New Zealand Container Construction Information

New Zealand is almost universally considered a great place to live. This remote island nation is a favorite of nature lovers, but it also has a strong economy and unique culture as well.

Set about 1200 miles southeast of Australia in the Pacific Ocean, New Zealand is one of the world's largest remote countries. It's predominantly made up of two islands, the North Island and the South Island, although hundreds of smaller islands are also included in the country's borders.

Owing to its remoteness, New Zealand was one of the last places to be settled by humans. For similar reasons, the country has remarkable biodiversity.

But don't mistake it for a flat, tropical island because it has snow-capped mountains over 12,000 feet tall as well. In fact, its incredible geography is why it was selected as the principal filming location for the Lord of the Rings movies.

As a result of its colonization and settlement by the British in centuries past, New Zealand is still part of the Commonwealth of Nations. It has ties with other Commonwealth countries that have likely helped strengthen its economy and citizenry.

If you're interested in building a container home in New Zealand, you'll be happy to hear that their building codes are mature and universal. Governed by the Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment, New Zealand has a national building code that is uniform across the country.

The New Zealand building standards are unique in that they emphasize performance requirements, rather than prescriptive standards. It's the type of code that allows for more innovative construction solutions. And that's something most shipping container home enthusiasts should be happy to hear.

Their building code is also noteworthy for specifically calling our durability as a performance criteria. They want to ensure that building materials and methods are designed to last for years, with most resilience required for construction areas that are difficult to access and service. Not a bad idea!

The code works by having several different compliance paths that allow builders to provide evidence demonstrating that they've met the code's performance requirements. Typically, that's done through either Acceptable Solutions (previously proven methods), Verification Methods (tests that can be passed to prove compliance), or Alternative Methods (for the more innovative solutions that require additional scrutiny to ensure compliance).

The original New Zealand building code was created in 1992, but was later repealed and replaced in 2004 with a more up to date version. Interestly, it was loosely based on the Norwegian building code model. Each year, the code is reviewed and updated.