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- Natasha Cockerell
- Mark Gribble
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News + Thoughts Articles

Great result for school following remediation
Maraetai home wins Gold
How Vulcan Timber Positively Impacts a Building Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)
OFC ‘Home of Football’ – a Property Industry Awards 2023 Finalist
Architect ‘walking the talk’ for sustainability at home
Passive House Whānau Spotlight – Arthur Lee from Respond Architects
Layering spaces, light and modernity
An architect’s own home which goes against the grain
Respond Associates for 2021
Cost vs Benefits: Passive House
A Change For Good
A Labour of Love
Pushing the Boundaries of Prefabricated Design
A Move to Green
Road to Registration – The Merits of the Architect
How much does it cost to design and build a Passive House in NZ?
Achieving Passive House Certification – And Why It’s Not Just for New Homes
Why More Kiwis Should Consider Passive House Certification
The Science Behind Warmer, Drier, Healthier Homes
Festival of Architecture 2019: Model Citizens
Respond VR Headsets
Architecture as a response to its surroundings
From design to build in record time
Striking a balance: great design on a budget
How a towering Orewa apartment block is being fixed
To renovate or not to renovate
Delivering Honda’s brand new head office
Innovative learning environments
A home built around a courtyard
Auckland schools desperately want government to plan for roll growth
NZIA IN:SITU Conference: the resurgence of beauty
Money only problem in Christchurch Cathedral rebuild
Culture of old blocks different
Building information modelling…let’s call it BIM
Getting the most out of your site
Cumberland House: rejuvenation of a classic

― Contact us

Phone: 09 913 0400
Email: [email protected]

Auckland studio
Level 1, 34 Barrys Point Road, Takapuna, Auckland 0622.
PO Box 33700, Takapuna, Auckland 0740.

Christchurch studio
Airport Business Park, Level 1, Unit B/92 Russley Road, Russley, Christchurch 8042.
PO Box 8049, Riccarton, Christchurch 8440.

Queenstown studio
Level 2, 36 Shotover Street, Queenstown 9300.

― Connect with us

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respondarchitects

A team of Architects that tread the line between creative design solutions and technical expertise. Based in Auckland, with work across NZ

Consent Lodged for this stunning new home on the o

Consent Lodged for this stunning new home on the outskirts of Auckland! On a challenging steep site, with expansive harbour views to the south, the project responds to the clients brief for a contemporary home that knits together interior and exterior living, fengshui, and extensive cooking facilities! Thermal modelling enabled us to tailor the project to meet the clients required performance, while a Lossnay balanced MVHR system will ensure the interior environment is healthy throughout the year.
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A key challenge was that the main views and openings were to the south - not ideal for solar gain, but through exploring different specifications in the model we could assess the impact on heating demand and overheating of each decision to achieve adequate performance levels. While reducing heating energy demand is important, with our changing climate, managing overheating potential is arguably even more of a priority. With this project we reduced the overheating potential from over 8% under the H1 schedule method minimum standards, down to just over 3% with the proposed glazing. The modelling also showed that with standard glazing, while the heating demand would have been slightly lower, the proposed building would have had an overheating risk of nearly 12% - a good example of making sure you’re balancing the specification both ways, and how energy modelling can take the unknown risks out of performance!
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Final metrics compared to H1 schedule method minimums:
22% lower heating energy demand
58% lower overheating risk
69% lower overall energy demand PER
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Project Lead: @natashacockerell
Architectural Graduate: @anekegibbs
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#lifeofanarchitect #architecture #architect #designer #architecturelovers #archilovers #archdaily #archlife #newzealand #newzealandarchitecture #nzarchitecture #architecture_hunter #architecturelovers #archilovers #next_top_architects #nzdesign #highperformancebuildings #energymodelling #phpp #betterbuildings #buildingperformance #aucklandarchitecture #auckland #aucklandarchitect

We're extremely happy to share that our Windy Ridg

We're extremely happy to share that our Windy Ridge High Performance classroom block is one of the nominees for the @propertycouncilnz Property Industry Awards 2024!
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Through energy modelling in PHPP, and dynamic modelling from @stephensonandturner, we reduced the heating energy demand by over 55% from the current H1 minimums, while also delivering a 38% lower overheating potential. A simple form helped us achieve the performance, while keeping costs in check and allowing us to include flashes of beauty and fun, with biophilic design elements internally and externally.
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A range of spaces within and around the building provide teaching spaces for every need, including a central social staircase, flexible bleacher seating, a sunny window seat, a 'green room' for filming, exterior first floor decks with views of the water, and a link bridge out to the orchard bank behind. The school have been in the building for over a year now, and rave about the levels of comfort throughout the year.
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Despite it's high level of energy efficiency, the project actually came in under budget, and was completed by Woodview Construction a whole month early! Proof that when you consider performance from the start of the design process, achieving better buildings does not have to cost more.
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If you're interested in talking about your own project, and how you can achieve higher levels of performance, durability, health and energy efficiency, feel free to get in touch!
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#lifeofanarchitect #architecture #architect #designer #architecturelovers #archilovers #archdaily #archlife #newzealand #newzealandarchitecture #nzarchitecture #architectureporn #architecture_hunter #architecturelovers #archilovers #next_top_architects #classroomblock #healthyschool #interiorenvironment #thermalperformance #nzdesign

