Mathuran Marianayagam on GBCA Building Performance Expert Reference Panel

• Geronimo Advisory Principal Marianayagam has been appointed for another term on the GBCA Building Performance Expert Reference Panel
• Coming changes to Commercial Buildings Disclosure (CBD) regulations likely to increase focus on building performance across new property sectors
• Minimum Energy Performance Standards (MEPS) for commercial buildings are being considered as part of CBD legislation amendments.

As a leading advocate for the importance of building performance improvements as a key strategy for progressing to Net Zero, Mathuran Marianayagam brings hands-on expertise to the Green Building Council of Australia’s Building Performance Expert Reference Panel (ERP).

The ERP has a key role in supporting the ongoing development and delivery of GBCA tools and ratings for existing buildings, helping ensure the credits and the approach is fit for purpose and aligns with the needs and capabilities of stakeholders.

“Facilities managers are one of the stakeholder groups that are instrumental in delivering progress on energy efficiency and decarbonisation of existing buildings,” Marianayagam says.

“As Chair of the WA Branch of the Facilities Management Association I have enormous respect for the expertise and commitment FMs bring to the table. I am also proud of the work the GBCA is doing to equip FMs with information and other resources that can help them make the case for asset improvement.”

Marianayagam and the Geronimo team have been working with owners, asset managers and FMs on achieving Green Star performance ratings for properties including commercial offices and retail centres.

The GBCA tools for existing buildings, including Green Star Building ratings also offer significant benefits for educational, healthcare, industrial, data centre and multi-residential properties and can be a complement to other systems including NABERS Energy ratings, GRESB reporting and CRREM assessments.

“The Green Star tools encompass elements of performance beyond energy use and emissions,” Marianayagam says. “Water efficiency, human health and wellbeing, occupant comfort and waste are all areas where building performance can be benchmarked, and then strategies developed for improving it.”

Overall activity in the building performance space is expected to accelerate in the coming months, as the expansion of the Commercial Buildings Disclosure Program gets underway. A roadmap for the expansion was released in 2024, with proposals to gradually expand the program to mandate NABERS Energy ratings for almost all asset classes, including hospitals, retail, clubs, hotels, student accommodation and small commercial office buildings.

The immediate changes that have now been announced by the Assistant Minister for Climate Change and Energy, Josh Wilson, target decarbonisation of commercial buildings as part of the Built Environment Sector Plan under the Net Zero Plan. This may mean whole building ratings become standard practice for commercial buildings, and there is also talk that large tenants may need to obtain tenancy ratings.

The government has also announced funding to support the industry, with around $10 million allocated to the CBD program expansion and a further amount of around $10 million to accelerate investment in NABERS.

“We know from our work with clients that NABERS ratings are an essential step in progressing decarbonisation of existing buildings,” Marianayagam says.

“It is very positive to see the alignment between government policy, industry activities and the work of advocates such as the GBCA.  This is how we ensure that we progress to net zero with no building left behind.”