Business Central September 2021

38 | Upgrade marks a new era T T from page 36 The upgrade to the Tomoana facility marks a new era of pet food production for Wattie’s. REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT Central Hawke’s Bay: Heinz Watties “Our enhanced capabilities extend to pouch products as well as cans.” According to information published by the New Zealand Petfood Manufacturers Asso- ciation, 64% of households own at least one companion animal, with a total pet population of 4.35 million. This is the second highest rate of pet ownership in the world. The upgrade to the Tomoana facility marks a new era of pet food production for Wattie’s, which comes at a time when there are short- ages of pet food, mainly due to global ship- ping delays, clearly impacting New Zealand. The technically complex upgrade was a ma- jor project for the business and was complet- ed over 4.5 years, with an investment of more than $20 million and involved over ten main contractors with many more sub-contractors, design consultants and engineering experts local to Hawke’s Bay. The range of local businesses included those in building construction, lighting, fire protection, equipment design, installation, and commissioning. Neil says the Hastings District Council had been fantastic to work with throughout the project and does a great job of promoting the region and attracting new investment and projects. The facility was officially opened by Hast - ings’ Mayor Sandra Hazlehurst on June 1st signifying the Council’s ongoing support of the facility and the future of pet food manufactur- ing in Hastings. The significant investment supports the Council’s ambitions to help facilitate the growth of other businesses in Hawke’s Bay, bringing employment opportunities and fur- ther investment to the region. To signify Wattie’s continued support to the local community, the business made a dona- tion of Chef cat food to Nourished for Nil, a food mission in the Hawke’s Bay, to help those in challenging times care for their pets. Nikki Gardner, Sustainability Officer at Nourished for Nil says they are grateful to companies giving back and supporting the local community. “When people are facing hardship, having a pet to feed can add extra pressure to an already stressful situation. This donation will help many to continue caring for their pets in any situation, so thank you Wattie’s for sup- porting the Hawke’s Bay community.” Looking to the future, Neil says Wattie’s does have a range of capital projects in pro- gress across other areas of its manufacturing facilities. “These projects vary from differing size projects for equipment upgrades to the imple- mentation of a new automated process in one of our other categories.” • Certified Pipe Welding • ASME IX Qualified • On-site fabrication/Install • 24 hour call out • Compliance Testing • Specialists in steam, gas & ammonia pipework • Hassle free service Fabrication • Installation • Service 021 773 188 • LED Lighting • General Repairs & Maintenance • New Installations • Test Tagging Proud to have been servicing Heinz-Wattie’s for over 30 years Member Electrical Contractors Association of NZ MASTER ELECTRICIANS W www.harknesselectrical.co.nz E admin@harknesselectrical.co.nz A 810 Hastings Street North, Hastings 4122 06 873 3444 Refrigeration Engineering support for Heinz Watties Proud to provide and install the electrical services for the Heinz Watties Petfood Factory development