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The Lindis Luxury Resort, Mackenzie Country
Fabricator Altus Commercial Fabricator
Location The Mackenzie High Country, South Island
Systems Baltic™ 159 Flushglaze and Commercial 40mm windows.
Products Fixed Pane Windows
Industry Sector Commercial Tourism Accommodation
Architect / Designer Architecture Workshop
Creating a sense of majesty
The Mackenzie High Country is home to some of the most jaw-dropping scenery on Earth (and Middle Earth too for that matter – it provided the backdrop to Sir Peter Jackson’s Lord of The Rings film trilogy).
So when Christopher Kelly from Architecture Workshop was charged with designing The Lindis, a luxury resort nestled in the Ahuriri Valley, it made perfect sense to fuse the building into the landscape’s weaving, folded topography.
The result is a building that simultaneously blends in and stands out, depending on your perspective.
Seen from the landside, the large contoured roof looks like it wants to be part of the ground, with the tapered ends virtually level with the surrounding slopes.
Look at the Lodge from the riverside, however, and the impression one gets is totally different.
Here the building seems to lift up from the undulating landscape, with dramatic floor to ceiling glazing that offers guests unimpaired views of the majestic tussock-covered scenery.
The views. It’s all about the views. Sweeping vistas of river, valley and mountain peaks are integral to the Lodge’s promise of being a place to unwind and enjoy the serenity of nature amid modern, sophisticated luxury.
Doing justice to such a landscape requires a special window system, especially when said landscape happens to be located in a high wind zone.
The Altus team worked closely with Brosnan Construction to provide a window solution that could cope with the challenges posed both by the building design – particularly the undulating roofline – and the volatile weather conditions.
After exploring a number of iterations, it was decided to go with the Baltic™ Flushglaze 159 Commercial 40mm windows for the landside of the building. It soon became apparent that the Altus system was both cost-effective and fit-for- purpose. It had the thermal performance needed and a glazing and frame performance of 1.8W/M2K which was crucial in such a high wind zone.
The structurally glazed mullions and transoms were key to ensuring thermal performance. By structurally bonding the glass to the aluminium sections, the exposed surface area of the aluminium is significantly reduced, which in turn minimises heat transfer.
The remote location offered up a host of challenges when it came to the actual installation too. The Altus team had to do a lot of the fabrication on-site to fit the shape of the roof.
The fact that a good percentage of the job was done in snow and sleet added an extra element of drama to the project. Which is only appropriate, given the awe-inspiring end result.