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Project Pātūtū : pre-fabricated timber and straw panels
No full text“Pātūtū draws on the idea of shelter, of walls, the process of creating a screen (against the elements) and the process of stacking some thing on top of the other..."
A short history of straw bale construction
Why use straw and what are the issues?
Prefabrication with timber and straw
EcoCocon Panels
Buildings in all possible styles
Resource Matters Elective 2019
Straw production in Aotearoa New Zealand for the year ended June 2012
Counting straw : do we have enough to make a difference
Fragments of a history: Museum of Samoa
No full textRESEARCH QUESTION
How can the architectural design of a new museum for Samoa contribute to the narration of Samoa’s culture and history?
ABSTRACT
Samoa’s history in the last two centuries has not only been shaped by one culture but by many – not least through colonialism. This has ultimately shaped the island nation as what it is today. The preservation of cultural traditions and history is paramount in providing identity to a people, and a place. The current National Museum of Samoa is not performing as a reputable place that provides and informs people on Samoan culture and history. There is a distinct need for such a space, a place that informs and educates people on Samoan cultural heritage and history. This project, based on the design for a museum for Samoa, will allow for Samoan traditions and their political history to be preserved in a space that will influence people and future generations to learn from.
The construction of the Courthouse building by the German colonial administration, in 1902/03, marked the starting point of a building that would live through periods that have shaped Samoa’s modern history. Used by the Germans, later the New Zealand administration and the Samoan Prime Minister’s Office, the building visibly showed Samoan history. This became the starting point of this project: the Courthouse as a place for a Museum for Samoa. The investigation of the building led to research in three main areas of the project: conservation, Samoan history/culture, and museology.
The old Courthouse building was vacated when the new Ministry of Justice building had been completed in 2010, which housed the new courtrooms. After many years of the building being left vacant, its removal in 2020 resulted in an abrupt shift to the project.
The project has taken the approach to design the museum, from research gathered through building conservation, in the form of a partial reconstruction, and a new building. The reconstruction serves as a reminder of what had been present, in the past, but also of the fact that the building is no longer present
Māori architecture: A response to colonisation
No full textFor generations, Māori have disputed colonisation and the impact it has had on Indigenous peoples. As settlers acquired more land, Māori realised they were losing power over decision making in Aotearoa and began to create their own communities, religions and even a monarchy, in an attempt to retain tino rangatiratanga, or soveriegnty. Māori leaders wanted to send a clear message to the settler state that they weren’t prepared to give everything up and assimilate into the Pākehā world.
Architecture became a mechanism for resistance. Buildings, whether they be temporary or permanent structures, portray a sense of belonging and human occupation, and therefore became a meaningful way to create presence during conflict. This paper attempts to give an insight into the impact Māori architecture has had politically, focusing particularly on two buildings: Hiona, built in the early twentieth century, and Tapu Te Ranga, which began construction in the 1970s. Both buildings were built by Māori leaders who saw how their people were struggling under Crown rule and wanted to create a place of solitude and acceptance for Māori. They created unique pieces of architecture that were not only refuges, but symbols of autonomy. These buildings have become well-known architecturally and politically, and have had a lasting impact on generations of Māori and non- Māori
Business strategies in the retail supermarkets industry: A comparative case study analysis of Costco and Aldi
No full textThis exploratory research aimed to study business models and strategies adopted by international retailers – Aldi and Costco in Australia and investigate their relevance in the New Zealand supermarket industry. Existing literature on the concepts of business model, strategy and competitive advantage was explored. A case study approach was taken to study business models and strategies of the selected cases and inductively derive key business strategies to break structural barriers and position competitively. Data was collected from multiple secondary sources to ensure the authenticity of the information while several strategic management models and frameworks were applied in the data analysis to overcome the reliability issues. The findings of this study suggested how Aldi and Costco have gained power over buyers and competitive advantage using their unique business models and strategies. Based on the findings, a cost leadership strategy with a cost-efficient operations style business model was recommended to break the structural barriers and position competitively within the New Zealand supermarket industry. Furthermore, the significance of organisational culture, building customer loyalty and continuous innovation to support business model and strategy was emphasised for a sustainable competitive advantage
Living within the boundaries
No full textRESEARCH QUESTION:
In the context of a suburban environment, can innovative modular housing effectively help to alleviate housing issues in Auckland?
