Life-cycle assessment is being applied to an increasing number of building projects from one side while the usual dynamic thermal simulations are being conducted from the other side on the same projects. However, there are few observations in the literature linking these two types of calculations: embodied and operating energies are rarely directly compared. This paper compares those energies for some case studies. The challenge is to quantify to what extent chosen structural materials can change their global life-cycle energy balance. This question is raised by the different dynamic thermal behavior of materials. Consequently, the case studies focus on the influence of materials’ thermal mass on the operating energy consumptions.Nonetheless, few software programs can conduct both these calculations (LCA and dynamic thermal modeling). The Swiss regulatory tool LESOSAI has been implemented and offers now these two possibilities. However, its LCA database is arcane, this paper will first assess the LCA results of LESOSAI by comparing it with the French tool ELODIE developed by the CSTB. Measuring the reproducibility of their results provides boundaries to the LCA calculations that LESOSAI can perform. These identified limits enable to set the starting assumptions of the case studies. Two raw materials are compared: wood and concrete structures. Considering thermal mass as a dynamic property, different typologies of building usages and climates have been investigated for the materials comparisons. Finally, the conclusion emphasizes the material that permits the lowest life-cycle impact for each typology and climate.

Green building, as an environmentally responsible and resource-efficient product, has emerged in recent decades. Along with the growing interest in green building design and operating practices, a number of green building certification standards and rating systems have been developed by different organizations worldwide. Those rating systems allow government regulators, building professionals, and consumers to embrace green building with confidence. Many recent studies find that LEED and Energy Star certified commercial buildings gain significant rental and sales price premiums and have higher occupancy rates. However, little research has been conducted to measure the market value of certified multi-family residential buildings, for instance, green condominiums. This study investigates the price effects of LEED certification on condominium real estate assets in a local housing market, in this case Portland, Oregon. The overall dataset is developed by combining information from Metro's Regional Land Information System (RLIS) and LEED certifications by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). A hedonic pricing model is employed to measure the effects of certification levels on sales prices. The model results indicate that, compared to non-certified condominiums in Portland, green certified properties have a 5.8 percent sales price premium on average. The result of this study confirms that LEED condominiums exhibit higher sales prices controlling for location- and property-specific factors.

En la provincia del Cusco, se registra un aumento constante en la construcción de viviendas multifamiliares debido al crecimiento poblacional y económico en la modernización, transformación y desarrollo del lugar. Sin embargo, se ha relegado la implementación de técnicas sostenibles que puedan ayudar a contener los principales problemas ambientales. Entre ellos, el elevado estrés hídrico existente. En este contexto, se presenta la posibilidad de mejorar el uso del recurso hídrico mediante la implementación de tecnologías que se basen en la disminución del consumo de agua en las nuevas viviendas multifamiliares. Para esto, es necesario recurrir a la información que nos brindan las certificaciones internacionales que existen actualmente en el país, ya que el uso de dichas certificaciones garantiza la sostenibilidad en los proyectos, estas certificaciones son LEED, BREEAM Y EDGE. La propuesta busca asegurar el consumo eficiente y ahorro de agua en las nuevas viviendas multifamiliares de la provincia de Cusco, mediante la implementación de tecnologías que se encuentran en la categoría de agua de las certificaciones internacionales LEED, BREEAM Y EDGE. En este sentido la investigación desarrolla una propuesta que consiste en la implementación de una guía que contiene una variedad de sistemas de ahorro de agua en un proyecto multifamiliar convencional en la provincia de Cusco, se verificó si la propuesta es factible mediante un estudio de viabilidad técnica y económica del edificio con los nuevos sistemas implementados. Los resultados obtenidos