RMBA sites

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Brosnan

Project Partners

Brosnan (Project Manager), MOAA Architects (Architect/Designer), The Building Intelligence Group (Project Manager)

Owned By

Ministry of Education

In a town of one thousand residents, with one hundred of those being students, Karamea Area School forms the cornerstone of the community. This project saw the rebuild of the school to include a library, hall, gymnasium, administration building, various technology subject facilities, and new classrooms. Referred to as “the longest cul-de-sac in the country”, the road to Karamea involves mountains, bridges, and tunnels and only has one access point. It was also periodically closed due to severe weather events. Concrete could not be viably transported to the site, so the team designed and implemented an offsite manufacturing facility. Other challenges included accommodation and grocery provisions, contaminated ground removal, and people shortages. Sustainability was important throughout the build, with energy-efficient fittings, salvaging of demolition waste and building materials, and an old classroom being purchased by a member of the community for restoration.

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Southbase Construction

Project Partners

Architectus (Architect/Designer), RDT Pacific (Engineer), Southbase Construction (Construction Company)

This project saw the rebuilding of Linwood College into a modern campus supporting new ways of learning. With over 10,000m2 of buildings, work comprised of a gymnasium, hall, canteen, whare, administration centre, and various other specialised blocks catering to a range of subjects. All areas of the campus are purpose built, but remain flexible, particularly in the main learning hub which features a hybrid of traditional and modern learning environments. The new environments allow for standard lesson types while also providing both small and large break out spaces for alternative approaches to teaching and learning. Built on a TC3 site, there was a requirement for a gravel raft foundation to ensure stability of the structure in the event of another earthquake. All services are encased in reinforcing and concrete, so in any future seismic events, the buildings can be re-levelled easily. A challenge faced early during the construction phase of the project was the first COVID-19 lockdown in March 2020. Site works had only just commenced, and the Level 4 lockdown brought site progress to a halt. The design and construction teams worked together to make the best use of this time, drawing plans for various processes, and undertaking procurement earlier than usual.

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Naylor Love Auckland

Project Partners

HFC Structures Ltd (Engineer), Naylor Love Auckland (Construction Company), Rawlinsons Limited (Quantity Surveyor), RTA Studios (Architect/Designer), Tetra Tech Coffey (Project Manager)

Owned By

Ministry of Education

The Manurewa High School project was a new build of nine classrooms, a library, amenities, and technology spaces. The design encompasses a warm roof, robust insulation, double-glazed joinery, exterior louvers, and automated skylights. The classrooms are open plan with smaller breakout rooms, complete with whiteboards, televisions, and acoustically lined walls, providing a realistic office-style environment for the school’s Business Academy. Despite the challenges of COVID lockdowns, building supply shortages, and operating in a live school environment, the project was completed six weeks ahead of schedule and under budget. The early completion date allowed the building to be occupied by students before the start of the new term. The project team worked closely with the school to deliver several community engagement initiatives. Those included helping students build a greenhouse in the school vegetable garden, donating leftover building materials, and offering tertiary scholarships to senior students who have a keen interest in a career in the construction sector.

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Naylor Love Auckland

Project Partners

AECOM (Quantity Surveyor), Beca (Project Manager), Ignite Architects (Architect/Designer), MSC Consulting Group (Engineer), Naylor Love Auckland (Construction Company)

Owned By

Ministry of Education

Onehunga High School, a co-educational secondary school, has undergone a significant transformation with the addition of a new Tech Block and Gymnasium. The project was initiated to reinforce the school's key value of providing a range of opportunities to its students. To ensure this value was upheld, the team worked closely with the school and actively involved the students in the project from start to finish. The students were invited to witness key stages of the project, including concrete pour inspections, steel erection, and cladding. The Tech Block now integrates various faculties, including Art, Science, Food Technology, and Hard/Soft materials, that were once separate. Similarly, the Gymnasium brings together different facilities, promoting cross-curricular engagement. The new buildings not only offer modern, fully-equipped facilities for the current students but will also benefit future generations. Despite facing multiple COVID-19 lockdowns, the team successfully adapted the programme to work around the delays. They used this time to resolve design issues and progress shop drawings to keep the project on track.

