122 | New college building a triumph The new classroom building has a combined floor area of 1300sqm, comprised of six classroom spaces on each floor. Tauranga Boys’ College - Marra Construction: T T Richard Loader COMMUNITY Far from the classroom blocks of yore, Tauranga Boys’ College’s new two-storey classroom building is a fresh jewel in the school’s crown that combines multiple claddings, structural shapes and recessed spaces, balconies and broad external staircases. Beautifully designed by Designgroup Stapleton Elliott (DGSE), the project has recently been completed by Tauranga’s Marra Construction. The site of the new building is the school’s old 2500sqm carpark which was demolished to make way for the new structure, while an existing but smaller carpark was extended by the equivalent space. Marra Construction’s contract was to complete demolition of the carpark, construct the new carpark and classroom building, with approximately 2000m2 of surrounding landscaping made up of permeable paving, tigerturf, multiple concrete finishes and planted areas. “We commenced on site early June 2022, demolishing the old car park, while at the same time extending the smaller car park, which was completed mid October,” says Marra Construction’s Project Manager Rodney Mills. “Demolition work was completed in June last year and we commenced foundation work for the new classroom block. We handed over the ground floor on the 10th of October this year, to provide the school with a few additional teaching spaces, and then the full project was handed over on the 17th of November.” The new classroom building has a combined floor area of 1300sqm, comprised of six classroom spaces on each floor. There are a total of eight breakout spaces and the upper PROUD TO SUPPORT MARRA CONSTRUCTION LTD It’s easier doing business with people you know. Ph. 07 571 4700 1066 Cameron Rd, Gate Pa, Tauranga level has four outdoor learning balcony areas. Each level has its own toilet area, and there is one staffroom. Full height brickwork is a theme running through all the school’s buildings and has been repeated in the new building, combined with Colorsteel and multiple types of James Hardie claddings. Large Glulam posts have been incorporated into the structural design and there are two external concrete stairwells, with broad concrete precast bleacher seats. Inside, classroom spaces can be opened up or closed off by glazed aluminium sliding joinery. There is a mix of interior finishes including white-washed Laminex strandboard and decortech linings, painted plasterboard, and clear stained timber trims throughout. Autex composite linings provide noise-dampening solutions where required. In addition to Marra Construction and DGSE, the wider construction team included WSP New Zealand who did the structural and civil engineering, and 2PiR Consulting who completed all services design. Colliers Project Leaders were the MoE’s client-side project manager. Rodney says that while there were some weather-related delays, the project went very well, which was in no small part because of the very good relationship with Colliers, MoE, and the rest of the construction team. “We do quite a lot of MoE work and understand what their needs and requirements are,” says Rodney. “Construction in an educational facility during school time can be challenging and a key requirement is always to minimise any impact on the school. “Marra Construction brings both scale and experience to these larger commercial projects. One of the key considerations is that we have our own construction/carpentry staff, which is a huge advantage.”
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