| 49 TRANSPORT Bascik Transport Proudlypartnering withBascikTransport for over 25 years. Industrial • Commercial • Residential “Quality Solutions delivered on Time” INVERCARGILL QUEENSTOWN DUNEDIN CHRISTCHURCH T T Virginia Wright Expansion reflects Southland’s growth Bascik Transport’s Invercargill depot services all of Southland, including Te Anau, and its growth reflects the region’s strength, whether it’s farming, the meat-processing industry, construction or the smelter at Tiwai Point. Christchurch couple, Mervin and Pauline Bascik, established Bascik Transport in 1970 as a local transport provider, and over the following years, as the regulations around the freight industry were slowly lifted they built a network to service the needs of their growing market. After their son, Tony Bascik, took over as managing director in 2000 he continued to grow the network and the services they offer in response to an ever-changing transport environment. General manager, Owain Davies, has been with Bascik Transport for 32 years, having started at the bottom and worked his way up through all the key positions. “After three decades of being involved in the industry I have experienced most scenarios and built up a significant knowledge base, so when challenges come up we can usually quickly find the best solution for our customers,” Owain says. He has seen the business grow from a small team of 20 to currently 550 employees and from 15 trucks to 300. A key change was the move in the early 1990s from being a furniture- moving company to becoming a full general freight carrier, and the company has been growing steadily ever since. Originally with a small depot in Auckland and their main base in Christchurch, Bascik Transport concentrated on servicing the South Island. “Back then it was mainly fragile freight like bathroom ware, ovens, lounge suites, windscreens and so on, but now we have moved into full general freight, which includes products like palletised food stuffs and pharmaceuticals as well as still transporting fragile goods,” Owain says. Eight years ago, Bascik Transport built a depot in Invercargill, the first in what has been a steady investment in the South Island over a number of years providing the company with a network of modern, purpose-built depots in Invercargill, Dunedin, Cromwell, Timaru, Greymouth, Nelson and Blenheim as well as their Christchurch base. More recently, they looked north. Since July last year, nine new depots have opened in the North Island, with 150 additional staff taken on, as the volumes of freight have considerably increased both in the north and the south. “We wanted to be well resourced in the South Island before looking at the North Island,” says Owain. “Invercargill was one of the first sites we built, but we underestimated growth in the Southland region so we have decided to develop the depot further with a new canopy, which essentially covers the rest of the land around the original depot.” Currently, Invercargill has 900sqm of indoor space and an existing canopy of 500sqm down the side. Bascik Transport has a longstanding relationship with Calder Stewart, which has run the construction from design through to completion on all the depots built in the South Island. They are now responsible for delivering the additional 1550sqm of canopy extending from the back of the building to the boundary, so the flow of trucks in and out of the Invercargill depot will be safe, secure, and out of the weather for the foreseeable future. Led by branch manager, Quinton Prendergast, the Invercargill team at Bascik Transport services all of Southland out of that depot, including Te Anau, and its growth reflects the region’s strength, whether it’s farming, the meat-processing industry, construction or the smelter at Tiwai Point. “It’s nice to see the regions flourishing and we are really proud to be building and investing in the Southland community,” says Owain. Expected to be finished in time for the Christmas rush, this latest addition to Bascik Transport’s South Island infrastructure is designed to secure their ongoing ability to provide the quality service to their customers on which they have built their reputation. “It’s nice to see the regions flourishing and we are really proud to be building and investing in the Southland community.”
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