With some of the country's most exciting projects in transportation, civil, structural and environmental engineering, Richard Douch (Manager - Central Environments) gives his view on why the Waikato region is becoming the place to work and live for engineers.
"As New Zealand's largest employee-owned professional services consultancy, our people find themselves working anywhere and everywhere. Be it China, the Northern Territory on an Air Force Base, Fiji, the Solomon Islands, or in my case, closer to home in the Waikato".
And with the pipeline of work ahead for Beca in the region, Douch is looking for senior talent in Buildings (structural, building services, and quantity surveying), Civil (roading and water), Food and Beverage, Power, and Environmental management to join the practice, and at an exciting time that will prove rewarding for the people involved, professionally and personally.
"The region's economy is strong, and across most key indicators is growing faster than the national average. For example, we're New Zealand's largest producer of exporting goods, largest producer of power, and largest producer of minerals and aggregates".
Douch points to this as one of the key reasons for the high level of government investment in roading and transportation. But he's quick to remind everyone that although the city doesn't have a coastal port, it's got coast.
"Many of our teams actually live out of the city of Hamilton, be it on the coast in Raglan where you can have a clear run in the traffic and during summer an early morning surf, or in lifestyle developments around the region. Once you're home, you're home, and in the weekend everyone forgets about work - no one is too fussed about what you do, or who you are at the weekend BBQ - it's a good sense of community".
It's that sense of open space that the Waikato has always been famous for. And what is apparent now is that there is great opportunity for senior engineers to build careers, and live the lifestyle that they'd like for themselves and their families. When you consider that the median house price in the region was 5.3 times the national earnings - versus 6.9 across the rest of the country - you can see why it makes sense. And the quarter acre dream? "It's alive and well here".
From a residential perspective the growth is set to continue. Hamilton City will grow by 80,000 people in the next 40 years. To support that growth, an additional 150,000m2 of both retail and commercial office floor space is required. That's the equivalent of one new 5,000m2 building being built each year.
"For me personally it's becoming a great place to raise a family, and build a career. We're less than two hours away from the country's biggest airport, which is handy for work and family travel. Yet, come the weekends we're out in open spaces. The future holds a lot of opportunity. We have a strong tertiary education, research institutional base, and strong iwi economy, and it's these partnerships that will help to diversify the economy and provide local opportunities for us and the next generation.
"I'd encourage any engineering talent in the region - or across the country - to get in touch with us. The lifestyle has always been here. But what's really arrived is a strong pipeline of projects and long term work, giving everyone the chance to develop business and their careers, while enjoying a world class lifestyle".