coming home to concrete

7/30/2019 Coming Home to Concrete

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COMING HOME TO CONCRETEHOW MODERN CONCRETE CHOICES DELIVER STRENGTH, COMFORT AND BEAUTY

DVDENCLOSED


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CONTENTS

02 Do it once, do it right

10 Coming hometo warmth

04 Coming home toconcrete oors

11 Coming home toa complete fnish

06 Theres so much more toconcrete than you think

12 Coming home toan aordable uture

08 Coming home tosomething dierent

13 Concrete has the answers

Image: Patrick Reynolds Photography

Mercer and Mercer ArchitectsImage: Cranko Architects

Cover Image: North Face Construction

Image: Patrick Reynolds Photography

Mercer and Mercer Architects


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1

A MOMENT IN HISTORY

GREAT STRENGTH COMBINED WITH GREAT BEAUTY CAN EMERGE FROM

EVEN THE WORST OF HUMAN TRAGEDIES.

The people o Napier showed this when they rebuilt their city in the

Art Deco and Spanish Mission style ollowing the devastating 1931

earthquae.

The people o Christchurch will also rebuild with strength and vision,using the latest and best materials and design. Concrete in all its

many orms will be the oundation and the heart o the majority o

both residential and commercial properties that are built in

Christchurch and throughout New Zealand in the coming years.

The reason or this is simple: concrete oers strength, comort and

beauty that has no rival in modern construction.

This boolet and the Coming Home to Concrete DVD are designed

to help you understand why concrete is the tough, elegant, cost-

eective solution to the challenges o building quality homes and

businesses in New Zealand.

Rob Gaimster

Chie Executive

Cement & Concrete Association o New Zealand (CCANZ)

Image: Golden Bay Cement Image: Litecrete NZ Ltd


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Concrete has been around or over 5,000 years and some o the earliest structures built in concrete

such as the Pantheon in Rome are still with us today. The past 20 years have seen major

developments in concrete that have extended its design potential and given concrete new loos and

new textures, while still retaining its unbeatable durability.

DO IT ONCE, DO IT RIgHT

Whether you are building your rst home or rebuilding a city, the essential starting point is to lay a

oundation that will stand the tests o time and nature. Concrete is that oundation, enabling the

creation o aordable, comortable, stylish, durable and energy-ecient homes.

Concrete is no-nonsense. Do it once, do it right and it will loo ater you or the rest o your lie.

In this boolet and the Coming Home to Concrete DVD, youll discover why there really is no substitute

or concrete.


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Prior to any concrete being

poured on site, the council

inspects to make sure the

reinorcing is in place and to

make sure the waterproo

membrane has been put down

underneath the slab. The newlicensing is ensuring the quality

o workmanship. Builders will be

held personally responsible or

the lie o that job.

Jared Torrinton, buider.


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Eight out o 10 new homes in New Zealand have a concrete slab foor.

Perhaps thats not surprising. Whats harder to explain, given

concretes overwhelming advantages, is why dont 10 out 10 new

homes have a concrete slab foor?

WHY DO 8 OUT OF 10 NEW HOMES HAVE A CONCRETE FLOOR?

Areinforcedconcreteslab,designedandconstructedwith

New Zealand made seismic grade reinorcing steel, will oer

enhanced perormance throughout its lie, including during

earthquaes.

Concreteslabsdonotrequirethesameextensivesiteexcavation

and ground clearance as alternative fooring materials, and

thereore oer advantages in both meeting town planning height

restrictions and reducing labour costs.

Combinedwithitsabilit ytohelpreduceahomesheatingand

cooling requirements, a concrete foors durability, re resistance,

sound insulation, value or money, and huge variety o decorative

nishes are second to none.

This range o benets, explored throughout this boolet, will see

concrete slabs remain the preerred fooring option or new homes

across New Zealand.

COMING HOME TO CONCRETE lOORS

WHAT DO HOMEOWNERS

AND pROFESSiONALS SAY

AbOUT CONCRETE FLOORS?

Having kids, I love concrete oors.

Its easy to clean up. On a wet day

they can scoot around inside. Its

durable. You should have seen the

carpet when we moved out o our

previous houses!

Juie Madams, home owner.

Both Winired and I suer rom

hay ever so we like a low-dust

environment. Weve got a lovelypolished oor. It looks good and

its easy to keep clean.

