Business Central September 2021

| 5 The design of Tākina draws its inspiration from many sources including Wellington’s harbour, its famed wild weather, hilly landscape and Maori mythology. The state-of-the art building features a base- isolated diagrid structure to provide resilience against earthquakes. Tākina - a perfect fit for the ‘windy city’ T T Karen Phelps DEVELOPMENT Tākina/Wellington Convention Centre - LT McGuinness T T to page 6 SPECIALISTS IN: • POLISHED CONCRETE • DIAMOND GRINDING • VINYL / CARPET PREP • TIMBER / TILE PREP • MOISTURE BARRIERS • EPOXY FLOOR COATINGS • BLOCK WALL HONING / SEALING • STONE / MARBLE RESTORATION • COATING / ADHESIVE REMOVAL • RESURFACING / LEVELLING PO Box 539 • Wellington 6140 • Phone: 04 479 2175 Web: www.visioninstallations.co.nz • Email: donny@visioninstallations.co.nz COMMERCIAL • RESIDENTIAL INFRASTRUCTURE • CIVIL • RURAL ultimateconcrete.co.nz PRECAST AND PRESTRESSED CONCRETE SPECIALISTS C onstruction of Tākina, Wellington’s new convention and exhibition centre, is progressing rapidly with the main structure due for completion and work about to commence on the interior fitout. The massive 18,000sqm building features 10,000sqm of dedicated convention space spread across its top two floors and a 1650 sqm ground-floor exhibition gallery to accom- modate global touring exhibitions. Set to open in 2023, the building has front- ages onto Cable and Wakefield streets and is only a stone’s throw from Te Papa and the waterfront. It is also only a five-minute walk from the city’s entertainment and restaurant hotspots of Courtenay Place and Cuba Street further growing this premier cultural and entertainment precinct. The centre was designed for Wellington City Council by Wellington-based Studio Pacific Architecture. The stunning design draws its inspiration from many sources including Wellington’s harbour, its famed wild weath- er, hilly landscape and Maori mythology, particularly Te Ūpoko-o-te-Ika-a-Māui (Maui’s head of the fish). The building’s unique Sefar glass cladding emphasises the shimmering, sinewy skin which changes in transparency throughout the day as it reflects Wellington’s sometimes-dramatic weather. What also makes it a distinctly Wellington building is the use of raw and natural earthy tones, materials and colours throughout. It’s a building designed for Wellington that cele- brates its location and context. The Council engaged Willis Bond as devel- opment manager and contractor LT McGuin- ness to lead the Tākina project and construc - tion commenced in late 2019. The state-of-the art building features a base-isolated diagrid structure to provide resilience against earthquakes. The fundamental aim of base-isolation is to separate and isolate the main building struc- ture from its foundations and substructure so strong ground movements are not transmit- ted into the building itself.