New Zealand Pavilion for Expo 2020 Dubai is 95% complete

New Zealand Pavilion is right on track for completion in anticipation of Expo 2020

Construction on the New Zealand Pavilion for Expo 2020 Dubai is 95% finished and the final touches, including its feature façade, will be completed in mid-2021.
New Zealand was one of the first countries to bless and then break ground on the Expo 2020 site in May 2019.

“We’re so excited that our vision for Expo 2020 Dubai will soon be a reality,” says Clayton Kimpton, New Zealand’s Commissioner-General to Expo 2020 Dubai.

The pavilion now has all mechanical, engineering and plumbing in place along with doors, windows, floors, walls and interior painting completed. This also includes built-in security systems by Gallagher Security.

“We are grateful to our construction partner Rimond Middle East and its team for getting us to this point. With the pavilion now 95% complete, we are one step closer to creating an incredible experience where we will share our story of New Zealand’s Care for People and Place,” Clayton Kimpton says.

The New Zealand at Expo 2020 team marked the project milestone with a ceremony to recognise the contribution of the Rimond Middle East construction team that has put in 260,995 work hours on the site.

“It has been a very memorable experience for the Rimond team to work on the construction of the New Zealand Pavilion,” says Giuseppe Chiarandà CEO and founder of Rimond Middle East, the main contractor for the New Zealand Pavilion.

Rimond Middle East, which completed the shell and core of the New Zealand Pavilion at the end of 2019, is also responsible for the build of Al Wasl Plaza – Expo 2020’s central dome.

“We were very impressed with the attention given to worker welfare by the New Zealand team: the Commissioner-General and all the New Zealand team visited the site many times, and donated gifts to our workers and staff as recognition for their work. All these gifts came from New Zealand, like kiwifruit and sweets, so that everyone could know more about the country which they were working with. I think this is the power of Expo, spreading the culture and values of a Nation,” Giuseppe Chiarandà adds.

Due to Covid-19, Expo 2020 Dubai introduced a number of precautionary measures in line with Dubai and UAE government guidelines, to ensure the health, safety and wellbeing of everyone working at Expo. These include sanitisation, social distancing and mask-wearing which were implemented by Rimond, which also treated the New Zealand team as its own bubble.

The New Zealand Pavilion was designed by Jasmax architects and is located in the Sustainability District of the Expo 2020 site.

The building was designed to increase efficiency through its construction methodology and use of sustainable materials including Abodo New Zealand eco-timber, which will be a striking aspect of the pavilion’s restaurant and hosting venues.

The pavilion’s façade will be a highlight feature of the structure. Made from Kaynemaile, a lightweight, New Zealand-made material that is 100% recyclable and includes recycled materials in its composition.

The pavilion’s visitor experience embodies New Zealand’s culture, values and ingenuity through the theme of Care for People and Place. Inspired by the indigenous Māori environmental ethos of kaitiakitanga, visitors to the pavilion will learn about the inextricable connection and responsibility between people and the environment.

Expo 2020 Dubai – the first World Expo to be held in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (MEASA) region – will run from 1 October 2021 until 31 March 2022.

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