Back in the early 1960s, the site at the corner of Derech HaShalom and Yitzhak Rabin Street in Givatayim, known today as Beit Havered or Amot Givatayim, was originally built as a factory of heavy equipment for the construction industry. Over the years, the site transformed again and again, becoming a business hub and headquarters to some of Israel’s biggest businesses, among them: Pelephone, Haphoenix and News channel 10.
Who could have imagined back then that this site, once an industrial yard, would one day become Israel’s first advanced commercial office retrofit and achieve the International Living Future Institute’s Zero Carbon 1.0 Certification™?
Amot Investments made the visionary choice to preserve the existing seven-story office building and upgrade it instead of demolishing. Under the sustainability leadership of Alfa Sustainable Projects, this renovation went far beyond a simple upgrade—becoming a transformation aligned with global best practices and resulting in Israel’s first Zero Carbon building.
The results were extraordinary: Over 90% reduction in embodied carbon compared to a new build baseline, saving over 7 million kgCO₂e, alongside a 35% drop in operational energy use intensity compared with the typical office benchmarks.
“The building’s transformation incorporates cutting-edge technologies, including Building-Integrated Photovoltaics (BIPV) that generate clean electricity directly from its façade, a 270-panel rooftop solar array connected to Amot’s nationwide renewable energy portfolio, smart HVAC systems with advanced controls, occupancy and CO₂ sensors which supplies fresh air on demand. Also a real-time Building Management System, alongside water reuse systems that capture HVAC condensation for toilet flushing and irrigation.
This recognition places Amot Givatayim in a very exclusive circle. It now joins an elite global group of just 12 certified buildings worldwide. It reflects Amot’s forward-looking vision and their willingness to embrace global best practices in sustainability.” – Laurel Dorfman, VP Strategy, Alfa Sustainable Projects Ltd.
Read more about the project on Living Future website.
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About Zero Carbon Certification
The certification process for ZC Certification™ by Living Future requires a rigorous evaluation and reduction of building energy use, renewable energy generation, and reduction and offset (if necessary) of embodied carbon.
About Living Future
The International Living Future Institute (Living Future) is a global leader in sustainable building certification that seek to foster human well-being, environmental health and thriving communities. In addition to Zero Energy™ and Zero Carbon™ they also offer the Living Building Challenge© program for projects looking for a holistic framework. Learn more at www.living-future.org.
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