APL headquarters sustainable design| Sustainability story

Example of sustainability ‘Best practice’

As a commitment to improving the company’s environmental impact, parent company Profile Group planned carefully to make its large, new manufacturing facility at Hautapu an example of ‘best practice’ sustainable design and construction, as well as an operating environment optimised for building user safety and comfort.

5-Greenstar Industrial Design rating

The 414m-long building, designed by leading architectural company Jasmax, houses the AGP glass plant and diverse APL Manufacturing operations, and is the fifth and most recent 5-Greenstar industrial design structure in the country. With a footprint of 49,000 square metres, it is also by far the largest with such a rating. As a final tick for a job well done, APL is on the road to receiving our Greenstar Industrial built rating for the almost completed project.

Ambitious green goals

APL’s current suite of buildings at Te Rapa, in Hamilton, were all designed to high architectural and environmental standards for their time but looking ahead to the greenfields rural site at Hautapu, we saw the relocation not only as a chance to consolidate business units but to move to a new level of integrated design with ambitious green goals as part of the package.

Tough criteria

Foster Construction, the main contractor, played an integral part in bringing the most efficient and effective methods to the site, both for construction and environmental management. Foster, holders of Toitū Enviromark Diamond Certification, had to work hard to meet the demanding Greenstar criteria in selection of sustainable materials, procurement, managing, and monitoring products brought to site, as well as repurposing and recycling construction and demolition waste.

90% recycled waste

In the case of the latter, APL worked closely with Fosters to achieve an enlarged customer base for waste materials, including packaging. Over 513,000 kg of material was recycled – including pallets repurposed by community groups - with as many as 10 separate bins on site during the construction phase. This waste minimisation achieved the target of 90% recycled but patience and perseverance was required by all parties to hit this tough threshold.

Maximised natural lighting

One of the most exciting features of the project came from ensuring that occupant experience was central in design decisions. For example, daylight and exterior views were a massive consideration and led to the inclusion of five huge roof windows that minimise the use of lighting - the second highest energy use after plant processes. This natural lighting allows most occupants to connect to the outside, a benefit often missing from factory environments.

The roof windows, supplied and installed by one of APL’s network of window manufacturers, Wight Aluminium, combined with highly efficient lighting including dimming controls and daylight sensors, result in a reduction of over 500,000 kWh of lighting energy annually.

Inspiring others

“We hope the hard work, planning and careful waste diversion programme that went into the design and construction phase of the new building can inspire others who are developing large-scale industrial plants to aim for a Green Star standard. We are certainly happy to share our experiences” says Mikayla Plaw, Executive Director, Sustainability for APL.

More stories

Soft plastic recycling

Continuing our journey to circularity through our partnership with PACT Recycling, the largest recycler of post-industrial plastic in the Southern Hemisphere.

An aligned future with Toitū

Independent assessments and accreditations are crucial and that’s why we’re working closely with Toitū Envirocare, one of the country’s leading carbon certification organisations.

Working towards a circular economy

They say you can’t manage what you don’t measure, and that’s why a partnership was established with environmental consultancy Circularity to explore the impacts of all their waste streams.

The waste process

While APL is working hard to build a more circular business, not every material is able to be repurposed. That’s why we’re working closely with Enviro NZ, a materials management and resource recovery company.

Diversion from landfill

By collecting food scraps, we're helping power local homes and protect the environment.

The importance of ThermalHEART®

While reducing the environmental impact of construction is a major focus of the building industry, another big focus is on reducing the amount of energy that’s required to run those buildings when they’re completed.

Environmental Product Declaration

Three of APL’s window and door ranges have been the subject of an independent environmental and life cycle assessment by external consultants.

Biodiversity Initiative a New Zealand First

Profile Group, parent company to APL Window Solutions, has become the first participant in a new biodiversity market, purchasing biodiversity units from Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari, in the South Waikato.

Going Electricity-Neutral

The parent company to APL Window Solutions, Profile Group, has acquired renewable energy certificates from Kawatiri Energy.

The power of the ocean

At APL, we understand the power of the ocean, and what it means to our fellow New Zealanders. We play in it. We eat from it. We live by it. It connects us all.

Homes of the future

A major sustainability project by Kāinga Ora, the government’s public housing agency, will use a new, thermally efficient product range from APL Window Solutions.

Closing the loop on waste

We’ve introduced a series of day-to-day sustainability initiatives aimed at circulating high value materials, innovating new solutions and designing out waste and emissions across the business.

Upgrading for the environment

In 2016 APL upgraded it's powdercoating lines to achieve an environmentally-friendly standard.

Leading the way

At APL, we are well on the way to reinventing the way we do business.

Hautapu ~ Our Green building