Check out what's been happening at Monkeytoe in April in our latest monthly news feature.
A note from Budd
Hi everyone,
With April comes two things. The first is school holidays and, for those with kids, the chance to entertain the little ones for a couple of weeks (though this is might be less ‘chance’ and more ‘challenge’ for some!).
The second is ANZAC Day, and I hope you all took a moment to reflect on the sacrifices by those who have served across Australia and New Zealand. The local memorial services we attended were a humbling reminder of the need for peace today.
In this month’s update, we’re welcoming one of our newest draughtspeople TJ Theunissen, and celebrating some exciting projects that have seen us go further, bigger and better.
We’ve also been into two local schools with gifts. Sometimes kids need a bit of help getting around or putting together the funds for school camp – so we did our bit and gave back, with a few electric scooters and some financial support for these kids.
All this and more in the update below. Read on, and see what else we’ve been up to.
Cheers,
Budd Prestidge, General Manager
Welcoming TJ to the team
If you want the best in draughting and design, then you want to talk to TJ Theunissen.
Originally from Durban in South Africa, TJ came over to New Zealand a few years back on a good hunch. While he and his fiancé settled in sunny Palmerston North, they soon felt the pull of New Plymouth and moved south as it would suit both their working lives better.
TJ ran his own contract draughting company, and before that he was in structural draughting for pre-cast companies. Add a few lifestyle changes to the mix – including the addition of a new child to the family – and when the ad for a role with Monkeytoe came up, he thought it was the perfect time to join a company of good sorts that he’d done a bit of work for in the past.
Always up for a challenge and a stickler for getting it right, TJ’s an asset in the design team. Lately he’s been knee-deep in setting up new software with our library of resources. Soon though, he’ll be using his extensive design skills to aid our team with stairs, platforms, and best-in-class access solutions for Monkeytoe clients across the country.
TJ enjoys good weather, good fishing, and a good BBQ with mates – and get him in the right mood he might help you part with your chips in a friendly poker game.
Monkeytoe along Transmission Gully
Some eight years in the making, the Transmission Gully Motorway project is one of the biggest roading projects in New Zealand. Te Ara Nui o Te Rangihaeata is 27 fresh kilometres of four-lane motorway, connecting Porirua to Paekākāriki and forming the newest stretch of State Highway 1.
Since the project launched in 2014, we’ve been eagerly watching the roading project develop – and at the end of March 2022, the billion-dollar highway finally opened to great fanfare.
While we were in our element here with our solutions, this project was definitely a new industry for us – and we were proud to play our small part here at Monkeytoe, contributing important access solutions at select points along the road.
When the project engineers came to us looking for ladders and stairs that would enable workers to get around safely, we took them through our design, engineering and manufacturing process and took care of the creation of a range of options.
Because this highway, like much of New Zealand’s roads, is exposed to coastal conditions, we knew that a lightweight, adjustable system made of marine-grade aluminium would easily satisfy the need for a 50-year design life.
Some ladders we created stretched into the range of 15 metres, and needed doors to lock up so that the general public couldn’t go wandering. That was easy for us.
The stairways that we created to go up dirt banks took some creative thinking. Once we looked at the cut-outs on the road fronts and into the banks, we saw that we needed to create access up a slope of around 50 degrees. Normally, this is a non-compliant slope – but we were able to show, through a suite of calculations and a custom solution, that we could anchor a set of stairs safely. We created a compliant, user-friendly stair that ran up at a greater incline, but also had breaks every six or so metres to provide comfort and safety.
Next time you’re on this stretch of highway, (safely!) look out for Monkeytoe’s handiwork.
In case you missed it…
A couple of months back we shared that our new, redeveloped Condenser Mounts were on their way. We’re very pleased to say that they’ll soon be ready for your next project!
Our re-developed HVAC mounts launch very, very soon. Stronger, smarter and all-around better for you, our new mounts are made with new custom extrusions and are designed to take better advantage of bracing geometry.
The result? New mounts capable of handling an impressively high loading – something that’s needed in earthquake-prone New Zealand and wind-prone Australia. Now our off-the-shelf designs can handle up to a tonne of loading – almost four times the previous limit for an existing standard design, and without the need for customised solutions. Plus we’ve included anti-vibration pads with every new kit, and kept the modular design.
Keep your eyes out for them as we head into May – and get in touch with [email protected] to find out more!
Meet us on our social channels
If you’re only getting Monkeytoe news from these monthly updates, then you’re only getting one part of the Monkeytoe picture!
Make sure you follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and YouTube. We’ve got stacks of up-to-the-minute news, videos, and content from across Australasia on all our channels – working together to help educate the industry on what’s possible with access and mounting.