See
Through
How We Work.
We are a group of multi-disciplinary building consultants whose expertise spans Building Surveying, Architecture and Project Management, enabling us to cross-pollinate our experience and partner with our clients to offer true end-to-end building consulting solutions.
At Section 1 our methodology lies in our collaborative collective. We apply the rigour of our specialist areas, alongside the bigger picture of broad perspective to avoid siloed thinking and blind spots.
Lifelong learning is central to Section 1’s philosophy and our core team all undertake continuous professional development so you can trust we’ll deliver breadth of experience and perspective. It’s this open-ended curiosity to our approach that sees us deliver our best work.
Our Approach
Section 1’s cross-functional methodology is part science, part art, blending systematic investigation and rigorous process with collaborative and creative problem-solving.
Our Philosophy
At Section 1 we hold at our core a belief that the finer details matter, and so do the people involved. Throughout every process, we commit to asking how else can we make this better?
Our Practice Leads each bring
a unique focus within our core
building consultancy services:
Frank Wiemann
Surveying Lead
Registered Building Surveyor (NZIBS)
LEADR Accredited Mediator (Association of Dispute Resolvers now the Resolution Institute)
Registered Architect (Chamber of Architects, Lower Saxony, Germany
Frank’s credentials in the industry are up there with the best but what really sparks him isn’t the accolades. Pure and simple, he’s in it for the love of solving a good challenge. Bring him your gnarliest ones and he’ll welcome you in. Frank brings tonnes of practical experience and technical expertise in building surveying alongside an architect’s eye for improvement. He is a central industry figure dedicated to furthering training and professionalism within the sector through his teaching and speaking engagements.
He has been involved for many years on the Board of the New Zealand Institute of Building Surveyors and served as its Vice President from 2018 to 2019.
His clients return time and again knowing they can call on him for impartial and rigorous support, along with a dedication to better outcomes and to making the technical detail accessible for everyone involved.
Grit Fichter
Architecture Lead
Ing. Architekt (TU), Registered Architect (Germany) MIC (Hons.)
Grit’s approach to architecture brings together form, function and meaning. She followed her building apprenticeship with leadership roles as a registered architect in Germany, combining the practical side of construction with the creative. She then undertook post-graduate study in International Communication – adding a humanistic aspect to her tool kit.
With Grit’s leadership and perspective informing our underlying philosophy, our architectural projects take into consideration not just visual form, but the functional role of built environments and the meaning they come to hold for the people that use them. This means we bring a holistic approach to the role of architecture in our lives that results in finely crafted work that is thoughtful and imbued with meaning.
Michaela Cook
Project Management Lead
BEng(Hons., Civil)/BA USyd
MSc(ICM) UBath
Your projects are in safe hands with Michaela Cook leading our Project Management services. Michaela thrives on complex work and her background highlights it.
With degrees in both Engineering and Construction Management and extensive experience in delivering projects from prototypes to multi-million dollar facilities, she brings the peace of mind that every detail will be considered, and applied to the practicalities of the building process.
She also has experience in business management, ICT, and teaching at post-graduate level in project management methodology - so in practice and theory, she’s got it under wraps. Managing teams, stakeholders and tight timeframes are all in a day’s work and Michaela’s happiest in the driver’s seat, delighting our clients who can simply step back and watch things unfold.
