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A Mount Maunganui business that is a leading supplier of commercial refrigeration and air conditioning products has opened a hub it says is aimed at taking customer service to the next level. Sandra Conchie talks to them as part of NZME’s On The Up campaign.
A company which has opened a new Mount Maunganui hub says it’s a significant investment not only for itself but in the future of Tauranga.
McAlpine Hussmann New Zealand, which supplies commercial refrigeration products to supermarkets across the country, has officially opened its new Tauranga centralised hub.
Its clients also include fast-food businesses and petrol stations.
The company also says it is a leading provider of air conditioning solutions and has national customer contracts with BNZ bank and big retail chain stores including Harvey Norman, Bunnings and The Warehouse group.
Nick Tongue, general manager of McAlpine Hussmann NZ, said consolidating the five previous Tauranga sites into a centre at 88 Portside Drive, Mount Maunganui, was an “exciting” milestone in the company’s 90-year history.
Tongue said the 4210sqm new facility on a leased site owned by Monsoon Properties Ltd meant the company’s manufacturing, storage, logistics, and support operations were under one roof.
Previously the company operated from three sites in Koromiko Street, one in Titoki St and a third-party storage facility.
Tongue said the amalgamation meant “huge benefits” for the company and customers.
There are 560sqm of offices over two floors at the hub, three to four levels of storage, a factory warehouse, a testing laboratory, an atrium which includes a customer showroom, and an in-house training facility for refrigeration engineering apprentices.
McAlpine Hussmann NZ general manager Nick Tongue, Tauranga Mayor Mahe Drysdale (centre) and Sherif Hassanein, Hussmann Oceania managing director, at the official opening of the company's new Tauranga centralised facility on March 18. Photo / Supplied
The new facility was officially opened by Tauranga Mayor Mahe Drysdale on March 18.
Also, at the official opening were some of the company’s customers and former employees, as well as representatives from the Port of Tauranga and other key partners.
Tongue said the new centralised distribution centre was not just a significant investment in the company but also in the future of Tauranga.
“This will enhance our operational efficiency and streamline processes, enabling the company to better serve our clients across the region and the country.
“Our Tauranga facility is the sole factory where the company builds many of the bespoke refrigeration products that are used by supermarkets all across the country.”
McAlpine Hussmann’s workforce
The company employs about 390 staff nationwide, with 80 working at the hub. It has has 13 service division branches from Invercargill to Auckland, including in Rotorua and the Waikato.
Of the 390 staff, about 48 are apprentices.
The company also employs about 200 staff at its factory in Suzhou about 90 minutes from Shanghai.
Ninety per cent of its products are imported from China, with the rest produced in Tauranga.
McAlpine Hussmann New Zealand's general manager Nick Tongue. Photo / Nick Tongue
Investment in the future
Tongue said over the company’s eight-year-lease term this would be “a multimillion-dollar” investment.
“We’re excited about the future and the opportunities this new facility will create.”
He said the company’s mechanical engineers designed and project-managed air conditioning solutions for clients.
“Most of our products are procured from international brands overseas and domestically, and we plan on making more and more air conditioning ducting at our new Tauranga factory in the future.”
Tongue said the company’s further investment highlighted McAlpine Hussmann’s commitment to the region’s economic growth and its ongoing focus on innovation and sustainability for customers.
He said the company had been servicing its customers across the country for 90 years.
“This is a significant event for our company and the wider Bay of Plenty region.
“We’ve seen generations of people come together to grow our capabilities in Tauranga and we are excited to continue that tradition of progress and moving forward.”
McAlpine Hussmann NZ general manager Nick Tongue, Production Manager Tony Hadfield (centre) and Tauranga Mayor Mahe Drysdale at the official opening of a new Tauranga facility on March 18. Photo / Supplied
Tauranga Mayor champions investment
Drysdale said it was “fantastic” to celebrate the opening of McAlpine Hussmann’s facility.
“McAlpine Hussmann has made a larger commitment to Tauranga for their future, and continues to play an important role in taking Kiwi innovation to the world, and in our local economy.
“It’s great to see private enterprise investing in Tauranga, demonstrating confidence in our city and its people,” he said.
“We’ve seen this recently with the opening of the new Sands Town Centre for the growing Pāpāmoa East community, as well as projects under way in the city centre like the Panorama Towers and the Northern Quarter.
“We look forward to the positive impacts that other investments will have the local economy.”
Chief executive of economic development agency Priority One, Nigel Tutt. Photo / Alex Cairns
Nigel Tutt, chief executive of economic development agency Priority One Western Bay of Plenty, said this was an “excellent development” for McAlpine Hussmann.
“It will clearly set them up well for the future. It’s also good for Tauranga, and we’re likely to see more of this in future.
“Companies see our region as not only having strong growth prospects but as a great place to service New Zealand and beyond.”
Sandra Conchie is a senior journalist at the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post who has been a journalist for 24 years. She mainly covers police, court and other justice stories, as well as general news. She has been a Canon Media Awards regional/community reporter of the year.
