112 | All jobs get the same attention A mix of horizontal weatherboard and vertical shiplap are a feature on the facade. OWL Construction T T Virginia Wright BUILDING Oliver Walsh had always thought he might be a builder, but opted to study engineering when he left school, then when his class was told to get some experience working with engineers over the summer break he chose to work with those who were involved with a major renovation at his parents’ place. Oliver quickly worked out what he would rather be doing, and went straight on to do his apprenticeship. A brief stint in commercial site management gave him a new appreciation for the quality and competency of the high-end residential builders he had been working with, and he soon went back on the tools working on residential townhouses. By the time Oliver was 28, he had established OWL Construction and was working with a team of eight builders on his parents’ residential development on the North Shore’s East Coast Road. The original dwelling on an 800sqm site was relocated, and OWL Construction built three high-end homes, one of which Oliver went on to buy and is enjoying living in with his wife and their two-year-old son, who is already showing promise with a hammer. At OWL Construction, they pride themselves on taking an intelligent approach to their projects, which range from new builds, big and small, through restorations, re-clads and renovation work, to expansive dwellings for lifestyle blocks, and multi-unit developments. “My old boss had a saying ‘quality, cost and speed, you can only have two’. So you can either have something really good and fast, but that’s going to cost you, or cheap and fast but the quality’s not going to be great, but because I’m working for myself I’m really conscious of cost and time, and we work really hard to achieve a great balance of all three,” says Oliver. They have just spent a year building another four architectural houses in Torbay for Oliver’s parents, all built for the view and making the most of the indoor-outdoor living with spacious decks and in-built seating. With a mix of horizontal weatherboard and vertical shiplap breaking up the facade the four-bedroom houses have timber floors, fully tiled bathrooms and highly spec’d kitchens, which make the most of every dollar spent. It doesn’t matter if it’s a high-end development or the smaller jobs they do to fill in the gaps: a shop fit-out, a deck, fence, or bathroom renovation, all jobs benefit from the same attention to detail and commitment to quality from Oliver and his team. “We’re all young, we all love what we do and we’re a close-knit group. We believe in honesty and integrity and hard work,” says Oliver. “My two foremen, Trent Rippey and Ian Mills and I work really well together. Trent’s worked on boats, so has a great eye for detail, and Ian’s great at problem-solving and getting the best out of our apprentices, while I’m keeping an eye on the bigger picture, dealing with clients, the council, the consultants and so on, and making sure we stay on track with our scheduling and budget.” They want the client not only to feel great about the result, but to enjoy the journey on the way through, and if the reviews they get are anything to go by that’s exactly what they achieve. www.futurercivil.co.nz FUTURER CIVIL & INFRASTRUCTURE SPECIALISTS Building New Zealand’s future since June 2018 Water • Drainage • Water main • Directional drilling Land • Earthwork • Roading • Groud stabilisation • Service Ducts Structures • Deep piling • Retaining wall • Foundation qs@futurercivil.co.nz 021-153-0813
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