Business Central September 2021

102 | Plenty going on in the Manawatu T T Sue Russell BUILDING Lee Building Maintenance Lee Building Maintenance has always had a strong emphasis on staff welfare: above directors Simon Barry, left, and Jared Williams with mental health advocate Mike King who the company hosted recently. I n 2011, local builder Simon Barry bought the Palmerston North construction com- pany Lee Builders and established Lee Building Maintenance (2011) Limited. Today, the company has a large team of skilled joiners, carpenters, painters, apprentic- es and handypersons on board. “We are proud to be one of the largest local- ly owned construction companies operating in this area. We believe the relationships we have built with our corporate clients such as Fonterra, Ministry of Education, Department of Corrections and NZ Defence have been a main contributor to that success”, explains Jared Kenyon, Managing Director of Lee Builders. With the Manawatu region experiencing unprecedented growth, it means the building and painting teams, managers and support staff are busier than ever. Staff are the company’s biggest asset and Jared understands the value of looking after them. “It’s essential for creating a positive and en- gaging culture and assisting with retaining the current skills and knowledge. We are focused on looking after each other and being a great place to work.” Some of the team remained with Lee Build- ing Maintenance when Simon took over the original company so there are a number on long-term staff members. “That speaks volumes as far as I am con- cerned about our values. There has been significant investment into Health & Safety processes as we want all our staff to be safe while at work and return home safe at the end of each day.” This approach is of benefit when dealing with clients such as NZ Defence who have a high level of Health & Safety requirements and therefore can be more challenging projects to win. Working on projects such as NZ De- fence’s major infrastructure upgrade at Base Ohakea, provides variety and a challenge for the teams involved. Another current project, at Freyberg High School, Jared acknowledges is close to his heart, as a former student. The project involves refurbishing classrooms, including strengthening work and building decks. “The same principal is still there, so it’s kind of neat to be back on familiar ground all these years later.” Another important client, Fonterra, provides Lee Building Maintenance with a variety of work, including upgrading laboratories and being involved in monthly audits to ensure all Health & Safety standards are met. Other projects include a substantial refur- bishment of Dannevirke’s Fire Station which is expected to be completed by the end of July 2021, and a team based on the Kapiti Coast looking after the ongoing refurbishment of apartments and villas at MetLife Care Villages. In addition to all the other projects on the go, Lee Builders are also undertaking con- struction of a custom built, two-story building which will be their new premises. Jared puts the company’s success down to some core strengths. “We pride ourselves on being there to solve problems for our clients and to try to make it easy for people to ring us if they need some- thing done. It’s that first contact that is critical to building a great client relationship right from the start.” The company also engages subcontractors who Jared says hold the same mindset regard- ing standard of work expected. A lot of the work Lee Building Maintenance takes on is very time-critical so the company has prioritised developing building systems that enable guarantee to have work done on time. “We are also always looking to evolve and improve how we go about our work and really place an emphasis on harnessing technology to work smarter to support a smooth building process from go to whoa.” Proud to be the electricians of choice for Lee Building Maintenance palmerston.north.central@laserelectrical.co.nz | www.laserelectrical.co.nz 20 Dahlia Street, Palmerston North | Ph: 06 3552944 1021 Tremaine Ave, PNth 06 3583232 PROUD TO BUILD WITH Lee Building Maintenance THE TILE DEPOT M A N A W A T U LATEST DESIGNS AND STYLES PALMERSTON NORTH 250 - 270 Featherston Street Phone: (06) 354 4087 • www.mitre10.co.nz