this integrated technological solution to maximise the functionality and efficiency of the facility’s electrical distribution network.

More drive for less input A facility such as SAHMRI requires an enormous number of pumps, fans and motors to ensure the HVAC system is operational. These consume vast amounts of energy; however, the design team has conserved as much energy as possible with the addition of Schneider Electric’s Altivar variable speed drives. These will limit energy usage on start-up and allow for the precise control of heating and cooling through the IBS. The solution also helps the building meet Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification standards. This is a globally recognised standard in ensuring that a building project is environmentally responsible, profitable and a healthy place to work.

Scheduled for completion in late 2013, the SAHMRI building design brief and goals are well underway and the building is a diamond example of how a holistic approach is poised to create great energy efficiencies and intelligent building systems for the long term.

Schneider Electric Aust Pty Limited Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/V483

December 2013/January 2014 - Sustainability Matters 21

Sustainability still stacks up Ed Hanna*, Director Energy Action Sustainability Solutions

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ustralian businesses are still expressing their commitment to reducing their carbon footprint, even though Energy Action has observed that there is perhaps a nuanced shift in the motivations that are leading companies to invest in energy efficiency and sustainability management.

Our research tells us that there are two key drivers for our customers’ continued drive towards sustainability: 1. The boat has sailed (no political double entendre intended): sustainability remains a strategic, compliance and reporting issue for building stakeholders that requires continued attention and careful planning.

2. The energy ‘bill frog’ is still boiling in the energy ‘cost pot’: delivered energy costs to a building are still a pain point for buildings and their tenants.

The new federal government does bring with it a new direction in funding for energy-efficiency investments.

Direct Action represents, in short, less public funding for energy efficiency than the ‘Securing Australia’s energy future’ package of funding supported by the carbon tax. In a deft sleight of hand,

© iStockphoto.com/Alija

Contrary to public opinion, the changing of the guard in Canberra in September this year hasn’t stopped carbon emissions leaking from Australian business into the atmosphere at one of the highest per capita intensity levels of any developed economy on the planet. This author is given to understand that it hasn’t stopped the boats either, but that is another story for another day.

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the incoming government has declared the removal of the social licence to collect the carbon tax, stripped the funding commitments to assist businesses to adjust to the carbon price, but left the revenue collection mechanisms in place.

More specific than this author’s vague sense of moral outrage, we can also see facilities managers feeling the impacts of delays in government decision-making at both the parliamentary and the executive level of the Coalition government.

The government has, of course, released its proposed terms of reference for the Emissions Reduction Fund; however, the white paper is not expected until mid-2014.

Regarding the other major plank of federal government activity, the renewable energy targets, these too, are likely to change. Somehow. Sometime.

Back in May of this year, the now Minister for Energy Ian Macfarlane indicated that the Coalition would be undertaking a further review of the Large and Small Scale Renewables Schemes once it came into office. While nothing has since been confirmed, it is widely believed that this will take place in the first quarter of 2014, and a swift implementation of the review’s findings could be expected.

One of the expected outcomes is a reduction in the long-term target for renewable generation, although even a reduced target would still require more renewables to be built than are installed today.

At the state level, both the NSW and Victorian governments are preparing new initiatives in the wake of the change of direction at the federal level, but little will be implemented this quarter.

So what does all this change mean for facility management?

Given that most of the federal and state policy changes and implementation won’t occur until mid-2014 and beyond, and the details around what

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In my opinion

federal grants will exist for businesses are uncertain, facilities managers should take the opportunity now to gain a better understanding of how energy is used in their facilities and review their planning processes to improve energy efficiency in the new year.

As our customers keep telling us, improving energy efficiency and energy management is critical to help facility managers prepare for rising electricity costs, as well as reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Now represents a great time to undertake the following steps for the new year: • D etermine your facilities’ energyefficiency baseline. Can you answer the following question: What is the relationship between energy as a process input and the desired outputs from your facility?;

• Develop an operational energy profile for your facility to understand systemic and anomalous energy usage issues; • Set performance targets for your facility over the short, mid and long term; • D evelop monitoring and reporting processes for your facilities’ performance targets; • Identify and prioritise your preferred energy usage and management improvement initiatives; and • Communicate your facilities’ results with key stakeholders, eg, owners, residents and shareholders.

When facilities managers are able to explain the energy-efficiency relat ionship in their facilities, they can use this information to implement more cost-effective projects that help

reduce energy consumption and the associated costs every single day and under all conditions.

Energy Action Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/V639

*Edward Hanna runs a team of energy-efficiency engineers and commercial experts that focus on developing partnerships with Australian businesses to continually improve their cost of energy operations. He has been involved in the energy industry since the deregulation of the NSW electricity market commenced in 1997.

