62 | Poised for more growth HW Cavanagh Aggregates operates three Cascadia truck-and-trailer units and the XCentury Class belly-spreader. CONTRACTING HW Cavanagh Aggregates T T Hugh de Lacy Rapid Wire Electrical Motivation crucial for trainee sparkies T T Sue Russell With demand spiking again for metals from both quarries on its 75ha farm near Hunterville in the central North Island, HW Cavanagh Aggregates has its fleet of American-built Freightliners running at full tilt. The farm near the Rangitikei River bridge at the base of Vinegar Hill otherwise runs cattle, but company founder Hamish Cavanagh bought it in 2018 because he could see demand for aggregates being pushed up by local forestry developments. The farm features two aggregate sources, one river-based and the other land-based, and Hamish hired an agency to push through the resource consents with the Rangitikei District Council, a process that took just eight months because of existing metal consents. “As well as local forestry work, especially for the China Forestry Group, there was also steady demand for aggregates from the big contractors in the district - Downers, Higgins and Fulton Hogan - so it looked like a good bet,” Hamish says. “When it came to acquiring the vehicles, I’d always liked the Freightliner because I’d driven them as a livestock truck driver earlier in my career and liked the fact that while it had all the European luxuries that Daimler Truck North America could put into them, they were solid American under the hood. “My preference has been for a bonneted truck because of the better visibility, but the Freightliner also offers easy access to the cab, which is important for us because we’re always climbing in and out.” With initially a single Freightliner Century class truck and trailer unit that he converted to a belly-spreader, Hamish added two new 500hp Cascadias. The two quarries are worked with just the extraction equipment – diggers, bulldozer Supporting the next generation of electrical professionals is a founding pillar and core value of New Plymouth-based Rapid Wire Electrical. Director Nathan Strachan says it has always been a focus for the business to support, encourage and enable keen young men and women to join the industry, and in time, make a career from the trade. “We’ve currently got two apprentices with us,” says Nathan. “It’s Kade’s second year with us, having done work experience here, and Lethan will soon complete his first year. He approached us after leaving school and said he really wanted to be an electrician. I could see how motivated he was. That’s what I’m always looking for when considering taking another apprentice on.” The ability to work in a team environment is also critical, so Nathan makes a point of gaining feedback from his team as to whether a school work-experience person has what it takes to fit in well and contribute positively. Domestic and commercial work are the business’s mainstay, while the recent creation of an ‘electrical foreman role’ has helped create further efficiencies, Nathan says. “It means jobs like fixing, repairs and maintenance can be attended to by a dedicated electrician, leaving the rest of the team to concentrate on the larger scheduled projects.” And looking after the whole team is another priority, with the decision post-Covid lockdown to work slightly longer days, enabling every second Friday off work, something the staff members benefit from. “They have 26 three-day weekends every year, and it’s been a really good thing to implement,” says Nathan. “That third day off makes a huge difference in terms of downtime with the family and enjoying life.” Nathan’s a proud Taranaki man and work takes the team all over the region, offering plenty of variety and challenge. He’s also a keen proponent of the Registered Master Electricians Apprenticeship Awards, saying and a loader – because Hamish has the metal crushed under contract by Byfords Construction of Taihape and Rangitikei Aggregates of Marton. Hamish started out in the freight industry as a livestock driver fresh out of school, but he had ambitions to be a farmer and saw trucking as the way of achieving it, so in 2008 he started up Livestock Transport with two Mitsubishi trucks. He developed strong associations with the local pastoral farming industry, which in turn gave him an appreciation of the aggregate needs of all those windy, hilly roads in the Rangitikei district. Today HW Cavanagh Aggregates has a staff of five, four of them drivers, operating three Cascadia truck-and-trailer units and the XCentury Class belly-spreader. Though Hamish has no plans to expand the company, it’s presently riding an up-tick after a fairly quiet year, and he hopes to see that mature into more of the intense demand he experienced earlier. HW Cavanagh Aggregates is very much a family company, with Hamish’s stepdaughter, Brooke, presently overseeing the quarrying operations, while his partner, Bex, handles the administration. While livestock transport will always be a core service, Hamish can see the local forestry industry growing over the next 30 years ensuring he, the Freightliners, his staff and the quarries all have a busy life ahead of them. “As well as local forestry work, especially for the China Forestry Group, there was also steady demand for aggregates from the big contractors in the district.” they offer aspiring electricians the opportunity to be challenged and pit themselves against others learning the trade. “I don’t push it, but certainly encourage our apprentices to give it a go. Often, a person will enter the first time and learn so much from the experience, yet not be placed. Then they’ll come back a second time and really prove themselves.” Nathan has judged the awards in the past and says there’s a consistent standard of judging throughout the country. If selected for the national event, based on the score sheet totals, the apprentice will be pitted against budding electricians at a national event. “It’s not based regionally as such. If you’re in the top percentage in the whole country then you go through to the finals.” This year’s awards were held in Queenstown on October 30-31, with the award ceremony held at the AJ Hackett Bungy Centre. Apprentices from three categories, domestic/ commercial, industrial and initiative competed. Rapid Wire Electrical is a member of Mastercraft Electrical Group, a collective of independently owned electrical companies. Nathan says belonging to the group provides purchasing benefits he can pass on to customers, and the organisation also serves as a space for members to regularly meet to discuss industry matters, including regulatory changes and new technologies. “It’s a good organisation to belong to. We get together twice a year as business operators and professionals.” Nathan’s advice to anyone contemplating entering the electrical trades is to be prepared to put in the effort. “You’ve got to be interested in it. I certianly look for people who have the drive to really want to be an electrician.” “You’ve got to be interested in it. I certainly look for people who have the drive to really want to be an electrician.” BRIDGESTONE RANGITIKEI TYRES PROUDLY SUPPORTING HW Cavanagh Aggregates Bridgestone Rangitikei Tyres provide HW Cavanagh with market-leading products, reporting, advice, and nationwide support to help them achieve the lowest cost per kilometre possible. 06 327 7885 | bridgestone.co.nz 244 Connett Rd, Bell Block 96 Gill Street, New Plymouth jarussell.co.nz Proudly supporting Rapid Wire Electrical Solar Heat Pumps Audio 06 757 9900 accounts@rapidwire.co.nz | /rapidwireelectrical www.rapidwire.co.nz
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