David Bu, home owner.

Image: North Face Construction Image: Signature Homes


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Our house has heating in the

concrete slab which weve only

put on twice. My mother who was

living in my house last year, just

kept insisting that the heating

was on, even in the winter,

because she could eel the heat

just radiating out rom that

concrete.Michae OBrien, architect.

I you combine the properties o

both concrete and steel, as you

do in a reinorced concrete oor,

you get the best o both worlds.

It makes the perect ooring

material.

Bruce Robert, Pacifc Stee.

Image: Peter Fell Limited

CONCRETE FLOOR SLAbS EARTHQUAKE pERFORMANCE

Appropriately designed and constructed reinorced concrete slabs

can be expected to per orm well during earthquaes. The

combination o concrete and steel in a reinorced slab provides the

three most important properties or earthquae resistance: stiness,

strength, and ductility.

Oering a urther level o reassurance is the act that the NZ

Building Code now stipulates that all new concrete slabs must be

reinorced with ductile steel.

Also available are a selection o concrete slab systems, such as

rat and wafe, that enhance the attributes o reinorced

concrete slabs to oer greater certainty during earthquaes.

or best practice advice on concrete sab construction

downoad a ree copy o Residentia Concrete Sab-On-ground

oors rom www.ccanz.or.nz


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DURABIlITY

Concrete endures and is incredibly long lasting. A well-designed

concrete structure can be expected to

exceed the minimum servicelie o

50-years as specifed in the NZ

Building Code.

lOW-MAINTENANCE

Based on the act that it does not rot, concretes

high resistance to wear means less maintenance, which is

o increasing importance as the leaky homes crisis shows

no signs o going away.

AORDABlE

Cost competitive at construction,

the lower ongoing

maintenance and energy

costs o concrete homes

make them truly aordable.

SECURE

Concretes robustness

creates a secure living

environment that can resist

extreme and unpredictable

weather patterns, along with

wilul damage.

THERES SO MUCHMORE TO CONCRETE THAN Designversatilityforoors,walls,

columns, beams and cladding Moulded shapes, textures and

patterns

Decorative surace nishes

(polished, coloured, dyed, etc).

Arangeofsystemscastin-situ,

precast, tilt-up and concrete masonry

Suitableforoors,walls,driveways

and paths/patios

Doesntrotorrust

Fireresistant

Landscapingoptions

Strengthanddurability

Low-maintenance Protectsagainstextremeweather

(food and wind resilience)

Impervioustowilfuldamage

Securityagainstintrusion

Safeinseismicevents

Massprovidesthermalcomfort

(as part o passive solar design)

Acousticinsulation

Locallyproduced

Costcompetitiveattimeof

construction and over lie


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SOUND CONTROl

Due to its high-density, concrete oers superior soundproofng compared to lightweight building materials,

reducing airborne noise transmission, reducing noise

rom exterior sources and providing sound separation

between adjoining rooms.

EARTHQUAKE PERORMANCE

Appropriately designed and built reinorced concrete and

concrete masonry homes, with their combination o concrete

and steel providing stiness, strength, and ductility, are

ideally suited to New Zealands seismic conditions.

lOCAllY PRODUCED

Comprised o cement and reinorcing steel

manuactured right here in New Zealand, along

with locally sourced aggregate, reinorced

concrete is New Zealand made.

YOU THINk

Illustration: Litecrete NZ Ltd

lightweight precast concrete house

designed by MRA Architecture.


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There is something solid and reassuring about concrete but it is also

a avourite with our leading architects when they see to create

stylish, award-winning homes.

Concrete is a license to get creative, allowing you to do things that

just cant be done in a standard timber-ramed home.

A polished concrete foor is only one o a huge number o surace

nishes that can now be achieved. With the use o treatments such as

stains, stamps, stencils, polishing, grinding and the addition o colour

pigments and custom aggregate (coloured stone, glass or shell) you

are only limited by your imagination when it comes to creating an

attractive concrete surace nish.

However, decorative concrete is or much more than just foors.

WHAT ARE SOME ExAMpLES OF CONCRETES VERSATiLiTY?

Versatile concrete elements (columns, beams and walls) can provide

the required structural capacity, help dene space, and also be used

to present a sculptural shape or decorative surace.