Remote control for pressure sewer system

Located on the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria, Merricks Beach is a popular holiday destination for Melburnians. The seaside village, which has 233 properties (only 40 permanently occupied), uses a conventional pressure sewer system which was facing stress difficulties during peak holiday times. It also had insufficient flows for self-cleaning during off-peak periods and volatile peak flows after power failures or blockages. iota installed its Surepoint telemetry system to help improve service for the Merricks Beach Backlog Sewer Project which is managed by South East Water. The system is used to control and monitor the pressure sewer units and pumps in real time remotely from the South East Water offices or via smartphones. It also helps to smooth out peak flows and maximise efficiency of the infrastructure.

Using Surepoint, the pressure pump effectively becomes a sewer smart meter. Users can integrate it into a SCADA network and can obtain the information required about tank storage capacities, power failures, blockages and faults, etc, instantly. It also provides diagnostics for individual properties, streets or whole networks in real time.

The Merricks Beach solution provided: remote-controlled peak shifting during busy holiday usage; smaller pipes and better flushing velocities and self-cleaning abilities; stabilised flows, providing a more efficient steady feed to the downstream treatment plant; a

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managed, power recovery plant resulting in peak flows 10.0 L/s (c.f. unmanaged pressure sewer system with flows up to 28 L/s); ability to shut down network during storm events to minimise effects of inflow and infiltration; and improved maintenance including the ability to remotely shut down sections of the network.

Surepoint’s control algorithms enabled South East Water to shift the peaks and reduce peak flows in the Merricks Beach pressure sewer system. This is reducing the load on downstream treatment plants, increasing efficiencies and reducing nominal pipe bore.

As the Merricks team discovered, Surepoint’s pump control provided better recovery after power failure and blockages and achieved better flow velocities for self-cleaning during off-peak periods. As well as reducing capital costs, the system can prioritise and schedule repairs, and users can scale back regular maintenance.

The Surepoint two-way communication ‘smarts’ are delivering better customer service to Merricks Beach residents and holidaymakers. The South East Water team now gets alerts and can fix faults before the householders even realise there is a problem.

Surepoint’s smart pump controllers have delivered what the project needed and rather than a typical diurnal flow pattern, the Surepoint pump controllers allow peak flow shifting to maximise efficiency and reduce costs.

Iota Services Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/V581

December 2013/January 2014 - Sustainability Matters 23

research & development

© iStockphoto.com/Bart Sadowski

Re-usable wastewater treatment

A novel adsorbent for removing emerging contaminants from wastewater that is claimed to be more effective, re-usable and environmentally friendly has been developed by researchers in Temple University’s Water and Environmental Technology (WET) Center.

The researchers used cyclodextrins, a family of compounds made up of bound glucose (sugar) molecules, to develop their adsorbent material, which could have a positive impact on the water treatment, pharmaceutical, chemical and manufacturing industries, said Rominder Suri, professor of civil and environmental engineering and director of the WET Center in Temple’s College of Engineering.

Suri said that cyclodextrins have an affinity for attracting organic compounds that is much higher than activated carbon, which is currently the most commonly used material by industry for removing wastewater contaminants.

“Activated carbon is very porous and water - whether it be surface water, groundwater or wastewater - contains a lot of natural organic matter,” said Suri.

“These are big molecules and when they hit the activated carbon, they block the pores which prevent the contaminant particles from getting inside.”

Suri said the new adsorbent has a cavity-like area in which they can trap the contaminants, which are made up of organic compounds. By changing the functional groups on the glucose molecule, the size of the cavity can be increased or reduced.

“That means we can potentially manipulate this adsorbent substance to target and remove select contaminants, something that activated carbon cannot do,” he said.

Although cyclodextrins are soluble, meaning they dissolve easily in water, the new adsorbent has been made insoluble by the Temple researchers and can easily be attached as a thin coating to such surfaces as sand, glass, silica and filter paper.

So far, the researchers have tested the new adsorbent material against contaminants such as steroid hormones, detergent compounds and bisphenol A in both lab water and discharged wastewater and found that it has removed more than 90% of the contaminants, said Suri.

“This new adsorbent material has much less surface area than activated carbon, especially if you coat it on sand,” he said. “But our results demonstrate that it has comparable, or even better, capacity than the activated carbon. And, it has the potential to be even more

24 Sustainability Matters - December 2013/January 2014

efficient by coating it on porous, high surface materials.”

In addition to its effectiveness in removing contaminants, Suri said that the new material’s other benefit is that it can easily be regenerated and re-used. A solvent such as methanol can be used to remove the contaminants or ozone can be used to destroy the trapped contaminants, both allowing the adsorbent material to be re-used.

So far, the researchers have tested several batches of the adsorbent material through four different cycles and it continues to work with the same effectiveness, said Suri.

“Activated carbon is one and done,” he said. “In industry, once it has been used it will be either landfilled or it can be reactivated through a very energyintensive and expensive process.”

Suri said the next step for the new adsorbent material is to do more extensive pilot testing.

