The year 2025 will likely be remembered as one of consolidation and recalibration for New Zealand’s construction and infrastructure sectors, says HERA chief Dr Troy Coyle, who first looks at where we ended up in 2025 and then in subsequent pages what all this might mean for 2026. Continue →

Across the infrastructure and construction sectors, material passports are emerging as a promising tool for enabling circularity. Continue →

Calder Stewart is advancing projects in wind and solar energy and is developing property funds that allow New Zealanders to co-invest alongside the Stewart family in industrial and commercial assets. Continue →

Digitally-enabled Integrated Project Delivery (IPD 2.0) is a method that fosters collaboration and risk-sharing by joining project parties together under a multi-party contract. Continue →

A key aspect of sustainable construction consists of lowering operational and embodied carbon footprints. Continue →

New Zealand could do well to look at the New South Wales government example of support which will cut housing road blocks and red tape and help bring construction forward. Continue →

The built environment is responsible for almost 40 percent of global energy-related CO2 emissions and produces about one-third of the world’s waste — figures that continue to rise with new waves of construction and retrofitting according to McKinsey. Continue →

Changes to liability settings for construction in the building consent system and allowing councils to share resources are designed to eliminate system blockages and speed up the delivery of new homes and infrastructure Construction Minister Chris Penk says he plans to ease the cost burden on ratepayers for defective building work in the biggest changes to the consenting process since the Building Act came into force in 2004.  Continue →

New Zealand’s civil construction sector is stressed with just 16 percent of businesses expecting a positive business outlook, according to The 2025 Construction Industry Survey.  Continue →

Changes to our H&S landscape will see WorkSafe moving more to improving culture and education over prosecution. Continue →

New Zealand’s construction firms of all sizes are facing relentless cost escalation, unpredictable weather, and mounting sustainability mandates, and are having to get smarter if they want to adapt and survive, says Wayne Potgieter from Avanza Solutions For too long, the go-to fix has been the humble spreadsheet—a tool that, while useful for spotting trouble, falls short of steering projects through today’s complexities. Continue →

Construction litigator Janine Stewart, who took on Mainzeal Property and Construction Limited prior to its liquidation, has an important message for the industry’s leaders to avoid meeting the same fate Mainzeal had been one of the largest commercial construction companies in New Zealand.  Continue →

The Apprentice Challenge celebrates up and coming leaders in the construction sector and puts their carpentry skills to the test in a six-hour challenge Apprentices build a project over the course of six hours in a battle for first place in their region, achieving bragging rights and a chance to win $10,000 in prizes at the national competition. Continue →

While the cost of building a house is still increasing, it is at a much slower rate than previously, CoreLogic finds The cost to build a ‘standard’ single storey three bedroom, two-bathroom standalone dwelling in NZ increased by 0.6% in the three months to December, half the 1.1% growth seen in the third quarter of 2024 and also below the long-term average quarterly rise of 1.0%. Continue →

Property values in New Zealand fell 0.2% in December, marking the ninth drop in the past 10 months, CoreLogic reports   The national median value now stands at $803,624, which is 3.9% lower than a year ago and equivalent to a drop of around $32,200. Continue →

Allowing certified building professionals to consent their own work may get houses built faster and for less cost, but insurance implications and the sector’s readiness are among concerns being raised Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk plans to develop a new opt-in self-certification scheme for qualified building professionals and accredited businesses. Continue →

While mental health in the construction is improving overall, more support is needed for the sector’s most vulnerable workers MATES in Construction, a not-for-profit organisation which supports positive well-being in the industry, surveyed more than 2000 workers, with 85% of workers reporting good mental health in 2023. Continue →

New research reveals that while overall business confidence has continued trending downwards, 94% of construction and manufacturing SMEs are confident about the next 12 months The latest RFI Global research commissioned by Prospa highlights the ongoing uncertainty in New Zealand’s business climate, with business confidence continuing to trend downwards despite earlier post-covid optimism. Continue →

Nearly a third of Australian companies are already trialing or using AI to help solve major issues facing the industry, including reducing the cost of construction – another third plan to use it in the future. Continue →

There has been a significant increase in the number of women joining the construction industry, however, they are still significantly underrepresented, making up just 15% of the trades and construction industry When Rebecca Gornall, Health and Safety Manager at Mansons TCLM Limited, first started her role in commercial construction six years ago she was one of the only females on site. Continue →