Q&M talks again with Zak Reilly who was a recipient of a 2022 Q&M Tomorrow’s Leader Award when he was with J Swap Contractors’ Taotaoroa Quarry. Zak now works with the Porter Group.
You have moved from the quarry pit to the sales and marketing role with a large company. That must have been a huge change for you?
Yes, this has been a significant change for me as this is the first job I have had that doesn’t involve working full-time in an operation or management position.
My current role as Industry Manager for crushing and screening has me overseeing all aspects of the mobile and fixed plant crushing and screening operations for the Group.
I work with our sales team across the country to provide technical and operational support to new and existing customers, and work with our engineering, mechanical and product specialists to deliver and commission machines to customers specifications.
Yes, I do miss the challenges and sense of achievement that come with quarry management and working in a dynamic environment but I enjoy passing on the knowledge and operational experience I have gained.
And the best part of this new role is getting to travel across New Zealand and see a wide range of different extractive and contracting operations and getting to work with the great people within them.
Meantime, I am still a current IQA member and still attend many of the Waikato and Auckland branch technical evenings and field trips as I still hold my A-grade Quarry Managers COC. I also maintain a strong relationship with my father Kerry and his business – Aggregate Solutions.
The quarrying industry is still a challenging one but, as I have said in the past, it’s a very rewarding one. It offers a wide range of opportunities to all those who are willing to work hard for them and I am excited to continue working in this new role and to keep growing the crushing and screening division for the Group.
Any updated thoughts on the strengths and weaknesses of the quarry industry in general?
When you interviewed me four years ago I said the strength of the industry for me is definitely the people within it.
Over the past many years, I have had the pleasure of meeting and working alongside some awesome people. The quarrying industry is a key part of the construction industry which I believe offers great security and opportunity.
That is still very relevant, of course. And I also mentioned back then a weakness I see in the industry is that lack of new blood. It seems the average age in quarrying and mining is 50–60 plus, with no sign of many new young people very interested in a career in this sector. I believe attracting young people to the industry and providing them with the support and training they need will be vital for the future.
Since I said that, I have also seen some improvements in the level of new young people coming into the industry, but I believe there is still a gap in the number of new quarry managers achieving their COC’s.
Many of the older existing quarry managers are frustrated with the current continuous professional development requirements.
On a political level I have noticed a positive change in attitude from central and local government who are recognizing the critical importance of aggregates for our developing society.