St Benedict's Remediation

Driven by the proven design and coupled with traditional, construction methods Stanley’s is bringing another statistic back to its former glory.  

St Benedict Street off Symonds Street in Auckland is symbolic to the traditional Auckland of the past.  Stanley Ecobuild is the Design & Build Contractor for the reclad of St Benedict Villas, a 30 unit apartment complex which has sadly fallen prey to the Leaky building Syndrome.  Having experience in various leaky apartment complex’s means the Stanley team are well versed with the best practices and cost effective solutions. Working with the Project Manager Equity Pacific Holdings, Stanley’s successfully negotiated a hybrid Design & Build contract based upon a series of pragmatic assumptions, incorporating the team’s extensive experience in these type of projects. This has included complete removal of all high risk design features, such as internal balconies with new concrete internal decks and concrete walls, alternative cladding materials and deletion of internal gutters, amongst other features. When challenged with the apartment complex being surrounded on four sides by buildings 50mm to 300mm away on adjacent properties, some clever systems are called for – which is where Stanley’s excel, being able to always provide practical construction methods. 

Given that its been deemed a ‘leaky’,  it is an emotively charged project which requires an empathetic approach to the tenants.  Stanley’s have recognised from past similar projects that communication with the tenants is critical to the success of the project. A dedicated Client Liaison person communicates to keep the tenants up to date, including producing a monthly newsletter to keep them abreast of progress during the five stage project, having a sample unit for tenants to choose their interior finishing options from, as well as answering a never ending number of questions from people concerned about the state of their home.  

Working to a tight six month timeframe; the Stanley team has started pulling the apartment block apart, evaluating the extent of the damage, then rebuilding it to be better (not to mention more sustainable) outcome when compared to the original stucco plaster structure.  Prebuilt walls, painted and finished are being installed in-situ, a new technique to New Zealand. There are also off-site manufactured cavity walls being craned into place. 

The overall outcome for the Owners include: 

Project target completion within half the expected market timeframe

Project budgeted to be completed 20% below market cost

Significant savings passed back to Owners

Known outcomes for Owners in terms of time and cost

Project currently 2/3 complete and on program and on budget

Council quoted as saying …”best run leaky project in Auckland”.

High levels of interest in delivery process and outcomes by other government agencies parties.