Case studies

Aspec Properties, a property management company, owns 57 Wellington Street in central Auckland. It is a three-story glass and steel office block that has overtime become very energy inefficient due to being reconfigured to each tenants' needs with little consideration for the impact on energy use.

This report reviews the installation of small-scale renewable electricity generation systems on five islands around New Zealand, on Department of Conservation bases. The report reviews the economics and performance of the systems, the potential benefits that accrue from switching from diesel-fuelled generation to systems incorporating photovoltaic modules and micro hydro units, and sensitivity analysis to test the economics under a number of scenarios.

Downer's wide-ranging sustainability programme is delivering benefits straight to the company's bottom line. By looking at every aspect of energy use, Downer is enjoying substantial savings after only two years of the programme, and is enhancing its reputation in the process.

A major New Zealand bus company, keen to do the right thing both for the environment and for its business, decided to move to a fuel that produces lower greenhouse gas emissions.