About Us

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Engineering Ingenuity

Airey has been operating for over 50 years as an integrated consultancy of engineers, construction professionals, and advisers.

We have been at the forefront of the development of New Zealand’s built environment, from our land development work to our building structures and specialist areas such as marina and waterway development. We are always looking to use our creativity, knowledge and ingenuity to deliver creative and efficient solutions for our clients.

We are regularly described by our clients as “innovative”, “collaborative”, and “ingenious”. The Airey name is synonymous with designing and delivering outstanding projects.

OUR EXPERTISE

”Airey has a proud history of tackling engineering challenges in the built environment, which puts us in the perfect position to design for and advise our clients across a broad range of issues and challenges
Manu WithersDirector

Our Values

Practicality

We pride ourselves on offering our clients practical and sensible solutions.

Diversity

We have excellent gender and ethnic diversity in our offices, reflecting the diversity of our clients and the wider community.

Empowering

We encourage our staff to take ownership of their work. Our clients know that our people have a real interest in their projects and want them to succeed.

Developing

We help our junior staff to become great engineers who would be able to work anywhere in the world.

Collaboration

We have long-standing working relationships in the industry with planners, architects, surveyors, and contractors.

Environment

We improve our environmental performance, both within our work and the running of our practice. This is something we are passionate about and something we have been incrementally improving upon for some years. We are currently in the process of adding an Embodied Carbon Assessment to our Structural projects so that we can monitor our performance in the future. We invite you to join us in helping to protect the environment via our work in the built environment.

Our Team

Say hello to our people providing you with the best engineering services in the country.

ADVANCE YOUR CAREER AT AIREY

David McKenzie

Director – Botany Office

BE, CMEngNZ, CPEng(NZ), IntPE(NZ)

David has been with Airey for 25+ years and has been working in the greater Auckland area for 30 years. He has extensive experience in structural engineering design of residential, commercial, industrial, and tensioned membrane structures. He has had widespread involvement in civil engineering, including the design and supervision of residential subdivisions, roading, and drainage projects. Outside of work, David’s wife, his two children, and sport dominate his free time. He is passionate about triathlon and multisport and has represented NZ in Xterra off-road triathlon. David also loves playing golf and currently plays off a 5 handicap.

James Greenwood

Director – Takapuna Office

BE, CMEngNZ, CPEng(NZ), IntPE(NZ)

James has been working with Airey since 1996. He has a strong background in land development and subdivisional projects, including large-scale coastal developments. His skills include infrastructure design and project management.

Mike Williams

Director – Botany Office

BE, CMEngNZ, CPEng(NZ), IntPE(NZ)

Mike has a wide experience encompassing all aspects of civil, structural, and fire engineering, from residential to industrial and commercial projects. He has a strong capability in the design and inspection of children's playgrounds.

Manu Withers

Director – Takapuna Office

BE, CMEngNZ, CPEng(NZ), IntPE(NZ)

Manu has worked with some of New Zealand's and the UK's most innovative and emerging architects and structural engineers. His diverse project portfolio and experience have given him the ability to deliver an excellent outcome for every project.

Royden Tsui

Associate Director – Botany Office

BE, MEPM(Hons), CMEngNZ, CPEng(NZ), IntPE(NZ)
(Mandarin, Cantonese)

Royden has accumulated 20 years of experience working in the greater Auckland and Wellington regions. In 2021, he assumed the role of Associate Director and currently heads the team of civil engineers at the Botany office. His extensive expertise spans the spectrum of civil engineering projects and includes project management, securing resource consents for subdivisional activities, the design and management of earthworks operations and projects in watercourses, and obtaining stormwater discharge consents for land development projects.

Ashley Watson

Associate Director – Takapuna Office

BE(Hons), CMEngNZ, CPEng(NZ), IntPE(NZ)

With more than a decade of civil engineering expertise in both Auckland and Melbourne, Ashley has contributed to diverse projects encompassing land development, building construction, infrastructure, and public realm initiatives across New Zealand and Australia. He is proficient in steering engineering teams, and he achieves outstanding project results. He embraces a collaborative approach and actively engages with clients, contractors, and fellow consultants to devise cost-effective engineering solutions to match the stakeholders' requirements.