demuestran un porcentaje de ahorro del 60% en reducción del consumo del agua en la etapa operativa del edificio con la aplicación de la guía propuesta. / In the province of Cusco, there is a constant increase in the construction of multifamily housing due to the population and economic growth in the modernisation, transformation and development of the place. However, the implementation of sustainable techniques that can help contain major environmental problems has been relegated. Among them, the high water stress that exists. In this context, the possibility of improving the use of water resources is presented by the implementation of technologies based on the reduction of water consumption in new multi-family housing. To do this, it is necessary to use the information provided by the international certifications that currently exist in the country, since the use of these certifications guarantees the sustainability in the projects, these certifications are LEED, BREEAM and EDGE. The proposal seeks to ensure the efficient consumption and saving of water in the new multifamily homes in the province of Cusco, through In this sense the research develops a proposal consisting of the implementation of a guide that contains a variety of water saving systems in a conventional multifamily project in the province of Cusco, it was verified whether the proposal is feasible by a study of the technical and economic feasibility of the building with the new systems implemented.The results obtained show a 60% savings percentage in reducing water consumption at the building operational stage with the application of the proposed guide. / Tesis

Hållbar utveckling har haft en växande inverkan på bygg- och fastighetsbranschen under de två senaste decennierna och en rad frivilliga miljöcertifieringssystem för byggnader har vuxit fram, däribland BREEAM och LEED, som idag är de två mest igenkända och internationella certifieringssystemen, samtidigt som allt fler länder bestämmer sig för att ansluta sig till denna gröna rörelse och utvecklar egna, nationella miljöcertifieringssystem för byggnader. Att bygga grönt och kunna verifiera detta med en certifieringsstämpel är idag en betydande och synlig aspekt, men fortfarande är det bara en sida av en mycket bredare strategi för hållbara affärer som sträcker sig in i företagets strategi och ledarskap, integrerad förvaltning och rapportering samt företagens miljöanpassning. Många nyckelaktörer i dessa branscher söker alltmer erkännande för sina hållbarhetsmeriter och har börjat utforska kopplingarna mellan hållbarhet och värde. I detta syfte använder allt fler bygg- och fastighetsbolag, investerare och företag så kallade gröna byggnader eller miljöcertifieringssystem för att placera sina byggnader isär från resten. Ett företag som idag väljer att utveckla, äga eller hyra en miljöcertifierad byggnad kommer att behöva fatta beslut om vilket system är att föredra – ett lokalt certifieringssystem, som är mer anpassat till de nationella förhållandena, eller ett internationellt. Aktörerna på den svenska bygg- och fastighetsmarknaden har agerat försiktigt, trots sitt utvecklade miljöarbete, när det gäller tillämpningen av miljöcertifieringssystemen, vilket gör att Sverige just nu ligger efter i antalet certifierade byggnader, och därmed tillgången till den kvantitativa databasen över dessa som skulle kunna bidra till en närmare undersökning av värdekopplingarna. Vi kan inte påstå att de barriärer, som anses hålla tillbaka spridningen av miljöcertifieringssystemen i Sverige, i form av bland annat ovilja att betala högre produktionskostnader vid tillämpningen av dessa, är borta idag, men vi kan notera att alltfler företag börjar känna av dynamiken i utvecklingen runt omkring sig och väljer att ansluta sig till den gröna rörelsen. De största fördelar med miljöcertifieringssystemen på den kommersiella marknaden i Sverige idag verkar vara:  Konkurrensfördelar, som även stärker varumärket och visar att företaget tar sitt miljöansvar.  Framtida hygienfaktor, som gör att företagen väljer att satsa på det redan idag.  