Business Central July 2021

12 | T T to page 14 “This is a very large building but it’s not your traditional factory—it makes quite an architectural statement as well as being functional.” REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT PGL Group/ APL Window Solutions Stunning facility makes a statement T T Richard Loader T he equivalent of eight rugby fields, PGL’s new glass factory on the fringes of Cambridge in Hautapu is an archi- tectural giant designed with people and the future in mind. While PGL is well known for its company APL Window Solutions, which will occupy a third of the new building, the new factory has been built for the group’s new glass business Architectural Glass Products (AGP). The brands Vantage Windows and Doors, First Windows and Doors, and Altherm Win- dow Systems fall under APL Window Solutions general banner. Architecturally designed by Auckland prac- tice Jasmax Architecture who had successfully completed previous work for PGL, the new 44,000sqm building is 412 metres long and 108 metres wide and encompasses three 36-metre bays. Three 1500sqm two-level office blocks will adjoin the main factory, providing office space for AGP Glass, APL Manufacturing and a cafe- teria equipped with a commercial kitchen. While construction of the factory has been completed and became operational just after Covid lockdown, the final office will not be completed until August/September 2021. Clad in insulated Kingspan panels, the building design achieved a Greenstar 5 rating which measures the design, construction and operation of the building. The build rating will not be known until all construction work has been completed. “This is a very large building but it’s not your traditional factory - it makes quite an architec- tural statement as well as being functional,” says Craig Vincent, PGL’s CEO. “Five very large skylights through the factory provide natural light and ventilation—and they are an exceptional feature,” says Craig. “And because we’re into windows, doors and facades the building’s exterior has a large element of glass in it.”