40 | FORESTRY Speirs Logging Built around a strong team culture Much of Speirs Logging’s investment in innovation has been driven by health and safety. T T Kelly Deeks Speirs Logging is backing people, innovation, and investment to strengthen its Gisborne operation as the forestry sector works through tougher environmental expectations, challenging terrain, and ongoing pressure on regional businesses. Owners Blake and Caree Speirs have built their company around a strong team culture since taking ownership in 2014 when they moved one of its logging crews from the lower North Island to Gisborne. The family business was founded by Blake’s father, Murray in 1998, initially harvesting and processing trees from the family farm at Waitārere Beach. The company has since grown into a 16-person operation processing about 180,000 tonnes of wood a year. Blake says the industry’s willingness to embrace innovation, alongside its people, is what keeps him invested in forestry. “The best things about the industry is it is always open for innovation and it is full of really good people,” he says. Much of Speirs Logging’s investment in innovation has been driven by health and safety, with improvements in technology also delivering gains in productivity and work quality. About 90% of its harvesting requires winch assist, helping crews work safely on Gisborne’s steep, often unstable terrain. The company has invested in mechanisation and robotics, with autonomous technology increasingly becoming part of the operation. Blake sees this as an opportunity rather than a threat to jobs, particularly given the industry’s labour shortage. “We are just shifting the people that we’ve got into other roles that also bring good production gains,” he says. Speirs Logging’s innovation focus has expanded from health and safety and into environmental performance, particularly since Cyclone Gabrielle exposed the risks associated with slash and erosion across the East Coast. Speirs Logging has recently invested in a Tigercat self-leveling mulcher and a Falcon Winch Assist system, which is being used to reduce harvest residues on steep and highrisk terrain. Proudly supporting Speirs Logging. We are locally owned and operated. 61 Parkinson Street, Gisborne (06) 868 6626 Hawkes Bay (06) 870 6177 Big or small, harvest them all Whether put to work as a fall-and-trim head at the stump or as a harvester, the 750 gives you the flexibility, stem range, and of course, Woodsman Pro’s legendary tank-tough construction. BEST-IN-CLASS SINGLE PASS DELIMBING Copyright 2026 Engineering Services Rotorua Ltd. All Rights Reserved. The Ensign, Woodspan Pro & Loggic brands are registered trademarks of Engineering Services Rotorua Ltd. Ready to see it in action? Book a demo today. FOR ALL YOUR EXCAVATION NEEDS • House Site Prep • Landscaping Prep • Driveways • Green Waste Removal • Section Clearing Proudly Supporting Speirs Logging Griffin Law 027 523 5524 | ontrackdigging@gmail.com Supported by most of the forestry companies in the region, including a contract with Forest Enterprises, the machine is now working across five logging operations. Its work targets areas where slash is most likely to move during heavy rain, reducing the risk of debris entering waterways or contributing to erosion.
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