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In a sustainability first, a global property developer has built a 15-storey office building made entirely from timber.
Around Australia, corporate demand for low-carbon buildings is on the rise. No longer a concern for eco-warriors alone, the “business case for making investment into decarbonising is getting even stronger,” as JLL recently revealed.
This is a trend that international real estate developer Hines is evidently getting behind. They recently completed construction of T3 Collingwood, Melbourne’s tallest mass timber building.
Coming in at 15 storeys high and 18,200 square metres of floor space, T3 Collingwood is one of the 26 heavy timber assets developed by Hines globally.
“We’re seeing a strong pivot towards ESG adherence, as well as towards core central locations, among today’s tenants – both are expected to underpin growth for the prime end of the office market in Australia,” said David Warneford, head of Hines Australia and New Zealand.
“Demand is there, and we see good locations and premium green buildings leasing,” he remarked.
Building with mass timber, rather than concrete and steel, leads to significant savings in embodied carbon. Contrary to popular belief, mass timber also performs better in fire than steel.
Mass timber – made from softwood lumber cross-laminated into sturdy structural beams – has risen in popularity in recent years, with an 18-storey mass timber building unveiled in Norway in 2019, and an 80-storey conceptual mass timber skyscraper proposed in Chicago.
Mr Warneford stated: “These ‘magnet buildings’ are sustainability-driven, well-located, technologically efficient and adjacent to transit. They’re more than office buildings. They’re places for building culture, collaboration and community.”
“Given the strength of our portfolio, continued momentum in return-to-work in our capital cities and the future supply dynamics of office, we’re optimistic about the office sector in Australia,” he added.
High-quality, green office buildings are in high demand across the world. As JLL revealed, only 34 per cent of future demand for low-carbon workspace will be met in the next few years.
This means that for every 3 square metres of demand for green office space, only 1 square metre is currently in the pipeline. In Australia, JLL predicts future demand for low carbon space will exceed supply by 70 per cent.
JLL Asia Pacific’s head of sustainability services, Elke Kornalijnslijper, stressed that “taking action now will minimise the business cost of ever more frequent climate events and maximise the commercial benefit from the incredibly low supply of net zero carbon buildings in the world”.
In Asia, green office buildings also attract an additional rental premium of 9.9 per cent.
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