Delivering a new university building that has an innovative timber design and reduced carbon footprint

The Beatrice Tinsley Building Engineering Design Services

The Beatrice Tinsley Building marks the completion of the Rutherford Regional Science and Innovation Centre, the new home of the University of Canterbury’s College of Science personnel and postgraduate students. We provided mechanical, electrical, and hydraulic engineering design services and worked closely with Jasmax Architects throughout the design and construction process.

We designed mixed mode ventilation systems for the different needs of office, teaching spaces, and laboratories and technology areas. The open-plan office areas with natural ventilation include automated windows. Mechanical supply via heat recovery ventilation systems provides outdoor air to the enclosed office spaces, and air conditioning was provided to the teaching and laboratory spaces. Our team also incorporated specialised exhaust ventilation systems for the fume cupboards and wood working areas.

At four storeys tall and constructed using laminated veneer lumber (LVL) timber, the Beatrice Tinsley Building is the tallest moment-frame building in New Zealand. Built on land where the previous building stood, the aim was to reuse the foundations, basement, and ground floor slab. These were preserved using a lightweight timber structure. The building was able to be delivered more affordably than a conventional concrete or steel equivalent thanks to the reuse of these existing components, which also had a low embodied carbon footprint.