XLam was used for the structure — the walls, floors and stairs (CLT) Images

Set to be completed in February 2018, this new apartment building will soon add to Housing New Zealand’s transitional accommodation supply in Auckland.

For the construction of the building, Alastair Miles of Miles Construction looked for time-efficient materials that could contribute towards faster completion. “We wanted to achieve an alternative to concrete because of the speed,” says Miles. In the busy Auckland market, he was also keen to circumvent bottlenecks and long lead times. “XLam filled the gap.”

“We used XLam because of the fire rating and structural ability too,” explains Miles. “XLam was used for the structure — the walls, floors and stairs.”

Ideal for projects where time is limited, XLam’s cross laminated timber wall and floor panels were used for the apartments, providing exceptional strength, with only 20% of the weight of concrete. The large size and span capacity of the panels enabled fast installation, effectively reducing overall construction times.

XLam’sAirstair, supplied pre-cut and ready-to-install, helped further reduce construction times. Designed using a CAD-based system and manufactured off-site with precision detail, XLam Airstairs are an efficient alternative to concrete and steel stairway systems. XLam Airstairs can be installed in a matter of hours, providing safe access to midfloors early in the build. In addition, the high density of the AirStair ensures an excellent fire rating.

“The installation went very well and due to the accuracies of XLam, we were able to preorder the windows, doors and roofs,” adds Miles — a detail that helped avoid any delays in the supply line.

“The project is tracking well,” says Miles. “It’s been nice to work with XLam to come up with a good solution for Housing New Zealand. They’re a good team player and we’ve been able to work with them through the design process to get a pretty economic design.”