Ett lättbegripligt kommunikationsmedel från tredje part. På bostadsmarknaden kan det idag inte observeras någon efterfrågan alls efter miljöcertifierade byggnader enligt de intervjuade. Detta kan till största del förklaras med att de privata konsumenterna än så länge fortfarande efterfrågar andra, mer traditionella faktorer vid val av sin bostad, såsom läge, pris och funktion. Med det underlag vi har samlat in under arbetets gång kan vi inte dra några generella slutsatser, men en trolig utveckling på bostadsmarknaden kan vara att efterfrågan kan komma efter att antalet certifierade byggnader ökar. Över tiden, när det finns tillräckligt många miljöcertifierade byggnader, kan det komma att leda till att det, likt den troliga utvecklingen på den kommersiella marknaden, blir en viktigivfaktor som kommer att övervägas tillsammans med de traditionella faktorerna vid valet av bostad. Utvecklingen av klimatarbetet har hittills huvudsakligen kretsat kring energieffektiviseringsfrågor. Miljöcertifierade byggnader kan i framtiden komma att innebära kvalitetsbyggnader. Det är även troligt att fokus kommer så småningom att flytta från energifrågan till byggnadsmaterial- samt inomhusmiljö aspekter. Medan utvecklingen av miljöcertifieringssystemen sannolikt kommer leda till att även innefatta de ekonomiska och sociala hållbarhetsfaktorerna, vilket innebär en mycket större samverkan mellan allt som finns och händer runt omkring en byggnad och gör den till en spindel i nätet. / Sustainable development has had a growing impact on building and real estate industry during the past two decades and a number of voluntary environmental rating systems for buildings have emerged, including BREEAM and LEED, which today are the two most recognized and international rating systems, whilst the increasing number of countries decide to join the green movement and develop own national environmental rating systems for buildings. To build green and to be able to verify that with a certification stamp is today a significant and visible aspect, but still it is only one side of a much broader approach for sustainable businesses that extends into corporate strategy and leadership, integrated management and reporting and corporate environmental adjustment. Many key stakeholders in these industries are increasingly looking for recognition of their sustainability credentials and started to explore the linkages between sustainability and value. For this purpose the increasing number of construction and real estate companies, investors and corporates are using so-called green buildings or environmental rating systems to set their buildings apart from the rest. A company that today chooses to develop, own or occupy an environmentally rated building will need to decide which system is preferable – a local rating system, which is better suited to the national context, or an international one. The stakeholders of the Swedish building and real estate industry have acted cautiously, despite its advanced environmental work, as regards the application of environmental rating systems, which means that Sweden is currently lagging behind in the number of rated buildings and thus the access to the quantitative database of these which could contribute to a closer examination of the value linkages. We cannot say that the barriers which are considered to hold back the spread of environmental rating systems in Sweden, in the shape of, among others, unwillingness to pay higher production costs when applying these systems, are gone today, but we can note that the increasing number of companies are beginning to feel the dynamics of the development around them and choose to join the green movement. The main benefits of certification systems in the commercial market in Sweden today seem to be:  Competitive benefits that also strengthens the brand and demonstrate that the company takes its environmental responsibility.  Future hygiene factor that makes companies choose to go for it already today.  An easily understandable communication means from a third-party. In the today’s residential market it cannot be observed any demand at all for environmentally rated buildings, according to the interviewees. This can be explained by that the private consumers up to now still are seeking for other, more traditional factors when choosing their accommodation, such as location, price and function. With the information that we have gathered during our work we cannot draw any general conclusions, but a likely development in the residential market can be that demand can come after the number of rated buildings increases. Over time, when there are a sufficient amount of rated buildings, it can lead to that, like the possible development in the commercial market, it will be an important factor that will be considered along with the traditional factors in the choice of accommodation. Environmentally rated buildings may in the future come to mean quality buildings. It is also probable that the focus will eventually move from energy issue to the building materials and indoor environment aspects. While the development of rating systems probably will expand to also include the economic and social sustainability factors, which means a much greater collaboration between all that exists and going on around a building and makes it into a spider in the web.

