Green from inside out
With its double-glazed facade, large cedar sunshades and environmental management systems, the new Q4 building at Smales Farm raises the bar for sustainable design
A new generation of buildings is redefining the way we do business. Q4, at Smales Farm, North Shore, typifies the environmentally sustainable focus of many new commercial projects.
The building incorporates numerous special features designed to minimise energy usage, including intelligent building management systems. The architecture and materials were also designed with sustainability in mind. The facade features large vertical and horizontal cedar louvres that screen the sun, and extensive double-glazed window systems designed and supplied by Miller Design.
Kurt Van Niekerk, Miller Design project manager, says the company designed a window fixing detail that would meet the architect's brief for the glazing to protrude from the line of the building.
"Miller Design focuses on projects that require a substantial engineering input, including the design and manufacture of custom extrusions to accommodate design requirements," Van Niekerk says. "For this building, we designed a detail that would support the windows to the main structure, while still meeting the required visual aesthetics."
Tenancy windows on Levels 1 and 2 feature double glazing from the Oakley 39mm Universal Suite. This joinery also features on the interior windows of the central atrium. For the exterior of the atrium and some windows in the ground-floor retail tenancies, Miller Design supplied joinery from the Oakley 150mm Flush Glaze system.
Other products supplied by Miller Design include a glazing bar system on the roof light and Sentry bifolds for the retail tenancies.
For more information, contact Miller Design, PO Box 12-543, Penrose, Auckland, phone (09) 525 5788. Email: mail@millerdesign.co.nz.
Story by: Trendsideas
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