40 | Exaro Contracting REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT T T Virginia Wright Skills and technology bring results Exaro Contracting is a ‘one-stop shop’ when it comes to civil and earth moving capabilities. “Honesty and trust underpin our reputation in the industry,” says Ivan. “We do as we say we’ll do. We’re here to provide a quality product working with the bigger identities to achieve a common goal.” Based in Silverdale north of Auckland, Exaro Contracting Ltd. was established in 2014 by Nick Griffin with a lot of mentoring from his father Keith. Meaning plow, or dig up, in Latin, the name Exaro was suggested by Nick’s mother Cheryl. It remains a family owned and operated company 10 years later despite the tragic death of Keith from cancer in 2023. Nick is still the Managing Director and his sister Emma has been Business Manager since 2019. To help them as they continue working hard to keep Keith’s legacy alive they have Operations Manager Ivan King who started with them in 2020 and is now a shareholder and director. They’ve also brought in an experienced Health & Safety Manager and other senior people to advise on a governance level as they keep doing what Keith always knew they could. “My father was quite renowned in the industry in New Zealand, he worked for a long time for McConnell Dowell, and he knew there was potential for Nick to do really well sub-contracting to the big tier one Civil Construction companies,” says Emma. “Honesty and trust underpin our reputation in the industry,” says Ivan. “We do as we say we’ll do. We’re here to provide a quality product working with the bigger identities to achieve a common goal.” Described as a ‘one-stop shop’ when it comes to civil and earth moving capabilities, Exaro Contracting is valued by those bigger players as a company who will reliably tackle anything from bulk earthworks to drainage, heavy haulage to aggregate transport, and civil construction in all areas. As a company they combine a high level of safety consciousness with an innovative approach to technology. “We invest in things like leading edge, machine control, GPS equipment that will do the job efficiently, accurately and reliably,” says Emma. One of the most significant projects they’ve been involved in for the last 15 months has been the work to reopen SH1 overe the Brynderwyn Hills at Kaipara. “We were there from day one from the first closure and we’ve been there as a big part of the construction team through the months since,” says Ivan. It’s with jobs like the Brynderwyns that their skills with technology pay off. Instead of having people putting pegs in the ground, with the inherent risk that working among heavy machinery brings with it, the survey co-ordinates are uploaded into a machine with GPS and computer technology and a skilled operator, and the surveyor checks its accuracy when it’s done. Supplying a steady stream of labour and machinery such as dump-trucks and dozers working under the guidance of the company running the job, in this instance Fulton Hogan, Exaro supervisors and managers also contributed to the planning side of how what has been a highly complex operation would be undertaken, including the presentation to NZTA. 15 months later they’re proud to have been part of the work, and confident that Keith would be giving them all a pat on the back for a job well done if he was around. It was a job that made the most of the plant that Exaro has available which over the last 10 years has grown from having one digger with another quickly purchased as back up, to its current 100 or so assets, including vehicles, ranging from 2-ton excavators to 40-ton excavators, bob-cats and dump trucks, the list goes on. With a staff of 45 including office staff, and the extensive plant, heavy machinery and vehicles to employ, the Griffin family are mindful of the continuing support they’ve had over the last year. “It’s been a difficult time for us and it’s not an easy time for our industry but our tier one clients have stood by us, and we’re so grateful for the opportunities they continue to give us,” says Emma. It’s nevertheless clear that as reliable, hard-working, early adopters of modern technology that saves time, money and potentially lives, Exaro Contracting repay that support by safely delivering on whatever contract they take on. 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