66 | BRANZ: Campus Redevelopment Virginia Wright Vital research for better buildings “Our testing determines the product’s performance with respect to fire performance and safety for various elements used in a building for instance floors, cladding, wall systems and so on to limit the fire risk to building occupants so that they can get out in time before the fire takes hold.” Established in 1969, BRANZ (Building Research Association New Zealand) is funded by the Building Research Levy which was brought into law early in 1970. Created as a centre of excellence for research, offering independent and impartial research, testing, consulting and information, it sees its role as “Challenging Aotearoa New Zealand to create a building system that delivers better outcomes for all”. When BRANZ are involved, you can be confident that the components of that building system have been researched and tested under controlled conditions to meet Building Code compliance. The redevelopment of the west side of the BRANZ campus began in late 2021 with plans to stage the construction project across three years to maintain all the services currently offered by BRANZ. The redevelopment will see the construction of a new fire laboratory, a new structures laboratory, some new office space and the repurposing of the existing fire laboratory into a shared storage building, “It’s modernising very old facilities that were built back in the 1970’s and early 80’s and gives us the means to develop new capability particularly in the fire research space,” says General Manager of Corporate Services, Kaetrin Stephenson. She says the new fire laboratory will bring a significant upgrade to the testing and research and consultancy services it has to offer. “We do fire resistance testing with assessments and certification of building products and materials to ensure that they meet the Building Code. “Our testing determines the product’s performance with respect to fire performance and safety for various elements used in a building for instance floors, cladding, wall systems and so on to limit the fire risk to building occupants so that they can get out in time before the fire takes hold. “In other words that they meet the Building Code which is designed to preserve life,” explains Kaetrin. The new fire laboratory shortly under construction has a floor plate that is about the size of half a rugby field and is 19.5 metres tall, meaning a three-storey building can be erected inside the laboratory and then be set on fire and tested. Testing, research and observation can be undertaken to assess how the building products behave in ‘real world’ conditions that are nevertheless controlled. Further testing undertaken in up to three furnaces will look at how other components used in construction react to fire: flooring systems, lift doors, ceiling, and cladding systems, to ensure that they will do what they say they’ll do. “If they’re going to be used in a high-rise building for example they have to meet certain standards and we will test to those standards,” says Kaetrin. The façade and specific cladding involved in the tragic Grenfell fire in London is a good example of what the BRANZ testing and research is working to avoid, and which the new fire laboratory will have much greater capability to test and model under controlled conditions. It’s that ability to replicate real world conditions that defines an important part of what BRANZ has to offer. While advances have been made in computer modelling the results still need to be verified in the real world and the extent to which they closely, or not, reflect reality needs to be assessed: in other words, does real life reflect what the model says. Given New Zealand’s constantly changing built environment, and the importance of the work undertaken at BRANZ, they have worked closely with lead contractor Hawkins to come up with the three-year plan to largely maintain operational capability throughout the redevelopment. “We’re effectively demolishing some buildings, some are staying and being repurposed, some new ones are being built where the old ones used to be, all on a timeline that allows us to maintain business as usual.” says Kaetrin BRANZ’s vision of Challenging Aotearoa NZ to create a building system that delivers better outcomes for all is wide reaching in its areas of targeted interest. Whether it’s how a building performs environmentally, seismically, in terms of their indoor air quality, or mould systems to name but a few, BRANZ look at them all with the goal of wanting every building to perform as well as they can to the benefit of all who live, work, or play in them. Your Business, Your Industry, Your News. Volume 6 | Issue 2 | April 2021 www.waterfordpress.co.nz ‘Excellence in Energy’ Taranaki’s Todd Energy will have a key role to play as New Zealand moves toward a low emissions economy. Page 8 Waikato farmers Dean & Ang Finnerty have expanded their dairy cow operation into a successful goat milking enterprise as well PAGE 10 Turning challenge into opportunity AUTUMN 2022 www.waterfordpress.co.nz Volume 6 | Issue 3 | July 2021 www.waterfordpress.co.nz Making waves Back on track New Zealand hydrofoil maker Armstrong is generating interest around the world with its high performance products. Work on the ambitious NZCIS facility in Upper Hutt is progressing well after Covid disruptions. PAGE 70 PAGE 10 Healthy delivery A new elective surgery facility in Hastings will provide a big boost to the region’s operating capacity. PAGE 52 Volume 6 | Issue 5 | December 2021 www.waterfordpress.co.nz Cheers Boys! YoungWellington irm3Māori Boys is creating a buzz with it’s ground-breakingWai Manuka natural beverage. PAGE 45 Passion and pride New Plymouth’s Energyworks has forged a strong reputation in 50 years of business. PAGE 64 Seaview upgrade CentrePort’s SeaviewWharf facility is set for a major upgrade to bring it up to international standards. PAGE 14 businesscentral Each edition priority delivered to your door. i i i i li . www.waterfordpress.co.nz/subscriptions . . . 03 983 5525 Stay informed; we work with business owners and decision-makers across all economic sectors, pro iling their success. i ; i i i i - ll i , ili i . Wellington (04) 384 9198 www.rlb.com Rider Levett Bucknall is proud to be supporting and providing Quantity Surveying & other construction cost management services for BRANZ
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