University of Otago’s student accommodation opened in 2023. Today, Te Rangihīroa has been awarded a World Leadership level in sustainability and innovation by the New Zealand Green Building Council.

The Green Star Design and As Built is used to assess a project’s sustainability through several key performance and environmental categories, such as the indoor environment quality or the materials used.

The accommodation building is named after Te Rangihīroa (Sir Peter Buck), the first Māori medical graduate from a New Zealand university. It is the first purpose-built college constructed by the University of Otago in over 50 years and was designed to showcase a Māori heritage, both inside and out, for example, through its remarkable facade and its kaokao pattern. The design also encourages a natural flow of communication between different
areas and facilitates social interaction. The construction process remained collaborative, even when challenged by uncontrollable difficulties due to COVID-19, and the project was successfully delivered to the University of Otago in 2023.

With a 6 Green Star Design and As Built NZ v1.0 built review rating recognition, this 450-bedroom residential college building is the first of its kind to meet this level of sustainability in New Zealand. This is more than what we were targeting, and it highlights our continual commitment to greater sustainability and
innovation in the construction industry in New Zealand.