The 2015 building, construction and design exhibition buildnz and designex attracted crowds of more than 5,000 over three days in June at the ASB Showgrounds, Auckland. More than 300 companies exhibited at the event, which was assisted in part by the decision to co-locate the National Safety Show alongside.

Exhibitors put in a great deal of effort building two storey houses and prefab structures onsite, as well as hosting live demonstrations of tooling and new product releases. There were three days of free seminars for the industry with a variety of speakers, including talks hosted by Auckland Council’s Design Office, MBIE and Ian Moore from Ian Moore Architects.

Brent Spillane, managing director of show organisers XPO Exhibitions, commented, “The Ian Moore session titled ‘Residensity’ showcased a selection of the New Zealand-born architect’s many award-winning apartments and existing building transformations in Australia and New Zealand to a packed session of more than 230 industry visitors. Pamela Bell, chief executive officer of Prefab New Zealand, also hosted a panel session titled “The Affordable Housing Puzzle” that attracted very strong numbers.”

“We’ve had good feedback that the show is hitting all the buttons in terms of a targeted trade whole industry attendance. There is no other event bringing the biggest and best innovators in construction together under one roof.” 

The show also featured many more building and construction innovations than prior years, with a mix of internationally sourced as well as New Zealand-made products.

The organisers are now gearing up for Canterbury buildnz, which takes place from 4-6 August 2016 at the Horncastle Arena in Christchurch.