The research into cyclodextrins was funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the translational development of that research into an adsorbent is being supported through the NSF-funded Water Technology Innovation Ecosystem established at Temple’s WET Center in 2011.

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research & development Solar PV research facility under construction The University of Queensland (UQ) has signed a contract with First Solar for the construction of a solar photovoltaic (PV) research facility - set to be Queensland’s largest solar power installation - at the university’s Gatton campus.

First Solar will install its advanced, thin-film cadmium telluride PV modules on a 12.6 ha former airstrip site. There, the 3.275 MW pilot plant will feature more than 34,000 panels in a groundmounted array.

A $40.7 million federal government grant, via the Education Investment Fund (EIF), is funding the installation, which is also part of an AGL Energy project supported by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA).

Electricity is due to start flowing by the end of next year.

UQ’s Property and Facilities Division will project manage the delivery of the plant and associated high-voltage infrastructure, as well as a research building at Gatton and a data hub control

Professor Paul Meredith, University of Queensland.

room at the university’s St Lucia campus.

The division also will manage and operate the plant on completion.

The new research facility will augment UQ’s 1.22 MW PV array, which was completed at St Lucia in Brisbane in 2011.

The Gatton plant will also serve as the pilot for two much larger solar farms that AGL Energy and First Solar are building in western NSW - at Nyngan (102 MW) and

Broken Hill (53 MW) - in a $450 million scheme to create Australia’s largest solar power plants.

Professor Paul Meredith, of UQ’s Global Change Institute and the School of Maths and Physics, said the new facilities and associated research program are designed to support the early-stage commissioning and operation of the main power plants in NSW. “Components of our research will focus on energy storage, plant optimisation, power systems and the impact of renewable energy on the National Electricity Market,” Professor Meredith said.

“We will be able to test new technology and concepts at a meaningful scale and our work will help build national capacity for research in solar power deployment.”

UQ’s President and Vice-Chancellor, Professor Peter Høj, added that the installation will also have local benefits “for campus energy supply and for UQ research, teaching and community engagement”.

Cleaning sewage water with CDs Taiwanese researchers have discovered a new and unusual application for audio CDs: breaking down sewage. Their wastewater treatment technology was presented at The Optical Society’s Annual Meeting, held in October in Orlando, Florida.

Physicist Ding Ping Tsai, from National Taiwan University, said, “Optical disks are cheap, readily available and commonly used.” The treatment method will also help cut down on waste, the researchers said, by re-using a portion of the almost 20 billion disks that are manufactured every year.

Tsai and his team - from National Taiwan University, the National Applied Research Laboratories and the Research Center for Applied Sciences - used the surface area of optical disks as a platform to grow tiny, upright zinc oxide nanorods about a thousandth of the width of a human hair. Zinc oxide is an inexpensive semiconductor that can function as a photocatalyst, breaking apart organic molecules - like the pollutants in sewage when illuminated with UV light.

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Other researchers have experimented with using zinc oxide to degrade organic pollutants, but Tsai’s team is the first to grow the photocatalyst on an optical disk.

Because the disks are durable and able to spin quickly, contaminated water that drips onto the device spreads out in a thin film that light can easily pass through, speeding up the degradation process.

In addition to the zinc oxide-coated optical disk, the research team’s wastewater treatment device consists of a UV light source and a system that recirculates the water to further break down the pollutants. The device is approximately 30 cm3 in volume.

The team tested the reactor with a solution of methyl orange dye, a model organic compound often used to evaluate the speed of photocatalytic reactions. After treating a half-litre solution of dye for one hour, they found that over 95% of the contaminants had been broken down. The device can treat 150 mL of wastewater per minute, the researchers say.

Tsai noted the benefits of the spinning disk reactor, saying it is small, consumes

This image shows an optical disk entirely coated with zinc oxide nanorods. (Photo credit: Din Ping Tsai, National Taiwan University.)

little power and processes contaminated water more efficiently than other photocatalytic wastewater treatment methods. The device could be used on a small scale to clean water contaminated with domestic sewage, urban run-off, industrial effluents and farm waste.

The team is currently working on ways to increase the efficiency of the reactor.

December 2013/January 2014 - Sustainability Matters 25

Cogeneration in food and beverage manufacturing It seems only a few months ago that major industrials were concerned about electricity price rises and saw gas as an easy option. With the emergence of competition for new gas supplies from large export projects, expectations are for a seller’s market and we now see predictions of significant gas price rises over the next few years.

In this article, pitt&sherry Principal Consultant Dr Steve Edwards discusses cogeneration as an alternative form of energy generation in food and beverage manufacturing.

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ogeneration is becoming an increasingly important option to consider when designing and delivering new plant in the food and beverage manufacturing industry, according to engineering consultancy pitt&sherry.

Whether it is designing a greenfields start-up or smaller plant expansion, there are vital energy questions in regards to economics and the environment for developers to consider. According to Dr Steve Edwards, with the current volatility in the energy sector it is attractive for developers to turn to options more within their sphere of operations.

