The Cloud

LHTDesign were runners-up in the Design & Build competition for Auckland’s Rugby World Cup “Party Central” building on Queens Wharf. The proposal was for a 5000m2 demountable enclosure that would be used as the social headquarters for the event and then serve as a cruise liner terminal for a few years.
LHTDesign played the key role of specialist designer within the Hawkins Construction design build consortium. Our scope extended to provide the multi-disciplinary engineering elements of the submission.

Toby Mason, with 15 years experience in specialist lightweight fabric structures in the UK, led the creation of our submission, with all the analysis and 3D modelling being done in house.
Peddle Thorp joined the consortium in the latter stages to help support site planning and context issues.

The entry focused on delivering a solution that met the brief in terms of functionality but also provided a building that was iconic, sustainable and had real legacy value. We were also the only submission that provided a NZ sourced laminate timber option.

The Government advisory panel including Jasmax Architects and RCP project managers agreed our proposal “exceeded their own expectations”, and voted our design to be the preferred submission.

However, due to the temporary nature of the building, price was an over riding criteria and our increased performance and quality, meant we came out runners up.
 
Nevertheless, the feedback across the board has been tremendous and we are very proud of our efforts.

If only !!