| 57 T T Kelly Deeks New owner at the helm of old firm Dynamic Engineering’s Shaun McGrath took over Slade Engineering in September, moving his team into the Slade factory in Sydenham. Slade Engineering ENGINEERING One of Canterbury’s oldest engineering firms, Slade Engineering, has combined its local legacy with a dynamic young team, with local Cantabrian and owner operator of Dynamic Engineering Shaun McGrath buying the business from Louis Slade, who has started his retirement. Shaun took over Slade Engineering in September and moved his Dynamic Engineering team into the Slade Engineering factory on Brisbane Street, Sydenham. “I am honoured to continue the legacy Slade Engineering has built over the years, becoming a genuinely trusted name in Christchurch and beyond,” Shaun says. “As we begin this new chapter, our combined team will be committed to the same excellence and strong values set by Louis and his family.” Slade Engineering was established by the Slade family in 1966 and has been a major player in the build – and rebuild – of Christchurch, producing the structural steelwork for Neil Dawson’s central Christchurch Chalice sculpture in 2001, and playing a pivotal role in the stabilisation of Christchurch’s ground and its historic buildings following the earthquakes. Dynamic Engineering was owned by electrician Shaun since 2018 and has a reputation for producing high-quality steel fabrication work, using its engineering and electrical expertise. Shaun has built a creative and innovative team, managing large-scale specialist projects for key clients. “One of the strengths of Dynamic Engineering was also its weakness, and that was the calibre of its clients,” Shaun says. “We did large projects which kept us busy for a couple of months, but it was always hard to follow that up with the next big project. With Slade Engineering, things are a lot more consistent, and Louis has been doing a lot of jobs under $1k.” While Slade Engineering and Dynamic Engineering had similar turnovers, the scale of their projects was often at opposite ends of the spectrum, with Slade Engineering doing about 10 times the amount of jobs every year. As well as a consistent workflow, Slade Engineering offers Shaun and his team an array of unique machinery, including one of only two sectional rolling machines in Christchurch, which gives Slade Engineering specialist capacity for bisectional rolling on its own projects, as well as providing the service for other Canterbury engineering firms’ projects. Slade Engineering also crafts metal for the local art scene, and produces bespoke and creative metal products such as sculptures, signage, furniture, handles and fittings, lighting, gates, and more. Shaun’s plans for the future of Slade Engineering include as much automation of the fabrication process as possible, evolving the business towards a robust, robotic future, and saving time and money for every customer. “My electrical background really helps me see how automation can be brought into the fabrication process, more so than someone with a mechanical background. 18 months ago we bought a robotic welder, and this morning we’ve just put our first job through our new automatic band saw. I’ll head to a couple of overseas trade shows next year and pick up some more machinery that will be unique to the South Island.”
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