Te Toki Maurere, Whakatane, New Zealand

The Te Toki Maurere project has undergone a life cycle design to inform the future building design and environmental performance for Te Toki Maurere – Proposed Mental Health Facility.

The Whakatane Mental Health Facility currently occupies the site, however the building has been deemed no longer fit for purpose. The existing building is to be demolished as part of the scope of works. The new facility will provide up to 10 mental health patient beds. Deconstruction of the current facility will take place in phases to maintain continuity of mental  services.

The Life Cycle Assessment demonstrated that the Proposed Facility will reduce 45% CO2eq (Carbon Dioxide equivalent) when compared to business as usual over a service life for the building of 80 years.

  • HVAC (Heating Ventilation and Cooling) and Hot Water by High Efficiency Heat Pump
  • High Performance Thermal Envelope
  • Improved Lighting Efficiency
  • Using Engineered Timber in place of Structural Steels
  • Energy Monitoring
  • Low GWP Refrigerant Gases
  • Client: Bay of Plenty District Health Board
  • ESD Consultant: BECA
  • Location: Cnr Stewart and Garaway Streets, Whakatane
  • Date: 08/2020

Results Summary

Impact Area

Total CO2e

/ Year

/occupant

% Saved Against

Benchmark

eTool Medal
Embodied Carbon1330 kgCO2e-6%
Operational Carbon396 kgCO2e-77%
Total Carbon1726 kgCO2e-45%

Modelling of further CO2 reduction

First modelling demonstrated that the Proposed Design was achieving 34% CO2 savings. eTool modelled further reduction strategies and discussed these during the Optioneering workshop to demonstrate to the team how these decisions would assist in reducing the overall impacts of the project.

Of the strategies suggested by eTool, the following have been adopted by the BoPDHB team:

  • Lighting occupancy and light level sensors
  • Ultra high efficiency LED lights
  • EPD carpet tiles
  • High efficiency appliances
  • A post occupancy audit

Adopting these strategies resulted in further Co2 saving achieving 45% overall CO2 reduction of the future facility’s emissions.

Zero Carbon Design – Not a pie in the sky

Together with the BoPDHB team eTool went further and were able to demonstrate a Zero Carbon design was possible.  This design would achieve a further 104% CO2eq reduction compared to the Proposed Design. This design would have allowed the project to achieve carbon neutrality without purchasing carbon offset certificates.

ETool suggested the following Low Carbon strategies:

  • 140kW Solar PV (Grid Connected)
  • Incorporating 50% Fly Ash in Concrete Elements
  • Timber for Floor Structure and Window Frames
  • Cork Flooring to living areas (and EPD Carpets to Bedrooms)
  • Lighting Occupancy and Light Level Sensors and Ultra High Efficiency LED Lights
  • High Efficiency Appliances (dishwasher, washing machine, TVs)
  • Performing a Post Occupancy Audit

This assessment was conducted by Rob Campbell and certified by Leo Poli from eTool.