“Cogeneration and trigeneration are in your control and becoming increasingly attractive from a long-term management perspective,” explained Edwards.

“However, it generally takes a more immediate ‘kick in the pants’ for decisionmakers to move out of their old procurement habits.

“More important spurs in making the choice are the immediate economic and environmental gains.”

Typical centralised electric power plants produce lots of electricity, but also produce a lot of heat and expend a fair bit of energy getting rid of it. The heat is not used and makes the production energetically inefficient, and a high degree of electricity is lost along the transmission lines to the plant. Edwards explained that a centralised plant works economically because the energy supply is historically cheap and the operations are a long way along the learning curve.

“But what happens if use can be made of the heat?” questioned Edwards.

“Cogeneration basically takes the generation of electricity to the site and allows the heat to be used rather than expending energy getting rid of it.

“If it is done correctly this is heat that would have been normally paid for in the boilers.”

For dairy processing, trigeneration is particularly pertinent, Edwards continued, as it uses heat to drive refrigeration and is well placed in the cycle for efficiencies. According to Edwards, trigeneration using absorption chillers

26 Sustainability Matters - December 2013/January 2014

needs very low-grade heat and is able to ‘scavenge’ what is left over after heat has been used for steam and hot water production.

“This option is energetically efficient and good for the environment - using less energy from traditional fuels means less greenhouse gas emissions,” explained Edwards.

“But is it going to work for you economically? These plants are not cheap and they require additional skills and maintenance.”

Economic decision Even if the capital cost of a plant is not a concern, the greater issue is that energy supply is not as cheap as that used at a centralised power plant.

According to Edwards, to make it all pay back in an appropriate time requires efficient design, efficient use and the right energy prices.

He believes the first element in that efficiency is likely making sure all of the energy that comes in is being used.

“A powder plant may have little need for refrigeration, other than in milk receival and storage, while a cheese plant can be expected to require a high level of temperature control and a high level of refrigeration usage,” said Edwards.

“Conversely, the powder plant will have a higher relative heat demand. If refrigeration is taken out of the picture, each may use about the same amount of electricity relative to milk inputs.”

It is important to make sure the plant being considered matches your needs, added Edwards.

Fortunately, there is a large variety of plant sizes, from the engines and turbines generating the electricity through to heat recovery steam generators, heat exchangers and absorption chillers.

“How we match up these differing demands is actually a relatively simple, but highly detailed, process,” said Edwards.

“The overall aim, not surprisingly, is not to waste anything, including capital.”

Factors to consider It is difficult to get economies of scale if plant is too small, Edwards explained,

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adding that there is a maintenance requirement at the least for these machines.

“Even if this is outsourced it will require a site presence that will need to be paid for, along with travel costs, regardless how brief the time on site,” Edwards said.

“There are installation costs that will have economies of scale and plant costs that have economies of scale.

“Up to a point, larger plants will do better economically. An unfortunate reality, but possibly a useful rule of thumb is that plant sizes under 1 MW will struggle.

“It’s not that you shouldn’t look at it, but it is one of the risk factors.”

Usage also needs to be relatively constant for the plant to pay for itself, according to Edwards.

There are also technical requirements around the way plants operate that mean they run better, cleaner and with less maintenance if they run consistently.

Where there is a peaking requirement there is a need to provide for that through various solutions.

Edwards regards the spark gap as the ‘biggy’ when it comes to assessing how to approach generation in a food or beverage facility.

“It’s actually not independent of these other factors since only in extreme circumstances will it kill a project,” said Edwards.

“But if your plans have survived the stages of sizing and peaks and troughs then it is frequently the killer. It is also the most external of the three factors and the easiest to model.”

The spark gap is the difference in energy pricing between the chemical energy source, such as natural gas, biomass or syngas, and the cost of electricity delivered to site. It effectively dictates the final profitability of any cogeneration or trigeneration operation.

The chemical energy is the same fuel used in boilers or steam generators onsite and the electrical supply is what is used when in operation.

Once a facility has made the most effective use of its resources, a spark gap is still required to make it all work.

Where does that leave us?

The environment wants cogeneration or trigeneration to be installed, but the

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© iStockphoto.com/IP Galanternik D.U.

Alternative energy

For dairy processing, trigeneration is particularly pertinent as it uses heat to drive refrigeration and is well placed in the cycle for efficiencies.

Trigeneration using absorption chillers needs very low-grade heat and is able to ‘scavenge’ what is left over after heat has been used for steam and hot water production. - according to pitt&sherry Principal Consultant Dr Steve Edwards.

economy may have a different view, explains Edwards.

In order, the main risk factors and limitations for a greenfields site are scale of operations, peak matching and energy pricing.

