North Drill Ltd is a Northland-based drilling team providing utility installations and civil services.
Established in Whangārei, they have built a firm reputation with over 30 years of industry expertise and local knowledge, servicing throughout the entire Northland, Kaipara, and Rodney districts. Through grit and determination, North Drill Ltd has grown from a small family-run business employing four staff to a well-known Northland enterprise, with their success recognised through multiple national awards.
The Ditch Witch is used for underground directional drilling.
Through grit and determination, North Drill Ltd has grown from a small family-run business employing four staff to a well-known Northland enterprise, with their success recognised through multiple national awards.
“My father bought the first directional drill into Northland in 1984. When we purchased the business we started out with one drill and one truck, with four employees. From there we have grown to employ 52 staff working on projects throughout Taitokerau Northland. Our vision is to ‘improve the wealth and wellbeing of our people’, we want our employees to improve themselves and their whānau, with North Drill as the tool to help everyone achieve that goal." ~ Ida-Jean
Having spent their first few years establishing the North Drill Ltd name within Whangārei, North Drill was presented with an opportunity to tender for a large drilling contract which would set the business up for rapid growth should they be successful.
Realising that in order to win the contract they would need to put their best foot forward, Ida-Jean and Bronson reached out to Northland Inc and other service providers for guidance on accessing business planning advice. North Drill Ltd was able to access funding through Northland Inc and guidance to engage with a business advisor, who helped Ida-Jean and Bronson take a step back from focussing on the day-to-day running of the business and create a business plan on a page to guide North Drill Ltd through their next phases of growth.
“We first engaged with Northland Inc when we had a big contract tender approaching. We wanted guidance around how best to position our company to win big contracts, and were able to access funding to engage with a business advisor. The business planning advice we received made us take a step back to review how we were positioning ourselves, and opened up possibilities for how we could work moving forward. Ultimately, we won the contract which pushed us towards a massive step forward in our growth.” ~ Ida-Jean
Fast forward to 2022 and North Drill Ltd now employs over 50 people, working on projects across Tai Tokerau, Northland. Their 250 percent growth rate made the Deloitte Fast 50 list of fast-rising companies for two years in a row, and in 2021 they were recognised as the supreme winner at the Te Tai Tokerau Maori Business Awards. The focus now is on sharing their success, with a vision to ‘improve the wealth and wellbeing of our people. For Ida-Jean and Bronson, this means focussing on supporting their team to improve themselves and their whānau, using North Drill as the tool to achieve their vision by facilitating everything from financial literacy courses to exploring options for affordable home ownership.
Growth Advisor David Templeton says that “we find that businesses who we engage with are looking for a hand-up, not a hand-out. Our role is often as an instigator to get businesses started on their journey to growth, and in cases like North Drill it’s been great to see them go on to such amazing success.”