Business Central September 2021

58 | Collaborative approach key to success T T Sue Russell Kawerau is a town built around industry in timber milling, paper manufacturing and the energy sector. Kawerau: Allied Industrial Engineering REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT L ester Murfitt is General Manager of Kaw - erau-based Allied Industrial Engineering, a company that employs a team of 35 engineers, machinists, fabricators and fitters. It’s a business which, this year, celebrates 27 years. Kawerau, in the Eastern Bay-of-Plenty is a town built around significant industrial activity in timber milling, pulp and paper manufacture and the energy sector and is home to approxi- mately 7500 residents. AIE is home to one of New Zealand’s largest heavy engineering workshops with crane lifting capacity of 60 tonnes. The company services and manufactures power station turbines, while in the Marine sector it undertakes repair and servicing of ship propellors and shafts. “A big part of our business is the mainte- nance and repair of plant at the Kawerau Mills,” says Lester. “Like many small towns Kawerau has experienced waves of prosperity and times of struggle, where often those born and bred in the town have been forced to shift away to find gainful employment opportunities. Lester says there’s been an understandable degree of caution in the industry post-Covid. “The bulk of our work is repairs or manufac- turing replacement parts and so when there’s uncertainty then our clients think twice before committing funds to this work, so there has been some impact for us,” Lester says. The company is also very connected to the Kawerau District Council business and com- munity boosting initiative Industrial Symbiosis Symbiosis (ISK), which promises in time to really give the town a boost. “There are a number of large business enterprises involved in ISK. “All these companies have the similar goal of enabling this town to thrive by providing employment opportunities and working in together in areas of common benefit.” At a practical level, for AIE, this has meant welcoming cadets, involved in pre-trade cours- es at polytech, students from local schools Gateway courses and those that just come and ask for work experience, to taste what working in a large engineering workshop looks and feels like. “It’s about giving young ones pathways to consider and pursue and to give them the opportunity to stay working in the Eastern Bay where they have been brought up.” As many as 10 businesses at any one time are involved in an ISK meeting, which meets regularly to discuss areas of common interest. Lester says ISK provides members with a great forum to be part of Kawerau District Council’s economic development planning. “They provide coordination and infrastruc- ture for local businesses to be part of ISK and the initiative has been quite strong for a number of years.” ISK is currently talking about where the group pours its energy into next. Lester says that by adopting a collabora- tive approach, where every part of the chain stands to benefit, is the most practical and profound way for Kawerau to build its sustain- ability. “The most important thing is that this is a community that has pride and a commitment to building an even more positive future. “The ways we’re working together to achieve this are really positive and far-reaching.”