| 131 T T Nicki Woodlock Engineering-led approach a winner Keola has extensive experience navigating the unique challenges of building high-quality schools and childcare centres. Keola Ltd Founded in 2007, Keola is a family-run, award-winning construction management company based in Auckland. The business is owned and led by Chartered Civil Engineer and Managing Director, Sanjesh Lal, supported by his son Rohil as Operations Manager and his wife Sangita as Co-Director and Business Administration Manager. Together with a team of seven, Keola delivers construction management services with an engineering-led approach, offering designand-build solutions and acting as the main contractor for construction delivery. Keola manages a diverse portfolio of construction projects across Auckland, including multi-unit residential developments, educational and commercial buildings, community and retail spaces, religious facilities, restaurants, storage complexes, and architectural homes. Project values range from $1 million to $15 million. Education is a key focus for Keola. The team has extensive experience navigating the unique challenges of building high-quality schools and childcare centres. The design of educational facilities must account for a wide range of factors, including sustainability, fire safety, noise control, security, visitor parking, land zoning, and compliance with the Resource Management Act— while also creating learning environments that are safe, comfortable, inspirational, and enjoyable. “We have a focus on sustainability. We look at ways we can reuse and recycle and have won a number of sustainability awards. We suggest materials that schools can use to save money and achieve the best result,” Sanjesh says. “We try to give things another life. We replace old wooden desk tops with new tops from recycled plastic. “Once the new plastic top is old and worn, it can be melted down, promoting a circular economy”. Keola has delivered four childcare centres and more than ten school projects across Auckland this year alone, including Auckland Normal Intermediate and Clendon Park School. At Auckland Normal Intermediate, Keola was tasked with delivering fast and efficient classroom upgrades across a large section of the school. The brief required all works to be completed quickly, safely, and without disrupting school operations. Within just seven working days, 16 classrooms were fully refurbished—a challenging timeline further complicated by the safe removal of asbestos. The Clendon Park project involved carefully relocating an existing classroom to a new site within the school grounds and converting it into a Wharekai, a Māori dining hall. In addition, the Keola team constructed a new carpark and footpaths. “Predominantly school projects are refurbishments, not new builds as there are funding constraints,” Sanjesh says. “There’s a big push from the government to improve schools to make them more dry, warm and safe, and to improve the interiors.” “We make sure buildings are compliant. We encounter asbestos in schools and organise removal. We fix leaks in roofs and rotten frames”. Sanjush says that what sets Keola apart from competitors is their unique skillset and experience. “We nail a good brief as a starting point. We have a technical background and are great at problem solving. “I have an engineering background and utilise value engineering—ways to do things cheaper and smarter, and my son has a degree in quantity surveying—making sure projects are delivered within budget with accuracy”. Future plans for Keola include using AI to improve efficiency. Sanjesh’s son Rohil will take on more of a managerial role in the business over the next five to ten years. “We want to develop a sister company that is a client-side project management company”. COMMUNITY Specialists in school, commercial, residential construction and renovations. Specialists in public drainage 022 090 8838 021 644 996 House Painting - Interior, Exterior & Roof | Auckland & Upper North Auckland Locations Proudly supporting Keola Ltd 5a Rangitane Pl, Lynfield - Ph: 021 783 454 - williampainters@hotmail.com
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