Craig Wallace of CJW Build Ltd was delighted when his Hamilton entry was read out as the winner of the PlaceMakers Renovation Award $250,000 – $500,000 at the Registered Master Builders PlaceMakers 2012 House of the Year.
Mr Wallace says it was a well-deserved win for his team, and the exposure from the competition has resulted in a massive increase in projects for CJW Build Ltd.
“I’m so proud of my team, including our subcontractors, particularly considering the high standard of homes we were competing against. This award is recognition that we are right up there with some of the best builders in the country,” he says.
“When we entered House of the Year we had four on our team, and now we have eight. We had to double our staff due to increased workload, and a lot of that I put down to exposure from the competition.”
Mr Wallace believes the Hamilton home’s integration of the old with the new made it stand out from others in the category.
“Not only did we add 62 square metres to the property, we also pretty much renovated the whole interior of the house,” he says.
“The blending of the old with the new was seamless — we managed to capture and retain the style of the original home.”
The judges agreed, praising the renovation as “protecting the old and being bold with the new”.
“With significant structural remedies to negotiate first, this renovation included new joinery, roofing, insulation and interior finishing, making way for a new, spacious, open-plan kitchen, dining and living area,” they said.
“Important to the home owner was retaining some of the original features. Here, the builder’s exceptional workmanship and attention to detail were clearly evident, with both aspects replicated to perfection.”
Mr Wallace says business is better than ever, and he’s looking forward to entering House of the Year again next year.
“We have a few projects on the go at the moment. We’re working on two renovations, two new builds and we’re in the middle of building a concrete block swimming pool. We’re also about to start working on another big new build,” he says.
“We will absolutely continue to enter House of the Year. It was so rewarding, and not just for our team — the look on our client’s face when their home won the award was priceless.
“For us, the competition shows us where we stand among other builders in New Zealand, and knowing that is really important to us. There is always room for improvement.”
The Awards are made possible through the support of PlaceMakers, James Hardie, GIB, Nulook, MBIE, Future-Proof Building, Carters, ITM, Plumbing World, Resene and Westpac.
For more information about the competition, visit the Registered Master Builders web site at www.masterbuilder.org.nz.
