The Airfields

Twenty hectares of former air force land at Hobsonville Point, the old airfields the development takes its name from, would become a new community under Eke Panuku, with affordable housing in the mix and areas set aside for work. Before any homes could be built the land had to be made ready, roads laid, services run in and the ground regraded, and it had to happen in stages in a live environment hemmed in by other developments going up at the same time.

RCP managed the land development that made it possible, taking the work from master planning through to delivery as project manager and Engineer to the Contract. Across four stages, RCP managed the delivery of three kilometres of key roads and their services, the stormwater ponds and utilities, and more than 80,000 cubic metres of earthworks.

RCP flagged the tasks carrying programme risk early and pulled utility providers like Vector and Chorus in ahead of time, so design was coordinated well before construction. As Engineer to the Contract, RCP set a procurement strategy to suit the market, tendering the first stage competitively and negotiating the later stages with the incumbent contractor, with long-lead items ordered up front so materials rarely held things up. Working in a live environment hemmed in by other developments, RCP kept reporting and decisions moving between the neighbouring developers, housebuilders, utilities and council bodies all in the area at once.

RCP brought the works in within budget, drawing on contingency only where needed, laying the ground for a community that will keep growing at Hobsonville Point over the coming decade.