64 | CONTRACTING Topline Contracting NZ’s premium commercial, industrial & sports lighting specialist evolve-lighting.co.nz 0800 357 6311 sales@evolve-lighting.co.nz Transform Your Space with Professional Picture & Mirror Hanging Services! robert@hbpicturehanging.co.nz www.hbpicturehanging.co.nz 022-015 0361 Our support for Topline Contracting Ltd. reflects our shared commitment to quality and excellence. 021 0231 7575 solidcretehb@gmail.com www.solidcretehb.co.nz • Box & Prep • Residential • House Floors • Pool Surrounds • Driveways & Patios • Place & Finish • Commercial Floors • BCITO Qualified Strong Electrical Limited The go-to guys for paving Much of the company’s work involves maintenance and infrastructure projects. T T Hugh de Lacy Powering on with strong foundations T T Sue Russell Starting with just a car and a set of hand tools, Taurus Taurima has built Hastings-based Topline Contracting into a thriving civil construction business employing 65 staff and operating a substantial fleet of plant and equipment. It’s a modern-day rags-to-riches story for the Flaxmere local, who entered the industry in 2010 as a labourer with Hawke’s Bay firm CPM Concrete, and over the next six years developed his concreting skills before launching out on his own in 2017. His first jobs involved reinstating the 1m x 1m concrete patches left outside homes after ultrafast broadband installations. “It was all manual work with no machinery, but it gave me a foot in the door,” Taurus says. Within a year he had purchased his first piece of plant – a Mazda Titan truck worth $16,000 – and the business quickly expanded. Today, Topline Contracting delivers paving and roading solutions across the commercial, residential, local government and infrastructure sectors throughout Hawke’s Bay. “We’ve become a go-to subcontractor in the Bay for roads, footpaths, cycleways and walkways,” Taurus says. Strong Electrical (SEL) has been part of the Whanganui region for more than 44 years, providing electrical and engineering services across industrial, commercial, rural and residential sectors. The business has a longstanding history of ownership, previously led by Grant Neilson and Brett Tasker, with stewardship of the company now continuing under Brett and Alister Neilson. SEL currently employs more than 25 staff across the Whanganui region. Today, SEL operates across electrical contracting, mechanical and HVAC systems, fire and security, and data and communications. The company also undertakes industrial and automation work, along with ongoing maintenance and upgrade projects for commercial and industrial clients. “We’ve benefited from having experienced people invest time into training and supporting others over the years, so it’s important for us to continue that,” Alister says. SEL has longstanding involvement in a number of infrastructure and community projects throughout the region, including maintenance contracts for Whanganui District Council street lighting and traffic signals. The company was also involved in the redevelopment of Te Whare o Rehua Sarjeant Gallery, undertaking electrical and access control as part of the major restoration and extension project. “That was a significant project for the region and it was rewarding for the team to be involved. The project extended over several years.” Alister says the business has benefited from having a diverse range of work across different sectors, helping provide stability for both staff and clients. “We’re fortunate to be in a good position and to have a good team around us. A lot of that comes down to the people who have built the company over many years. “We’re fortunate to be in a good position and to have a good team around us. A lot of that comes down to the people who have built the company over many years. At the end of the day, we’re just pleased to be part of a solid company with good people and good clients.” “We provide technical support and construction solutions for everything from streetscapes and driveways through to large asphalt car parks and state highways.” Rather than taking an income in the early years, Taurus reinvested heavily back into the business. “For the first couple of years I put everything back into wages and machinery,” he says. That investment has grown into a fleet of around 30 trucks – from small tippers to six-wheelers – along with rollers, excavators, traffic management vehicles and a fully equipped workshop at the company’s 1.2ha Omahu Road yard. Topline Contracting also supplies skilled labour for asphalt, hot-mix, civil and concreting projects across the region. A major focus for Taurus has been creating opportunities for young people, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds. “We’re very conscious of the need to support young workers into the industry and to do our part to get people off the benefit and into full-time meaningful employment,” he says. “We help them gain formal qualifications, licences and certifications through training and hands-on experience leading to employment.”
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