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Catalyst is coming to the UK!

APRIL 2015

Commercial Construction – Building UK based Client interviews 18th - 22nd May Fast paced recruitment project

Our client – one of New Zealand’s leading main commercial construction companies is visiting the UK 18th to 22nd May 2015 with the intention of hiring great people to strengthen their already dominant position within the NZ market.

As New Zealand based International Sourcing specialists and as preferred suppliers, Catalyst Recruitment has been asked to assist with finding suitable professionals to ensure their recruitment trip is as successful as possible.

They are sending regional managers and other senior staff on this trip with the intention of securing the right people – quickly. Locations are yet to be finalised but it’s likely that interviews will be in London, Birmingham, Manchester and Glasgow.

Numerous roles are being sourced and include,

• Project & Senior Project Managers

• Design Managers

• Operations Managers

• Quantity Surveyors & Senior Quantity Surveyors

• Commercial Managers

• Planner/Programmers

Catalyst is already speaking to candidates in the UK every morning in preparation for the visit and the response so far has been great. Hopefully you’ll have seen the emails from Andy regarding the visit but if you haven’t and you’re keen there is still time to get involved.

• Construction Managers

• Pre-Construction Managers

• Site & Senior Site Managers

• Service Engineer/Managers

• BIM Specialists

Email Andy on ahopkins@catalystrecruitment.co.nz or Phil on pponder@catalystrecruitment.co.nz with a copy of your latest CV and we’ll be back in touch to discuss things in more detail.

BREAKING NEWS

I S S U E

MOVING TO NEW ZEALAND?

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AUCKLAND

State of the nation

It’s been a long time coming waiting for the recession to move along and for normal business to resume within New Zealand. Although we’re still not there yet the decision by a leading contractor to visit the UK with such a wish list is significant and a good sign of things ahead. We’re delighted to be invited to be part of the project and we’re seeing it as a solid reinforcement of the relationships we have in the industry and the quality of our candidates!

As I write this we’re heading into a long weekend as we commemorate the ANZACS on 25th April. Unlike the UK where the 11th of November is Remembrance Day the biggest remembrance celebration here is ANZAC Day where so many Australians and New Zealanders died on the beaches and cliffs of Gallipoli during the First World War. During the Great War over 100,000 Kiwi’s served from a population of just over 1 million. Over 16,000 died and 41,000 were injured leaving New Zealand with the highest casualty rate per capita during the war. This year is the 100th anniversary of the landings in 1915 and as such there are events happening in New Zealand, Australia and Turkey to mark the occasion.

Civil Contracting

Things have been quiet this month in the civil and infrastructure space as companies focus on getting the last work of the season complete before winter sets in for the next few months. There are a number of projects starting up in the next 6 months so companies will take the slow down during the winter to assess their requirements for the upcoming season and start making some decisions about hiring staff. It is likely that the need, when it comes, will be nationwide and at the same time be urgent requiring candidates to be ready. If we’ve already spoken then I will have you in mind for roles as they come up and will be discussing your experience with clients. If we haven’t spoken yet and you’re keen on a move we need to have a conversation sooner than later so that you’re prepared. Contact me on pponder@catalystrecruitment.co.nz and we’ll arrange a time to talk.

Construction

At the moment, every client I speak to is talking about severe shortages of staff. Good overseas based Quantity Surveyors are securing interviews and offers. The project/site based guys however, (Site and Project Managers) are being sought for projects that are starting in the near future, and hence the 6 week lead time to secure visas is a bit of a stumbling block. Don’t worry though the tide is turning. As you can see from the front page one of the major players is the first mover and has engaged us to help. Contact me on ahopkins@catalystrecruitment.co.nz and we’ll arrange a time to talk.

Engineering Consutlants

With Mireille leaving, it has given me the opportunity to get out and meet with all of the major players in the Engineering Sector and there really seems to be an upsurge in demand. Highways, W&WW, Bridges, PQS , Professional Project Managers and T&T all appear to be getting busier. The dust seems to have settled after the mergers and our clients want to see our CV’s. Exciting times ahead. Contact me on Contact me on ahopkins@catalystrecruitment.co.nz and we’ll arrange a time to talk.

There are many ways to keep in touch with us at Catalyst. Obviously this monthly newsletter is one but we are very active on Linked In and would encourage those not already there to join our groups and link to our company page in order to receive the latest news. If that’s not enough we also have our blog pages, job board and Facebook pages to keep you in the loop. Having your details is only the first step in making the move to New Zealand a reality so get in touch now to discuss your plans and aspirations and we’ll do all we can to help.

