Making a grand Wellington landmark more energy efficient

Wellington Museum on Queens Wharf, one of the grandest buildings in New Zealand’s capital has reached new levels of energy efficiency, thanks to our application of B-Tune tuning service and technology.

Built in 1892 by leading architect Frederick de Jersey Clare, Wellington Museum plays a big role in the vibrant cultural life of the Kiwi capital. However, given the building’s old age, it wasn’t the most energy efficient structure, something that Experience Wellington and Wellington City Council were determined to address.

That’s why B-Tune was commissioned to carry out a review of the control and operation of the Museum’s building management systems (BMS), with a specific focus on improving energy efficiency and functionality.

Using our award-winning B-Tune (Building Tuning) service, we completed a thorough inspection which uncovered a number of issues leading to poor energy efficiency performance, including:

• boiler wiring was not connected properly – leading the system to run around the clock, regardless of occupant demand
• the outdoor air damper was dislodged – meaning more fresh air than required was being pumped into the building
• there was also a noticeable hissing noise coming from interior air ducts – which indicates they were not running efficiently.

After uncovering these issues, we were able to address them one by one, leading to impressive energy efficiency performance improvements 12 months later, a full payback of project costs and big annual energy bill savings.

Over that timeframe, gas consumption is down 55% and electricity by 27% - reductions equivalent to the annual energy usage of 50 average New Zealand homes. Wellington Museum has stood the test of time and now, it can enjoy an even more sustainable future.