As the sectors severely impacted by the COVID epidemic, Education New Zealand and Air New Zealand have been working together around student travel. The two companies announced a strategic partnership at the Shanghai event, hoping to facilitate more Chinese students to study in New Zealand.

Tourism New Zealand and China’s Trip.com Group signed a memorandum of understanding, working together to jointly promote New Zealand as a great destination across Asia-Pacific markets.

“Through the partnership, Tourism New Zealand aims to provide Asia-Pacific travelers with more convenient booking methods, personalized itinerary planning, and comprehensive service support. We look forward to welcoming travelers to deeply explore the beautiful landscapes and unique culture of Aotearoa New Zealand, as well as experience our manaakitanga,” said René de Monchy, Tourism New Zealand’s Chief Executive.

Edison Chen, Vice President of Destination Marketing & Strategy Alliances at Trip.com Group, said,”With the resurgence of international travel post-pandemic, this collaboration could not be better for both parties involved.”

A Chinese tourism industry insider said that the high profile official visit by the prime minister will definitely encourage more Chinese families to tour New Zealand, adding that the earlier a state leader shows good will to China, the more benefits their home country’s economy will enjoy.

During the event, Hipkins highlighted three premium products and service from New Zealand entering the Chinese market as “important milestones that help New Zealand exports to go from volume to value.”

Fonterra, a dairy giant that has been deeply involved in the Chinese market for 50 years, launched high-end cheese Kapiti, trying to meet the ever-growing needs of Chinese consumers. Maui and Zhong Xuegao reached a strategic cooperation, launching a new sheep milk ice cream. Les Mills, a leading fitness brand popular in many countries, has launched “Les Mills China Academy.”

“The China market is incredibly dynamic and is strategically important to Fonterra. As the world changes, Fonterra changes with it, adapting to the evolving needs and desires of our customers and consumers in China,” Peter McBride, Fonterra Chairman said.

Tmall Global, Tmall supermarket, and Fresh hippo are among the Chinese partners promoting New Zealand products.

As part of the visit, Fonterra chefs demonstrated innovative products inspired by the 24 solar terms of the Traditional Chinese Calendar, combining New Zealand’s dairy expertise with Chinese culture and heritage.

China and New Zealand established diplomatic relations in 1972. Fonterra started to set foot in China in the early 1970s. Today, China makes up approximately one-third of Fonterra’s total exports.

CONTINUED ACCESS SPONSORSHIP

Building Performance will continue the sponsorship that ensures standards used as tools for compliance with the Building Code are readily accessible to those who need to them. Currently, this sponsorship sees 131 standards available to download directly from our website, with New Zealand being one of few countries in the world to provide (pre-paid by BSP) sponsored access for industry to relevant standards for the sector to support them achieving good building outcomes.

This initiative fits within Standards New Zealand’s strategy of working with regulators and industry to get more standards pre-funded (sponsored), as well as enabling better access to standards that make a difference to the wellbeing of New Zealanders. As a regulator of the building system, MBIE wants to reduce barriers that prevent people from ‘doing the right thing’ within the New Zealand building system.

SPONSORED BUILDING-RELATED STANDARDS

OUR SHARED HERITAGE

Standards New Zealand and Building Performance have a long and intertwined history, heavily influenced by the 1931 Napier Earthquake. Subsequently, guidelines were developed by a Buildings Regulations Committee to ensure new buildings were safer. The then New Zealand Standards Institute made these guidelines into model building bylaws that were adopted by local authorities. By the 1970s, it was the standards organizations that recognized that making standardized technical specifications into direct legal commands led to both confusion and conflict.

Their solution of legislating by reference to independent technical specifications became the 1991 Building Act, the Building Code, the acceptable solutions and verification methods, and the large body of cited standards that we have a shared responsibility to maintain and develop, to support a well-functioned building regulatory system.

BUILDING REGULATOR AND SNZ PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT SUMMARY

BACKGROUND

Building Systems Performance commissioned a robust review of NZS 3404: 1997 (Parts 1 and 2) in December 2021. This standard is considered a primary reference that is a critical part of the Building Code compliance routes as well as a key citation within the Verification Method, B1/VM1.

NZS3404 supports the design and construction of steel buildings in New Zealand. It sets out the minimum requirements for the selection of materials, corrosion protection systems, and the fabrication, erection, and construction of steel structures. It applies to building structures; crane support girders; highway, railway, and pedestrian bridges; and composite steel and concrete beams and columns.

SECTION 11 – FIRE SECTION TAKES FORM

This is an update on the progress regarding the drafting of the fire section (Section 11). This incredibly important piece of work is being undertaken by a group of Fire specialists who are members of the Fire Working Group.

The proposed changes to this section have been made to ensure that it reflects current accepted practice. In addition;

1. New equations are provided (but this does not reflect a significant increase in workload).
2. The scope has been clarified stating that the fire provisions apply to non-composite steel members and systems, with no separating elements of construction. The design of individual members assumes they are isolated.
3. The Basis of design covers the principles for standard fires and natural fires. Performance criteria are discussed with an explanation of design criteria for individual members and systems.
4. The content regarding material properties aligns with the content in AS/NZS 2327.
5. A temperature incremental approach is used for unprotected and protected members.
6. Simple analyses in the domains of time, temperature and strength, including equations to estimate the time to failure for unprotected and protected steel.

LIGHTING DESIGNERS CAN INTEGRATE THE BEST TECHNOLOGY

NZS 20086 is a complementary standard to be used in conjunction with the existing standard NZS 4243.2 – Energy efficiency – Large buildings – Part 2: Lighting. Together this helps provide greater scope to lighting designers, architects and engineers around different types of lighting controls you can have and ways to estimate and measure the effect of adaptive lighting. Following these standards helps to evaluate design ideas and technology options holistically, before a project reaches the approval stage.

BUILDING ENERGY PROFESSIONALS HAVE THE RIGHT METRICS

Building energy and carbon assessment-and-verification professionals will have fit-for-purpose metrics and calculation methods for standards-based evaluation and reporting.

SAVING MONEY AND MEASURING ENERGY USE

Decision making can be informed through the evaluation energy use, operational carbon emissions and costs in terms of existing or prospective buildings.

For building owners, there could be financial benefits in optimising lighting operations and potentially reducing overall energy consumption.

For state sector stakeholders working to the Carbon Neutral Government Programme (CNGP) 2025 deadline, energy savings could reduce the number of carbon credits required.

ENERGY REGULATORS CAN REPORT AGAINST PROGRAMMES

The new standard will help achieve public policy objectives by providing reporting methods in line with the CNGP and Building for Climate Change (BfCC) programmes.

LIGHTING EQUIPMENT SUPPLIERS CAN GIVE MORE INFORMED ADVICE

The new standard supports “accounting rules” for objective business case compilation and a basis for calculating a project’s net present value in order to justify an investment in controls technology. Investors, suppliers and customers should all benefit.

INSTALLATION CONTRACTORS CAN OFFER THE LATEST TECHNOLOGY

Electrical contractors and smart building systems integrators will be able to add value to their services by using the methods as commissioning and continuous improvement frameworks.

CHANGING HOW SPACES ARE LIT

What’s clear is that the way we light buildings is changing. Lighting that is appropriately located, of the correct light level, and suited to the needs of users can reduce energy wastage, drive down carbon emissions and costs and provide metrics to inform choices. With NZS 20086 as the standard, lighting will work smarter, more efficiently and more effectively.