POSITIVE IMPACT ISSUE 0.8

INDUSTRIAL
INDUSTRIAL
Johan Pretorius
Equator - The Belt
Factory has been
transformed in terms of
environmental sustainability
and human comfort.
Johan Pretorius
Johan Pretorius
Waste management systems have been
implemented that include the reduction,
recycling, and composting of manufacturing
waste. Pictured (left) Nosipho Zulu, (middle)
Thabanie Mngoma and (right) Lungani Manqele.
to make drastic changes to their physical space and
operations. An old textile mill in New Germany – one of
the oldest industrial areas in Durban – was purchased
and completely transformed in terms of environmental
sustainability and human comfort. These factors were not
great priorities in 1967 when the factory was first built.
Buhr says that it was important that their
interventions were scientific and measurable, and so
they appointed sustainability experts, Andre Harms and
Catherine Luyt, of Ecolution Consulting, to manage
the Green Star certification on the client’s behalf. With
the tag line: “A Place of Craft and a Place of Science”,
one wouldn’t expect anything less.
The EBP tool, which has been customised to assess
industrial buildings, doesn’t rate the construction or
design of a building but rather provides benchmarks
to measure the operating performance of a building
over time, thus a building needs to be operational for
at least a year for its performance to be assessed.
The tool measures performance under eight
categories: Management (building management,
continuous monitoring, learning resources), Indoor
Water tanks storing harvested
rainwater for use throughout
Equator. Pictured (left) Rajeev Matai
(right) and Marc Pozniac.
Johan Pretorius
The key advice for any
business looking to embark
on their sustainable journey
seems to be: Just start!
Environmental Quality (air quality, lighting comfort,
thermal comfort, occupant survey, acoustic comfort,
daylight views), Energy (energy consumption and
peak demands), Water (potable water management),
Transport (alternative transportation), Materials
(procurement and purchasing, solid waste management),
Land Use and Ecology (hardscape, landscape, pest
management), and Emissions (refrigerants, legionella
prevention, stormwater).
There were no structural or footprint changes made
to the existing building, but there was additional
(double) glazing and new skylights added to allow
natural light into the factory space and offices. A new
break room was added for the factory staff that also
has plenty of natural light. The office component also
gained a new, industrial aesthetic, kitchenette-cumcoffee
bar with access to a balcony space. Non-toxic and
low VOC paints and finishes were used throughout, and
most of the furniture was second hand or up-cycled.
Rainwater harvesting systems were implemented by
KZN Water Energy, and low-flow fittings were installed
throughout. Treated and purified rainwater is used for
washing, drinking, cleaning, and flushing toilets. The
interventions are expected to save about 347 600 litres
of water a year (when compared to the benchmark of a
similar building) and simple payback, at today’s tariffs,
is expected within 16 years.
Energy savings were achieved by the use of LEDs
and lighting control, high-performance glazing, natural
daylighting, hyper-efficient cooling systems, and smart
metering, amounting to a combined annual saving of
about 285 579kWh (as compared to similar benchmarks).
Sarah Robyn Farrell, from transparenCI, who works
with Equator on their sustainability communications,
says: “In 2019 the average energy consumed per belt
[manufactured] was 0.2 kWh which is the equivalent
energy required to make one cup of tea.”
Waste management systems have been implemented
that include the reduction, recycling, and composting
of waste. Crucial to the successful and sustained
implementation of many of these measures is the
understanding and buy-in of the staff. Training
and vision casting was done at the beginning of
the project, and regular refresher discussions are
held. The staff was generally enthusiastic and a
green committee has been formed. Clear signage,
in both English and isiZulu, was installed to clarify
and remind people of processes, and the monthly
reports on the building performance are shared with
all staff so that they understand the impact of the
changes they’ve made.
Buhr regards the achievements of the building as
only one important step towards sustainability. For
the next step, they will be focusing on their materials,
responsible sourcing, innovation towards greener raw
materials, and improving their packaging and logistics.
BELGOTEX: FORERUNNERS IN INDUSTRIAL GREEN STARS
The Belgotex flooring factory in Pietermaritzburg developed the first Custom Industrial EBP Tool. They were
awarded a 6-Star rating in 2017. The factory started operations in 1983 and has expanded significantly over the
years to produce their current range of carpets and flooring. They have endeavoured to push the boundaries of
sustainable manufacturing processes and the production of eco-friendly products since 1991.
The 2017 accreditation recognised the measured operational performance in eight: Management, Indoor
Environmental Quality, Energy, Water, Transport, Materials, Land Use & Ecology, and Emissions. Extra credits
were awarded for innovative strategies implemented in the manufacturing process.
The company has continued to pursue improved overall sustainability. Energy efficiency is continually being
enhanced with new technologies and interventions, both in their operations and their innovative product lines.
Their ambition is to invest further in renewable energy, with the groundwork being done over the past two years
to obtain a NERSA licence and to reinforce the roofing of a large portion of the factory to support additional solar
panels. In 2019, they completed a project linking the factory ablution facilities and cooling towers to a water
harvesting dam, further reducing the overall municipal water consumption.
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POSITIVE IMPACT ISSUE 0.8
POSITIVE IMPACT ISSUE 0.8
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