20 years ago:
• Carter Holt Harvey mills at Kumeu, Whangarei and Marton were being closed in the company’s drive to improve international competitiveness.
Around 190 jobs were to be lost, although the company hoped to counter this with internal transfers of qualified staff.
Carter Holt Harvey says the three mills were high-cost operations that were not well equipped to meet specialised customer demands.
The company was to concentrate on efforts at its bigger mills in the central North Island and Nelson, and said new high-tech plants could be built in Helensville and Dargaville in the next three to seven years.
15 years ago:
• The RMBF was giving its full support to legislation being prepared by Associate Minister of Housing Laila Harre. The legislation provided protection and security of payment for construction contractors, but the RMBF stipulated that a liens provision to secure payment be part of it.
“We’ve recalled our working group on contracts to provide all the assistance that may be needed to ensure the legislation gets a smooth swift passage through the House,” RMBF chief executive Chris Preston said.
“In the meantime, we’ve told our members to ensure that every contract is as watertight as they can make it, and to keep on top of their paperwork,” he said.
10 years ago:
• A pan-industry approach to make New Zealand building sites among the safest in the world was agreed by the Construction Industry Council.
A Health and Safety strategy prepared by the CIC envisaged a zero fatality record in the construction industry workplace within five years, and an annual 10% reduction in injuries through to 2010.
“In recent years the industry has had a high number of fatalities and a high injury rate,” CIC chairman John Pfahlert said.
A significant step forward was inclusion by the CIC of health and safety issues in its guidelines for best practices in procurement.
“We want developers to take into account health and safety records of contract bidders when selecting construction and building services. They can send out a strong message that quality health and safety practices are a key element for business success within the industry,” Mr Pfahlert said.
5 years ago:
• Buildings constructed before the New Zealand Building Act 1991 and consequential Building Regulations 1992, including the Loadings Code of Practice NZS 4203: 1992 should not be regarded as “modern”, according to the New Zealand Society for Earthquake Engineering.
“The Pyne Gould and the CTV buildings which collapsed in the February 22, 2011, earthquake have been routinely referred to as ‘modern buildings’,” NZSEE executive officer Win Clark said.
“However, if commentators or the media are referring to ‘modern buildings’ in terms of earthquake-resistant performance, it is important to understand the many changes that have been made to the way buildings are designed and constructed since building standards were first introduced in New Zealand following the 1931 Hawkes Bay earthquake,” Mr Clark said.
