Worldwide DMA Construction is spearheading a landmark project in Auckland’s CBD. New Zealand’s first volumetric hotel build, on Wakefield Street, featuring 200 high-end rooms. Each room starts as a precision-engineered steel frame, with Triboard panels constructed onto the frame to form the walls, floors, and ceilings. All rooms are built off-site in Mt Wellington, fully completed before they arrive on site, ready to click into place like Lego. Pods will be transported to the site in the new year (2026).

Triboard: The backbone of modular design

At the heart of this project lies Triboard, a three-layer engineered panel system with a wood-strand core sandwiched between MDF skins. Its strength, stability, and smooth finish make it ideal for volumetric construction, where entire modules, walls, floors, and ceilings are built off-site and craned into place. While on-site foundations are being prepared, pods (completed rooms) are being manufactured simultaneously, saving massive amounts of time.

Next-level engineering: From M362438 to M38

The hotel’s floors, walls, and ceilings use Triboard M362438 panels (3600 x 2450 x 38mm intertenancy walls). Once Worldwide DMA Construction’s advanced technology is applied, these panels become M38 construction panels, breaking new ground in performance. This evolution reflects decades of expertise: Lloyd Parrent, head honcho at Worldwide DMA Construction, brings over 30 years of experience innovating Triboard panels, a wealth of knowledge that orchestrated getting this mammoth project off the ground.

Fire, sound, and impact resistance

Safety and comfort are non-negotiable in multi-storey hotels. Triboard delivers both. The latest fire testing results on Triboard M38 show up to 120 minutes burning time, thanks to a state-of-the-art coating system and Triboard’s density. Already BRANZ appraised for fire and acoustic performance, M38 pushes standards even higher. Triboard provides high acoustic performance suitable for inter-tenancy walls, ensuring guest privacy, while impact-resistant Triboard M241215 panels conceal internal wiring with featured detailing and consistent durability.

Curved Triboard: A New Zealand first

Adding to the innovation, this project introduces curved Triboard panels, achieved through CNC technology — another first for New Zealand. This unlocks design flexibility without compromising strength, giving architects freedom to create flowing, contemporary interiors.

Why it matters

Volumetric construction paired with Triboard means faster assembly, fewer trades on-site, and consistent quality across every room. Modules arrive complete with fire-rated walls, floors, and ceilings, reducing risk and accelerating timelines. For developers, this is more than a hotel, it’s a blueprint for the future of urban construction.

The future is volumetric and modular

Triboard is proving that modular design can integrate fire resistance, acoustic control, structural performance, and aesthetic finish in one engineered solution. For those shaping tomorrow’s buildings, the question isn’t if volumetric construction will take hold, it’s how far Triboard can take it.

Project status:

Onsite construction in Wakefield Street is in progress preparing for the pods’ arrival. Pods are getting completed right now and are planned to be sent to site in early 2026 to be craned into place.