Spire Launches Its 'Green Team'

GROWING concern over global warming and the environment has led to a dramatic increase in ‘green’ movements with an increasing number of property owners in South Africa recognising the benefits of ‘greening’ their property portfolios.

Spire Property Management, a specialist property asset management company, is one that is leading the way by providing clients with a range of green offerings and by making its own operations more sustainable.

“The concept of ‘greening’ buildings is on the increase in South Africa, and Spire is taking a lead. ‘Greening’ properties results in a more sustainable environment with less energy consumption, as well as lower operating costs and healthier places to work or live in,” says Bruce Kerswill, managing director of Spire Property Group.

Greening can involve a range of measures relating to energy consumption, water consumption, recycling and material usage. “Significant savings in energy and water can be made at almost no cost, just through common sense measures like using low-energy light bulbs, providing switching to enable lighting in unused areas to be switched off, and limiting irrigation running times. This can graduate to automated switching, high efficiency air conditioners, dual flush toilets and so on. The good thing is that it can be done bit by bit as ongoing maintenance and upgrading, and does not have to break the budget”, says Kerswill.

An example of one of its initiatives is a unique waste recycling project at the Tannery Park office park in Rondebosch, Cape Town. The project allows tenants to easily separate different types of waste – such as paper, tin, glass and plastic, and ensures that each is transferred to an appropriate recycling facility. There are further plans to introduce an organic waste composting system in the form of a worm farm which will be used to recycle all food and wet waste materials. The aim is to ultimately achieve ‘zero waste’.

Spire has also launched ‘The Green Team’, a division of the company that does tenant installations, minor building work and repairs, along green principles.

Keith Craddock, Spire Group operations director, who is guiding the initiative, says that the Green Team is focusing on environmentally friendly office fit-outs, which includes everything from partitioning, painting, air-conditioning, carpeting, water efficient plumbing fixtures, electrics and glazing to window blinds and more.

“Our emphasis is on providing effective and hassle-free service to our clients. The Green Team will offer property owners the option of easily and conveniently improving the sustainability of their buildings – thereby keeping up with international standards.”

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