Mitchell Roberts

Associate Director – Takapuna Office

BE(Hons), CMEngNZ, CPEng(NZ), IntPE(NZ)

Mitchell is a civil engineer with more than a decade of expertise in orchestrating, designing, and overseeing civil engineering ventures in both New Zealand and the United Kingdom. He has contributed to diverse land development and civil infrastructure projects, from preliminary feasibility evaluations to on-site construction supervision, contract administration, and certification. Mitchell thrives in collaborative team environments and finds satisfaction in devising innovative engineering solutions. He has built himself a track record of successful, timely, and budget-conscious project delivery.

Nate Van Der Merwe

Associate Director – Takapuna Office

BSc Civil, MBA, CMEngNZ, CPEng(NZ), IntPE(NZ)

Nate, a civil engineer with nearly 20 years of industry experience, assumed the role of Associate Director in April 2023. With extensive expertise in many areas of civil engineering, Nate’s diverse portfolio includes overseeing projects for Metlifecare and Hopper Developments, with a focus on retirement villages. He has also successfully managed residential canal developments for Hopper Developments in Whitianga and Marsden Cove. Nate is dedicated to delivering exceptional service to clients and is adept at managing all aspects and stages of projects from feasibility assessments all the way to vesting.

Luoman Li

Associate Director – Botany Office

BE, ME, CMEngNZ, CPEng(NZ), IntPE(NZ)
(Mandarin)

Luoman is a seasoned structural engineer with nearly 15 years of expertise in the design and construction monitoring of commercial and residential buildings in New Zealand. He is proficient in every aspect of the structural design of a building, from the foundation up to the roof. Luoman possesses sound technical knowledge in seismic assessment and retrofit design for various building types, including reinforced concrete, unreinforced masonry, commercial portal frames, and residential complexes.

Justin Ralston

Chartered Professional Engineer – Queenstown Manager

BE, CMEngNZ, CPEng(NZ)

Justin Ralston brings a unique combination of technical expertise and in-depth local knowledge to every project. Based in Queenstown and with vast experience in construction monitoring in and around Queenstown, Justin is well-versed in both the regional landscape and local construction practices.

A Civil Engineer with over 20 years of experience, Justin specializes in the design, construction monitoring, contract administration, and project management of 3 waters and road construction projects across New Zealand. His comprehensive skill set ensures efficient project delivery and exceptional results from start to finish.

Wanida Van Houtte

Chartered Professional Engineer - Queenstown

BE, CMEngNZ, CPEng(NZ)

With two decades of experience in structural engineering, Wanida has built a strong reputation for her expertise in the design, construction monitoring, contract administration, and project management of industrial, commercial, and residential buildings across New Zealand.

Specializing in the design of reinforced concrete, reinforced masonry, structural steel, and timber structures, Wanida’s skill set spans across a range of materials and building types. Her areas of particular strength include structural design and detailing, supported by manual calculations, spreadsheet analysis, and advanced modeling software. Her comprehensive approach ensures projects are not only structurally sound but also delivered on time and within budget.

Mikayla Williams

Head of People & Culture

Mikayla brings a diverse range of experience to her role as Head of People and Culture. With a background in project management, information systems, marketing, human resources, and executive support to CEOs and boards, she offers a unique blend of business acumen, technical expertise, and human-centric leadership. She is passionate about organisational cultures that drive employee engagement, productivity, and well-being, and is dedicated to ensuring that every team member feels valued and motivated to contribute to the company’s success.

Our History

What started as a two-person operation has, more than 50 years later, grown to become a workforce of over 60 spread across three offices in Auckland and Queenstown.

In 1965 Don Airey set up an office in Pukekohe with a local surveyor, Bill Birch (later Sir William Birch) as the engineer in surveying practice of DN Boak & Partners, which had offices in Takapuna, Orewa, Howick, Te Aroha, and Pukekohe.

Shortly afterwards, Lynne Lawrie was brought in as a draughtswoman at the Pukekohe office and Murray Smith as an engineer who split his time between DN Boak’s Takapuna office and the offices of then Hopper Bros Ltd.

