Australian Defence Force looking to Dunedin Engineering Hub

Great news for Farra and Dunedin locals! Up to 500 jobs could be delivered by Australian military contracts. This would help kick-start a new wave of engineering in Dunedin.

Farra Engineering chief executive Gareth Evans said Dunedin had been a leading centre of engineering in New Zealand for more than a century, but major employers like Fisher and Paykel Appliances and Hillside Workshops had since been lost. Mr Evans said the city had an opportunity to launch a new wave of modern engineering, built on new skills, collaboration and opportunities.

The types of work on offer would include everything from manufacturing lift and other equipment to kitchen fit-outs of naval vessels, he said. Securing $100 million of work would deliver 300-500 new, high-value jobs to the city, and was a realistic goal, he believed. 

''We would only need a fraction of a percent [of the work] to make a material difference to Dunedin.''

The opportunities on offer did not end with Australia's military upgrade, either, as the civil ship maintenance, renewable energy, climate change and general construction sectors offered chances for long-term growth, he said.

ODT Article: https://www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/dcc/engineering-hub-could-deliver-hundreds-jobs-dunedin