Investment brings leading edge technology to quake recovery

Investment brings leading edge technology to quake recovery

Canterbury company Pegasus Engineering has invested more than $10 million in new premises and new technology to ensure it can take a leading role in the post earthquake rebuild.

Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee will officially open Pegasus Engineering’s new $7 million premises at the Izone industrial park in Rolleston on Friday 1 March. The building houses more than $4 million of the very latest in steel fabricating technology including more than $1 million in new cranes and $3 million in Computer Numeric Controlled (CNC) machinery and conveyor systems.

Pegasus Engineering is a leading structural steel fabricator and erector in Canterbury. Its projects include the recently completed Otago Stadium, the temporary ‘100 day’ stadium in Christchurch and the new Christchurch City Civic Building.

General Manager Simon Williamson says the company is excited about the role it can play in the ongoing economic development of the South Island, especially the contribution Pegasus can make to the Canterbury rebuild.

“While we planned our shift to Izone before the Canterbury earthquakes,” Williamson says, “the quakes did cause us to re-think the degree of development and new technology we intended to put into the building. It was clear that Canterbury was going to need huge capacity to meet the needs of the rebuild. So rather than invest in entry level new technology for steel fabrication, we have gone to the very advanced level with a substantial increase in investment. We think this will not only future proof Pegasus Engineering, but make a substantial contribution to Canterbury’s recovery capacity.”

The result is an average 15 to 30 per cent increase in efficiency. “It used to take us four to five hours to unload a truck of steel, now we can do it in 20 minutes. To fabricate a tonne of steel, cutting and drilling to size and fit and so on, used to take up to 18 hours. Now we can do it in less than 10. When the plant is fully commissioned our goal is to exceed 100 tonnes of fabricated and structural steel per week.”

Construction of the new plant commenced in February 2012 and the company moved in just before Christmas the same year.

Established 1977 (the current Managing Director Gavin Lawry took over in 1987) Pegasus has grown from an original staff of two working proprietors to more than 70. One of the unique aspects of the company is the strong tie-in between its ownership and its operation. Pegasus is owned and operated by key management staff. Lawry is the majority shareholder with Williamson, Blair Kelly (Operations Manager) and Brett Dodds (Workshop Manager) holding the balance of the company shares.

ENDS

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