The first Danish certification scheme for sustainable buildings has made it more desirable for the construction industry to build sustainable buildings. Ramboll's Head Office is one of the first Danish buildings that have been certified according to the new scheme.

The office building has a high energy performance, e.g.

• excellent access to metro
• excellent conditions for bikes
• connection to the city district heating system
• ground source cooling
• efficient use of energy

Besides the building has a lot of other qualities, giving it a high score in the certification.

Denmark now has its own certification system to measure and illustrate the sustainability of buildings. The scheme has been developed by the independent organisation Green Building Council Denmark (DK-GBC) which is an independent, non-profit overall council for environmentally friendly and sustainable buildings.

By applying the system, which is a Danish version of the German system DGNB, it is now possible to evaluate and illustrate all sustainability aspects of Danish building projects. Initially, the system will only apply to new developments - but within the near future, it will also become applicable in connection with rebuilding and refurbishing existing structures.

With a common Danish system it will now become easier for investors, tenants and financial partners to lay down specific demands on sustainability to projects and the entire construction industry has established a better basis for a qualified dialogue and the further optimisation of design processes.

Ramboll's Head Office in Ørestad is one of four Danish pilot projects that have been certified according to the new system - and has just received a bronze-certification. Apart from this, three pilot projects have been pre-certified.

According to Project Director at Ramboll, Ida Garre, at Ramboll's Head Office focus was on especially the social sustainability by establishing a comfortable indoor climate, a public café on the ground floor as well as fitness facilities for employees. The building is thus much more than simply an office building - it makes up the physical settings for Ramboll's activities while also reflecting the company values, the way we work and the way we welcome our guests. 

Sustainable construction is about much more than merely the building's energy consumption. When a building is to be certified not only energy consumption and materials are analysed, but also indoor climate, end-user involvement, overall economy and the spatial flexibility of the building are assessed. Thereby the social, economic and environmental sustainability are assessed.