New medical centre at The Landing Wigram Skies Town Centre
The south west of Christchurch is one of the South Island’s largest urban growth areas, with 10,000 new homes either built or permitted since 2010.
Wigram Skies is a recent and popular major development in the area, with new retail development The Landing at its heart. Its design references the aeronautical history of the site (formerly the Wigram Aerodrome) as well as Maori motifs from developers Ngai Tahu Property Limited.
The Buchan Group-designed The Landing area’s retail and office hub. This multi-disciplinary design group has delivered a low-rise, pedestrian friendly complex around a palazzo-style town square.
Aligning with the covered south-west walkway of The Landing but separate to it is Wigram Health a 1,100sqm, two-storey medical complex, also designed by the Buchan Group and reflecting a design in keeping with the rest of The Landing. CEO of Wigram Health Brian Dong-Hwan Ko wanted to ensure it became a patient-centric, multi-disciplinary practice looking at “innovative ways to improve a patient’s experience.” It opened its doors to the public late last year.
The building now houses Wigram Health Limited GP as the building owner and largest tenant, with Pacific Radiology, Muscle People, One Chinese Medical Clinic and Pro Podiatry also on site.
“Subtle angles and folded, cantilevered canopies, glazing, and external Espan® walls from Metalcraft Roofing all reflect the site’s aviation past,” explained Gavin Gillson, an Associate at Buchans who project managed the build. “The large canopy is supported on a steel V-column and gives a covered drop-off point that’s visible from the high street.”
The vertical Espan® cladding provides elegant lines along the building’s profile until mid-span, when it’s interrupted by an angled feature window and solar shade before continuing to the structure’s peak.
Outside the ground floor GP consulting rooms, angled precast concrete panels support the Level One overhang and allow in both natural light and views to the greenery outside – one of Ko’s prerequisites. Perforated metal screens provide additional privacy while admitting changing shadow patterns. The overhang itself is clad in Espan, broken by a continuous angled window which wraps around the corner of the building.
Internally, the building is designed to allow for changes in the internal suite arrangements and features an ever-changing palette of light in the two-storey lobby and entry. Level One glazing is set back in a deep reveal, screened by more perforated metal panels to match the GP consultant rooms and patterned graphic concrete.
From the Level One lobby is a spectacular view to the Southern Alps.
Buchan Group is well known for their commitment to sustainability and whole-of-life planning for any structure they design. “Metalcraft’s Espan®, concrete, fibre cement board and cedar are all recyclable materials used in this build,” says Gillson proudly. He’s also full of praise for the service provided by Metalcraft not only for this project, but for all projects that they use Metalcraft products on, such as Hornby Mall and the new Good Home bar currently under construction at The Landing.