There were four finalists in the NZIOB Charitable Trust Projects $5-$10 Million category: 

• Mat Hughes, Complete Construction (Harbour Eats, Commercial Bay, Auckland)
• Nigel Bannan, Cook Brothers Construction (Dark Sky Project, Tekapo)
• James Ainsworth, Hawkins Wellington (Callaghan Innovation Measurement Standards Laboratory, Lower Hutt)
• Matt Dorn, Hawkins Wellington (Victoria University Maru Building, Wellington) 

Two Highly Commended awards were presented in this category. 

The first Highly Commended award went to Mat Hughes of Complete Construction for his work on the Harbour Eats project involving the fit-out design and build of a 2,500 square metre hospitality experience within Auckland’s Commercial Bay development. When site access became problematic, Mat proposed manufacturing the components offsite. This enabled work to proceed concurrently, reducing the base build completion date by over six weeks. This innovative approach improved safety, reduced waste, and improved quality. It also accelerated the onsite project by six weeks, producing approximately $400,000 of additional revenue for the client. 

The second Highly Commended award went to Nigel Bannan of Cook Brothers Construction for his work on the Dark Sky Project in Tekapo. Nigel was also the Category Winner. Constructing this unique structure in a remote alpine location required careful planning and intelligent solutions. Nigel became Site and Project Manager following the departure of the previous Site Manager and a workplace accident. He had to rebuild team morale, as well as manage the telescope’s installation, the complex construction, and the building’s audio-visual fit out. The judges said the successful outcome is testament to Nigel’s strengths as both a builder and a communicator.

A few words from Nigel...

“It was very humbling to receive this award. There were some tough, but exciting, projects in the Awards this year, and I congratulate all those that made it to the final round. A big thanks to Cook Brothers for the opportunity to work on the Dark Sky project and to Steve Kleehammer for the nomination. A massive thanks to Chris for being so supportive and understanding, and to all those people that I have worked with over my career, as they have helped me become who I am today.”