“If you have a new demand with a reasonable scale of need, low hourly variation and good access to, say, piped natural gas at reasonable rates, then it is something worth doing more detailed study on,” said Edwards.

“If you are not fortunate enough to have these three, there are likely to be technical solutions that help - but at a cost.

“It has the potential to improve costeffectiveness, hwelp you look good and help save the world for your children - all at the same time.”

Pitt & Sherry Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/V390

December 2013/January 2014 - Sustainability Matters 27

n products & services

Software for MCCs The latest features in the Allen-Bradley IntelliCenter software - IntelliCenter Integration Assistant and IntelliCenter Energy - accelerate the configuration time and enhance end users’ data-driven energy decisions.

With IntelliCenter Integration Assistant, users can seamlessly integrate their IntelliCenter motor control centres (MCCs) into their Rockwell Software RSLogix 5000 programming software.

This feature reduces programming time by automatically adding the Allen-Bradley Centerline MCC devices to the RSLogix 5000 I/O tree. Integration Assistant also takes advantage of existing premier integration features to automatically create controller tags and IP address configuration in RSLogix 5000 software, reducing errors and the time it takes to configure the intelligent devices. The feature enables faster installation and commissioning time, providing real-time, device-level information and higher productivity.

IntelliCenter Energy offers a preconfigured set-up of FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix software for intelligent motor control devices in the MCC, including variable speed drives, overload relays and SMCs. In addition, users can view energy consumption at the device level directly from IntelliCenter software. The feature makes it easier to monitor and manage energy usage in the industrial facility for cost savings and allows for easy integration of IntelliCenter MCCs into plantwide energy-management systems. It gives users the information necessary to make fact-based decisions to help them optimise energy usage, improve equipment performance and even predict equipment failure.

Rockwell Automation Australia Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/V260

Portable pH meter for low ionic strength water The Hanna Instruments HI 99191 is a waterproof portable pH/temperature meter designed specifically for measuring the pH of drinking water, since the pH of water influences properties including taste, odour, clarity and disinfection.

Measuring the pH of water low in minerals is difficult using a general-purpose pH meter. The lower the mineral content, the less conductive the water will be. Low conductivity water presents a challenge since the pH meter is an electrochemical system that relies on the test sample being conductive. To overcome this challenge, the product uses the FC 215 amplified pH electrode. The electrode has three ceramic junctions in the outer reference cell providing electrolyte flow of 40-50 ¾L/h. This increased flow provides a greater continuity between the reference electrode and the indicating electrode, making it suitable for water of low ionic strength. To optimise the flow from the electrode, the refill cap should be screwed to open, allowing positive head pressure to be created.

The meter has automatic 1- or 2-point calibration, automatic temperature compensation and BEPS (battery error prevention system), which alerts the user in the event that low battery power could adversely affect readings. % battery power is also shown at start-up. With a multilevel LCD display and on-screen tutorial messages for calibration and set-up, the compact unit is waterproof and easy to clean.

Portable ultrasonic flowmeter converters The Series PUX2 Portable Ultrasonic Flowmeter Converters are paired with the Series PSX2 sensors in order to utilise the transit-time difference for measuring flow rates in pipes from the outside. It is a compact and lightweight instrument said to incorporate the latest electronics and digital signal processing technologies, realising high performance and easy operation.

The device is designed for high accuracy and high-speed response. The portable unit is capable of 12 h of continuous operation with its built-in battery, which requires only 3 h recharging. The rugged NEMA 3X (IP54) enclosure allows the product to be exposed to rain, while the efficient layout of the function keys aid the user with easy page selection and setting changes.

Features include: SD memory card slot for recording data; built-in USB port for easy PC connection; large type colour graphic LCD; flow rate, flow velocity and flow totalisation functions; thermal flow rate (BTU) function with two temperature inputs suitable for energy audits.

Hanna Instruments Pty Ltd

Dwyer Instruments (Aust) Pty Ltd

Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/V017

Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/U917

28 Sustainability Matters - December 2013/January 2014

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Pyrolysis-powered waste to energy technology Clean Energy Group (CEG) provides waste management and minimisation services using pyrolysis technologies. The New Earth process enables extraction of re-usable materials that are otherwise lost in waste streams.

The technology is claimed to produce no waste and recovers commercially profitable resources that can be re-used for fuel. Oil, electricity, carbon black and steel are all by-products. The process also generates heat that can power a steam turbine, making electricity to feed back into the city power grid.

Dry city waste such as plastic bags and containers can be processed using pyrolysis technology to recover valuable resources for re-use in new products.

Clean Energy Group

Sludge blanket level sensor The Australian designed and built Sultan Sonar from Hawk Measurement Systems is a fourth-generation high-power/low-frequency sludge blanket level sensor for use in water clarifiers.

Operators of potable and wastewater treatment plants need to constantly balance biological and hydraulic parameters throughout their process.

Maintaining the correct level of sludge build-up in clarifiers is critical for energy efficiency, bacterial action and processed water quality.

