Stockholm Central Station – a new high performer in sustainability

26.01.2018

Over 200,000 visitors pass through the Central Station in Stockholm every day. The 150-year-old building is not only one of the most-frequented spaces in the Nordic region; now it has also been assessed and certified as a high performer in sustainability under the international ‘BREEAM In-Use’ system. 

Installation of energy efficient LED-lighting and user control for heating and glare protection.

These are a couple of the features implemented at the Central Station in Stockholm qualifying it for a BREEAM In-Use certification. The certification can be granted at different levels, and the Stockholm Central Station has been certified ‘Very Good’.

The certification is also a tool used to improve the sustainability performance of the building and lower operating costs. 

“The BREEAM In-Use system is well-suited to this type of building. Also, it will provide a certificate for the environmental performance of the building and this way we can evaluate how we, as the managing organisation, can improve in our ongoing work and relationships with our tenants,” says Saga Jernberg, sustainability strategist at Jernhusen, who owns and runs railway stations and other buildings attached to the railway network in Sweden.

Verifying sustainability performance

COWI’s role in the project was to act as the BREEAM In-Use Assessor, which involves verifying the sustainability performance of the building from the project application.

“It has been an exciting and educational project with a committed client. BREEAM In-Use served as a structured aid to evaluate sustainability parameters. We are looking forward to working more with the system in future projects,” says Johanna Millander, BREEAM In-Use Assessor at COWI.

To earn the BREEAM In-Use certificate, the Central Station building has achieved high performance in sustainability i.e. by implementing the following:

• Installation of energy efficient LED-lighting
• Building user control for heating and glare protection
• Facilities such as changing rooms with showers and lockers
• Communication with tenants, which includes to inform about what is going on in the building  via an app
• Processes for building management

Proximities to amenities and access to alternative means of transportation has also been highly valued, as the building forms a part of the local and national public transportation system.