Sydney Opera House Attains ‘6 Star Green Star’

SYDNEY, Australia -- Honeywell, a Sydney Opera House Global Goals partner since 2021, says its contributions have helped the building achieve a ‘6 Star Green Star’ rating from the Green Building Council of Australia.

Key to this achievement was retrofitting the Sydney Opera House with Honeywell’s innovative, ready-now technology to help support more sustainable operations and to reduce the building’s environmental impact.

The Sydney Opera House is one of the first UNESCO World Heritage-listed buildings to receive the rating, which represents 'World Leadership' in environmental and social sustainability operations.
This achievement is the result of continually improving the building’s performance, reducing its carbon emissions and maintaining its carbon neutral certification.

As a globally recognized performing arts venue and World Heritage-listed icon, the Sydney Opera House operates 24/7, requiring close collaboration between Honeywell and the Sydney Opera House’s safety, projects, and service teams.

Together, they work to identify and implement solutions tailored to the unique needs of the building, including the following:
•     Creating a technology system that monitors indoor air quality (IAQ), and relative humidity (rH).
•     Integrating more than 20 disparate subsystems in the building to help improve safety, energy and water usage.
•     Implementing several innovations including electricity spot-price monitoring, extraction fan control in non-air conditioned (AC) areas and monitoring of cold room doors that remain open for too long.
•     Automating outside air control through real-time air quality data from the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM).
•     Identifying potential energy saving opportunities in the building, including the installation of more than 60 water meters and more than 800 electrical meters. 

These strategies help enable automated responses and alerts to changing conditions, which supports operational efficiency and provides a safer and more comfortable environment for staff, audiences and visitors.

“Sustainability is in the Sydney Opera House’s DNA,” said Louise Herron AM, CEO, Sydney Opera House. “Architect Jørn Utzon incorporated sustainable design into the fabric of the building in the 1960s. “Now, as we approach our 50th birthday later this year, we continue to look for ways to build on this legacy by embedding sustainable thinking into everything we do. Thanks to the long-term support from our Global Goals Partner Honeywell, the Opera House is working harder and smarter than ever before and I’m thrilled to see this recognized in such a significant way. It’s a testament to the power of meaningful partnerships in driving positive change.”

said Louise Herron AM, CEO of Sydney Opera House, said, “The Sydney Opera House takes a thoughtful and deliberate approach to minimize its impact on the environment while providing a world-class experience for its occupants – all while carefully protecting its UNESCO World Heritage-listed status. This requires a careful balance and technology, but most importantly, teamwork. The Honeywell team who services and support the Sydney Opera House every day closely collaborate with its engineering and sustainability teams to make sure the building systems are performing efficiently and we

The 6 Star Green Star rating centers on innovation, and a long-lasting commitment to sustainability. Collaborating closely with the Sydney Opera House's engineering team, Honeywell has tailored the system to the unique requirements of a performing arts building, while leveraging existing systems such as the building’s pioneering seawater cooling system. Building operations at the Sydney Opera House are anchored by the Honeywell Enterprise Buildings Integrator (EBI), a comprehensive solution that monitors and controls the building management system (BMS), as well as hardware and equipment throughout the building’s ecosystem.

Using the system as a single point of data analysis, the teams can more effectively monitor and control systems to support peak performance. For example, the system captures information on ticket sales to enable efficient temperature scheduling in performance venues, switching heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) equipment on and off, and calculating baseline energy consumption.

In instances of high energy demand, the BMS alerts the building to respond by selectively shedding electricity loads. Additionally, the air circulation system automatically shuts down outside air intakes during bushfire smoke events to improve IAQ and occupant experience. 

The GBCA Green Star Building rating tool is similar to the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification system from the U.S. Green Buildings Council (USGBC).
In 2021, the Sydney Opera House welcomed Honeywell as its first Global Goals partner, supporting the world-famous performing arts center’s commitment to sustainability, diversity and inclusion.

For more information on Honeywell, go to www.honeywell.com.