Mounted to the clarifier’s handrail, the product eliminates the hazards associated with manual dip sampling techniques like lowering a gap sensor.

The focused high-power/ low-frequency beam penetrates through suspended solids and detects the stratified layers of settling organic material, from sludge bed to lightest flocculent layer.

Self-cleaning and easily integrated into a plant’s control systems, the device is supplied precalibrated for various densities of compacted bed, hindered, free settling and Floc zones, and requires no ongoing maintenance.

Hawk Measurement Systems Pty Ltd Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/V089

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Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/V508

HORIBA U-50 MULTI-PARAMETER WATER QUALITY METERS

pH Oxidation Reduction Potential Dissolved Oxygen Conductivity Salinity Total Dissolved Solids Seawater Specific Gravity Temperature Turbidity Water Depth GPS

AUSTRALIAN SCIENTIFIC Pty Ltd

PO Box 335 Kotara NSW 2289 - Ph 1800 021 083 - Fax 02 4956 2525 sales@austscientific.com.au - www.austscientific.com.au

December 2013/January 2014 - Sustainability Matters 29

n products & services

Product recovery system for packaged liquids and flow-resistant wet contents The National Bulk Equipment ProductSaver line of product recovery systems is designed to provide automated, controlled removal of free-flowing liquids or flow-resistant wet contents from their packaging.

Processing and packaging operations must often dispose of, or destroy, off-spec, mislabelled, overrun or otherwise unsalable wet product and its packaging.

ProductSaver product recovery systems enable reclaim of contents for residual resale, re-use or efficient disposal; and reclaim of packaging material for recycling or disposal. The systems can contribute to process performance by providing tangible metrics tor sustainability improvements; protecting product safety; reducing material loss; keeping labour on task. The systems are engineered to integrate with legacy processing and packaging operations and can be designed to run as a self-contained wet material reclamation system.

The system combines package in-feed, package opening, and contents and package separation processes into a single-stream product recovery sequence. Whether pallet loads, cases or single packs, no break-pack or razor knife steps are necessary. Package opening occurs within the compression screw press where precision-formed, specially pitched, 304-2b stainless steel screw flights draw packages from the in-feed chute into the compression sequence. The screw flights are edge finished to open packages and accelerate material release prior to compression action.

The conical screw shaft, together with an end block press, create a progressive compression force on the pre-opened packages to ensure thorough release of contents and separation of contents from packaging material. Two large-bore pneumatic cylinders power two compactor gates for final-stage material release. Automated discharge of compacted packaging material is provided by sensors at the compactor gates that gradually release compactor pressure and open the gates to discharge recovered packaging.

The product recovery systems provide up to 99.95% of content recovery for most wet material. They are designed to the particular requirements of each application, regardless of package material or shape, including ampoules; gable-top, coated paperboard cartons; polypropylene dairy containers; aluminium cans; aseptic cartons; PET bottles; ploy-based tubes; roll stock packs; and foil laminate pouches. This means they are built to the particular processes and practices of the application and aid in attaining optimal compliance contribution (OCC).

Flexible composite pipe coupling Victaulic has launched its Style 171 flexible composite pipe coupling. An engineered composite coupling, the product is suitable for use where corrosive conditions exist and for reverse osmosis (RO) skids in vertical and horizontal installations.

The coupling enables quick and simple installation, offers corrosion and UV resistance and is lighter in weight than ductile iron and stainless steel couplings. The coupling does not require disassembly prior to installation; it is simply pushed onto the pipe end as a fully assembled unit and tightened using standard hand tools.

As a flexible joint, the product accommodates expansion, contraction and deflection in the piping system. Its design eliminates loose components that could be dropped or lost and reduces installation clearance requirements.

The coupling is available in 40 to 100 mm sizes and joins standard rollor cut-grooved PVC and cut-grooved HDPE pipe. It can withstand pressures of up to 150 psi (1034 kPa) and is supplied with the Victaulic Grade ‘E2’ EPDM gasket. It is suitable for operating temperatures of 1 to 54°C.

Mercer Technologies

Victaulic Australia/New Zealand

Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/U726

Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/V449

30 Sustainability Matters - December 2013/January 2014

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Steam and cold water mixing unit The M-5000TG Low Flow Series mixing unit produces hot water instantly from a steady supply of steam and cold water. The range is claimed to help users achieve savings in water, sewage and energy costs.

The models are equipped with a dial-type gauge that indicates the wash water’s temperature and can be easily regulated by turning the unit’s steam and cold water valves. It is also available as either a manual or thermostatically controlled unit.

As an added safety measure, the units shut off their steam source automatically if the cold-water pressure falls below 50 psi for any reason. This prevents hazardous steam from exiting the unit and causing steam burns.

The product is designed to be wall mounted, 2.5 cm away from the wall for easy cleaning and safe stowage.

