Q. What is your background and how did it prepare you for your role fronting the BRANZ technical advisory helpline?
I was a builder in Wellington for 25 years before joining BRANZ. I went through the usual qualification route, starting my apprenticeship with my father (one of seven builders in my extended family!) then finishing with another building firm. I worked on a wide range of projects, from semi-commercial to renovations and new builds, which all have different challenges.
Across my career, finishing was always my favourite part. I’ve always been a bit of a perfectionist, so I enjoyed the accuracy required. I was very proud that one of the projects I worked on a few years ago received the Registered Master Builders Supreme Award. I loved that higher-end stuff where there was an opportunity to use unusual materials and apply your knowledge and skills. If there was a tricky job, I liked to be involved. I like problem solving.
Q. Did that enjoyment of problem solving lead you to BRANZ?
Well it helped! But it was actually an injury that took me off the building site. A couple of years ago, I was recovering from shoulder surgery and looking for a new opportunity and it so happened that BRANZ was looking for someone to temporarily cover the helpline role. I found that I really liked it. My body wasn’t getting any younger, so I decided it was time for a permanent change. It worked for BRANZ too, so here I am!
Q. Is there a typical day on the phones?
Not really. There’s a lot of day-to-day variety. Some days, I’ll get only five calls, and on other days, it might be 30. Some calls I can answer in 2 minutes and others will take all day.
In my time here, the H1 changes have really dominated. I get so many enquiries about that – callers looking for clarification of the requirements and how BRANZ interprets them. Overall, H1, E2 and NZS 3604 make up the bulk of enquiries. They would typically account for 80% of my calls each day.
There’s also an uptick in calls whenever BRANZ releases a new tool like the H1 calculator, for example, or whenever MBIE announces changes such as the new rules around granny flats.
Q. Did it require a lot of upskilling?
Definitely! But I’m in the right place for that. I read a lot of material based on BRANZ’s extensive research. I’ve found that I have a real appetite to read up on a whole lot of subjects, which differs a bit from building, where most days I was so tired after work I didn’t have a lot of energy for upskilling.
I now understand a lot more about why I was building things the way I was when I was on the tools. For example, I understand the importance of installing insulation correctly and how framing timber acts as a thermal bridge. Once you’re interested in a subject, the learning – the appreciation of why things should be done in a particular way – becomes a pleasure. That’s the greatest reward for me.
Q. Do you ever get stumped by an enquiry?
Absolutely! But I do have the advantage of knowing a little bit about a lot of subjects, so I can usually understand what a caller is referring to and know where to go looking for help. That might come from someone else in BRANZ, where we have amazing experts who are passionate about what they do and genuinely want to assist. And if they can’t help, they can usually guide me – sometimes outside of BRANZ.
There are occasions where we simply can’t help. For example, we’ve had callers involved in legal cases over a building or construction issue and they’re looking for us to back them. Or we have callers looking for product advice or where to find the best prices. We can’t ever compromise our impartiality, but if we can’t help directly, we will always do our best to suggest other places to try.
Most of the advice I pass on is straight from our own research, so it’s clear cut. It’s evidence based and backed by our world-class expertise. And if we don’t have that evidence, I’ll say so.
Q. Do calls ever get tricky?
The vast majority of callers are respectful and polite. They’re genuinely looking for assistance and appreciate that we’re doing our best. Only once or twice can I recall someone calling in with all guns blazing. You learn how to manage those. A lot of times, people just want to be heard. Listening is a big part of my job.
Q. How do you spend your time outside of work?
I do love my sport, but right now, life revolves around my family. I have two young girls – and that lifestyle is very different from my old sporting days!
I have a large extended family, many of whom are or were builders. They have their own ideas, so there’s been lots of building talk at family gatherings over the years.
BRANZ advisory helpline – free phone 0800 80 80 85 during normal business hours.