Follow us via the links below;

linkedin.com/company/catalyst-recruitmentcatalystrecruit.wordpress.com/catalystjobs.co.nz/christchurchrebuild.co.nz/facebook.com/CatalystRecNZ

this issueState of the nation P.2

$10b for Auckland projects P.3550 metre tower for Auckland P.4Christchurch being rebuilt in 3D P.5

Economy status still ‘rock star’ P.6First look at rail-link designs P.7

NZ economy outperforming every other OECD country P.8

69APRIL 2015

Welcome to the Catalyst state of the nation for April 2015. The observant amongst you will notice that this piece normally adorns the front page of the newsletter but has been bumped this month and replaced by the upcoming trip by one of our clients to the UK.

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Investment over next decade will change the face of Auckland but one critic says money best spent elsewhere.

$10b for Auckland projects

Private and public projects on Auckland’s drawing board have cracked the $10 billion mark. Auckland Council’s City Centre Integration team has just released a map showing the huge public and private investment planned for the next decade.

But many of the projects are not funded in the 10-year budget and are simply plans.

The map showed 48 council projects but interestingly did not show controversial extensions to Bledisloe Wharf or the creation of a new cruise ship terminal at Captain Cook Wharf.

Major council projects mapped include the Albert St upgrade, new bus infrastructure, the Ferry Basin redevelopment, Headland Park planned for the end of the Wynyard Point and the upgrade of Te Wero Bridge.

Huge new private sector apartment and hotel plans, including those around the Wynyard Quarter, are also plotted.

A team spokesman said more than 3000 new apartments were in the consenting process and more were in the pipeline.

“Office vacancy rates are at record lows so many new developments are set to unlock further growth and create the space for many thousands of new jobs,” he said.

Matt Lowrie, transport advocate and Transportblog editor, said people did not realise the scale of change planned. “People love the changes over the last five years with the likes of Wynyard, Britomart and shared spaces and this shows benefits will be coming to many more areas of the city. That will only help in making Auckland more attractive

and liveable, improve the economy and therefore be able to complete better globally for business and talent,” he said.

But Auckland councillor Cameron Brewer said the CBD obsession was to the detriment of Auckland’s 100 villages and town centres, now falling into disrepair.

Only about 12 per cent of Aucklanders worked in the CBD yet the small area was where most of the money was being sunk, particularly with the $2.5 billion City Rail Link.

“Instead of cutting funding to community projects, town centres, library hours and parks maintenance, I’d rather see the knife wielded at the CCOs and the CBD, that’s where there’s still plenty of fat to be found,” he said.

“The public were promised that any money raised by an interim transport targeted rate, tolling or a fuel tax would be going towards providing essential intergenerational infrastructure projects that would help drive Auckland’s economic growth.

“Now we learn that tolls will fund things like beautifying and pedestrianising Quay St and even the Quay St seawall upgrade. That will not impress Auckland drivers when the mayor has promised that extra and alternative revenue raised will go towards more roads and better public transport,” Brewer said.

The team spokesman said no new CBD tower had been built this decade but several are being planned.

Those include Precinct Properties’ 35-level $550 million Downtown Development project announced earlier this year.

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$10b for Auckland projectsarticle continued from page 3

“Albert St alone is set for a major makeover. Digging up the street for the City Rail Link provides an opportunity to reinstate it in a much more attractive state, and concept images just released show what could be achieved.

Meanwhile, new private developments along its length are to take advantage of the street improvements, meaning the Albert St of 2025 may be barely recognisable from the one that exists now,” he said.

“The council family’s focus in the centre is twofold: making it a great place for people to live, work, study, visit, enjoy events and - importantly - for businesses to invest; and on delivering the transport improvements that provide efficient access and that enable as many Aucklanders as possible to connect to it and benefit from the jobs and opportunities it offers,” he said.

“New Zealand needs its biggest centre to perform well. The concentration of industries is an important balance for the rest of the country and for the creation of a more resilient and diverse economy.

“At the same time, these changes signal Auckland’s emergence from a small city on the world stage to one that is becoming recognised as one of the world’s most liveable mid-sized cities. It is now mentioned alongside Melbourne, Seattle, Sydney ... cities that it used to just look up to.

“Already more people commute by public transport into the city than drive, and last month saw rail passenger numbers surpass 1.5 million trips - an increase of 29 per cent on March last year.”

Source: Anne Gibson, NZ Herald

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Some of the biggest buildings of the new-look Christchurch are being put together virtual piece by virtual piece, thanks to remarkable 3D technology.

More than a decade after Building Information Modelling (BIM) made its debut in the construction industry, the concept has been pushed to the point where many of the centrepieces in the rebuilding of Christchurch are being assembled in detail on a computer well before workers set foot on the site.

It comes as the Government starts a BIM acceleration committee, as part of a productivity partnership with the goal of 20 per cent more efficiency in the construction industry by 2020.

BIM expert Jason Howden, who has worked on huge projects ranging from Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital to a 1.5km terminal expansion at Jakarta Airport, has returned to his hometown to assist with Christchurch’s $40 billion rebirth.

