Immochan Romania, in partnership with BuildGreen, obtained the BREEAM Excellent certificate for the Coresi Shopping Resort project, located in Brașov, Romania. Thus, CORESI becomes the commercial center with the highest sustainability ranking in the country, the first in Romania and the second in Central and Eastern Europe to achieve this exigent certification level. BuildGreen, the leading consultant in the field of sustainable building design, development and certification in CEE, advised the developer on the process.
CORESI, excellence in sustainable development
CORESI Shopping Center is the largest urban regeneration project in Romania, proposing to inhabitants and tourists in the Braşov region, not only a seamless shopping experience but also a leisure destination, spread over a 70.000 sq.m. surface.
CORESI, the forerunner of the latest trends in urban development in Europe
The concept for CORESI Shopping Resort was developed by the team of Sua Kay Architects in Portugal, in partnership with the local architecture company Alter Ego. The main challenge was to bring innovation and differentiate the project from the conventional approach in commercial real estate.
The certification process for Coresi Shopping Resort was coordinated by BuildGreen, the most experienced advisory company in the field of sustainable building in Romania. During this process, BuildGreen analyzed and focused on the project’s environmental impact and the urban reuse of the site, Coresi being developed on a former industrial platform.
Immochan and BuildGreen initiated the sustainable certification measures from the design phase, in 2012, and both companies envisioned the achievement of the highest possible sustainability level. To start with, the companies committed to a BREEAM «Very Good» ranking, but as the project team rigorously implemented all sustainability practices proposed by the consultant, the developer managed to reach a superior level, «Excellent».
’’We started implementing the BREEAM requirements since the concept phase, being absolutely convinced of the importance that this type of investment has on the long-term, by streamlining operational costs and the positive impact on the entire life cycle of the project. We envisioned a high-quality technical and ecological development, focused mainly on harmonizing the concept with the urban and environmental characteristics of the city”, states Tatian Diaconu, General Manager of Immochan Romania.
”Coresi Shopping Resort represents an example for the local real estate market and yet another confirmation of the key role that an effective collaboration, between all stakeholders involved in the design, construction and operation of a property, plays in its resulting performance. Starting from the design and analysis phase, we implemented all relevant measures aimed at reaching a higher performance level. Together with the construction and the project management teams, we then monitored the manner in which these solutions were deployed. Due to the support and involvement of Immochan and tenants, all these measures can now be found not only in the common areas, but throughout the entire project. This resulted in the achievement of the superior sustainability performance corresponding to the BREEAM Excellent ranking”, explains Răzvan Nica, Managing Director BuildGreen.
The achievement of the BREEAM Excellent level was also possible due to the good collaboration with the local authorities, Auchan and tenants that joined the process of certification, which in the end resulted in implementing all envisioned sustainability measures.
For example, all three urban mobility measures required by BREEAM were deployed: bicycle lanes, the extension of public transport lines and the car-sharing system. Other advantages of the project include increased energy efficiency through innovative isolation and installations, enhanced daylighting, reduced water consumption, sustainable construction materials and low energy use while offering tenants and their stakeholders the comfort and well-being they need.
Focus on BREEAM international sustainability standard
BREEAM is one of the world’s most popular and exigent methodologies for the certification of sustainable buildings. The buildings are assessed based on their contribution to environmental protection and then awarded one of the following five certification levels: Pass, Good, Very Good, Excellent and Outstanding. Among the criteria analyzed by this system are: energy efficiency, management, materials used in the construction, waste management, transport, site ecology, water efficiency and pollution.
About Immochan
For 40 years Immochan has been developing its global expertise in commercial real estate and mastery of the whole value creation chain from investment to dynamic asset management via the design, marketing, management and promotion of shopping centres.
Immochan Romania was founded in 2012 and presently manages 23 shopping centres. In March 2015, Immochan Romania opened, in Brasov, Coresi, the first Shopping Resort and the first BREEAM-certified shopping centre, „Excellent” level, in Romania. At the end of 2014, Drumul Taberei Commercial Centre was inaugurated in Bucharest. Both projects represented a total investment of 120 million euro.
About BuildGreen
Founded in 2010, BuildGreen was the first company in Romania to offer sustainable building consulting services and, to date, it is the leading consultant in the field of sustainable development and certification. BuildGreen provides the complete set of consulting services for the design, development and certification of sustainable buildings – from BREEAM and LEED certification services to dynamic simulation modelling, life cycle costing (LCC) and assessment (LCA), as well as full green building design support.
Having the constant goal to provide a high-quality and professional service for the building and construction industry, BuildGreen achieved an outstanding track record in Romania: the largest portfolio of projects in the country (over 30 buildings successfully certified to date) and the highest success rate in the market (all certification processes reached the levels targeted by the clients, all certifications had a minimum Very Good/Gold level, whereas 25% of the certified projects achieved superior levels – Excellent). BuildGreen also stands for the highest certification level ever obtained by a building in Romania – BREEAM Excellent.