ABSTRACT:
Human housing is a matter of mass demand. Just as it no longer occurs to 90 percent of the population to have shoes made to measure but rather buy ready-made products that satisfy most individual requirements thanks to refined manufacturing methods, in the future the individual will be able to order from the warehouse the housing that is right for him. It is possible that present-day technology would already be capable of this, but the present-day building industry is still almost completely dependent on traditional, craftsmanly construction methods. - Walter Gropius, “Wohnhaus-Industrie,” 1924
Prefabrication has been around for many years, as early as the 1800's. Famous architects like Walter Gropius and Le Corbusier both created prefabrication systems to simplify the process of building a home. As Gropius stated in an essay published in 1924, he predicts that people don't buy shoes made to fit, but instead buy shoes from a catalogue, and that people could do the same for housing. The aim of this project will be about creating infill housing throughout an urban context like Auckland City. Allowing people, the dream of owning their own home. The main aim of this investigation will be, if modular and prefabricated housing can enhance and solve housing issues for young adults within the suburban environment? Through the review and analysis of literature in the field of prefabrication will outline the benefits of modular housing. According to Auckland Council, Auckland is one of the world's least affordable cities in the world. The price of housing has increased significantly over the past 10 years, which means that many people cannot afford to buy their own house and are usually forced to rent or even worse, to be homeless.
The development of a modular prefabricated system to allow for a wide range of applications and to meet social housing standards and will provide the essential requirements and constraints to be designed to. The project would help alleviate some of the troubles that people have when looking to buy their first house, by creating housing in 'left-over' underutilised suburban space that will be eco-friendly and sustainable. The use of digital technology will drive the design to ensure efficiency, cost effectiveness, and aesthetics of these homes that are representative of the context and are durable enough to withstand the elements. The use of automated machines, such as CNC routers and 3D printers can enable these homes to be customised to fit in a variety of unique left-over space within the urban context.
SITE: Albany, Auckland, New Zealan
Hope in oncology facility
Get PDFRESEARCH QUESTION
How can architecture help to improve the emotional well-being of cancer patients?
ABSTRACT
Cancer is one of the most prevalent diseases of this century. Almost 10 million people worldwide die each year due to different types of cancer. Only about one person in every three people in New Zealand gets cured of this deadly disease. Every day 63 new cancer cases are recorded in New Zealand. In 2012, cancer accounted for 210 deaths for every 100,000 people in New Zealand. This is a higher rate than Australia or the United States of America. With an ageing population in New Zealand, there is the prospect of numbers of cancer patients increasing, and while many treatments have been developed to halt or delay the disease there is no known cure.
In recent times, New Zealand has invested approximately 20 million dollars in opening a new private cancer facility called the Bowen Icon Cancer Centre in Wellington. Research on innovative approaches to provide for greater comfort to patients who often feel emotionally weak during the process of recovery is under continuous development.
This project will propose a design for a support centre for cancer patients targeted at creating a positive environment during their treatment. It will incorporate an in-depth analysis of literature and take inspiration from established contemporary ideas regarding the wellbeing of cancer care patients. Since there are spaces like radiation rooms which need to be designed to hospital standards in the process of achieving this goal, each aspect of the design will be considered and studied before introducing design strategies. Salutogenic design strategies will also be explored and included in the facility design. Precedents will be analysed to understand how architects have developed projects from nascent concepts to design execution. These exemplars will inform the design process
The tomorrow of yesterday: Understanding the layers of built history
No full textRESEARCH QUESTION:
How can the contemporary reconstruction of a damaged building honour the layers of a building’s history?
ABSTRACT:
Historic buildings contain more than bricks and timber, they contain memories, experiences, philosophies, agendas, and history, all of which become threatened when the building gets damaged and no longer plays an active role in our society. As a result, conservation efforts are vital in preserving the history of these buildings and ensuring they continue on to our future.
During the unfortunate event where a historic building is damaged, there is often controversy over whether to repair and restore or not. If one does restore it, to which stage of the building’s history would one have the building return to? What makes a building’s age more important than its current history? All too often will moments of history be wiped from a historic building so that it can be returned to its original state. But what is original? Something that happened one hundred years ago or last week?
This project challenges the conservation standards often used when historic buildings become damaged. In the aftermath of the September 2010 and February 2011 Canterbury earthquakes, many historic buildings remain as fragments of what they once were, needing more funding to allow for the complete restoration of those buildings. The Canterbury Provincial Council Chambers is a perfect example of this. First built in 1859, the Provincial Council Buildings bore witness of a colony’s development into a nation, reflecting the moments of prosperity, growth, and confidence throughout the provincial government years. Sustaining significant damage during the earthquakes, the Provincial Council Buildings have remained idle ever since.
Thus, the purpose of this project is to find relevance in conservation philosophies of architects, theorists, and historians. This project explores theories presented by John Ruskin, William Morris, Eugène-Emanuel Viollet-le-Duc, and Alois Riegl of the 19th century and with a particular focus on architect David Chipperfield’s processes and theory behind his Neues Museum design, to create a design response that accepts all layers of a building’s history and the passing of time, allowing the walls to stand ‘without silence’. It acknowledges the new within the old but also that the past is just as important as the present. The result is a building that accepts growth and change as a natural part of the building’s life and a building that has made permanent the memories of a life gone by
Tertiary learner mental health and wellbeing: The development of a national framework
No full textThis practitioner thesis explores the impact of tertiary study on the mental health and wellbeing of tertiary learners. I describe a dual practice approach combining two threads - the development of the work-based project for mental health of tertiary learners in education implemented as the Mental health Education Evaluation Tool (MEET) and the articulation of my professional framework of practice as a leading practitioner within the discipline of nursing associated with the mental health and wellbeing of tertiary learners. Through my professional practice, I aimed to achieve a stigma-free culture at Otago Polytechnic (OP), Dunedin, New Zealand, associated with mental ill-health of learners and to heighten their wellbeing. My contributions in these areas are three-fold.
