Traditional Pacific building forms underpin the design of the headquarters of what was known as the South Pacific Bureau for Economic Cooperation (SPEC). Successful environmental design meant mechanical airconditioning was not required. The triple pitch roof with expressed trusses was hailed as the ‘Pacific way in architecture’ by the late Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara when the complex was completed in 1975. The original NZ Aid funded complex comprised 14 buildings, 10 of which were residential buildings. There are now a further four office buildings, added as membership has expanded. The NGO is now called the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat and we continuing expansion and renovation work for them today.
In 1979, SPEC Headquarters, as it was then known, received a nomination for the Pritzker Prize for Architecture.
