Bringing together scientists and industry organizations dedicated to advancing farm productivity and sustainable science

Tuhiraki - New Lincoln Science Center Engineering Design Services

Co-located within Lincoln University, AgResearch’s new facility, Tuhiraki, fosters collaboration and partnerships in the food and fiber industries. The facility supports research into understanding modern farming systems and tackling climate change mitigation and adaptation. Housing multiple functions, the new facility combines specialized and multipurpose laboratory areas, demanding a high level of complex servicing. Our team delivered electrical, mechanical, hydraulic, and fire engineering services for this project.

Our mechanical team designed services for dangerous goods and chemical storage in a mix of generic spaces and specialized laboratory areas. This included clean rooms with high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filtration for mass specification and cell culture propagation, insect rearing, and industrial spaces for small-scale manufacture.

One of the challenges faced by our electrical team included the need for crucial emergency power to maintain the viability of samples when failure occurs. This required a back-up generator to supply critical science equipment and temperature control refrigerators and freezers.

We also applied our fire engineering expertise to achieve a design outcome that supported the architectural vision, client requirements, and NZ Building Code fire life safety requirements.

The project has won a number of awards, including the 2025 NZ Commercial Property Awards, Master Builders, in the Industrial National Category.