Award – winning and sustainable: Kobe Construction

The new $12 million Queenstown Country Clubhouse has notched up several milestones, thanks to Christchurch-based Kobe Construction.

Designed by Warren and Mahoney Architects, the Arvida project won silver in the Designers Institute of New Zealand Best Design Awards, and set a new standard for sustainable, all-timber construction. It’s also the first full Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) sustainably certified construction project in its region.

Totalling 1650sqm, it comprises a 15m swimming pool and spa, library, 50-seat movie theatre, fitness gym, spacious communal lounge and dining, open fire and billiards tables, with a luxurious alpine lodge feel.

Leaders in mass-timber building using engineered wood products, Kobe Construction was the builder of choice. Mass-timber construction typically comprises large, solid wood panels, columns or beams manufactured on-site for load-bearing wall, floor, and roof construction. Such products include laminated veneer lumber (LVL), glulam, and cross-laminated timber (CLT).

The Queenstown clubhouse comprises highly sustainable glulam timber in place of steel. Kobe Construction owner Blair (Blu) Tipler says they’re strongly orientated towards sustainable construction, which offers better solutions for the environment, and also for the
on-site process. He adds that this building philosophy also offers the ability to take advantage of prefabricated, on-site processing and assembly, creating massive efficiencies in construction,
he adds.

The BIG PICTURE
The government’s wood-first initiative promotes mass-timber construction for new government buildings up to four levels, bringing carbon sequestration benefits and is aimed at attracting investment and creating higher-paid jobs in the sector.

Mass-timber componentry for a project is designed using CAD (Computer Aided Design), and Building Information Modelling (BIM).
Kobe Construction uses these and 3D modelling generated on-site in its construction process. “We can assemble and build to an exceptional level of accuracy, using BIM models for both construction and design,” Blu says. “We want to make this approach an industry standard for all future builds.”

FSC – Forest Stewardship Council
The council sets industry standards, and targets the most pressing issues in New Zealand forestry today, including living wage requirements, waterways protection, erosion-related issues, and cultural communication.

Visit the website https://anz.fsc.org