[ES] Esta investigación evalúa proyectos arquitectónicos de carácter industrial en Colombia, España y Portugal. Estos incluyen procesos de rehabilitación, recuperación, reutilización y puesta en valor. La evaluación se ha implementado a través de una investigación proyectual de trabajos de arquitectos, urbanistas e ingenieros, desde diferentes contextos históricos y geográficos que muestran desde el estado de uso original factores de impacto hasta su reutilización y cómo, a través del tiempo han evolucionado o no, al cambiar su uso. Los proyectos han sido analizados desde los parámetros de sostenibilidad reflejados en el libro "Versus Heritage for Tomorrow", donde se describen los diferentes puntos que se deben tener en cuenta en la arquitectura sostenible; y bajo la lente de varios documentos para la protección del patrimonio industrial, como el Plan Nacional de Patrimonio Industrial o el Docomomo. Además, a partir del listado de verbos del escultor americano Richard Serra (1939) "Acciones sobre la materia: 1967-1968" (Serra, 2011), se han identificado el tipo de acción que conlleva cada estudio del caso seleccionado. Otro aspecto importante de analizar es el de la tipología por esto es importante nombrar al arquitecto, Carlos Martí Arís, (Arís, 1993) el cual se refiere al tipo como: "El significado que posee un lenguaje no especializado, este equivale a la forma general o conjunto de propiedades que son comunes a un cierto número de individuos u objeto", Tipo es sinónimo de clase, familia, género, es decir una categoría que resulta de aplicar sobre un conjunto de objetos un procedimiento clasificatorio. Entre otros, estos documentos constituyen la base teórica y metodológica sobre la que se basa esta tesis doctoral con el objetivo principal de plantear una metodología de análisis del patrimonio industrial en Colombia, a partir del estudio de nueve estudios de casos en tres contextos geográficos diferentes, con sus respectivas características. / [CA] Aquesta investigació avalua projectes arquitectònics de caràcter industrial a Colòmbia, Espanya i Portugal. Aquests inclouen processos de rehabilitació, recuperació, reutilització i posada en valor. L'avaluació s'ha implementat a través d'una investigació projectual de treballs d'arquitectes, urbanistes i enginyers, des de diferents contextos històrics i geogràfics que mostren des de l'estat original originals factors d'impacte fins a la seva reutilització i com, a través del temps, han evolucionat o no, en canviar-ne l'ús. Els projectes han estat analitzats des dels paràmetres de sostenibilitat reflectits al llibre Versus Heritage for Tomorrow, on es descriuen els diferents punts que s'han de tenir en compte a l'arquitectura sostenible; i sota la lent de diversos documents per a la protecció del patrimoni industrial, com el Pla Nacional de Patrimoni Industrial o el Docomomo. A més, a partir del llistat de verbs de l'escultor americà Richard Serra (1939) Accions sobre la matèria: 1967-1968 (Serra, 2011), s'han identificat el tipus d'acció que comporta cada estudi del cas seleccionat. Un altre aspecte important d'analitzar és el de la tipologia per això és important nomenar l'arquitecte, Carlos Martí Arís, (Arís, 1993) el qual fa referència al tipus com: El significat que posseeix un llenguatge no especialitzat, aquest equival a la forma general o conjunt de propietats que són comunes a un cert nombre d'individus o objecte". Tipus és sinònim de classe, família, gènere, és a dir, una categoria que resulta d'aplicar sobre un conjunt dobjectes un procediment classificatori. Entre d' altres, aquests documents constitueixen la base teòrica i metodològica sobre la qual es basa aquesta tesi doctoral amb l' objectiu principal de plantejar una metodologia d' anàlisi del patrimoni industrial a Colòmbia, a partir de l' estudi de nou estudis de casos en tres contextos geogràfics diferents, amb les seves respectives característiques. / [EN] This research evaluates architectural projects of an industrial nature in Colombia, Spain and Portugal. These include rehabilitation, recovery, reuse and enhancement processes. The evaluation has been implemented through a design investigation of the works of architects, urban planners and engineers, from different historical and geographical contexts that show impact factors from the state of original use to their reuse and how, over time, they have evolved or not, by changing their use. The projects have been analyzed using the sustainability parameters reflected in the book "Versus Heritage for Tomorrow", which describes the different points that must be taken into account in sustainable architecture; and under the lens of various documents for the protection of industrial heritage, such as the National Plan for Industrial Heritage or the Docomomo. In addition, from the list of verbs by the American sculptor Richard Serra (1939-) "Actions on matter: 1967-1968" (Serra, 2011), the type of action involved in each study of the selected case has been identified. Another aspect important to analyze is that of the typology; for this reason, it is important to name the architect, Carlos Martí Arís, (Arís, 1993) who refers to the type as: "The meaning that a non-specialized language has, this is equivalent to the general or set of properties that are common to a certain number of individuals or objects". Type is synonymous with class, family, gender, that is, a category that results from applying a classifying procedure to a set of objects. Among others, these documents constitute the theoretical and methodological basis on which this doctoral thesis is based with the main objective of proposing a methodology for the analysis of industrial heritage in Colombia, based on the study of nine case studies in three different geographical contexts, with their respective characteristics. / Gonzalez Vargas, K. (2023). El patrimonio industrial como elemento de construcción de ciudad y puesta en valor sostenible [Tesis doctoral]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/192879