The rugged, one-piece construction make the unit robust and long-lasting. It is constructed of bronze, with stainless steel internal parts, and finished in either chrome or chrome-plated material. It comes complete with hose rack, inlet check valves and temperature gauge.

Water-saving trigger guns, including a low-pressure unit for difficult applications, are also available for the station.

Spray Nozzle Engineering Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/V565

Microwave barrier level limit sensor Whether in bulk solids or liquids, the VEGAMIP 61 microwave barrier is designed to detect the limit level with absolute certainty in very rough process conditions. The sensor is insensitive to dirt, dust and build-up. It is especially adapted to the requirements and needs of the bulk solids industry.

The measurement is non-contact and the sensor itself has no direct contact with the medium. This is advantageous particularly for abrasive media or very high temperatures.

In such cases, the sensor can simply measure from the outside through a microwave-permeable window, such as ceramic or plastic.

Also, when used for level detection of liquids or object detection, the microwave barrier offers many advantages over other measuring principles.

The device can be used both as a maximum and minimum level sensor and fits in VEGA’s plics concept, offering all the advantages of a modular system. Housings of plastic, aluminium or stainless steel, as well as different antenna systems and process fittings, are at the user’s disposal, making it possible to configure the sensor to meet exact requirements.

VEGA Australia Pty Ltd Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/V050

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December 2013/January 2014 - Sustainability Matters 31

n products & services

Membrane water filtration units The UF-Plus range of automated ultrafiltration units provides small-scale water treatment capabilities for several applications. The four model choices have capabilities as single, dual, triple or quadruple automated membrane solutions, ranging from 20 kL per day for the single unit up to 100 kL for the quadruple module unit.

The units are suitable solutions for a range of requirements. They employ an intuitive control interface enabling them to be operated by personnel without water treatment experience but with enough flexibility to satisfy an experienced operator as well. They are designed to give a long, trouble-free service life under harsh environments.

Typical applications include decentralised water treatment systems, community and rural small-scale systems, remote mining and resource communities, and point-of-entry filtration. Commercial applications include emergency and temporary water supplies, restaurants, hotels and resorts, bottled water production and reverse osmosis pretreatment.

The units require no additional operating equipment other than the water pump, plumbing and pre- or post-treatment storage tanks. All the plumbing and electrical connections are common plug-in fittings and require no hard wiring of mains power.

The units employ low-pressure hollow fibre membrane filtration technology.

The system controller provides continuous automatic water production via the EC-Flush clean cycle with minimal operator input. The membrane filtration module is mounted inside the food-grade polyethylene pressure housing, which is compact, tough, easy to transport and simple to install.

Typical uses will include potable surface water, groundwater or seawater treatment. Ultrafiltration provides a high-quality filtrate even when presented with varying suspended solids levels, especially with surface and tidal waters that provide challenges to conventional filters.

The units have dry weights ranging from 50 kg for the single module up to 110 kg for the quad module. They can be easily shipped to remote locations.

Water Equipment Plus Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/V183

Design app Energy management specialist Schneider Electric has announced its Vijeo Design’Air Plus feature in its existing Vijeo designer application for Android and iOS tablets and smartphones.

The product enables users to create a tablet/smartphone project specifically for the tablet/ smartphone display size. At runtime, an operator can access the user application to display data and control automation processes on the tablet/smartphone.

The drawing tools can be used to create and edit a visual representation of the automation process. The user can draw shapes and parts (such as rectangles, arcs and pies), Toolchest parts (such as numeric displays, switches and bar graphs), use the gradient feature to enhance the colour of the drawn objects and set up an alarm panel for remote alarm monitoring.

The app provides operators with the capability to select a user application and, on successful login, download and launch the tablet/smartphone application. The operator can view and monitor an automation process and, for example, change values in numeric displays and string displays. In the alarm panel, the operator can monitor and acknowledge alarms.

Schneider Electric (Aust) Pty Ltd Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/V176

32 Sustainability Matters - December 2013/January 2014

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Case Study Overset

Resource centre w

Legislation, governance, programs and industry links to help guide your sustainability development.

Photo winners in International savewater competition Four photographic winners from around the world have been announced, selected from more than 3700 entries from over 90 countries in the International 2013 savewater! Photographic Competition.

An independent judging panel selected one winner and one runner-up from each of the three categories in the competition: Junior students (up to 12 years old), Senior students (13-17 years old), and Open.

An additional winner and runner-up were awarded by a people’s choice vote which took place on Facebook.

The independent judging process was headed by designer Damon Vaughan with a panel of experts in photography from the US and Australia, including representatives from the Australian Photographic Society.

Nigel Finney, CEO of the savewater!

Alliance, believes that the messages captured in the winners’ images will act as a reminder to people around the world that water is one of our most valuable and precious resources.

“This year there are some spectacular winning photographs from all over the world, with so many different represen-

Winner: In search of precious water by Kumar-Bishwajit.