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ASC Architects

Project Partners

ASC Architects (Architect/Designer), BGT Structures (Engineer), Form Building & Developments (Construction Company), WSP (Engineer)

Owned By

Ministry of Education

Tamaoho School is a new primary school in the developing suburb of Belmont, Pukekohe. The initial build accommodates 370 students, with room for growth. Innovative learning environments were designed to provide various educational methods and to encourage openness, collaboration, and connectivity in all aspects of school life. The learning spaces were also created to maximize the connection to the exterior learning central courtyard at the heart of the school. The COVID-19 pandemic presented the biggest challenges during this fast-track design and build project. However, the project and site management by the design and build team were excellent, resulting in no delay to the original proposed opening date. To further improve the learning environment and the buildings sustainability, the school incorporated design features like rainwater harvesting, natural ventilation, energy-efficient lighting, and solar power generation. These features helped Tamaoho School achieve a 4 Green Star rating from the New Zealand Green Building Council. Following the success of Tamaoho School, the Ministry of Education is now developing several new schools with the same design and build team.

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Amalgamated Builders

Project Partners

Amalgamated Builders Ltd (Construction Company), McCulloch Architects (Architect/Designer), Southern Quantity Surveyors (Project Manager/Quantity Surveyor)

Owned By

Southern Institute of Technology

The S.I.T Centre for Creative Industries – Te Rau o Te Huia is a specialised educational facility for S.I.T/ Te Pukenga students, incorporated into a 150-year-old church. The most contemporary specialised space of its kind in New Zealand - it allows learners to train and upskill their digital technology skills towards qualifications in the screen arts such as film, game design and animation. The site’s Heritage Category 1 status provided the main challenge for the project. The team had to work to particular protocols during construction, with onsite observers required during excavation, to ensure that not only the buildings but the surrounding trees were protected. The new facility connects to the existing church, allowing you to stand in a 21st-century new building and touch elements of 19th-century architecture. A unique feature of the build is the fully cantilevered, floating, 3-storey staircase, fully welded to AESS 3 - a result of careful planning and methodology to execute a design that pushes the absolute limits of engineering.

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Hawkins

Project Partners

Hawkins (Construction Company), Pareawa Banks Avenue School (Project Manager), WSP (Architect/Designer)

Owned By

Ministry of Education

The Pareawa Banks Avenue School project involved the construction of six buildings spanning 2,400 square metres. The build included four teaching pods, a hall and the main administration and library block. The project was initiated to replace a school damaged in the Christchurch earthquakes, with the site fully developed to include playing courts, outdoor learning spaces and services. The Hawkins team also donated gardening supplies for the veggie planting areas. The project experienced a delay due to the discovery of asbestos and heavy metals during the demolition of the old Shirley Boys High School. To clear all traces of contamination, a full site scrape was undertaken. Despite this setback, the project was completed almost a month ahead of schedule and within budget. The school was able to move into the new facility during the holidays, ready for the start of the new term.

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Keola

Project Partners

Keola Ltd (Construction Company), RDT Pacific (Project Manager), Smith Architects (Architect/Designer)

Owned By

Chrysalis Group (Gaia Earth Forest Preschool)

This exceptional preschool follows a Gaia Earth based approach not only in its curriculum, but also in its unique building construction. Biomimicry techniques were adopted to design the building into the shape of a leaf, which soars off the ground atop of 240 accurately placed timber piles. Sustainability was essential to this project, with rainwater harvesting, efficient heated floors, smart ventilation, and soon to be installed solar panels. The preschool also features wide open decks, shallow streams, and a mudslide for the children to embrace nature. Lockdowns, cost escalations, and supply chain disruptions delayed the opening date by two years. There was little space to lay materials or for vehicles to turn, with delivery trucks having to reverse 200 metres back out to the road. Local community was involved with this project from day one. The neighbourhood is proud to feature one of the last six ancient forest systems left in Auckland, which the centre was able to blend in tastefully with.

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Accent Construction

Project Partners

Accent Construction Interiors Ltd (Construction Company), Brewer Davidson Architects (Architect/Designer), Maltbys Ltd (Quantity Surveyor), Tetra Tech (Project Manager)

Owned By

Ministry of Education

The Pakuranga College redevelopment saw the demolition of 12 existing classrooms and the construction of a significant new replacement building. The new block consists of traditional classroom spaces, technology classrooms and learning facilities for students with special needs. This building was the pilot design for a prototype classroom block, which is able to be transposed onto almost any site around the country. Features of the prototype include an economic build, free span interiors for easy alterations in future, a compact lift and low maintenance finishes. Challenges included issues with the width of the structural steel splice, incorrect flashing for the roof and an error when applying the external wall linings. Regardless of these challenges, the project team collaborated to overcome all issues and finished the build to an excellent standard.