The complexity of sustainable building maintenance environment requires managers to define and implement appropriate quality benchmark system suitable for this function. Lean Six Sigma (LSS) is one of the most effective process improvement and optimization philosophy that maintenance organisations can implement in their environment. However, literature review has shown that 90% of failures in LSS implementations are due to lack of readiness to change, the unawareness of the required benchmark organisation capabilities, and improper control of priorities. The contribution of the current research approach is in developing a hybrid Knowledge-Based (KB)/GAP/AHP System, consisting of three stages (Planning, Designing and Implementation) and containing over 2500 KB rules. The KB System can assist the decision-makers in identifying the obstacles behind the organisation readiness to change into a benchmark LSS maintenance environment. Thus the KB System will be used to achieve benchmark standards by determining the gap existing between the current environment and the benchmark goal, and then suggest a detailed plan to overcome these hurdles in a prioritised and structured manner, thus achieving cost benefits. To ensure its consistency and reliability, the KB System was validated in three Oman-based maintenance organisations, and one published case study for a UK-based organisation. The results from the validation were positive with the System output suggesting list of top priorities and action plans for achieving benchmark LSS standards for these organisations. The research concludes that the developed KB System is a consistent and reliable methodology for assisting decision-makers in designing, planning, and implementing LSS for benchmark sustainable building maintenance.

En stor bidragande faktor till miljöproblem som global uppvärmning och icke förnybar resursförbrukning är aktiviteter inom fastighetsbranschen. Det beräknas att 40% av all världens koldioxidutsläpp produceras av byggnader samtidigt ses miljöcertifiering av fastigheter som en del av lösningen för att sänka mängden koldioxid och nå hållbar utveckling. Miljöcertifieringar för med sig en rad fördelar, bland annat en minskad användning av naturresurser och ett högre fastighetsvärde. Trots de fördelar som miljöcertifiering för med sig är knappt 1% av det svenska fastighetsbeståndet certifierat. Studiens syfte är att bidra till kunskap rörande vilka barriärer som föreligger samt hur de kan mildras på den svenska fastighetsmarknaden. Denna studie bidrar med unikt material eftersom tidigare forskning är bristfällig på den svensk fastighetsmarknaden. Studien är av mixad metod och använder sig av en kvantitativ online-enkätundersökning samt en intervjustudie om 3 respondenter från den svenska fastighetsmarknaden. Enkätundersökningen utgick från tidigare internationell forskning och intervjustudien möjliggjorde en mer djupgående analys kring den svenska marknaden. De svenska aktörerna i studien ansåg att Brist på efterfrågan hos konsumenter, Höga Kostnader, Låg miljömedvetenhet hos konsumenter och Brist på statliga incitament var barriärer på den svenska fastighetsmarknaden. Brist på tid och extra administrativt arbete identifierades som nya barriärer som inte har blivit belysts i tidigare forskning. Studien visar även på att barriärer kan mitigeras genom företagsstrategier där svenska aktörer automatiserar och standardiserar sina arbetssätt utifrån de krav som miljöcertifikat ställer. / A major contributing factor to environmental problems such as global warming and non-renewable resource consumption are activities in the real estate industry. It is estimated that 40% of all the world's carbon dioxide emissions are produced by real estate and green certificates are seen as part of the solution to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide and achieve sustainable development. Green certifications have several benefits, including a reduced use of natural resources and a higher property value. Despite the benefits that green certification brings, just under 1% of the Swedish property portfolio is certified. The purpose of the study is to contribute to knowledge regarding what barriers exist and how they can be mitigated in the Swedish real estate market. This study contributes unique material because previous research is deficient in the Swedish real estate market. The study is of a mixed method and uses a quantitative online survey and an interview study of 3 respondents from the Swedish real estate market. The questionnaire was based on previous international research and the interview study enabled a more in-depth analysis of the Swedish market. The Swedish actors in the study considered that Lack of consumer demand, High Costs, Low environmental awareness among consumers and Lack of government incentives were barriers in the Swedish real estate market. Lack of time and extra administrative work were identified as new barriers that have not been highlighted in previous research. The study also shows that barriers can be mitigated through company strategies where Swedish actors automate and standardize their ways of working based on the requirements set by green certificates.

