Element Magazine May 2011

  1. Award winning home features Firth products

    An idyllic vantage point overlooking Lake Rotokauri is the location of a Greg McGovern Construction-built house that has won two awards the New Home ($1 - $2 million) and the Sustainable Homes (over $1 million) categories of the annual national 2010 Registered Master Builders Awards announced last November.

  2. Repair and reconstruction guidelines for Canterbury

    An evaluation and analysis of systems, in relation to housing structure, was conducted by the Department of Building and Housing in consultation with technical experts following the 4 September earthquake. “Guidance on House Repairs and Reconstruction Following the Canterbury Earthquake” is a guide on the repair and rebuild of houses in land-damaged areas of Canterbury and it is hoped it will help safeguard people and homes in future earthquakes.

  3. EsiBloc® saves time and money for Ryman Healthcare

    The Hilda Ross retirement village in Claudelands, Hamilton is well equipped with an extensive range of facilities. Demand in the Waikato required the construction of a fully equipped hospital so, using their own construction crew, Ryman began work on a new 80-bed hospital and dementia unit in November 2010 to complete the full range of facilities on offer.

  4. Design efficiencies deliver an affordable and comfortable home

    The A+ Home design was created by CCANZ to demonstrate that an affordable, comfortable and strong residential dwelling can be delivered, through design efficiencies, to meet New Zealand’s growing demand for reasonably priced housing.

  5. Early starts and huge volumes

    The New Zealand Defence Force has awarded a $30 million contract to Mainzeal Property and Construction Ltd to build additional infrastructure at the Ohakea Air Force Base in the Manawatu. Construction includes separate Air Force engineering and maintenance workshops covering 11,000m² and considerable volumes of concrete from Firth.

  6. Polished glamour at Air New Zealand

    The new Regional Lounge at Christchurch Airport is a joint venture between Air New Zealand and Christchurch International Airport (CIAL) and forms just a part of extensive work being carried out that includes a new check-in hall, baggage handling system, passenger lounges, improved passenger flows and enhanced retail and cafe offerings.

  7. Tunnel goes to ground

    Progress on Auckland’s new Victoria Park Tunnel (VPT) project is forging ahead (well ahead of plan) with the alliance team of the NZ Transport Agency, Fletcher Construction, Beca, Parsons Brinkerhoff and Higgins looking to deliver the project well inside the 48 month scheduled timeframe. Firth was awarded the contract to supply approx 38,000m³ of concrete for the main tunnel structure.