His team at architectural firm Warren and Mahoney is now using the technology to tackle several large-scale operations, including three buildings of 40,000sq m, covering a city block.

Because contractors, designers, architects and engineers all worked from a single three-dimensional design, all of the components of a building - from steel girders down to interior fittings - could be designed and positioned into the digital model in a single process.

Once the design was complete, builders on site could use a tablet computer to view the BIM plan as a digital overlay on top of what they were physically seeing.

“A laser grid that is accurate down to the millimetre is projected on the area being worked on - and the tablet computer is able to pick it up and use it to show a render of the BIM, overlaid on a live picture feed so workers can see exactly what the project is supposed to look like and work precisely to plan.”

Mr Howden said this approach allowed construction teams to spot hurdles, make work sites safer, slashed cost and potentially halved construction time.

While New Zealand had lagged behind in its take-up, BIM designing was expected to become more widespread here, and especially in Auckland, said John Walsh of the New Zealand Institute of Architects.

Building blocks

•The easiest way to grasp Building Information Modelling is to picture a set of gigantic virtual Lego pieces.

•A series of Lego blocks form the core of the design, while other blocks are brought in to make special sets, such as a hospital, airport, or prison.

•A prison set would focus on security and safety; a hospital set would be care-focused and designers would prioritise elements such as light.

- NZ Herald

Christchurch being rebuilt in 3D: just add elbow grease

Acute Services Building, Christchurch Hospital. Photo / Warren and Mahoney

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Christchurch Hospital

In a New Zealand economics comment, Mr Bloxham, the chief economist for HSBC Bank Australia, said despite lower dairy prices and lower growth in its major trading partners, New Zealand’s economy continued to be supported by a construction boom and the story had further to run.

As a result, interest rates were at high levels when compared with the rest of the developed world and the currency was high.

The New Zealand dollar was nearing parity against the Australian dollar for the first time in 42 years. Some early signs of domestic price pressures picking up suggested the New Zealand Reserve Bank was unlikely to cut rates this year, in contrast to current market pricing, he said.

Mr Bloxham said there were a range of indicators showing the New Zealand economy was still booming.

The broadest economic indicator of gross domestic product, or GDP, showed growth was broad based across industries with 15 of 16 sectors showing expansion over 2014. Overall GDP was running at a well above annual trend of 3.5%. The more timely indicators confirmed the strength had continued into 2015.

After moderating in the middle of last year, in response to last year’s 1% increase in the official cash rate, business and consumer sentiment had bounced back in recent months and were at levels implying continued above trend growth, he said.

Housing price growth had also picked up pace in the past six months, after easing back in response to the Reserve Bank’s actions.

‘’Given the ramp up in Auckland housing prices, the Reserve Bank looks set to expand its macroprudential tightening measures in June.’’

The economy was largely being driven by domestic factors, Mr Bloxham said.

The post earthquake rebuild of the Canterbury region was increasing and strong population growth was supporting an upswing in residential construction in Auckland. The building boom was creating jobs, boosting incomes and confidence, supporting increased spending.

The external environment had been less favourable, he said.

Slower growth in China and very strong supplies of dairy products, due to a good growing season, meant a sharp fall in dairy prices last year _ weighing on this year’s farmers’ payout.

Australia and Japan were major trading partners and their economies had been weakening recently.

‘’But when you add up the weaker external and the strong domestic story, you still end up with an economy that is now growing at an above trend pace. We expect this to continue through 2015.’’

It should be no surprise the Reserve Bank had much higher interest rates than elsewhere. The cash rate was 3.5% in a world where the major central banks had zero or negative policy rates. Australia had a cash rate of 2.25% and markets expected it to be cut further, Mr Bloxham said.

In the current environment, it also made sense the local currency was strong. The New Zealand dollar had been strong against a range of currencies, leaving its trade weighted index (TWI) _ the basket of currencies of New Zealand’s major trading partners _ near record highs.

If the dollar reached parity with the Australian currency, it would be the first time since October 18, 1973. Back then, it only stayed above parity for a few hours.

‘’Given the strength of the economy, it would be more surprising if the currency was weak.’’

What was surprising was how much concern there had been from New Zealand policymakers about the high level of the dollar.

The Reserve Bank had noted the currency was unsustainably and unjustifiably high. Prime Minister John Key had reiterated concerns about the high dollar and its impact on exporters.

But at this stage, much of the data did not support those concerns, Mr Bloxham said.

Exchange rate sensitive exports such as manufactured goods and tourism services were performing well despite the high currency. Inbound tourism numbers recently reached a record high.

At a glance

• Economy running at above trend pace.

• Reserve Bank unlikely to cut rates this year.

• If dollar parity achieved with Australia, first time in 42 years.

