Standard Bank Rosebank — A new green build contribution to Joburg’s changing skyline

The new 65 000m² building worth R2 billion, currently referred to as Standard Bank Rosebank, has been awarded a five-star design rating by the Green Building Council of South Africa.

Standard Bank is to due to complete yet another landmark contribution to Johannesburg’s skyline in the form of new office complex worth R2 billion, yet also one of Rosebank's "greenest" building awarded a five-star design rating by the GBCSA.

Standard Bank’s new office complex in Rosebank is set to drive growth and development in this fast emerging and developing business hub.

The new 65 000m² building, currently referred to as Standard Bank Rosebank, has been awarded a five-star design rating by the Green Building Council of South Africa. A four-star rating was targeted and Standard Bank are still on track to achieve this in terms of the final As Built certification.

The Green Star SA rating System was established by the GBCSA in 2008 with the aim of evaluating the potential environmental performance of buildings.

The Rosebank building is due for completion in May 2013, which is when the first of approximately 5,000 client-facing staff will start to occupy the premises in a phased-in relocation process.

Built on land that had been used for business purposes before, Standard Bank Rosebank consists of two footprint buildings of nine and eleven floors, standing east and west of a central multi-volume atrium and on top of five super-basement levels.

“Rosebank is turning into one of Johannesburg’s fastest growing development nodes and the near completion of Standard Bank Rosebank marks another milestone, talking to investment that has happened in property developments in Rosebank in recent years,” says Mr Stewart Shaw-Taylor, Head CIB Real Estate, Standard Bank.

Standard Bank’s head office will remain in the Johannesburg CBD complex which houses 15 500 employees and occupies approximately 200 000sqm.  The Rosebank building will allow Standard Bank to consolidate all head office business units in the CBD complex, its Constantia Valley Office Park and the Rosebank building. Currently these business units are disbursed in numerous buildings within the CBD and other decentralised nodes. Other benefits of this three node campus strategy are the elimination of concentration risk in one location and enhanced business continuity in the event of problems experienced at any one of the nodes.

According to Mr Shaw-Taylor: “It made better economic sense to build new offices in line with our growing requirements and thereby eliminate rental costs for buildings that are leased by Standard Bank. It also made good business sense to build in a suburban location closer to our large clients who had moved out of the CBD and into the Rosebank and surrounding areas.  Adding capacity outside the CBD would reduce Standard Bank’s concentration risk.” 

“Standard Bank’s new offices in Rosebank are a physical manifestation of the sustainability we aim for at every level of our business.” 

The Rosebank building incorporates energy demands with seamless technology aimed at balancing an effective working environment and reducing carbon footprint.

“Sustainability is a holistic approach,” Mr Shaw-Taylor says. “So, we are particularly pleased that everything we’ve done at Standard Bank Rosebank contributes to the creation of a sustainable environment, both internally and externally, for staff, as well as for visitors and for the public use park area.”

Standard Bank Rosebank building uses a gas powered tri-generation plant, South Africa’s second, to produce the energy for base load lighting, heating, and cooling. Massive triple-glazed curtain walls covering an area equivalent to 50 tennis courts clad the exterior of the building, ensuring optimal use of natural light – and providing employees and visiting clients with spectacular external views.

The building’s highest parking level is the foundation for one of Johannesburg’s largest corporate gardens. Incorporating a long water feature and 422 indigenous trees, the gardens reinforce Rosebank’s reputation as an urban forest. In addition, the building makes use of water ingress into the basements, from the high water table, for the gardens.

Energy efficient lighting and an intelligent lighting system that automates the dimming and switching off of lights according to the availability of natural light and office occupancy will enable the building to save energy and reduce its carbon footprint. A digital addressable lighting interface (DALI) system enables automation of the maintenance of the lighting system, reducing the time needed to replace luminaires and monitor lighting levels and energy usage.

Water will be conserved through the use of water efficient fittings in the bathrooms, kitchens and catering facilities as well as air-chilled cooling systems. Harvesting of rain water from the roofs for use in the gardens will reduce the building’s demand for potable water by 50%.

Facilities have been dedicated to the recycling of office, kitchen, and catering waste.

Twenty percent of all materials used in construction of the building and in all furnishings and fittings have been sourced from less than 400 kms away in order to reduce the amount of fuel used to transport them to site. Even the escalators and lifts have been designed to reduce energy usage and make passenger traffic more efficient.

Rosebank is easily one of the most accessible areas in Johannesburg, through the completion of the Gautrain link, taxis, highways and its prime position.

“Today Rosebank stands out as one of the most thriving development nodes in Johannesburg, and the third high-rise business district after Sandton and the inner-city of Johannesburg,” says Mr Shaw Taylor.