This can be achieved because concrete is unique amongst

contemporary building materials in that its pre-set plastic state allows

it to tae the shape o the orm into which it is cast.

Intricate o-orm shapes, patterns and textures, along with a range o

colours and eects, enable concrete to oer almost unlimited

aesthetic potential, and or home owners to enjoy true customisation

that is as unique and dierent as they are.

COMING HOME TO SOMETHINg DIERENT

We have a brushed block wall,

we have the polished concrete on

the oor, and we also have a

stippled fnish. One o the

beauties o this house is that you

can look around the architectureand every wall has a dierent

concrete fnish.

guy Madams, home owner.

Once the clients awareness o

the exibility o concrete

becomes more established, that

will enable us as architects to

create new and interesting

residential orms in

New Zealand.

Andrew Simpson, architect.Image: Glencoe Construction Ltd


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This building is going to be here

or 200 years. Its certainly been

designed or that. That gives some

satisaction because its durable

and other people will come in and

enjoy this building into the uture.

David Bu, homeowner.

Images: Firth Industries

Image: Buck Architects + Associates


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Concrete provides thermal mass that traps, stores and releases solar

energy. As part o a system o design and construction that uses the

intelligent application o insulation, glazing, ventilation and buildingorientation, concrete delivers superb perormance.

pASSiVE SOLAR DESigN: A HARMONiOUS SYSTEM

COMING HOME TO WARMTHORIENTATION. North-acing glass provides the best access to solar

gain. It is thereore preerable to orientate the house and its windows

with the long axis in the east-west direction.

Anyone interested in gaining a deeper understanding o the use o

concrete, its thermal properties or its wider construction and design

benets, can download a ree copy o Designing Comortable Homes

rom www.ccanz.org.nz.

Architect Roer Buck doesnt

mince words when it comes to

New Zeaands traditionay

poor standards o insuation:

It just seems ridiculous to have

all these cold houses in

New Zealand when we should

use all this ree energy that

comes rom the sun. Its got to

have a mechanism that can hold

it and then release it later.

Wooden houses dont do that.

Concrete does. The trick is to get

your glazing right, your

orientation right and at the very

least have a concrete oor.

People walk in and say: Youve

got no carpet. It must be cold.

Thats not actually the case.Weve got a naked ame gas

freplace which, along with the

concrete, just radiates the heat.

Once the concrete is warm, it

stays that way. Its a beautiul

place to live.

guy Madams, homeowner.

Done right, you can plug into the sun or power instead o draining

your wallet and the national grid.

THERMAL MASS. Use heavyweight materials (mass) to soa up heat

rom the sun and release it slowly into the house when temperatures

drop. A house with appropriate mass will maintain more comortable

temperatures it will overheat less oten and not get as cold overnight.

INSULATE. Use insulation to slow the fow o heat in and out o the

house heat rom the sun is used more eectively in houses that are

well-insulated, and its windows, doors and other construc tion joints

sealed. Insulation helps to maintain more constant internal temperatures

and reduces the need or heating in winter and cooling in summer.

GLAZE. Use glazing to bring heat rom the sun into the house

though glass must be selected, placed and sized careully as it is a

poor insulator (windows should be double glazed as a minimum to

reduce heat loss).Image: Cranko Architects


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Concrete provides a near complete nish and requires remarably little

maintenance. Houses that need to be painted or re-textured ever y ew

years soa up huge amounts o money in contrast to concrete housesthat maintain a quality exterior nish or generations.

LEAKY HOMES AND ExTREME WEATHER

It is estimated that more than 80,000 New Zealanders are living in leay

homes. In the greater Aucland region alone, the total number o leay

homes is predicted to reach the 15,000 mar. Concrete does not rot (or

rust). That maes it the ideal building material or New Zealand homes

as we see to move on rom the leay homes crisis.

Concretes robustness under stress is also ideal or resisting the impact

o extreme weather conditions, such as fooding and hurricanes, whichseem more requent.

FiRE RESiSTANCE

Sprinler systems remain beyond the reach o most New Zealand

home owners, yet house res appear more common than ever. As a

non-combustible material, concrete will preserve lie and minimise

damage by not burning or producing harmul emissions, while also

preventing re spread.

