Project: Auckland Zoo – New Zealand Centre for Conservation Medicine
Location: Western Springs, Auckland
Product: Snap-lock Wall Cladding
Medium: Copper
Surface: 218 sqm

Copper Roofing l Architectural Metalformers has created the compound curved wall cladding for the new conservation centre at the Auckland Zoo in Western Springs.

Specifics of the project

The design of the wall was an interesting challenge due to a compound curve that ascended over 14 metre’s.

The challenge on this project was to overcome the inherent difficulty of metal being roll formed as a tray rather than separate tiles that can be easily curved.

This was overcome by using Copper Roofing l Architectural Metalformers Snap-lock 305mm panels and the on-site careful placement of each tray. This wall was created with a minimum of canning.

Early input

From early consultation with ASC Architecture, design concepts were discussed with some inventive new ideas coming to the fore.

Breaking new ground

Compound curves are known in the roofing industry as one of the most difficult walls and roof cladding to achieve.

This is partly due to vertical up stands in trays eliminating basic curving principles.

Adding to the difficulty of this project was the curvature of the wall could not be accurately measured until constructed. Once again the skill, creativity and experience of our in-house technical team were challenged and came out successful.