54 | TRANSPORT Mangonui Haulage T T Kelly Deeks Ready-mix division has expanded Mangonui Haulage has roots going back to just after WWII. A: 34 Cove Road, Waipu 120 Foundry Road, Silverdale P: 0508 432 115 E: northbeam@northpine.co.nz W: www.northpine.co.nz Radiata pine grown in Northland is the strongest and stiffest mature pine produced in NZ. Therefore it’s ideal for specialist structural uses such as beams, square posts and SG10 applications. SPECIFY NORTHBEAM. Strong supporters of Mangonui Haulage. A product range of Northpine Appraisal No.986 [2017 ] LIME MILLERS & BLUE METAL QUARRY OPERATORS 09 408 1340 • bellingham.quarry@xtra.co.nz www.bellinghamquarries.com Crushed Road Aggregate & Concrete · Metal · Lime Portable Crushers · Cartage “Proudly supporting Mangonui Haulage” Longstanding transport company Mangonui Haulage continues to diversify its multi-faceted suite of services to suit the market as it transports livestock, bulk and general freight, logs, and ready-mix concrete from the northern-most regions of New Zealand. Mangonui Haulage has roots going back to just after WWII. Dennis Sparksman started as an owner driver in 1980 and two years later was a partner in the business. By the early 1990s he was the sole owner of Mangonui Haulage, and today he partners with his son Sean and former son-in-law Darren Brott and they employ 65 staff including drivers, mechanics, engineers, and administrators. The past decade has seen Mangonui Haulage’s ready-mix division expand as its logging operation has scaled down. “Logging just wasn’t productive enough with too many highs and lows, so we downsized that side of the business,” Sean says. “10 years ago we had 35 logging trucks and now we have six, while our ready-mix division has grown from three units to 12.” Mangonui Haulage is now running two ready-mix plants in Mangonui since opening its first 20 years ago. A plant in Kaitaia was closed down and with the next closest in Kerikeri, local demand was strong enough for Mangonui Haulage to open a second plant in Waipapa last year. Mangonui Haulage is a certified supplier of ready-mix concrete up to 50mpa standard, in an assortment of aggregates and concrete colour options. Sean says the ready-mix division also creates a training opportunity for Manonui Haulage drivers. “It’s a great place to train drivers up because they are all Class 4, so drivers can go in there for six to 12 months while they are working towards their Class 5. Building sites are quite tricky to get into sometimes, so the ready-mix trucks give these guys some really good experience at getting in and out of tight spaces without damaging the trucks.” Mangonui Haulage is currently pretty flush for drivers and other staff. As a large business with many long years of experience amongst the team and a diverse workload which requires licences from Class 2 to Class 5, Mangonui Haulage has the opportunity to train drivers from in-house. “We can take on younger guys with a Class 2, train them up to Class 5 and we wind up with a truck and trailer driver at the end of it. It is expensive to do and it takes a long time, but when we push young guys in the right direction and help them out, we get a bit back in return.” In its rural location, Mangonui Haulage gets a lot of its staff from the local farming communities. “A lot of our drivers come off of farms and they’re pretty practical. They’re not going to university and they are quite happy to stay in the area and earn good money. Our top drivers can earn more than $100,000 a year so they can have a pretty good lifestyle here in the north. ”Sean says transport is a good industry to be in, although some of the fun is definitely being taken out of it with more red tape to deal with in recent years. I just think the money that’s generated from road user charges and petrol taxes needs to be invested back into the infrastructure.
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