Hamilton Airport Titanium Park: Precinct North celebrates sod-turning

An artist’s impression of the new Asmuss building planned for Precinct North at Hamilton Airport.

Waikato Regional Airport’s 170ha business and industrial area, Titanium Park, is growing as work on the latest stage, Precinct North, kicks off.

The team recently celebrated the sod-turning of Precinct North’s first building, a new 5000sq m facility for steel-product company Asmuss.

Asmuss, including its polyethylene-pipe extrusion plant, is currently based in Te Rapa, but the business has said it has outgrown this space.

The new facility is expected to be completed in April next year.

Hamilton Airport chief executive Mark Morgan said the airport would take on the design and build in return for a long-term tenancy from Asmuss.

It would be a joint project between the airport, Asmuss and Hamilton-based construction company Fosters.

“Being first off the block in Precinct North means Asmuss will help us set a benchmark in terms of design and we intend to set that benchmark pretty high.”

Asmuss chief executive Dean Brown said his company’s expansion was about investing for the future.

“This latest investment is all about being ready for when the infrastructure market recovers – and it will,” Brown said.

“At Precinct North, we have the ability to further expand if we want to.”

Over the coming 15-20 years, Morgan estimated hundreds of millions of dollars would go into developing Titanium Park’s Precinct North and, once completed, he expected more than 5000 people to work on-site.

“This is a massive project not just for us, but for the wider Waikato construction and civil construction industries,” he said.

A sod-turning ceremony was recently held at Precinct North, Titanium Park, Waikato Regional Airport.

“Precinct North is big in itself, but is just one stage of a bigger picture.”

Morgan said the full development of Titanium Park was part of the airport’s goal to be self-sustaining.

“We are strategically using our landholdings to develop non-aeronautical income which we can in turn reinvest,” he said.

“Up until now, [Titanium Park] has essentially been a land developer. Now we are becoming a developer and a long-term investor and ultimately, an economic enabler for the region.”

More than 30 businesses are based at Titanium Park, including Visy, Trade Depot, Tyreline Distributors and StorageKing.

Since March, contractor MacPhersons has been doing earthworks across the 20ha first stage, and Camex Civil has been awarded the tender for roads and infrastructure.

Waikato Regional Airport Ltd is a council-controlled organisation owned by the Hamilton City, Otorohanga, Waipā, Waikato and Matamata-Piako District Councils.

It is the umbrella for subsidiary companies Hamilton Airport, Jet Park Hotel Hamilton Airport, Hamilton & Waikato Tourism and Titanium Park.