A commercial building with a high NABERS rating is kind to the environment, good for the people working inside it, and healthy for the bottom line. Total Tint Solutions can help you go a long way to achieving all of those things by boosting your NABERS rating. 

Since 1998, the National Australian Built Environment Rating System (NABERS) has been the accepted model for assessing the “green” credentials of commercial buildings in Australia. NABERS measures and compares a building’s environmental impact in four critical areas: energy usage, water consumption, waste management, and indoor environment quality.

Ratings range from zero to six stars; as you’d expect, the more stars, the better! A highly rated building has a lower environmental impact with reduced energy costs such as heating and cooling. This proposition is desirable for potential buyers or renters who see real value in an energy-efficient building. In fact, the NABERS website states their customers save an average of 30-40% on their energy over ten years.

If you’re an architect, a builder, or a building owner, you probably know this already. But you may not know how much Total Tint Solutions can do to help improve the NABERS rating in your building. As a 3M selected licensed dealer, we can expertly install 3M Window Film to make your building much more energy efficient and a nicer place to work in.

It’s said that windows are our connection to the outside world. Yet windows can be responsible for up to 40% of heating and cooling costs in a building. While they provide natural light and ventilation, they’re also a significant source of heat gain in summer and heat loss in winter. 3M Window Film uses advanced solar control technology to reduce the amount of solar energy entering or leaving a building. By minimizing heat gain and loss, energy consumption decreases, as does the reliance on mechanical cooling and heating systems.

More benefits of 3M window film:

• Minimal reduction in natural light while rejecting up to 99.9% UV rays and 97% infrared
• It’s less expensive than window replacement
• Minimal disruption to occupants and operations during installation
• Reduces temperature imbalances within the building, e.g., hot or cold spots
• Reduces carbon emissions over the life of the window film

All of these things can only be good for the “health” of a building. Of course, you’d expect us to talk up the advantages of installing 3M Window Film. So, we thought we’d share data from an independent source. 3M commissioned DeltaQ, a leading Australian energy management consultancy, to model 3M Window Film on a NABERS energy rating on mid-tier office buildings throughout Australia. The results speak for themselves.

Brisbane Naber Window Tinting Study

In one office building in Brisbane, the Total Solar Energy Rejection (TSER) of the windows can be improved by 32% by installing Prestige 40 film or by 48% with Affinity 15 film. Summer cooling savings of 9.8% (approx $33,000) can be achieved while the building’s NABERS rating can be improved by half a star when using Affinity 15; this is a significant improvement in a six-star system.

In another Brisbane building, the results were just as impressive. On higher-performing double pane Low E windows, TSER improved by 41% with Prestige 40 Exterior. Annual energy savings of 7% (approx. $23,000) were achieved, and the NABERS energy rating improved by .38 of a star. Furthermore, because the cooling system is via water-cooled chillers, the NABERS water rating made for good reading, too: 12% water savings and a NABERS water rating improvement of 0.16 stars were achieved.

These results were virtually replicated by modelling buildings in different climactic conditions in New South Wales and Victoria. There’s anecdotal evidence to consider too. For example, the Sydney retail complex that installed 3M Window Film saw a 17% decrease in overall energy consumption due to reduced cooling requirements. Or the Melbourne commercial office building where 3M film was retrofitted, significantly reducing solar heat gain (and a 23% decrease in air conditioning usage). As a huge bonus, this also resulted in an improvement of half a NABERS star.

In sunny states like Western Australia and Queensland, keeping commercial buildings cool is imperative. The 3M Window Film we install is a low-cost and straightforward way to do that. For example, our best-selling Prestige film has 250+ layers of heat-rejecting technology, yet it’s as thin as a postcard. It makes a building cool but not dark by letting in the solar energy that delivers light but blocks the energy that causes heat. The film also has a long commercial warranty and no metals to interfere with telecommunications equipment.

We understand that different buildings might require different film products. For example, the quality or manufacture of windows in new and existing buildings might vary, and we must choose the most suitable 3M film product with this in mind. Thankfully, 3M uses various modelling tools to help assess your windows and calculate the benefits of different films. Tools like glass analysis, solar load reduction calculations, field monitoring of heat transfer through existing glazing and Energy Plus analysis to forecast energy savings and ROI help to determine what will work best in each building.

An improved NABERS rating equates to increased asset value. Buyers and renters are looking for buildings that are kind to the environment and their budget! 3M window film can play a considerable role when upgrading your building to become more energy efficient. If you ignore the call for sustainable and environmentally friendly commercial spaces, you’re left with a stranded asset: a building that does nothing for the planet and has little worth in the modern market.

Contact Total Tint Solutions to find out more,

Total Tint Solutions will happily discuss the benefits of 3M Window Film for commercial buildings with you. It’s a truly transformative product. But don’t take our word for it – you’ve read the statistics that show how much it can improve NABERS ratings. We have more data to share, and it will confirm that 3M Window Film is one of the easiest ways to make your building one that cares for the planet and helps you take care of business.