On the Drawing Board – a stunning sculptural hom

On the Drawing Board – a stunning sculptural home in the QT area from the RA Queenstown Office, for @dcd_ltd_queenstown
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The Landing
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A design scope based on performance, views, ease of living and being true to nature. The building's form, texture and colours are inspired from a native Kea landing on the schist landscape. The building rises out of the schist rock ground and the expansive roof encloses the occupants under its wing like form.
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Mainly northwest facing with unobstructed 180 degree views, the Whakatipu Basin is secluded and sheltered by nesting into the hillside above Lake Hayes. The ground floor provides warm, cave/bunker like spaces, representing the earth. The upper floor is light, airy and expansive as a Kea wing, split by the central circulation the body.
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Project lead @shanabanananz
Kea Photo 01 - Christopher George
Kea Photo 02 - Arthur Lee
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#lifeofanarchitect #architecture #architect #archdaily #newzealand #newzealandarchitecture #nzarchitecture #architecturelovers #archilovers #nzdesign #queenstown #queenstownarchitecture #healthybuildings #performancearchitecture #queenstownarchitect #whakatipu #whakatipubasin #lakehayes #viewsfordays #newzealandviews #queenstownviews

RA are lucky to be made up of a group of awesome i

RA are lucky to be made up of a group of awesome individuals, each with their own passions! Architectural Designer & BIM Specialist @kokako_and_huia is one of these, and outside the studio she spends almost every weekend volunteering on TiriTiri Maitangi - an island sanctuary for birds & wildlife off the coast of Auckland.
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At the NZIA In:Situ conference the presentation by Jeanne Gang divulged her love of birds, so after catching her following her excellent presentation, Luca met Jeanne and her husband for a guided tour around the island. Sustainable landscaping, and increasing the awareness of bird-window collisions were points of conversation, something we’re definitely going to incorporate more into our projects & glazing design - a great example of hour your passion can inform and enhance your work.
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#lifeofanarchitect #architecture #architect #designer #architecturelovers #archilovers #archdaily #archlife #newzealand #newzealandarchitecture #nzarchitecture #architecture_hunter #architecturelovers #archilovers #next_top_architects #nzdesign #studiogang #birdwindowcollisions #sustainablelandscaping #tiritirimatangi #nativebirds

This morning we undertook the first blower door te

This morning we undertook the first blower door test at our Sullivan Ave multi unit project with @nestorinvest , which is aiming for Passive House Certification.
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This is the first Passive House project for the builders and developers, so there were definitely some nerves when we arrived. Taping the staples kept them (and me!) busy while Nick from @crafthomesnz set up the blower door, then the test began…
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A few minutes later, sensational news - 0.31ach for depressurisation, followed by 0.35ach for pressurisation - an average of 0.33ach! This is a fantastic result, and a testament to the skill and attention to detail of the builders, especially on their first one. Standard new builds in NZ achieve 3-5ach, and Passive House requires less than 0.6ach; so they’ve lots of wiggle room!
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Blower door testing isn’t just for Passive House projects though, it’s an excellent tool for assessing the quality of the building envelope. A building full of holes will lose energy, have higher interstitial condensation risk, not to mention let in exterior noise. A more airtight building is far more durable, comfortable, and uses less energy. Homestar 8* level and up from @nzgreenbuildingcouncil requires blower door testing, and other countries have it as part of their building code, so it’s extremely likely it will be part of our code too in the not too distant future…!
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Massive congratulations to Samiu, Jasnish and the whole construction team - a combination of great builders, great products, and great detailing of course!!
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@proclimanz
@respondarchitects
@mevuni
@arthur0106
@starke_nz
#lifeofanarchitect #architecture #architect #designer #architecturelovers #archilovers #archdaily #archlife #newzealand #newzealandarchitecture #nzarchitecture #architecture_hunter #architecturelovers #archilovers #next_top_architects #nzdesign #blowerdoortest #airtightness #buildingenvelope #highperformancebuildings #passivehouse #passivhaus #healthybuildings @passivehousenz

We love getting feedback from the people we work w

We love getting feedback from the people we work with, whether it’s clients or consultants, as it helps us grow and improve. This one from an RA Queenstown office client particularly gave us a smile today - it’s been our pleasure to work on this project from feasibility study all the way through to construction, and we’re excited to undertake the construction observation in the coming months!
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#lifeofanarchitect #architecture #architect #archdaily #newzealand #newzealandarchitecture #nzarchitecture #architecturelovers #archilovers #nzdesign #highperformancebuildings #NZGBC #Homestar #healthybuildings #greenhomes #queenstown #queenstownarchitecture #queenstownarchitect #thebestclients #alwaysimproving #5starreview

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