Features
Each Build offers in-depth insights into two topics of interest to the building and construction industry.
Feature section: What clients want
Clients are often unsure about what they want. That's why a good architect or designer helps tease out answers, while the best builders jeep clients informed.
Articles in this section
Feature section: Good, better, best
Building Code standards are simply a minimum to build and design to. By aiming higher and considering optimum performance, we could be designing and constructing buildings that are not just good, but the best.
Articles in this section
Feature section: Tale of two cities
While Christchurch is starting to rebuild following the destructive earthquakes, Auckland is bulging at the seams with housing demand and prices soaring. Our two biggest cities prose challenges in very different ways.
Feature section: Homes for life
What could be more sensible than homes that can be adapted to suit the needs of people throughout their lives? Accreditation schemes such as Lifemark and a small but growing trend towards universal design are making this happen.
Articles in this section
Feature section: Weathertightness
The leaky building crisis and its impacts will be with us for years to come. While there are many unanswered questions, there are important principles and basic advice designers and builders should take note of so future disasters are avoided.
Articles in this section
Feature section: Technology
Technology is bringing rapid changes to the way we work. Drones, robots and 3D printing are just some of the ways disruptive new technologies are impacting on the industry. In the home, the Internet of Things is automating tasks that were previously laboriously manual.
Articles in this section
Feature section: What to use where
Knowing what building material to use in a particular situation is often not straightforward. The Building Code spells out the requirements, but designers and builders need to make sure the products they use are genuine and fit for purpose.
Feature section: Behind the walls
The hidden aspects of buildings can often be the problem zones, with lurking contaminated materials and inadequate fire stopping around service penetrations just two examples. However, this is also where some of the best and most critical building work lies.
Feature section: Sustainable design
The shift towards sustainability in the built environment is irrevocable. While two major cities look to benchmark new development against green assessment tools, a stunning regional project aspires to the highest sustainability standards in design and function.
Articles in this section
Feature section: Commercial buildings
Challenges abound for commercial buildings. High energy and water use are issues, and weathertightness has caused plenty of problems. But there are also reasons to celebrate as exciting New Zealand innovations help push timber structures higher.