NABERS Indoor Environment Rating — Measurement & Assessment Support
A NABERS Indoor Environment rating turns how your building actually feels to work in — air quality, temperature, noise, and light — into a measured, comparable 1 to 6 star score. For building owners and tenants competing for quality tenants or reporting on ESG performance, it’s one of the few Australian rating tools based entirely on real, measured data rather than design intent.
Enviro Corp supports building owners, facilities managers and tenants across Sydney with the on-site data collection and measurement work a NABERS
Indoor Environment rating depends on — air quality sampling, thermal comfort logging, acoustic testing and lighting measurement — coordinated with your NABERS Accredited Assessor for lodgement.
Call 1300 980 612 for an obligation-free scoping conversation.
NABERS Indoor Environment ratings must be lodged by a NABERS Accredited Assessor, who is responsible for the accuracy and certification of the final rating. Enviro Corp provides the on-site measurement and data collection services that support that process.
What Is a NABERS Indoor Environment Rating?
NABERS (National Australian Built Environment Rating System) rates the operational, measured performance of buildings — as distinct from design-stage rating tools that assess intent. Alongside its well-known Energy, Water and Waste ratings, NABERS Indoor Environment (IE) rates how well an office building supports the health, comfort and productivity of the people inside it.
The rating covers four core areas:
Indoor air quality — particulate matter, formaldehyde, total VOCs and carbon dioxide
Thermal comfort — temperature and relative humidity across a 12-month period
Acoustic comfort — background noise levels within the space
Lighting quality — illuminance levels at workstations and common areas
Ratings run on a scale of 1 to 6 stars, calculated by comparing your measured results against a national benchmark of similar office buildings. NABERS is managed nationally on behalf of the Commonwealth, state and territory governments, and the system has since expanded internationally to the UK and New Zealand.
The Three NABERS IE Rating Types
| Rating Type | Who's it for | What's assessed |
|---|---|---|
| Base Building | Building owners/managers | Thermal services, air systems and cleaning services under landlord control |
| Tenancy | Occupying businesses | Fit-out, lighting design and internal noise levels under tenant control |
| Whole Building | Owner-occupiers or single-tenant buildings | The full indoor environment where one organisation controls both base building and fit-out |
How a NABERS IE Rating Is Assessed
Scoping
Confirm which rating type applies (Base Building, Tenancy or Whole Building) and gather building information: floor area, occupancy, HVAC system details.
Site Visit and Measurement
A site visit is required for every rating. Air quality, thermal comfort, acoustic and lighting measurements are taken at representative sampling points during normal occupied hours, avoiding atypical conditions like nearby construction or unusually low occupancy. Most single-floor assessments are completed within a day; larger or multi-floor buildings may need longer.
Annual Data Collection
Thermal comfort in particular is assessed against 12 months of temperature and humidity data, not just the site-visit snapshot, so continuous logging typically runs across the full rating period.
Calculation and Benchmarking
Each measured component is scored against national office building benchmarks and weighted into a single star rating.
Lodgement and Certification
Only a NABERS Accredited Assessor can lodge the completed rating for certification. The Assessor is responsible for the accuracy of submitted data and retains supporting evidence for audit purposes.
Annual Renewal
A NABERS IE rating is valid for 12 months from the end of the rating period, after which it must be reassessed to remain current.
Our NABERS IE Data Collection & Measurement Services
| Step | What It Involves |
|---|---|
| Pre-assessment scoping | Confirming which rating type fits your building and what data is already available versus what needs to be captured. |
| Air quality measurement | Sampling and analysis of particulate matter, formaldehyde, TVOCs and CO2 in accordance with NABERS Indoor Environment for Offices measurement requirements. |
| Thermal comfort logging | Continuous temperature and relative humidity data collection across the required rating period. |
| Acoustic testing | Background noise level measurement across representative sampling points. |
| Lighting measurement | Illuminance testing at workstations and common areas. |
| Coordination with your NABERS Accredited Assessor | We supply calibrated, audit-ready measurement data your Assessor can rely on for lodgement, and can help identify an Assessor if you don't already have one engaged. |
| Combined WELL/NABERS testing | Where a project is pursuing both ratings, we scope testing to satisfy the NABERS-WELL crosswalk criteria in a single site visit rather than two. |
Call us now on 1300 980 612 or complete the form below.
Drop us a few lines with your query and one of our specialists will get in touch with you.
Quick Contact
Why Pursue a NABERS Indoor Environment Rating?
Tenant Appeal and Leasing Advantage
A measured indoor environment rating differentiates a building in a competitive leasing market, particularly alongside an existing NABERS Energy rating.
ESG and Sustainability Reporting
Provides a recognised, independently verified benchmark for indoor environment quality in sustainability disclosures.
Baseline and Improvement Tracking
Establishes a data-backed starting point to identify air quality, thermal or acoustic issues — including potential WHS considerations — before they become tenant complaints.
Complements a Green Star or WELL Pathway
NABERS and the International WELL Building Institute have developed a formal crosswalk allowing indoor environment measurements to support both a NABERS IE rating and relevant WELL v2 features from a single testing exercise, reducing duplicated site visits and cost.
Frequently asked questions:
Only a NABERS Accredited Assessor can conduct the official site inspection and lodge a rating for certification. Supporting data collection and measurement can be carried out by a specialist consultant working alongside the Assessor.
Most single-floor site visits are completed within a day. Larger or multi-floor buildings may require additional site time. Thermal comfort scoring also depends on 12 months of temperature and humidity data collected across the full rating period, not just the site visit itself.
A rating is valid for 12
months from the end of its rating period, after which the building must be reassessed to
maintain a current rating.
Base Building applies to elements the landlord controls (HVAC, cleaning, air systems); Tenancy applies to what the occupying business controls (fit-out, lighting, internal noise); Whole Building applies where a single organisation controls both, typically an owner-occupier.
In part. NABERS and IWBI have published a crosswalk identifying where NABERS IE measurements can support specific WELL v2 features, allowing some testing to serve both pathways rather than duplicating site visits.
NABERS Indoor Environment currently applies to office buildings. Other NABERS ratings (Energy, Water, Waste) are available across a broader range of building types.
Across Sydney. Call 1300 980 612 or request a proposal online