Editor Carolyn Jackson email: sm@westwick-farrow.com.au Chief Editor Janette Woodhouse

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tations of water from diverse geographic locations,” said Finney.

“The overall meaning and story that these photographs tell is what makes them phenomenal,” he said.

“The winning photograph in the open category by Kumar Bishwajit shows the desperation of searching for water in a scorched dry land - this is just one of the many compelling stories we have seen from this competition,” said Finney.

The winners and finalists from the competition can be viewed online at www.savewater.com.

Runner up: Life on the polluted water by Md Rafayat Haque Khan.

Advertising Sales National Sales Manager/NSW/QLD Nicola Fender-Fox Ph: 0414 703 780 nfender-fox@westwick-farrow.com.au

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Printed and bound by Webstar +61 2 9748 0020 Print Post Approved PP 100007399 ISSN No. 1834-917X

March 2013 total CAB Audited Circulation (Aust & NZ)

5871 readers (73% personally requested) All material published in this magazine is published in good faith and every care is taken to accurately relay information provided to us. Readers are advised by the publishers to ensure that all necessary safety devices and precautions are installed and safe working procedures adopted before the use of any equipment found or purchased through the information we provide. Further, all performance criteria was provided by the representative company concerned and any dispute should be referred to them. Information indicating that products are made in Australia or New Zealand is supplied by the source company. Westwick-Farrow Pty Ltd does not quantify the amount of local content or the accuracy of the statement made by the source.

December 2013/January 2014 - Sustainability Matters 33

In my opinion

Improving energy efficiency in facilities management

Much like any other industry, facility managers are facing increasing operational cost pressures and, as a result, are looking to energy efficiency improvements as a method to tackle this. But no longer are simple energy-monitoring solutions sufficient in achieving significant cuts in consumption. In today’s environment, integrated and cloudbased solutions are the next step in improving operations and delivering real value for businesses.

hile still a relatively new concept, for some time the industry has recognised the value of interoperability, or integrated solutions. McGraw-Hill Construction’s 2007 ‘Interoperability in the Construction Industry SmartMarket Report’ surveyed architects, engineers, contractors and owners, finding that one in five perceived energy reduction as a business advantage of integrated solutions. An example of an integrated solution combines building automation systems with a smart building management system, enabling commercial property owners to monitor multiple sites at one time and finetune building performance to a degree not possible via human capabilities alone.

Although much of the value of this approach is delivered through energy savings, energy and operations are often two sides of the same coin. Because improving energy efficiency is based on finding abnormal events and conditions in a building, creating energy savings can also result in better operational outcomes. For example, we recently helped one of our hotel customers find and fix issues with its thermostats that, if left unresolved, could have impacted guest satisfaction. By analysing temperature sensor readings, we found that some room thermostats were not operating correctly and that one of the hotel’s restaurants was being over-cooled. Fixing these problems kept patrons comfortable, while delivering significant energy and cost savings for the customer.

But it’s not just improvements to operational costs and performance that increasing energy efficiency can yield.

The adaptation of integrated technology in the construction marketplace has gone a long way to helping building owners have their properties green rated. For example, data presented in the Australian Property Institute’s 2011 report ‘Building Better Returns’ shows that a green premium in value for office buildings corresponded to the NABERS (National Australian Built Environment

John Boothroyd, Asia Pacific Energy and Sustainability Leader, Honeywell Building Solutions

W

34 Sustainability Matters - December 2013/January 2014

Rating System) rating. This saw the 5 star NABERS energy rating delivering a 9% green premium in value and the 3-4.5 star NABERS energy ratings delivering a 2-3% green premium in value. The report also noted that buildings with a higher rating have lower vacancy rates, lower rental incentives and reduced outgoings.

Traditionally, achieving results like this would require a variety of tools to be installed on site and an operator to sift through large volumes of information to try to work out where the best opportunities are. However, giving complicated diagnostic tools to a facility manager who may be uncertain about how to manage energy may not be the best approach. They may notice one or two abnormalities but they are unlikely to be able to provide a comprehensive recommendation. With the pressure of day-to-day issues, the more challenging task of dedicating hours at a time to analysing building performance can often slip to the bottom of the ‘to do’ list.

In this situation, outsourcing the analysis rather than the BMS operation may be the answer. With the growth of cloud computing, smart building management systems have, for many customers, finally become financially feasible. A smart building management system can transmit data generated from hundreds of buildings to a single command centre, where facilities professionals use complex automated algorithms to monitor equipment performance. With today’s affordable high-capacity computing, a company can use one smart building management service to monitor and control hundreds of facilities around the world.

The combination of cloud-based analytical tools with cloud-based energy experts to analyse the information can be very effective. It allows a rigorous and comprehensive approach to be applied quickly and cost effectively, and the results are speaking for themselves Honeywell Building Solutions Contact info and more items like this at wf.net.au/V568

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