East Meets West

Mid-October saw three members of the Cook Brothers Group, Dave Bulling, Simon Glass and Senior Estimator Kane Adam, on a whirlwind five-day exploration of Guangzhou and Shenzhen, China.

With the focus of the journey a visit to the Marisfrolg Headquarters in Shenzhen, the boys also planned to investigate building trends in this powerhouse nation including a visit to the modular construction factories in the Northern Guangzhou province. Here they gained insight into some key building trends and innovative construction methods.

The innovative, Kiwi driven development, the Marisfrolg Headquarters in Shenzhen was the ultimate highlight for the three Cook Brothers. Under construction, the impressive 120,000m2 build designed by New Zealand company Architecture Van Brandenburg is a series of interconnecting curvilinear structures representing a bird in flight. The magnificent structure includes an Atrium entrance linking to a boutique hotel, restaurants, clubs, spa and flagship stores.

The visit also happily correlated with the dates of the famed Canton Fair, hosted yearly by the China Foreign Trade Centre. The largest trade fair in China, and one of the largest in the world. The Fair provided an opportunity for Dave, Simon and Kane to investigate alternative construction methodologies and efficient and new modern material ideas on a grand scale. Spread over 1,125,000m2 of floor space, the Canton Fair averages approx 160,000 visitors through its gates.

With the desire to take on the world and transform the construction industry as a national leader, this trip proved to provide a wealth of knowledge and new valuable information for the Cook Brothers. Their return to New Zealand brought with it new inspirations and ambitions for the future of construction.