Engineering team boosts strength
Four new faces bring leading engineering skills to the
utilities department of Council.
Engineers Ulrich Glasner, Damian Campbell, Paul Van
Den Berg and Stuart Robb have chosen to move to the
local government sector from their former consultancy
roles with Duffill Watts Group in Tauranga.
This aligns with Council’s decision to return the
management of its assets in-house after several years
of out-sourcing consultancy to the private sector.
Utilities manager Kelvin Hill says the return to in-house
services means Council has control over the intellectual
knowledge and management of its assets of water, stormwater and wastewater.
The move will not be at any additional cost to ratepayers but will certainly mean that having all engineers in-
house will result in more efficient service that could lead to reduced costs.
“I can see all the advantages straight away,” says Kelvin. “The knowledge base stays within Council, there will
be improved efficiencies having staff in-house - particularly with the inter-relationship between Council
departments and there is more ownership of the asset as it is Council-paid employees managing the asset.
“These are people employed by the ratepayer looking after their asset – there is more accountability and, from
my point of view, I can bounce ideas off team members.”
Duffill Watts Group will continue providing services to Council and has 18 staff involved in capital works design
and overseeing day-to-day maintenance contracts.
Ulrich Glasner, Asset Manager Utilities
Ulrich, 45, emigrated to New Zealand from Germany two years ago and has 25 years’ experience as a civil
engineer.
In his Council role he is responsible for managing the water supply, wastewater systems, the stormwater and
solid waste.
He oversees the wastewater schemes and treatment plants in Te Puke, Waihi Beach and Katikati, the 10
water treatment plants and the water supply network across the District, the stormwater retention reticul