A few years later, the partners decided to separate their offices into individual partnerships. Thus was established the partnership of Birch & Airey.

In 1972, when Bill Birch was elected to Parliament, Don Airey formed a purely engineering firm, DC Airey & Partners. Don was then joined at Pukekohe by Russell Watt, and in 1974 by Tony Corbett, who was based in the Howick office of surveyors Easdale & Partners.

Into the 1980s, several significant new clients engaged the services of the expanding Airey team for large projects, in particular the Pauanui Ocean Beach Resorts project on the east coast of Coromandel Peninsula and the Three Guys supermarkets around the Auckland and Waikato regions.

In 1984, after consulting engineers were permitted by law to form limited liability companies, DC Airey & Partners was incorporated into Airey Consultants Ltd. Much of Airey’s work over those years related to land development work undertaken in association with survey firms, engineering for local authority projects, and structural engineering for various architects.

In October 1989, Roger Twiname and Ian Gibson were appointed as directors.

Airey’s first major canal housing project commenced in Pauanui in 1992 and was followed by a similar project at Whitianga. Airey opened an office in Whitianga to serve its Coromandel projects.

In 1995, Airey was engaged as the consulting engineer for the Remarkables Park mixed-use development on the south side of Queenstown Airport. This ongoing project covers an area of 150 hectares. The engineering work has included new airport roads and a new intersection with SH6 for improved access to the airport and Remarkables Park.

Don Airey retired from the company in 1995.

In response to growing demand north of Auckland, Airey opened an office in Orewa in 1996, appointing Peter Kibblewhite as the manager.

Michael Lee, who had joined Airey in 1990, was appointed a director in 1997.

In 2004, James Greenwood (Orewa), Mike Williams (Pukekohe), and David McKenzie (Howick) were appointed as directors.

A Queenstown office was established in 2006 to serve the Remarkables Park project. The office now has a staff of six providing both civil and structural engineering services.

Russell Watt retired from the company in 2002.

In 2008, James Greenwood took over from Murray Smith the role of project engineer for Whitianga Waterways. James would go on to be appointed project engineer for the next canal housing project at Marsden Cove, adjacent to Whangarei Harbour.

Murray Smith retired as a director in 2009 but continued working part-time as a project manager.

In 2010, Justin Ralston was appointed as Senior Engineer to manage the Queenstown office.

Airey was extensively involved in the Christchurch earthquake recovery effort. Shortly after the February 2011 earthquake, Ian Gibson and Roger Twiname served in the IPENZ emergency building inspection programme. Then, when Christchurch City Council and Civil Defence invited consultancies to participate in the council-run rapid building response, Airey signed on and deployed two engineers per week for week-long assignments.

In 2012, the Orewa office merged with the Takapuna office to enhance the civil engineering capabilities of that office.

Airey turned 50 in 2015. A dinner was hosted to celebrate this milestone, with many past and present clients, staff, and directors attending.

In 2017, the Howick and Pukekohe offices joined forces and relocated to a new office in Botany Town Centre. This office serves the need of all Airey’s clients from Auckland down to Franklin.

In 2018, after 37 years with the company, Ian Gibson retired as a director. He continued to work as a consultant until February 2022.

In 2020, acquired the structural engineering firm Stroude. Manu Withers was appointed as a director.

In 2020, Roger Twiname stepped down as a director. He continues to provide advice and peer review services.

In 2021, Royden Tsui assumed the role of associate director.

Airey purchased Morconsult in 2021, integrating it into their Botany office to enhance the capabilities of their structural team. Andrew Mortimer, the former owner of Morconsult, now consults to Airey on structural and business matters.

In 2022, Ashley Watson and Mitchell Roberts were appointed as associate directors to succeed Michael Lee, who was approaching retirement.

In 2023, after 33 years of service, Michael Lee retired as a director. Following his retirement, Luoman Li and Nate van der Merwe were appointed as associate directors.

Over 50 years, thanks to its growing team of dedicated directors and employees, Airey has made a name for itself as a reputable and successful company. Some people have been with the company for over 25 years, contributing their expertise and experience to the firm’s success. Long-term commitment and loyalty have been key factors in maintaining Airey’s stability and reputation.