Nick Gaites, a graduate Manufacturing Systems Engineer, holds registrations as a New Zealand Building Surveyor, Certified Passive House Consultant, Air Tightness Tester and licensed designer (AOP3). He has over 17 years of immersion in New Zealand Construction.
With additional experience in the UK building industry, Nick brings a wealth of multidisciplinary expertise spanning engineering, construction, building surveying, and energy consultancy.
Before his tenure as a Building Surveyor, he served as director of an Auckland-based residential building firm, latterly specialising in rectifying leaky buildings.
“The construction failures of leaky buildings have a huge impact on society – even on a personal level – because people are losing a lot of money. Their wealth is tied up with their buildings, and then they turn out not to be the quality that should be reasonably expected.”
“Individual health is affected due to poor air quality. There are mental health issues that leaky and poor quality building stress has put on them, as well as physical issues such as asthma. Then comes the social aspect – the health care required to look after those sick from poor building standards.”
Nick has seen the worst of it for 13 years as a building surveyor, so he would much rather be a part of the solution in designing and realising high-quality, comfortable buildings with great indoor air quality, no mould, cheap to run and warm all year around.
In 2007, Nick built a house for himself to exceed the requirements of the New Zealand building code. He included drained and vented cavity systems, double-glazed windows, and additional insulation. All over and above what was required – but it was still cold in winter with ‘crying windows’ and extremely hot in summer. So, he took even more insight with him to design the next family home build – a Certified Passive House. And now, Nick is determined to design more high-performance buildings for people, from minor dwellings to complex residential construction.
Beyond his technical skills, Nick is deeply passionate about sustainable building practices and low carbon design. In his work, he prioritises energy efficiency, thermal comfort, and creating healthy indoor environments. Nick has attained certification as a Passive House Consultant through the International Passive House Association to further this commitment. This allows him to provide consultancy services focused on energy-efficient and sustainable design and construction.
Nick takes a strong ethical approach to everything he does—doing the right thing for the client, ‘people before profit’.
To talk with Nick about your requirements, you can email [email protected] or phone 09 281 9398 or 027 637 5441.