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The services in a building are a vital component of the building's Green Star rating. Air conditioning and ventilation are essential for the comfort and wellbeing of tenants, but they can be very energy intensive.

Norman Disney & Young was the building services consulting engineer for the redevelopment of 21 Queen Street, with the objective of providing systems to help the building to achieve a 5-Star Green Star rating.

Associate director Mark Ogilvie says the main challenge of the project was working within the constraints of an existing structure.

"The architect's design specified higher ceilings within the existing levels of the building. This was achieved by reducing the voids between floors, leaving less space for the installation of the air conditioning services," he says.

To resolve the issues imposed by the constraints on the ceiling void, a collaborative process between Peddle Thorp and the team at Norman Disney and Young resulted in the installation of an Active Chilled Beam system. As well as having the lowest space specifications of any air conditioning system, it is also a very energy-efficient option.

The fully glazed facade of the building, also designed in collaboration with the architect, uses high solar shading co-efficient double-glazing panels with low-emissivity coatings to help control solar gain and heat transfer.

In addition, to ensure the installation went smoothly, Norman Disney & Young produced highly co-ordinated 3D design drawings of the services in the ceiling void.

For additional information, contact Norman Disney & Young, Level 5, AMP Centre, 29 Customs Street West, Auckland 1030, phone (09) 307 6596, fax (09) 307 6597. Email: m.ogilvie@ndy.com, or visit the website: www.ndy.com.

Story by: Trendsideas