Bradken keeping former Hillside Workshops busy
The former Hillside Workshops site, seen in the centre of this photograph, remains busy, despite the closure of the main operations in 2012 after a strong campaign by local members of Parliament, Dunedin City councillors and the public.
One of the companies to move to the Hillside Rd site was Australianowned Bradken (circled).
Bradken has been a consistent employer in Dunedin since acquiring the Tewsley Street Foundry in 1964.
The company moved its foundry operations to the Hillside Rd site about five years ago.
Bradken is a global foundry and metal casting business specialising in customdesigned parts and equipment.
In Dunedin, it manufactures metal castings, or parts, for use on a range of equipment in various industries including forestry, smelting, transport and steelmaking.
The size of the Dunedin workforce is balanced to meet the demand for Bradken products. About 50 permanent staff are employed on site.
An additional seven people have been hired to meet an upturn in demand for the company’s products, many of which are exported to key markets around the world.
Bradken said in a statement it was also proud to support the local community through subcontracting work to local machine shops.
Hitachi Construction Machinery Co bought Bradken Australia following a successful takeover offer in 2017.
Bradken was then delisted from the Australian stock exchange.