Waikato Business News July/August 2023

30 GD PRINGLE BUILDING LTD
HOUSE OF THE YEAR 2023
Supreme
Renovation
breathes new
life into old
A step back in time has won GP Pringle
Building Ltd Supreme Renovation of the
Year at the 2023 Waikato Registered
Master Builders House of the Year
competition.
Winning a Supreme
is a first for GD
Pringle and
managing director George
Pringle says entering the
awards is a great way to track
the team’s craftmanship.
“I like the fact that there's
someone else judging our work
and making sure we are achieving
high standards. I know our
team worked really hard to do
nice work, but it's nice to be
validated from someone else
that you're actually doing a
fantastic job.”
Once a small 1930s bungalow,
the Cambridge renovation
pays homage to the past whilst
expertly bringing in the new.
The attention to the details
of the house’s history was
driven by the clients Jo and
Richard who were keen to
retain the home’s character
while giving it the new lease
of life.
Jo, an interior designer,
is the reason why you’ll see a
dedicated effort to tie the old
with the new by reusing existing
materials, George says.
“It was just an absolute
pleasure to work with Jo and
Richard, and the reason we
have a result today is because
of the passion and the effort
they put in.”
Reusing existing materials,
and sourcing materials sympathetic
to the house’s age,
including some gems found
at Demolition Traders, has
helped create a seamless transition
from the past to the
present day.
“We purchased some internal
doors to match in with the
existing. I think it was $1,500
to have the doors remade
brand new and it was about
150 bucks from Demolition
Traders. While we were there
the client actually saw some
leadlight windows and we
incorporated those into the
house as well.”
The leadlight windows
added a tasteful sense of charm
to the powder room.
The renovation saw a
47sqm extension with a laundry,
bathroom, separate toilet
and main bedroom ensuite
that enabled this house to
spread its wings.
Little details like the recycled
butcher’s block table
re-purposed as an island unit
in the kitchen help to tie the
old with the new.
Elegant touches throughout
the house, like the additional
patterned ceiling sheets
running down the hallway
from the main entrance are a
delightful nod to the past.
The creation of matching
cornices, renovated architraves
and skirtings, and meticulously
matching new matai with
existing matai flooring showcases
the GD Pringle Building
team’s eye for detail.
New double-glazed timber
joinery throughout the house
brings the house into the modern
age.
Plus, there’s a ducted
underfloor heating and cooling
system and upgraded insulation
in keeping with a contemporary,
warm and healthy
home.
Open plan living adds to the
spaciousness of the extension
as well as a adding a welcome
update to what were once separate
living areas.
A home designed for
today’s lifestyle is not complete
without bringing the outdoors
in and a portico provides a
gorgeous all-weather space for
entertaining.
Creating a renovation for
modern living whilst being
sympathetic to the past had
its challenges, George says,
but the effort, time and energy
that went into the project was
worth going the extra mile.
“It was just a neat project
to be involved with. And the
fact that the client was willing
to go to those levels, because it
would be so easy to cheat out
on some of those details but it
wouldn't have the same effect.
“You would be hard
pressed to work out where the
extensions begin and the old
house ends.”
NATIONAL AWARDS WON
Top 100
REGIONAL AWARDS WON
Regional Supreme
Renovation of the Year
Regional Category Winner
Regional Gold
Proud to work with GD Pringle Builders
on this project
Plumbing - Drainage - Gas fitting - Heating
CONTACT US
107a Hautapu Road, Cambridge
Office hours:
Monday to Thursday 7.30 am till 5.00pm
Friday 7.30 am till 4.00pm.
Phone: 07 8237263
Fax: 07 8237264
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administration email: Sharon - office@cominsplumbing.co.nz
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