Whether you’re validating products, designing safer buildings, demonstrating compliance or pushing the boundaries of research, we offer the equipment and expertise to help you achieve your desired outcomes.
Supporting your goals
Manufacturers and suppliers
Test products to show they can handle earthquakes and wind pressure and keep non-structural parts safe and damage at desired levels.
Designers and engineers
Get clear results to check compliance, compare options and show how systems deal with wind and seismic loads as well as everyday use.
Regulators and agencies
Use independent tests to confirm systems meet safety rules for earthquakes and wind and that non-structural parts are safe.
Researchers
Fill a gap in your own lab’s capabilities and use ours to analyse how buildings respond to earthquakes, wind and other loading scenarios.
A smarter structural engineering lab
Designed for large-scale structural testing, our facility and equipment delivers robust evidence of how buildings and components perform under a range of applied loads.
Structural engineering lab features
- Ability to test complex structures at scale, including systems up to three-storeys high.
- An 8 m tall strong wall with a large return section to apply forces in two directions simultaneously.
- Hydraulic pump unit and rams that can apply 50 tonnes of tension/compression loads and displace specimens by up to 500 mm.
- State-of-the-art data acquisition to monitor real-time response of building systems, aligned with New Zealand Building Code and testing standard requirements.
- Pressure chamber to assess roof and wall cladding performance against differential air pressures up to 7 kPa (equivalent to wind speeds over 200 km/h).
- Capability to run multiple tests concurrently, including non-structural components (e.g. suspended ceilings, partitions, claddings and building services components).
Types of structural testing on offer
Structural elements and connections
Structural elements and connections testing such as fixings, adhesives, structural members and connection assemblies.
Large-scale structures and systems
Large-scale testing of complex structures and systems, including multi-storey assemblies and heavy-duty connections.
Non-structural components
Non-structural components testing such as suspended ceilings, partitions, claddings and mechanical plant/components.
Wind and cladding performance
Wind and cladding performance testing using differential air pressure chambers and custom test arrangements specific to your needs.
International accreditation and compliance
Our structural engineering lab is covered by BRANZ’s ISO 900 accreditation.