COMING HOME TO A COMPlETE INISH

Images: Litecrete NZ Ltd /Clive White Construction Ltd


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Concrete has a strong uture in the design and construction o

aordable, easy-to-build homes. There are a growing number o

design-and-build options being developed right now.

Concrete lends itsel to very ecient construction techniques such as

entire homes being made rom preabricated panels and concrete

masonry. Alternatively, concrete can be used selectively in individual

components such as walls, beams, foors, columns, panels and stairs.

Both precast concrete and concrete masonry enable easy,

surprisingly quic installation that can transorm a building site into a

home in record time. This is perect or getting the job done,

particularly during bad weather. Put those benets together and the

cost savings can be signicant.

COMING HOME TO AN AORDABlE UTURE

Simplicity o design doesnt

limit or restrict the comort or the

unctionality o the house. Im

really, really confdent that our

research work and design

concepts will change the way

New Zealanders think about

residential homes.

Ra Kesse, CCANZ Architect (EU)

Images: Falcon Construction


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The Cement and Concrete Association o New Zealand (CCANZ)

provides answers or homeowners, builders, as well as architects and

designers. Just pic up the phone or visit our website because ConcreteHas The Answers.

We hope this short introduction has been helpul in giving you a better

understanding o concrete. There is so much more to learn about the

growing range o choices when building with concrete.

FiND OUT MORE

The best next step is to visit the CCANZ website (www.ccanz.org.nz)

where you can view the Coming Home to

Concrete short-lm, and also nd an extensive

range o inormation, including thesedownloadable titles:

DESigNiNg COMFORTAbLE HOMES

This revised edition, endorsed by the Energy

Eciency and Conservation Authority (EECA), is a

guide to the basic principles o passive solar

design as a means to ensure homes stay cool in

summer and warm in winter.

CCANZ CODE OF pRACTiCE FOR

WEATHERTigHT CONCRETE AND

CONCRETE MASONRY CONSTRUCTiON

Developed by CCANZ in partnership with the

wider building industry, this code o practice

provides a means o compliance with the NZ

Building Code, Clause E2 - External Moisture. It

maes concrete easier to use or those wishing to

benet rom its weathertight credentials.

RESiDENTiAL CONCRETE SLAb-ON-gROUND FLOORS

This recently updated guide provides advice or builders on producing

a quality concrete slab-on-ground. It answers some o the morecommonly ased questions and gives good practice inormation or

achieving a residential concrete slab that is built to last.

CONCRETE MAgAZiNE

CCANZs quarterly magazine provides solutions and inspiration or a wide

cross-section o building proessionals. Architects,

engineers, builders and those in the concrete

sector turn to Concrete magazine or

practical, technical and design

inormation on how to maximise

the potential o the worlds most

widely used construction material.

CONCRETE HAS THE ANSWERS

Designing Comfortable HomesGuidelines on the use of GlAss, MAss

And insulAtion for enerGy efficiency

2ndEdition

Cement&ConcreteAssociationofNewZealand 2011 www.ccanz.org.nz

CodeofPracticefor WeathertightConcreteandConcreteMasonryConstruction

Cement&ConcreteAssociationofNewZealandJune 2011

WeathertightConcreteandConcreteMasonryConstruction

CCANZCP01:2011

VOLUME 54ISSUE4 DECEMBER2010/JANUARY2011

concrete

TopMarksfor A+ HomeA CONCEPTDESIGN FORAFFORDABLE,

COMFORTABLEAND ENERGYEFFICIENTLIVING

PrefabricatedLivingIMPROVED QUALITYWITHREDUCED

COSTS AND TIMEFRAMES

PoweredThroughPassive DesignWAIKATO HOUSEACHIEVES 60%

REDUCTION IN ENERGYCONSUMPTION

1

SLAB-ON-GROUND FLOORS

Producing a quality concrete slab-on-ground is easy i some

basic rules are ollowed. This leafetis intended to assist

builders to produce a quality slab. The costorework is

very high, so ollow the suggestions in this leafet to

save time and money.

IN A S S O CIA T IO N W IT H

RESIDENTIAL

CONCRETE


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Cement & Concrete Association o New Zealand (CCANZ), PO Box 448, Wellington 6140

0 8 0 0 2 2 2 7 18

www.ccanz.org.nz www.aqa.org.nz www.pacicsteel.co.nz www.sustainableconcrete.org.nz

Image: North Face Construction

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