KEY POINTS:
Auckland's aerofoil-shaped West Plaza tower on the corner of Customs St and Albert St is undergoing one of the largest office upgrades in the city as its owners spend $8 million.
Fletcher Interiors is moving methodically through the building which is 36-years-old but won an enduring architecture award from the New Zealand Institute of Architects in 2005 for its significance and contribution to the urban landscape.
Wellington's Buckingham Group and ASX-listed Valad Property Group paid $30 million when they bought the finned building from investor Stu Galloway last year. They began the refit in October and expect work to take about two years.
But all has not gone entirely according to plan.
Tenants on some floors have complained of suffocating mid-summer days inside the tower after air conditioning problems.
Other complaints surround a sewage accident which resulted in an overflow in one service area.
A number of tenants complained to the Business Herald about conditions in the building.
John Carter of law firm Carter & Partners, which has a long lease, said his offices in the tower were cold in the winter and hot in the summer. A water pipe was cut recently and tenants who did not want their floors gutted had to endure existing air conditioners which created problems, he said. Re-fitted floors will have their own air conditioning but tenants who reject the upgrades won't have this option, Carter said.
Rob Noble of Buckingham Asset Management is heading the changes for the owners and said air-conditioning had been an issue but the owners had attempted to resolve it fast.
A tenant who blocked a toilet caused the sewage problem, he said.
One of the biggest challenges has been keeping the building cool in the first few months of this year.
The existing air conditioning system needed replacing but it was expected to continue running in conjunction with a new system installed over the Christmas period. The owners used a mobile crane to hoist a new cooling tower from the street on to the roof.
But problems arose with the old chiller's pump seals, master controller and timer.
"It was one thing after another," Noble said.
A back-up chiller was used but he acknowledged some tenants had found the temperature difficult.
Even after the air conditioning units were running, it took some hours before floors cooled enough for tenants to feel comfortable, he said.
Tenants have also had to endure disruption from builders, particularly difficult when the building does not have a dedicated goods lift.
"It's a fairly major refurbishment so there's going to be disruptions," Noble said.
Floors five, 15 and 17 have been refitted since October.
Level 12 of the 18-level tower is empty after Fletcher Interiors ripped down old ceiling panels, stripped internal partitions and pulled up floor coverings.
One of the biggest transformations is on level 17 and the offices of recruitment company Debbie Graham & Associates which now has bold art works, grey tiled floors, sliding glass doors and a crisp steel-on-white theme. Old wall heaters were ripped out, ceilings were replaced, new services were installed and the entire floor has been taken out of its former 1970s-style of interior decor. Nobel is proud of this, saying it shows what can be achieved in a structure which is still sound and admired from the exterior but greatly in need of refurbishment for the sake of its tenants and the owners.
Work on level 18 is starting soon. Parts of the building are vacant, a necessary component in such a large refurbishment, Noble said, because tenants needed to vacate floors temporarily during an upgrade.
Parts of levels four, seven, 12 and 18 had vacancies, he said.
The building's exterior has been repainted, elevators are being upgraded and the foyer off Albert St is about to be refurbished.
Earlier this decade, Moller Architects refurbished its floor on level 13 and that job resulted in the firm winning an Institute of Architects interior award.
OLD FRIEND
* Office block was built in 1972
* Designed by architect Neville Price of Price Adams Dodd
* Won NZIA enduring award in 2005
* Described as "jewel to be treasured"
