A dramatic double-height living area glazed with Metro Series ThermalHEART windows and doors was a key feature which helped win this Mt Maunganui dwelling 'best residential new home' in its category at the Architectural Design awards for the Bay of Plenty.

Designed by Cameron Cotton, with major input from the owners, the citation by the ADNZ judges referenced "heroic views along the length of the house to the garden." Modernist planning and cross-sectional devices rendered famous by Le Corbusier were also mentioned.

"The main requirements for house were lots of light — meaning lots of glass — and lots of stud height," says the owner. "In our previous build we used a slightly higher stud than normal and really loved it."

"The section was long and narrow, so by removing the garage from its normally road-front position to the rear and keeping it separate gave us more design scope with the house. Nearly every angle or side of the house has an interesting feature."

"The floor to ceiling windows at the front and rear mean we have views of the front section and can look right through to the back fence. This is quite uplifting — especially on a cloudy day."

The windows and doors were supplied by Altherm manufacturer Alitech Window Systems Ltd, who used Metro Series ThermalHEART with low-E and Argon-filled double glazing in the kitchen and living area, with standard Metro products with clear double glazing in the rest of the house. "As an aside," said the owners, "in retrospect we should have used ThermalHEART in the rest of the house."

Products used included sliding doors, hinged doors, fixed lights and awning windows. The powder coat finish was Duratec Matt Black.