Kaweka-Inspired Green Star Building: A Blend of Solidity and Light

The new building, inspired by the majestic peaks of the Kaweka Range, features a design that reflects the solidity of these natural boundaries through robust brick cladding and punched windows. The entry canopy represents the clouds above the forest, contrasting the building’s mass with a glazed, light-filled entrance that creates a welcoming atmosphere.

The design philosophy embraces biophilic principles to enhance the health and well-being of staff, patients, and visitors. This is achieved through visual connections with nature, appropriate thermal and air-flow variability, the presence of water in the Stage II courtyard, dynamic and diffused lighting, biomorphic forms and patterns, and material connections with nature.

Architectural Facades Co. contributed to this innovative project with fully non-combustible and fire-rated Indracore ACM exterior fascia cladding.

The project has been registered with the New Zealand Green Building Council as a Green Star project and is Hawke’s Bay’s first Green Star building.