Green Star changed from Green Star Technical Manual v3.2 to Green Star Design and As Built NZ v1.0 and Green Star Office Interiors v3 to Green Star Interiors NZ v1.0 some time ago. Masterspec have spent several months working collaboratively with New Zealand Green Building Council (NZGBC) to amend the original Masterspec Green Star sections to suit the new v1.0's.
With the cooperation of NZGBC the issues have been worked through and overcome. So we are pleased to advise that the Masterspec Green Star sections have been updated and completed, and are now readily available for your Green Star projects.
Rating Tools
Green Star is now composed of four distinct sustainability rating tools, each relevant to distinct phases of the built environment:
- Green Star – Design & As Built: a holistic rating tool for the design and construction of new buildings and major refurbishments
- Green Star – Interiors: a holistic rating tool for the design and construction of new interior fitouts
- Green Star – Communities: a holistic rating tool for communities and precincts
- Green Star – Performance: a holistic rating tool for sustainable building operations
Only the first two tools, Design & As Built and Interiors, are particularly appropriate to Masterspec and are covered in the Masterspec sections.
Green Star Design and As Built NZ v1.0
Green Star Design and As Built NZ v1.0 can be used to certify base buildings of any typology. In fact this new version helps to expand the range of typology and the ease in which the rating tools can be used compared to the old version. This is particularly so for Industrial projects, both speculative and tenanted.
Green Star Interiors NZ v1.0
Green Star Interiors NZ v1.0 has increases the scope of the rating tool from just office interiors to almost any type of interior, including office, retail, industrial and public building fitouts.
Australian Building Code (NCC) Equivalencies
Green Star Design and As Built NZ v1.0 is an adaption of the Australian-developed Green Star – Design & As-Built v1.2. However, NZ v1.0 still contains some references to the Australian Building Code (NCC) and these have caused a few issues for the Masterspec sections. To help you deal with some of these NCC references, Masterspec has introduced an equivalency table and notes into the Green Star sections for ease of trans-Tasman translation. This table shows the equivalency between NCC Building Classes and NZBC A1 Classified Uses to assist project teams to understand where their building project sits, and notes regarding Section J and Part E of the NCC, as follows:
Definitions:
- Climate Zones - NCC climate zones 1-7 amended to NZS 4243.1:2007 Fig A1 - Climate Zones 1-3 (in GSD&AB NZ clause 14.1.2A)
- NCC Section J - NZBC H1 Energy Efficiency and referenced NZ Standards
- NCC Part E - NZBC clauses pertaining to fire sprinkler systems e.g. C Protection from fire
NCC Building Classes and NZBC A1 Classified Uses - Equivalency Table:
| NCC Building Class |
NZBC A1 Classified Use |
| Class 1a: Detached or attached Residential Dwellings (e.g. terraced housing)* |
Housing – Detached dwellings and Multi-unit dwellings |
| Class 1b: Boarding house, hostel or guest house under 300m2 and <12 residents* |
Communal Residential – Community Service |
| Class 2: Apartment buildings with sole occupancy units (SOU)* |
Housing – Multi-unit dwellings |
| Class 3: Residential buildings other than Class 1 & 2 (e.g. larger boarding house, hostel, care-type facilities not classified as Class 9)* |
Housing – Group dwelling
Communal Residential – Community Service
Community Care - Unrestrained |
| Class 4: A dwelling or residence within a building of a non-residential nature* |
Housing - Multi-unit dwellings |
| Class 5: Office |
Commercial |
| Class 6: Retail and Hospitality |
Commercial |
| Class 7a: Carparks |
Not applicable to Green Star |
| Class 7b: Warehouses, storage buildings, wholesale distribution centres |
Industrial |
| Class 8: Factories, industrial buildings, laboratories |
Industrial |
| Class 9a: Hospitals |
Community Care - Unrestrained |
| Class 9b: Assembly buildings |
Communal Non-residential - Assembly service & Assembly Care |
| Class 9c: Aged care buildings* |
Community Care - Restrained |
Note:*Homestar is the preferred pathway
|
|
Masterspec
The changes to the 3 sections are too extensive to list here, but all sections have been updated to the new NZGBC v1.0's. The titles of the sections 1226GO and 1226GT have been amended to suit their application related to the new NZGBC documents, as follows:
1226GD GREEN STAR PROJECT - SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS
This section is the base section and must always be used for all Green Star projects, Building and Interior. It modifies Masterspec standard General sections with special requirements to suit Green Star requirements.
(Note: available in Masterspec; Standard, Services, Landscapes, Interiors, Structural & Civil)
1226GO GREEN STAR DESIGN & AS BUILT - CREDIT SCHEDULE
This section must be used with Green Star Building projects and relates to Contractor Submissions required by the Green Star Design & As Built NZ v1.0 Submission Guidelines for Credit Criteria.
(Note: available in Masterspec; Standard, Services, Landscapes, Interiors, Structural & Civil)
1226GT GREEN STAR INTERIORS - CREDIT SCHEDULE
This section must be used with Green Star Interior projects and relates to Contractor Submissions required by the Green Star Interiors NZ v1.0 Submission Guidelines for Credit Criteria.
(Note: available in Masterspec; Standard, Services, Interiors, Structural & Civil)
LINKS
Green Star
Green Star Design & As Built NZ v1.0
Green Star Interiors NZ v1.0