Ngā Kāinga Anamata: Structural Engineering for a Sustainability Focussed Houseing Project

Ngā Kāinga Anamata is a sustainability focused public housing pilot project in Auckland, aimed at driving carbon emission reduction in New Zealand’s construction industry. Five blocks of three-storey walk-up apartment buildings with identical layouts are to be built using five different structural systems to enable data collection on sustainability metrics. This unique project was featured at COP26 for its immediate positive impact on sustainability and people’s lives. This paper presents the structural engineering involvement in the development of this project, and insights on selecting structural systems for the three-storey typology.