Following an extensive refurbishment, RO Group’s Silbury House office building in Milton Keynes has achieved a 5-Star NABERS UK Energy for Offices Whole Building rating for outstanding operational energy performance.
It’s the only building in the UK to hold a 5-Star NABERS UK rating.
NABERS was first launched in Australia in 1999 as the National Australian Built Environment Rating System. In 2000, the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE) set up a British variant, NABERS UK.
It measures the actual energy use of office buildings rather than their predicted performance at design stage. As such, it provides independent verification of how efficiently a building is operating in practice.
In it’s refurb, RO set out to make the 1998 building the most sustainable office building in Milton Keynes.
The group installed 116 solar panels on the roof that can generate up to 20% of the building’s energy demand. The building also has a hybrid variable refrigerant flow heating and cooling system with heat recovery technology, alongside LED lighting and advanced controls to reduce energy consumption.
The result is an EPC A+ (net zero) rating.
Healthiest, too
The building also secured a 3-Star Fitwel certification for health and wellbeing, making it the only building in Milton Keynes to hold the accreditation.
It’s also the only building in the region to have a RESET Air Certification, with indoor air quality continuously monitored and independently verified against globally recognised standards.
Sustainability was also embedded in the materials and construction process. No waste generated by the refurbishment went to landfill. Raised access flooring was recovered, and carpet tiles contain 75% recycled content.
RO Group’s head of sustainability Ana Bajri said the accreditations demonstrate what can be achieved “through thoughtful investment in existing buildings”.
“We have shown that an existing building can be transformed to meet the standards expected of modern, high-quality office space,” she said.
“For us, this is not simply about achieving a certification; it is about using real performance data to create better buildings for occupiers and the environment.”
