Nulca NZ represents the utility location industry in New Zealand. It is an organisation created to support and grow the capabilities of individuals and organisations involved in locating, tracing and mapping underground services.
Nulca is a contraction of National Utility Locating Contractors Association, an organisation originally formed in the United States in 1994. Australia also established a similarly named association in 2004.
In choosing to adopt Nulca as our name we join an international collective of people dedicated to building better and stronger national and global utility locating industries.
While the US and Australian associations are still sometimes referred to by their full name, they are more commonly now known just as Nulca. The full name is a bit of a mouthful to get out so the New Zealand association will simply be known as Nulca New Zealand or Nulca NZ.
Brent joined the Board to help bring a community of locators together and raise the quality of the industry through shared thoughts and experiences. His favourite hobbies include hunting and fishing and his favourite place in NZ is the Te Urewera National Park.
Phil joined the Nulca board as Treasurer with a passion to make the lives of those working around underground cables and pipes safer, and the key to this is through knowledgeable utility locators detecting these assets and highlighting the risks to those working near.
He is a keen cyclist and loves tramping in the great outdoors to off the beaten track locations.
His favourite spots are around the Ruapehu/Tongariro area with some great downhill mountain biking locations like the 42 Traverse to get muddy on.
Jordan joined Nulca as Secretary because he wants to make a difference in the utility locating industry by helping increase the skills and competency of the industry as a whole. Utility locating should never be an afterthought on a project; it is a key step in reducing the risk of utility strikes and project delays.
Outside of work Jordan enjoys many outdoor activities that involve gathering food such as spearfishing, hunting & fishing. He also enjoys getting in the kitchen and turning the wild game he gathers into delicious dishes.
His favourite part of New Zealand is the Kaimanawa Mountain Ranges in the central North Island.
Chris is keen to be involved in order to make a positive influence by setting the expectation and removing the assumptions that exist within our industry. Through Nulca NZ, we can educate the importance of a consistent utility language used by all and raise the standards in Locating and utility data collection.
His favourite hobbies include getting outside with their dog Winnie, camping and swimming.
His favourite place in NZ includes anywhere new - he is still exploring and finding new places.
Sam sees value in joining the Board as he sees Nulca NZ and its members at the centre of all the action when it comes to protecting people and critical infrastructure.
Sam is all about music, getting outdoors, and hanging out with his awesome family.
His favourite place in NZ cannot be pinpointed - the entire country is amazing.
Paul has joined the Nulca board recognising the need to increase the presence of our industry and the interaction with the utility locating community. He understands the importance of our part in helping contractors and asset owners protect people and underground assets from harm or damage. Paul has also taken on the new role of Membership Manager.
Outside of work Paul has a range of interests across sport and recreation, including football, spearfishing, Aikido, cycling and motor sport.
His favourite part of New Zealand is the Bay of Islands and the Coromandel where he has spent many summers enjoying all aspects of these regions.
Working Groups
The 2020-2021 working groups for Standards and Skills Development have successfully delivered the outcomes we needed to improve ours and the broader damage prevention industry. The baton has been passed to other organisations such as Standards New Zealand to take that input and make concrete changes.
For 2022-23, the Board has decided that only one working group will be needed and that the focus needs to be on building a sustainable locating industry workforce for the future.
Industry Workforce Development
The 2022-23 working group will look at how we can build a sustainable program to recruit into our industry so that we can oversome current resource constraints and build a stronger and more professional locating workforce for the future.
With the work the Skills Development working groups has done, we are looking to see solid career opportunities in our industry that go beyond just a job. It’s not inconceivable that a person can start as a trainee straight out of school and retire as a senior professional, all within the subsurface/utility location industry.
Some of the questions and issues this working group may look at may be:
- Is this a real issue and what impact is it having today?
- What steps today will build a better future for our industry tomorrow?
- How do we make this an attractive career option?
- Where and how do we recruit the right people into our industry?
- Can we have the industry and the allied jobs officially recognised?
- Could some roles be classified as essential and meet special immigration status requirements?
- What are our industry people needs for the next decade?
If you’re interested in joining the working group, get in touch with Innes or any of the other Nulca NZ Board members.