The year-long renovation of the 5400sq m of floor space in the Donald Reid warehouse in Dunedin is nearly complete.
Engineer and designer Stephen Macknight said the top floor of the three-storey building between Vogel and Cumberland Sts would be occupied by his brother's high-tech Dunedin-based business, ADInstruments.
The renovation had been ''straightforward'' because the building was in good condition and minimal demolition was required, he said.
The budget for the project was unknown, as it had been ''fluid''.
ADInstruments owner Michael Macknight said as ADInstruments owned the building and would be the ''long-term'' tenant, the budget to renovate the building could be flexible.
''We wanted to get it right.''
However, they had spent sensibly, he said, and the fittings in the building had not included ''gold taps or shag pile carpets'' but the glass lift and the exposed stained wooden ceiling were the ''wow factor'' of the building.
The most debated building feature was the paint colour for the warehouse's exterior, but his brother Stephen assured him the ''brick'' colour would not be ''too red or too brown'' for his taste, he said.
The ground floor of the building would be used for car parking and the middle floor would be left empty for future expansion.
''The first floor we are leaving for the future, when the company grows.''
ADInstruments designs and sells data acquisition and analysis systems for life science research and education, which records and analyses physiological signals like heart rate and blood pressure.
ADInstruments global human resources manager, Michael's wife, Kelly, said the company's 54 staff in Dunedin would work in the building from Monday, May 13.
''The staff are really excited.''
The staff would ''fill'' the 1800sq m of the third floor, she said.
Her father, restoration project manager Ian McLean (69), had kept the project on track by being on site every day since the first day of work on April 22 last year, she said.
Mr McLean said he remembered the building being a ''shambles''.
''But it shows what can be done with a building if you throw a bucket-load of money at it.''