The first contribution is the articulation of my framework for practice, as a change agent in the field of mental health in tertiary education. My professional practice has led to the implementation of a mental health education evaluation tool to enhance the mental health and wellbeing of tertiary learners. This practice change is my second substantial contribution. My third contribution is the creation of a strong mental health education evaluation tool that can be applied within organisations at a regional level, and on a larger national scale such as Te Pūkenga, to create a stigma-free tertiary environment. The findings of each of these three contributions are placed in the context of established literature and practice, and I reflect on my personal learning from that.
Throughout this work-based project, I am positioned as an educator within the discipline of nursing. I was concerned at the escalating numbers of tertiary learners presenting with an inability to cope with their own mental ill-health. I have wanted to understand the lived experiences of colleagues both within Otago Polytechnic and nationally, employed by tertiary providers. Colleagues shared their personal experiences with distressed learners through semi-structured interviews. All data was analysed by engaging with a thematic approach to reveal three overarching key themes: resilience; environment and mental ill-health.
Phase One of the practice research saw the development of the Supporting Distressed Students flowchart, in collaboration with Hayley Laughton, which has been presented internationally. A further development has been the Mental health Education Evaluation Tool, or MEET. This evaluation tool has demonstrated that the focus on supporting distressed learners’ approach is robust and flexible in the way it could be adapted to form a tool for enhancing mental health in tertiary learners. I describe the process by which this tool was accepted for implementation by the institution, including collaborative inquiry to illuminate practice, scrutiny and critique by the Mental Health Wellbeing Advisory Group and the Executive Leadership Team.
Due to the escalating numbers and acuity of learner presentations related to poor mental health in the tertiary environment, this work-based project to address this public health issue is not only timely, but critical
Checklist of dicotyledons, gymnosperms and pteridophytes Naturalised or Casual in New Zealand : additional records 2007–2019
No full textNew records of Naturalised and Casual plants are summarised for the flora of New Zealand during the 13- year period 2007–2019. Seventeen species are reported as fully Naturalised and 209 species are considered to be new records of Casual plants
Seeking safe harbour: Water immersion for women with complex pregnancy
No full textBACKGROUND
Water immersion is used by women, particularly within midwifery-led settings, as a strategy to manage the sensations of labour. Low-risk women who have used water immersion in labour express feelings of increased relaxation, support and control in their labour and birth experience. Being labelled ‘high risk’ can significantly impact both a woman’s experience of her pregnancy and her opportunity for experiencing a physiological birth. Women with complex pregnancies have reported an increase in anxiety and a feeling that their normal childbearing journey has been interrupted and subsumed by medical monitoring and risk management. Midwifery frameworks in Aotearoa New Zealand protect and promote the woman’s role as a decision maker within her experience and her right to make informed decisions about her care.
AIMS
The aim of this research was to develop an understanding of the influences, facilitators and barriers for women who chose to use water immersion for labour and birth, in a hospital setting, when they were labelled/identified as being clinically complex, as well as to explore their experience of using water immersion in labour.
METHODS
A qualitative descriptive inquiry, using semi-structured interviews was undertaken to explore seven women's experiences of using water immersion during their labour and/or birth after having a complex pregnancy. Inductive thematic analysis was used to analyse participant data.
FINDINGS
Thematic analysis identified four themes within the women’s experiences. Women use water immersion to resist the medicalisation of their birthing experience and protect themselves from the iatrogenic risks of birthing within a hospital setting. The desire to use water immersion is often driven by dissatisfaction with previous medicalised experiences of birth and the women’s desire to avoid repeating these experiences. Water provides a safe and protected space to labour which supports a sense of control and privacy. The LMC midwife is a vital ally and advocate in negotiating to use water immersion within the hospital setting. In this environment, staff can either facilitate or be barriers to using water immersion in labour with a complex pregnancy.
CONCLUSIONS
Women use water immersion in labour to optimise their opportunity for physiological birthing, often in response to previous medicalised births. Water immersion is experienced positively as a strategy to manage labour. Individualised holistic midwifery care from a Lead Maternity Care midwife was valued by the women and viewed as a key support in negotiating for the choice of water immersion. Women needed to purposefully seek a midwife who was willing to support them in their choice to use water immersion