Location: Auckland
Sector: Education
Services: Architecture, Structural Engineering
A comprehensive remediation at Somerville Intermediate School in Auckland was delivered ahead of schedule and under budget, within a fully operational school environment.
Managing complex works in a live school
Somerville Intermediate School’s main teaching block suffered from longstanding weathertightness, durability and structural issues. An extensive remediation and upgrade programme was developed to address these challenges, improve thermal performance and safety, and extend the building’s useful life.
A key challenge was carrying out the work within a fully operational school. With approximately 980 students and 120 staff remaining on site, construction needed to be carefully staged to allow normal teaching activities to continue.
Working together to solve emerging issues
Respond Architects – Prendos’ architectural division – led the remediation design with input from Prendos’ structural engineering team. This multidisciplinary approach allowed architectural, structural and weathertightness issues to be considered together as the complexities of the existing building emerged.
Ahead of each of the seven construction stages, the team carried out investigations to better understand concealed conditions before work began. When challenges such as corroded structural steel and deficiencies in the original construction were uncovered, Prendos and Respond worked closely with the contractor and wider project team to develop practical solutions that kept the project on track.
The remediation also provided opportunities to improve the building beyond like-for-like replacement, including refined structural details, upgraded joinery and improvements to the roof and building envelope informed by thermal and hygrothermal modelling.
Ahead of programme, under budget
Through careful planning, early investigation and close collaboration, the project was completed three weeks ahead of programme and under budget, while the school remained operational throughout construction.
The completed upgrade has improved the safety, durability and thermal performance of the teaching block. Classrooms that previously recorded winter temperatures as low as 11°C can now reach up to 18°C without heating.
The project was also named a finalist in the Building People Awards 2026 – Collaboration Under $20m category, recognising the collaborative approach that underpinned its successful delivery.
Images courtesy of Form Building & Developments.
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