Schneider Electric's new energy-smart Melbourne office

Today was the official opening of Schneider Electric’s new energy-smart office space in Melbourne. The company has relocated to a facility at Ferntree Business Park, situated at Notting Hill, where it occupies three levels covering 5465 m² of office space and 400 m² in warehousing.

The $36 million building has already received a 5 Star Green Star Design Certification by the Green Building Council of Australia. It is also targeting a 5 star NABERS Energy and 5 star Green Star As Built rating to become one of the most sustainable commercial office buildings in the Melbourne suburban commercial market.

The facility consolidates nine Schneider Electric sites across Melbourne and will be home for 380 employees encompassing Schneider Electric’s IT, Energy, Buildings, Industry, ECS and Clipsal businesses. The building showcases Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure energy-efficient solution including T5 fluorescent lighting, DaliControl and C-Bus lighting control, energy monitoring and security access. The development incorporates sustainable features such as double glazing, recycled materials, sun shading, rainwater harvesting, chilled beam air-conditioning system and energy-efficient lighting with daylight harvesting.

Hosted by the company’s chairman and CEO, Jean Pascal Tricoire, today’s event gave users the opportunity to understand how the innovative integrated office space can maximise energy savings. Tricoire said Schneider Electric is “committed to helping businesses take back control of their energy usage through the use of smart technologies” and that the new facility “not only demonstrates how energy savings of up to 30% can easily be achieved, it further reinforces Schneider Electric’s commitment to the future sustainability of Australia’s energy economy”.

Stephen Coop, Managing Director, Schneider Electric Pacific Zone, said technology innovation plays an important part in achieving energy management and efficiency, “and the new Melbourne office allows us to give a practical demonstration of how this can be done”. He added that the Notting Hill office follows on from the success of four other consolidated Schneider Electric sites in the Pacific region, including Brisbane, Adelaide, Auckland and Sydney.