BCITO merges with JITO and DecorateNZ/FloorNZ

Merger will bring ‘positive change’, says chief executive Ruma Karaitiana.

After discussions with a number of potential merger partners over the past year, BCITO has now merged with the Joinery Industry Training Organisation (JITO) and DecorateNZ/FloorNZ to form one ITO under the BCITO banner.

“We’re very pleased to announce the coming together of three ITOs,”says BCITO chief executive Ruma Karaitiana. “It will bring us one step closer to realising the vision of its Board — to create a single construction and infrastructure ITO.

“This union of three ITOs will bring about gradual positive change for our industries. As the number of specialist trades under BCITO coverage will increase substantially, we’ll be better placed to focus efforts and resources in this space. A new Specialist Trades Group will be established and headed by Greg Durkin, former CE of FloorNZ/DecorateNZ, to service these trades.”

The three ITOs have a long history of working together on joint projects within the BETA Group of ITOs, as well as having recently collaborated on the Allied Trades Cluster Targeted Review of Qualifications.

“All three organisations are enthusiastic about the opportunities which come from having these construction-related trades together within the coverageof one organisation,” says Mr Karaitiana. “It will give all our related trades a chance to learn from each other and work more closely together.”

The trades that will become part of BCITO includes architectural aluminium joinery, flooring, glass and glazing, timber joinery, kitchen and bathroom design and painting and decorating.

According to the BCITO, nothing much will change for current and new clients. They will continue to receive the same level of service as before and all contacts and phone numbers will remain unchanged.

Fees and billing will also remain unchanged. Both new and existing BCITO clients will continue to be billed the same amount, and in the same way as before.

However, the BCITO says clients may notice a few minor changes to some BCITO documents such as invoices, training agreements and letterheads. If clients have any questions or concerns about this merger, it is recommended they contact their Training Advisor or call BCITO on 0800 422 486.

Apartments boost monthly dwelling trends to highest level since January 2008

The trend for new houses continues to increase, albeit at a slower rateThe number of building consents issued for apartments in November 2013 was the highest in almost five years, leading to an 11% rise for new dwellings overall.

Across the country, November saw 1775 new home consents and 492 apartments, of which 61 were retirement village units.

However, Statistics New Zealand (SNZ) industry and labour statistics manager Blair Cardno said apartment numbers usually fluctuate from month to month.

New dwelling trend continues to ease

The monthly trend for new dwellings, excluding apartments, continues to ease and has only increased slightly in recent months. The seasonally adjusted SNZ figures for November, released in January, show that the number of new houses approved fell 0.5%.

However, it is still at its highest level since March 2008, 65% higher than its most recent low point in March 2011 yet 35% below its peak in September 2003.

Apartments boost overall consents

The trend for new dwellings, including apartments, rose 11% – driven up significantly by the 492 apartments consented in November. Three regions – Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch – accounted for most of these. This trend is now at its highest level since January 2008, and is 80% higher than March 2011. However, it is still 35% below its peak in January 2004.

Auckland accounted for 34% of the consented dwellings in November, while Canterbury accounted for 24%.

Half the regions consent more new dwellings than in 2012

Excluding apartments, eight of the 16 regions consented more new dwellings in November 2013 than in November 2012. Led by Canterbury (up 87 to 482), then Auckland (up 79 to 511), followed by Waikato (up 51 to 221), the other regions who also saw an increase were Northland, Bay of Plenty, Gisborne, Hawke’s Bay and the West Coast.

Value of building work

The unadjusted value of building work consented in November 2013 was almost $1.1bn. This consisted of $798m of residential work and $289m of non-residential work.

The largest contributors to non-residential work, by value, were education buildings ($68m and accounting for 23% of all non-residential buildings), shops, restaurants and taverns ($49m and accounting for 17% of all non-residential buildings) and offices and administration buildings ($41m and accounting for 14% of all non-residential buildings).

Canterbury earthquake-related consents

Quake-related building consents were valued at $40m in November 2013 – $36m for residential and $4m for non-residential – and included 64 new dwellings. This is down $19m from November 2012 and $22m from October 2013. The value of earthquake-related consents since 4 September 2010 is $1.38bn.