Brookfield Place

Location

181 Bay St.

Toronto, Ontario

Canada

M5J 2T3

Staticmap?center=43.6469494, 79.3793494&size=175x175&scale=2&markers=color:red%7csize:small%7c43.6469494, 79
Constructed
1990-1991
Use
office/retail
Building Area
242,000 sq m (2,604,866 sq ft)
Certifications & Awards
  • LEED Canada for Existing Buildings: Operations and Maintenance 2009 Gold
  • Green Globes BOMA Go Green Plus
Project Team
  • Owner: BCE
  • Architect: Bregman + Hamann Architects; and Skidmore, Owings and Merrill LLP

Summary

Brookfield Place (formerly BCE Place) is an office complex in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada, comprising the 2.1 hectare (5.2 acre) block bounded by Yonge Street to the east, Wellington Street West to the north, Bay Street to the west, and Front Street to the south. The complex contains 242,000 square metres (2,604,866 sq ft) of office space, and consists of two towers, the Bay Wellington Tower and the TD Canada Trust Tower, linked by the six-storey Allen Lambert Galleria. Brookfield Place is also the home of the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Capital upgrades to improve energy performance include new, energy efficient chillers, which have resulted in a reduction of 6,475,000 kwh, and variable speed drives (VSD’s) that adjust chiller and pump speeds based on load requirements, which have resulted in a reduction of 4,475,000 kwh. At a cost of$.092/kwh, this has translated into cost savings of $1,007,400. Energy for lighting has been reduced by lowering lighting levels and reducing run times.

A primary challenge has been to reduce plug load by 25%. Following an energy audit, a strong tenant education program (BEST) was developed that focussed on the need to change habits, including switching off computers, printers and photo copiers when leaving the office at night, ensuring that sleep mode timer is set on computers, connecting monitors, task lighting & radios to automated power control bars, turning off the lights when leaving a meeting room, and lowering window blinds on sunny days. Brookfield acknowledges that the 25% reduction and avoiding “energy creep” is only achieved by ongoing monitoring (including spot audits), and communications. That is why energy audits of the highest energy consumer’s premises are done periodically to determine individual electrical load profiles. A consultant has been hired to address the “IT Plug Load Nut”. Focus group meetings are held to discuss current and future energy ideas, products and savings such as reducing after hour lighting and AC run times, installing sensor controlled light fixtures and adjusting the lighting grid to maximize fixture usage and comfort.

On the water front, a toilet replacement program has achieved a reduction of 36,000m3 @1.5/m3, resulting in savings of $54,000.

Following extensive waste audits in 2005, Brookfield also introduced Project Blue, a recycling program with a target that 75% of recyclable materials should go to appropriate bins rather than the garbage. In 2006, a 89% diversion rate was achieved, which means only 11% of the material generated within the offices is sent to landfill. In 2006, the BCE Place community recycled: 900 metric tones of paper, 225 metric tones of cardboard, and 292 metric tones of cans and bottles. Brookfield is also a leader in organics recycling, with its composting bins in all kitchens and the support it provides to a Yonge Street Mission by collecting, refrigerating and delivering un-used food from restaurants to the needy. These initiatives conveniently dispose of organic waste, which further diverts material from the waste stream and reduces dependency on landfill.

source: http://www.greenglobes.com/casestudies-bce.asp