Business North July / August 2021

| 79 INFRASTRUCTURE Te Tai Tokerau Water Trust The Craig and Jones families have been involved in horticulture, speci ically Kiwifruit, in the Bay of Plenty, since the 1980’s and in the Far North since 2015. Building on that long history, in March 2018 a new company, Sybton Horticulture formed. Sam Jones, one of two managing directors responsible for its day to day operation says business is lourishing. “We are involved in managing orchards in the Far North and in Opotiki where we’re based. We are currently building 50 ha of orchards this season, due for completion in December 2022, along with another 60 ha booked in for next season. Sybton Horticulture o ers clients a complete orchard establishment and ongoing management service and while Sam’s history is mainly with kiwifruit, the company has expert avocado growers in the team. Sam carries a Bachelor of Commerce in Agriculture and has also worked in rural banking. There’s real potential for growth in Northland, as land-owners increasingly look to capture additional value and better returns by developing horticulture blocks and Sam says Sybton Horticulture intends to be a part of this growth. Sybton offers the complete service “There’s an exciting expansion in horticulture ahead and we’re already looking to take on more key sta .” With the promise of more water available for orcharding in the North, driven by the Te Tai Tokerau Water Trust’s water storage and distribution projects, Sam says horticulture and associated activities will become a major player in the region’s future growth and wealth. While based inWhakatane, Sam spends two days each week in Northland overseeing the blocks Sybton Horticulture is developing into orchards. A commitment to upskill sta and support their own careers in horticulture is very much at the forefront of Sam and fellowmanaging director Isla Weir’s thinking. “We are just about to send six of our sta on a seven month Level 3 Fruit Production course, provided by Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology at Te Kaha. We pay for this training and transporting them to the course and in return they commit to working for us for a set period of time. The system works very well,” says Sam. It’s because of this commitment to the team that Sybton Horticulture has no di iculty attracting good sta . 0800SYBTON office@sybtonhort.co.nz Bay of IslandsOffice 2412c StateHighway 10, Waipapa0295 Bay of PlentyOffice 1406Waiotahi BeachRd, RD2, Opotiki 3198 Matthew van den Bosch, Managing Director of Dama Manufacturing Ltd, based inWhangarei and established in 2006, has been involved in agricultural irrigation installation long before this date. As Chief Technical Director at the thriving business, Matthew is passionate about inding solutions tomeet today’s stringent environmental standards and to deliver his clients with the very best selection of options available. As such, Matthewwas instrumental in creating a breakthrough water pumping and iltering technology - KleenScreen™, a range of self-cleaning screens, suitable for large-scale water pumping situations. “We became aware that with environmental standards increasing we were inding it di icult to import models that would deliver the results required here, so I set about creating our own,” Matthew explains. Since launching the KleenScreen™ range, o ering solutions across a wide variety of water pumping requirements, Matthew says the product has proven itself over and over again. Working smart, by introducing automation through the manufacturing stage, with screens developed from laser cutting and CNCmachining, has meant Dama Manufacturing Ltd is able to produce their range of models both quickly and e iciently, passing on cost-e iciencies to clients. “They are designed to performbetter, last longer and also be simple tomaintain. The irrigation experts Those were the key reasons I decided to invest in creating our own brand.” Today, that initial product o ering has expanded to dozens of standard models and variations. Dama is also able to custom-manufacture screens for speci ic situations. KleenScreen™ continue to be made of stainless steel as standard which sets them apart frommost other manufacturers. Dama is now the preferred supplier of self-cleaning screens to the New Zealand pumpingmarket and is beginning tomake inroads in overseas markets as well. Working on the water storage and distribution scheme inNorthland, ledby the Te Tai TokerauWater Trust, has been a very positive experience, one thatMatthewhopes will be repeated as the project unfolds. “We feel really privileged to be supplying the irst reservoir under construction with our technology. This project promises to bring real bene its to Northland and its great to be a part of that happening,” says Matthew. One of the great bene its the company’s screen designs bring is their simplicity of operation and ease of maintenance. “Our technology is designed to last but in saying that you do need tomake sure it is maintained, somaintenance systems that are manageable are vitally important in looking at the big picture.” Dama’s range of exclusive self-cleaning water pumping screens are marketed through RX Plastics andWater Supply Products Ltd. KleenScreen TM manufactures self-cleaning intake screens to protect pumps and systems fromorganic and inorganic debris. The KleenScreen TM range is designed to performbetter, last longer and also be simple tomaintain. We have standardmodels and variations to cater for all installations. We are also able to custommanufacture screens for speci c applications. The KleenScreen TM range continues to be the only type of rotating self-cleaning intake screen that is produced in stainless steel as standard. The innovative design andmanufacturing speci cations of the KleenScreen TM has enabled us to become the preferred self-cleaning screen supplier to the NewZealand pumpingmarket and nowdue to the quality of our systems, our products are in demand internationally. Available from local pumping equipment suppliers DAMAManufacturing Ltd, Whangarei +64 27 493 3183 | info@kleenscreen.com | www.kleenscreen.com