Action buys Fairfax, talks growth
NEW ZEALAND’S BIGGEST supplier of motorhomes and custom commercial vehicles, Action Manufacturing, has bought refrigerated truck body and trailer manufacturer Fairfax Industries.
Grant Brady, managing director of Action, which is part of the Tourism Holdings (THL) group, says that the buyout is part of a longterm growth strategy.
Plans include the company “making signicant investment into both businesses, in the form of new technology and equipment to boost production and enhance current capabilities.”
Action, with two manufacturing sites in Auckland and Hamilton, employs over 200 people and has been named the largest vehicle manufacturer in NZ – building motorhomes and specialist vehicles for the medical, emergency, tourism and transport sectors.
Fairfax, which has been in operation for more than 40 years, has 60 employees working out of its Takanini factory.
Last year it registered 23 trailers, to rank 14th in the NZ heavy trailer market. In the rst eight months of this year it sold 31 trailers and was up to 12th place.
Action says it has enjoyed “signicant growth” over the past six years – expanding its current manufacturing facilities and increasing sta numbers as it grows “to meet demand and move into new markets.”
Says Brady: “Action has been very strong in the light commercial sector, whereas Fairfax has been strong in the heavy commercial market. We see this acquisition as a way for the two companies to meet in the middle and to now utilise shared resources.
“Action will be able to contribute scale of manufacturing, we have an international supply chain, a great in-house design team as well as some new technology that we will be able to incorporate, such as our own composite panelling system – Omni Panel.
“Fairfax has a strong brand, with an incredible reputation for reliability and durability, which is a perfect t alongside the range Action already oered in the market.”
Brady says that Action will grow as it “looks to meet increasing market demand for its wide range of products.”
Fairfax Industries MD Michael Carpenter will stay with the business during a transition phase and says: “With their planned investment, I look forward to seeing Action take Fairfax to the next level in the industry.”
Action recently completed a project partnering with TNT “to rene and understand nal-mile delivery systems” – securing a two-year supply agreement and an initial order of 50 units, which are now going on the road in Australia.
T&D