No description available.

Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2014. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Building structures have a major impact on the quality of the macro-climates of the world, in particular in terms of pollution and environmental costs associated with their creation, operation and maintenance. Emerging global trends to make buildings more efficient, effective and sustainable, led to the question can one establish how sustainable existing buildings are? Building rating tools like LEED, BREEAM and Green Star, can already be used to rate and certify buildings in terms of their environmental performance and sustainability, but seem to fall short of establishing true overall building performance sustainability. As an architect, the researcher was involved in a project to develop a process for the Provincial Government Western Cape to comply with the Government Immovable Asset Management Act, Act no.19 of 2007 (GIAMA). The problem statement of this study links to the objective to comply with GIAMA, which requires that all government buildings be assessed in terms of their sustainability. This led to a number of research questions being asked. The first of these questions are what can be learnt from currently available rating systems and would it be possible to track and monitor the sustainability performance of a building over time. This triggered a series of related questions: What role can benchmarking play in establishing and tracking a building’s sustainability over time? How can benchmarking help to identify which part of a building’s overall sustainability is most in need of resourcing, to bring it closer to overall sustainability? How can capital and maintenance expense budgets associated with the building life-cycle be effectively utilised to bring buildings closer to overall sustainability? How can the availability of detailed information pertaining to the costs and benefits of green investments in existing buildings help building owners to identify the best initiatives to invest in? The methodology used in this study to answer the above questions is based on two research approaches. The first part made use of a literature review to establish and define the knowledge framework to be used in the second case study portion of the study. The methodology used for the case study was based on applied research, where the real life problems associated with the development of a suitability benchmarking process for the PGWC was documented and assessed. The results of the study found that there exist a missing link between theoretical knowledge of sustainability benchmarking and the legislative requirement of GIAMA and that this missing link is the standardised accurate and verifiable data required for the benchmarking process. In addition to this it was also found that the social aspects of buildings are generally neglected. A universal standard for collection of the required data is also needed. The study also highlighted that a general misperception exist that Environmental Sustainability is synonymous with the Sustainability paradigm. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Bou strukture het 'n groot impak op die gehalte van die makro-streke van die wêreld. Veral in terme van besoedeling en die ekologiese koste wat verband hou met die ontwikkeling, werking en onderhoud daarvan. Globale opkomende tendense om geboue meer doeltreffend en volhoubaar te maak, het gelei tot die vraag: Hoe kan 'n mens die volhoubaarheid van 'n bestaande gebou vasstel? 'n Aantal bou-graderings-stelsels, soos LEED, BREEAM en Green Star, kan reeds gebruik word om geboue te gradeer en sertifiseer in terme van hul omgewingsvolhoubaarheid, maar skiet te kort ten opsigte van algehele volhoubaarheid van ʼn gebou. As ʼn argitek was die navorser betrokke by ʼn projek om ʼn proses te ontwikkel vir die Provinsiale Regering van die Wes-Kaap (PGWK) om te voldoen aan die Wet op die Bestuur van Onroerende Regeringsbates, Wet no. 19 van 2007. Die probleemstelling van hierdie studie koppel aan die vereiste om te voldoen aan Wet 19 van 2007, wat vereis dat alle regeringsgeboue geassesseer word ingevolge hul volboubaarheid . Dit het gelei tot 'n aantal navorsingsvrae: Eerstens, watter lesse kan geleer word uit die bestaande bou-graderings-stelsels en tweedens, is dit