Survey hints crane hire a sign of constructing uplift
New developments and restarting paused projects are driving positive momentum in the construction sector according to a survey by crane operator NZ Crane Hire.
The survey asked 105 customers, including leading construction companies, about their outlook for the rest of 2025 and into the first half of 2026.
A quarter (25%) of customers were anticipating their crane needs will increase and 61% expect demand to remain stable.
“Cranes are a great barometer of construction and infrastructure activity,” says NZ Crane Hire managing director, Deane Manley.
“It’s not just about the number of tower cranes people can see on the city scape. They represent a very small part of the industry. The busiest cranes are workshop gantry cranes, hiabs on flat deck trucks, or mobile cranes operating on a wide range of projects around cities and towns.”
While the customer survey found the past year was subdued, with 77% of respondents saying their crane needs either declined (31%) or remained the same (46%), the data indicates a shift in momentum in the construction industry.
“After a lean few years, it’s great to hear customers talking more positively about opportunities for growth and increased productivity in the sector which is key to driving new projects and finishing projects that had stalled.”
Manley says the data and sentiment is in keeping with NZ Crane Hire’s pipeline of confirmed and potential work in the next year.
While several respondents noted the market was still “tough”, there were hopes of a rebound, especially in commercial builds, infrastructure and large-scale residential work.
It’s a view shared by Spiral Drillers managing director Jon Faber, who says after an incredibly tight period, he’s cautiously optimistic about the next 12 months.
“Right now, the market remains incredibly tight and highly competitive. While it’s encouraging to see some signs of renewed interest, particularly in the form of more requests for pricing and discussions around future commercial and infrastructure projects, this hasn’t yet translated into confirmed work for us.”
Faber says cash flow is still tight across the entire sector, with many businesses operating on razor-thin margins and unpredictable workloads increasing the risk of liquidations and skilled tradespeople leaving for the greener pastures of Australia.
“After several tough years, the industry has been cut to the bone. Unless a stable pipeline of work returns soon, we risk losing the capability needed to deliver once the work does arrive,” Faber says.
“We’re hopeful that over the next 6 to 12 months, momentum will build into stronger pipelines as key projects are greenlit. If those larger projects get the go-ahead, the industry is ready to respond, but we need more than promises. We need decisions, and we need them sooner rather than later.”
Manley, who is also president of the Crane Association of New Zealand (CANZ), says this caution is running through the industry.
“Even among those predicting growth, the uncertainty is understandable given industry volatility and economic pressures continue to persist because of interest rates and labour shortages which creates a wait-and-see attitude.”
He says the construction industry’s latest boom-and-bust cycle, which saw many big projects stall two years ago, is the worst he has seen in his 40 years in the industry.
“At the end of last year people were really hurting,” he says.
To help avoid the boom-and-bust nature of the industry Manley believes New Zealand should follow Australia’s lead by implementing an overarching infrastructure programme.
“It means the industry is free from political whims and vanity projects to enable the country to get on and build the things it needs. The state of infrastructure in New Zealand is shocking. It needs investment, and it needs it fast, but it is also key to reduce the compliance requirements and red tape needed to do business.”
He believes the country wastes significant time and money by not completing projects fully the first-time round citing the Puhoi to Wellsford connection north of Auckland.
“To build each section of that road takes significant set up costs. Yet when work stops after each section is completed the infrastructure is dismantled and removed. By the time the road is finally finished the set-up costs will have been paid multiple times.”
Increased stability is essential to enable industries such as the crane sector to plan and invest in its people and equipment, says Manley.
“It’s going to be expensive to get these big projects going, but injecting money into the economy and the wider community is key.”
Deane Manley, NZ Crane Hire managing director.