I’ve always said: “if you are willing to give a square metre rate, all it shows is that you don’t know what you are talking about”. But what is the best way to answer this common question?

With the current rapidly evolving move of our new housing developments away from standalone homes to medium density attached dwellings, I consider that there is an urgent need for a new approach to the fenestration forms of these new building typologies. In the past houses had all four elevations exposed to the elements. Now there often are only two or three, and even just one exterior wall. The growing awareness of the summer over-heating problems of these new dwellings requires new approaches to design.

The economist says the market's cyclical. The politician says they've got a plan for that. The builder just wants to know who's paying the invoice. Turns out all three were right: it is cyclical, there is a plan — and yes, someone's paying. Just not before 2027!

An area often queried is the management of stormwater passing through a membrane surface, typically a downpipe penetrating a membrane deck or canopy.

Condensation in roof spaces is increasingly common, but the solution isn't just ventilation. This article explores why controlling internal moisture at its source, combined with airtight construction and above sheathing ventilation, is the most effective way to reduce condensation risk in modern New Zealand roofs.

Each summer we complain that a significant proportion of our homes are over-heating; and each winter express concern at the poor thermal performance of our older housing stock. The simple and quick fix is to install plenty of mechanical cooling, heating and ventilation systems, and appliances — but at what cost to the wallet and environment?

Guest post by Sustainable Engineering | The New Zealand building industry is walking blindly once again. As we transition to higher thermal performance targets, the way we’ve always built simply doesn't work anymore. If you treat a highly insulated, airtight build like a standard code-minimum house from ten years ago, you are taking on massive structural and financial risk.

Practical lessons from replacing a deck — how visual costing, and activity-based costing make for more reliable estimates.

The relationship between architects and roofing contractors doesn't have to be adversarial — but too often, the conditions we create make it that way. At this month's RANZ Conference, architect Dave Strachan spoke candidly to a room of roofers about what good collaboration actually looks like. Reading back through his insights, there's as much in it for us as there is for them.

Window & Glass Association's Technical Manager, Rob Campion, compares AS 2047 and TS 4211. The differences, while subtle, are exactly the kind of thing that can create a consent problem or a weather-tightness failure if they're not well understood and incorrect selections are made.