moontlik om op die volhoubaarheid van 'n gebou te monitor en gradeer oor tyd? Dit het tot verwante vrae gelei, naamlik: Watter rol die stel van maatstawe kan speel om die volhoubaarheid van ʼn gebou te monitor? Hoe kan die stel van maatstawe bepaal watter aspekte van 'n gebou die meeste hulpbronne benodig, ten einde dit nader aan algehele volhoubaarheid te bring? Kan die kapitaal- en instandhoudingsbegrotings, wat verband hou met die lewens-siklus van die gebou, effektief gebruik word om ʼn gebou nader aan volhoubaarheid te bring? Hoe kan die beskikbaarheid van inligting met betrekking tot die koste en voordele van groen beleggings van bestaande geboue, gebou-eienaars help om die beste inisiatiewe te identifiseer om in te belê? Die metode wat in hierdie studie gebruik is om bogenoemde vrae te antwoord, is gebaseer op twee navorsings benaderings. Die eerste deel van hierdie studie het gebruik gemaak van 'n literatuuroorsig om ʼn kennisraamwerk te definieer en te vestig, wat dan in die tweede deel van die studie, ʼn gevallestudie, gebruik word. Die metode wat gebruik is vir die gevalle studie is gebaseer op toegepaste navorsing, waar die werklike probleme wat verband hou met die ontwikkeling van 'n geskikte volhoubaarheid maatstawings proses vir die PRWK gedokumenteer en geassesseer is. Die resultate van die studie was die bevinding dat daar 'n vermiste skakel bestaan tussen die teoretiese kennis ten opsigte van ‘n maatstawings stelsel vir volhoubaarheid en die wetlike vereiste van Wet 19 van 2007. Die vermiste skakel is dat gestandariseerde, accurate en verifieerbare data bemodig word vir die maatstawings proses. Daar is ook gevind dat die sosiale impakte van geboue verwaarloos word. Die studie stel voor dat ʼn universele standaard benodig word vir die versameling van die vereiste data. Die studie het ook n belangrike observasie gemaak dat daar 'n algemene wanopvatting in die industrie bestaan dat Omgewingsvolhoubaarheid sinoniem is met die Volhoubaarheid paradigma.

Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2011. / The aim of this research study is to determine the cost gradient for Green Star SA-rated office buildings in the Western Cape province of South Africa. Very little work has been done on this subject, due to the fact that the „green‟ building movement is still in its infancy in South Africa. The Green Building Council of South Africa (GBCSA) has developed a Green Star SA building rating mechanism based on the Australian green star-rating system. This rating system provides the building environment with an objective tool to evaluate how green a building actually is. This report includes a review of international literature, supplemented by a case study of two designed „green‟ buildings. The key objective was to determine if there is a cost premium to a Green Star-rated office building in the Western Cape. The case study subjects were two office buildings planned for an office development at Paardevlei, Somerset West in the Western Cape province of South Africa. The findings of this case study have confirmed first indications that South Africa, and specifically the Western Cape, should be no different to the rest of the world and specifically the United States and Australia when it comes to the first costs of constructing „green‟ buildings. The case study showed that there should be no cost premium for a „green‟ building that conforms to the minimum standard of 4 Star Green Star SA Office Version 1 and that a one to three per cent premium could be expected for a 5 Star Green Star SA Office Version 1 rating. It was found that the best way to calculate if a premium was paid for a „green‟ building is to compare the cost per area of the final „green‟ product with the cost per area of the original budget. Adding costs while adding „green‟ attributes proved to be an effective and convenient way of arriving at a theoretical premium for a progressively „greener‟ building and thus calculating the cost gradient for Green Star SA-rated office buildings. The conclusion is that „green‟ attributes must be incorporated into the design at the earliest possible stage and then managed in order to keep within the original budget with a clear goal of which categories are to be targeted and what rating would like to be achieved, in order to achieve a „green‟ building at no additional cost.