Our People

Originally from the Wairarapa, Chris credits his open and honest approach to business to his country upbringing. Having founded Petone Engineering as a two man operation back in 2004, Chris has built it into one of the countries most respected structural steel and seismic strengthening companies. Clients really appreciate the deep technical experience he has in all facets of the operation, from fabrication and erection to project management, estimating and contracts management. Rest assured, when discussing your project with Chris, he’ll understand every aspect of it from start to finish.

As Operations Manager, it is Shane’s hands-on background combined with his strong organisational skills and problem solving ability that lead to project success for our clients. Having worked his way up from being on the tools to then being project manager, Shane now has overall responsibility for the workshop, job sites, safety and quality assurance. 27 years of experience in the construction industry means, as a client, you can have complete confidence in Shane’s ability to oversee your project.

It’s the work that Amber does in the background that helps our business, and client projects, run smoothly and safely. With 20 years of experience in administration, the work she does in quality assurance documentation (SFC), health and safety, and asset management plays a key part in the success of our business.

While you don’t see him on the tools anymore, responsibility for workshop scheduling and welding quality assurance means Kieran is crucial to you, as the client, receiving an end product that exactly meets your specification. Starting as a fabricator, Kieran quickly moved into supervisory roles here at Petone Engineering. He has since become a qualified welding inspector and, as Production Manager, is now responsible for workshop scheduling and welding quality assurance. Kieran’s ten years of experience in the structural steel industry makes him a great asset to have in our team.

Working in human resources, Joanne’s role is to ensure that the team working on your project is made of skilled and experienced people who are at the top of their game. Part of the Petone Engineering team since the beginning, Joanne brought a huge range of skills gained in the banking and legal sectors. Starting with us in finance and office administration, she now specialises in human resources, with her input being critical to the growth and success of the company.

Rochelle is our dedicated Quantity Surveyor, and she brings with her over ten years of experience in the construction industry, working originally for a large construction company, then most recently working as a QS in structural steel. As Petone Engineering’s projects increase in both scale and complexity, the ability to scope and cost jobs accurately is critical to both ourselves and our clients.

Speros sees his role as Estimator as more than just pricing jobs. Acting as a liaison between the engineers, contractors and clients, he is also often the person that submits proposals for approval and therefore the first point of contact for any changes.  With more than 10 years’ background in engineering and the same in the financial sector, clients can be confident that Speros has the detailed, first-hand experience in fabrication and installation, and the understanding of their perspective that is needed to make all jobs as smooth and hassle-free as possible.

Every fabrication process begins with our in-house Detailer, Isaac. He provides our clients and their teams with a professional detailing service, collaborating with project managers, architects and engineers to ensure the steel frameworks we fabricate do exactly what’s needed of them and integrate well with the building design. Isaac generates accurate fabrication and installation drawing packages that are a crucial part of the successful completion of every project we do.

After he joined us, Alvin made a rapid progression from a Site Erector to Site Supervisor then to Procurement and Logistics Manger.  The role means Alvin is responsible for sourcing and purchasing all the materials, equipment and tools that we use, including chasing the best rates and making sure that quantities and prices of steel we are buying match the job tenders. He also handles the logistics of getting steel and equipment from the workshop to the job sites. Clients might not get to meet him but he’s an essential part of our team.