• No surprise New Zealand has high interest rates compared with rest of world.

Source: Dene Mackenzie,13 Apr 2015, Otago Daily Times

Economy status still ‘rock star’The New Zealand economy is still a rock star, according to Paul Bloxham, the man who originally coined the phrase.

P.7

First look at rail-link designs

Spectacular station made to resemble a stingray among artists’ impressions on public view.

Artists’ impressions of Auckland’s City Rail Link include a new underground station at Karangahape Rd built to resemble a stingray.

Auckland Transport says work with a Mana Whenua forum led to the design, chosen in reference to the area’s namesake, Hape. The Maori chief was said to have made his own way from Hawaiki on the back of a ray.

The images are the first glimpse for Aucklanders of how the stations, streets and entrances along the rail link might look, as well as aerial views of a public space in Lower Queen St.

“We think people will be excited when they see these new spaces and what they’ll do for the city,” said CRL project director Chris Meale. “Together they represent the city’s most significant place-shaping opportunity in the next decade.”

The editor of the Auckland Transport blog, Matt Lowrie, said the pictures were promising. “It shows you’re not just getting a City Rail Link, you’re getting vastly improved public space as well.”

The Karangahape station would be a unique development for Auckland, Mr Lowrie said.

At 33m below street level, it would be much deeper than any of the stations on the current network, with three lots of escalators needed to get to the platform.

Images showed designers were focusing on getting as much natural light into the station as possible.

“It will be interesting to see how much they spend on that,” said Mr Lowrie. “It’s not like in London, where you go on to the train in dark and leave in dark; you’ll only be down there a little while.

“I’m not sure they need to worry too much about natural light.”

Mr Lowrie said the urban feel of the station would fit in well with the rest of Karangahape Rd.

The rail link is a $2.4 billion project, for which early work will begin in Albert St in November. Lower Queen St will be dug up in January. The link goes from Britomart, under the Downtown Shopping Centre and up Albert St to Wyndham St.

The Government is due to start funding its half-share of the project in 2020, unless Auckland Council can meet tough rail patronage and employment targets.

However, Auckland Transport has been making steady progress this year, with a deal struck with a developer, Precinct Properties, to ensure underground tunnels would be built near the waterfront.

In March, it said it had now bought 58 of the 70 surface properties it needs, spending $85 million securing the route. It now controls 83 per cent of the properties needed.

It has also appointed two construction groups - Downer NZ and Soletanche Bachy JV and Connectus (McConnell Dowell and Hawkins JV) - to commence the first phase of construction in the downtown area, at a cost of about $3 million.

The Government is due to start funding its half-share of the rail-link project in 2020.

Check it outAuckland Transport is showcasing design plans for the $2.4 billion underground railway and associated public spaces until tomorrow in Queen Elizabeth Square. The showcase, which includes artists’ impressions of stations and surrounding streets, runs from 10am-4pm.

Photo / NZME.

The Catalyst Team

Andy Hopkinsahopkins@catalystrecruitment.co.nz

Phil Ponderpponder@catalystrecruitment.co.nz

Address:PO Box 17405Green LaneAuckland 1546

490 Coatsville – Riverhead HighwayAlbanyRD3Auckland 0793

Phone:+64 9 307 6111

Fax:+64 9 307 6110

Website:www.catalystrecruitment.co.nzwww.christchurchrebuild.co.nz

Blog:www.catalystrecruit.wordpress.com

NZ economy out-performing every other OECD country

Paul Bloxham, the HSBC economist who first called New Zealand a rock star economy, says the New Zealand dollar is going to be strong for some time because the economy it represents is strong.

The New Zealand dollar was at 98.27 Australian cents on Friday from 98.18 cents on Thursday and it is expected to reach parity.

The last time the New Zealand dollar passed the Australian dollar was on October 18, 1973 and it only managed it for a few hours, Mr Bloxham said on TVNZ’s Q+A programme today..

The New Zealand economy is out-performing every other OECD economy.

“That’s why we’ve been describing New Zealand as a rock star.”

It was the fastest growing of the 34 OECD economies in the last year.

“And, we think that situation’s going to continue this year as well,” he said.

The Australian economy, in contrast, is at the end of a mining boom. Mining investment is falling and the rest of the economy is “so-so”.

“So it makes sense that the New Zealand dollar is strong relative to the Australian dollar, and we expect the situation to persist for some time,” he said.

In New Zealand, there is an upturn in construction from the Canterbury rebuild and the housing market is booming in Auckland.

He acknowledges dairy prices have fallen sharply but says dairy production is still rising and the domestic economy is doing very well.

NZNRead more: http://www.3news.co.nz/nznews/nz-economy-out-performing-every-other-oecd-country-2015041214#ixzz3X9HY2u7T

Australians are going to have to get used to New Zealanders going on about how much better their economy is if one economist is right.