Conceived as two wings linked by a full height glass atrium, the Collingwood Centre is situated on the inner city fringe, straddling 105-111 Collingwood Street. This commercial development took five years in its planning, design, documentation and construction.

The brief from the clients was simple, “we don’t want a box”. What they did want was a modern, sustainable, commercial shell to allow medical and professional tenants to co-locate.

Timber battens adorn the exterior and wrap into the full height entry void serving as a wayfinding mechanism. They also act as sun and privacy screens and provide a softer skin over the precast concrete panels. Low maintenance materials have been selectively wrapped around main structural elements, some of which have been expressed on the interior and exterior of the building.

A DNA styled façade above a trickling water feature draws users to the main entry atrium where they can orientate themselves within the building. The full height structural concrete wall creates a central spine to the building and acts to passively regulate the atrium temperature in conjunction with auto opening skylights above.

Consideration was given to spatial and structural planning to allow for maximum flexibility of internal spaces. Integrated building heating and cooling systems, high levels of insulation, low energy use lighting, natural ventilation and exterior sun shading all contribute to minimising ongoing running costs.

The intention of the colour scheme was to express and accentuate the natural materials used in the building, while also lifting it from its immediate context which is dominated by concrete. The exterior panelling drew inspiration from DNA sequencing code and the use of Resene Lumbersider in Resene Red Hot (primary red) within this panelling refers to the medical nature of the building. The paint palette of Resene Blackjack (carbon black) and Resene Rice Cake (sharp yellow white) sets off the other elements of the building, highlighting the solid and void of the façade. Exterior cedar battens are finished in Resene Woodsman Nutmeg (golden brown stain) and exposed concrete in Resene Aquapel clear water repellent finish.

Inside, Resene Rice Cake provides a clean and crisp backdrop to the cedar battens, plywood and exposed concrete. It also provides a unified palette throughout the floors that doesn’t compete with the fit-outs of individual tenants.

Architectural specifier: Arthouse Architecture Ltd
Building contractor: Gibbons Construction Ltd
Client: TMDS Ltd
Geotechnical engineer: Swanney Geotechnical & Civil Engineering
Landscape architect: Rory Langbridge
Painting contractor: Brown & Syme Holdings Ltd
Photographer: John-Paul Pochin
Services engineer: eCubed Building Workshop
Project: Resene Total Colour Awards 2014
From the Resene News – issue 3/2015

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