Business North – November 2021 - Business News Publications in New Zealand

In the latest edition of Business North, we take a look at the thriving Western Bay of Plenty region. Projects underway include Winstone Wallboards state-of-the-art plasterboard facility Tauranga’s Tauriko Business park, while Tauranga-based kiwifruit management company DMS Progrowers’ is carrying out an extensive expansion at its Te Puke site. The new Māori business network Whāriki is seeing strong growth. Whāriki started as the brainchild of a small group of Māori business owners and professionals in 2016 seeking a dedicated group in Auckland. We take a look at some of the many businesses that have now joined the network. Also in Auckland, Watercare’s Hiwa-i-te-Rangi giant tunnel boring machine (TBM) has been busy since she was launched in July –on the start of a 14.7-kilometre-long journey under Auckland to construct the $1.2b Central Interceptor wastewater tunnel. The TBM cranked into life just before the national Covid-19 lockdown and has now travelled 102.4 metres on its four-year journey. And, in the wake of Covid impacting tourist numbers, local tourism operator Carino Wildlife Cruises has switched its focus to education taking children and young people out on the water to learn about endangered wildlife in the Bay of Islands.