| 129 T T Hugh de Lacy Company with a charitable focus John and Brendan established Origin Build in 2014. Origin Build “We’ve always looked to ensure the welfare of our staff, and beyond that we’ve reached into the wider community....” BUILDING The three principals of Auckland’s Origin Build Ltd have built their business around the competence of their staff, and in investing a portion of its profits back into the community through charities such as the Auckland City Mission. Origin Build has performed maintenance and builds for the mission, and it also supports local food banks, schools and community groups. “We’ve always looked to ensure the welfare of our staff, and beyond that we’ve reached into the wider community, and that combination of factors has meant we’ve come through the tough past few months better than most building companies, and we’ve got a solid programme of work ahead of us,” says John Blaiklock, one of the company’s three equal partners. The others are Brendan Beattie and Dave Patience, and they run a staff of 18 full-timers working out of offices and a warehouse in New Lynn, mostly in the high-end residential build and renovation markets. John and Brendan established Origin Build in 2014, and after it grew steadily, they brought in Dave with his team of three in 2018, just before the Covid outbreak. “We needed more strength at the management end of the business, and that’s why we teamed up with Dave,” John says. “We’re currently involved in three projects, the biggest being a full major renovation of an upmarket house in Herne Bay, along with a high-end house renovation in Mt Albert, plus a full refurbishment and re-build of an apartment in Parnell. “The last three or four months have been pretty tough, and we let three staff go and a couple of jobs were put on hold, but there’s a mix of green shoots starting to appear and we’ve picked up other work that leaves us unconcerned about the future.” John learned his carpentry the old way – just doing it – and he, like Brendan and Dave, is a Licensed Building Practitioner (LBP). Brendan completed a carpentry apprenticeship under his builder father, Alistair Beattie, and Dave also did his time in the trade. They have completed some impressive projects over the years, including a new high-end residential build in St Heliers that ran for 18 months and cost in the region of $5 million. Outside of Origin Build, John has been involved in an Auckland charity called Building For Education, which funds school, water and community projects in the East African countries of Kenya and Uganda. Building for Education raises up to $100,000 a year, all of which goes into paying for the materials and labour on the African projects, with John travelling over there to supervise several times a year at his own expense. “It started when my daughter Melinda went on a school trip there in 2005, saw a need and got into fund-raising that exceeded our expectations, leading to the establishment of the trust fund. “If we’d known what we were getting into we mightn’t have done it, but now the programme’s up and running, and is making a real contribution to the lives of people over there,” John says. KUMEU 09 412 8569 info@nulookkumeu.co.nz www.nulook.co.nz Supply & installation of aluminium windows and doors. New build or renovation, wherever you are in New Zealand get in touch with us to discuss your next project.
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