Business South May 2021

| 45 “It is a high-use gym and there are some very old machines. Because they’ve been so well maintained, they keep going.” Diversification drives business forward ENGINEERING Pryde Engineering T T Kelly Deeks Pryde Engineering looks after repairs and maintenance for almost every Dunedin fitness centre. ELECTRIC MOTOR SPECIALISTS Supplies, Rewinding & Servicing P/Fax. (03) 455 5757 Mob. 027 555 7568 | 027 555 7580 Email. admin@roscoesrewinds.co.nz 70A Fox Street, South Dunedin 9012 www.roscoesrewinds.co.nz Russet Engineering Sales Ltd are pleased to be suppliers for Pryde Engineering Importers & Wholesale Suppliers of: • Gear ed Motor s & Powe r Transmissi on Products • Conveyo r Beltin g & Equipment • Industria l Hose s & Fitting s • Industria l Products • Conveyo r Vulcanisin g S ervices Source Supply Service O800 RUSSET D unedin’s Pryde Engineering is sup- porting industries which have been under pressure since Covid, providing regular repair and preventative maintenance programmes for joineries, frame and truss plants, mechanical workshops, and even fitness centres. “Our customers are busy, so we are busy,” says Pryde Engineering managing director Dan Pryde. “Their machinery is all being well-used, and we are there to ensure it can be used in a safe and effective way.” Since it started in 2004, Pryde Engineering has diversified into niche markets which pro - vide regular work for the company’s specialist engineers. The company is involved in almost every joinery shop in Dunedin, as well as some large frame and truss plants, providing machinery repairs, breakdowns, and maintenance. The joinery industry is currently experienc - ing unprecedented growth with Kiwis now putting their funds earmarked for overseas holidays into renovating and upgrading their homes. Joineries and frame and truss plants use compressed air for lifting and handling and to drive tools, and this is another niche market for Pryde Engineering, along with pneumatic engineering. Dan has extensive experience with com- pressed air equipment, and two of his team have spent more than 30 years working with a range of compressed air equipment from portable reciprocating compressors to sys- tems for large-scale commercial applications. Pryde Engineering looks after repairs and maintenance for almost every Dunedin fitness centre, providing records for the machines to go along with each gym’s health and safety programme, showing the machine has been maintained and it at a usable standard. “At the Unipol Recreation Centre, they’ve got some machines with close to a million miles on them,” Dan says. “It is a high-use gym and there are some very old machines. Because they’ve been so well maintained, they keep going.” The fitness centre market is also booming since Covid, as more people focus on fitness as a massive part of overall wellbeing. As an independent service provider, Dan says Pryde Engineering service technicians take an honest approach when it comes to repairing vs replacing machinery, whether at the gym or any other business. “We are not out there trying to sell our lat - est model. If it is viable to repair, we’ll do it.” Pryde Engineering is busy in the hospitality market, looking after mixers, mincers, and band saws in kitchens and butcheries. “Once again, it comes back to a safety issue. These machines have moving parts and if an incident occurs, they have to go back to the records to see how it has been maintained and ensure it is in a safe, usable condition. We’ve got documentation for a number of machines around Dunedin.” So while it’s a great industry to be in right now, Dan is thinking about the upcoming replacement Dunedin Hospital projects, tout - ed as the biggest hospital build ever in New Zealand. He says no-one has advised how to pick up any of the contracts involved in the build, and no-one is saying it should be Dunedin people getting this work. “I guarantee we’ll find out later that some - one in Auckland or overseas has got the work.”