The building won an ‘Excellence’ in the Greenstone Colliers Project Leaders Education Property Award. The annual Property Institute Awards celebrate and showcase superior examples of iconic property development and investment across a broad range of sectors and design disciplines.
Nominees are assessed for how the development tracked against financial estimates, owner and user satisfaction, as well as design, construction and sustainability.
The multi-level Innovation Complex is a highly functional 9,800m2 building with space for modern teaching, research and office space, fit for purpose for the next 40 to 50 years. The design is flexible and leverages creative spaces, furnishings and the latest technology, with a strong focus on sustainability.
Athfield Architects and Southbase Construction designed and built the complex respectively.
Construction began in 2019 and was completed at the end of 2022, on schedule and within budget despite a number of challenges.
The building replaces facilities on the former Otehā Rohe site, reducing the footprint of the university while providing required upgrades for the campus.
The Innovation Complex is technologically enhanced throughout to facilitate the co-creation of content, including audiovisual technology to help staff and students visualise their lab work and collaborate on shared screens.
Associate Director for Estates Progranmmes Peter Vause says collaboration, teamwork and sustainability was front of mind during the design and construction process.
“The complex includes a number of sustainable features such as high levels of thermal insulation, renewable heating and cooling systems, solar panels to generate electricity and occupancy sensors that turn lights off when rooms aren’t occupied.
“The ventilation system operates on a full fresh-air cycle, meaning that it pumps fresh air into each room and extracts stale air out. There are also several filters to ensure a high standard of air quality throughout the building,” he adds.
“It was always a goal for this building to be technology-leading, with a strong, sustainable design for the future.”
College of Sciences Pro Vice-Chancellor Professor Raymond Geor, who chaired the project steering group, says the structure, layout and spaces in the Innovation Complex allows undergraduate and postgraduate students, and world-class academic staff to interact, incubate ideas and innovate at the cutting-edge of their fields.
“The building is a place of focus and connectivity, bringing stakeholders, industry and community onto our campus and connecting them directly with our researchers. This will enhance our ability to provide transformative and relevant learning experiences to prepare our students for success in their chosen field and deliver relevant solutions to global challenges.”
The Innovation Complex has specific laboratories designed to support both undergraduate student learning and postgraduate research. Many of the laboratories can be used and adapted to suit teaching over several disciplines and subjects.
The building will also be home to specialist research-based industries.
Deputy Vice-Chancellor Students and Global Engagement Dr Tere McGonagle-Daly says the university is looking forward to showing the students around the building at Open Day next month.
“It’s exciting that we have this new, fit-for-purpose learning environment that we can highlight to our prospective students.”
