Large Industrial Site Housing Flagship Engineering Firm Goes Up For Sale

The expansive industrial site housing the headquarters of a prominent national engineering firm on a long lease has been placed on the market for sale.

The more than 4.5-hectare freehold property for sale in the heart of Brightwater, Tasman, is partially leased to one of the town’s flagship businesses and a leading local employer, Brightwater Engineering.

Established more than 50 years ago as a small fabrication workshop with a staff of five, Brightwater is now a privately-owned company with 150 staff in Brightwater, Greymouth and Auckland and operations throughout New Zealand and Australia.

The company provides tailored engineering solutions to clients in diverse sectors such as quarrying, industrial energy, water treatment, dairy, forestry, coal and construction.

Its projects have included the rebuild and seismic strengthening of Nelson’s biggest indoor sports and events venue, the Trafalgar Centre. Brightwater has also designed and built a new plant for Australia’s largest privately-owned aggregates and concrete manufacturer, as well as delivering fishing vessel repairs and work for Nelson Pine Industries and Fonterra.

Following an extensive office redevelopment currently underway, Brightwater Engineering will pay an annual net rent of $419,525 plus outgoings and GST. Its lease over 25,000 square metres of the Spencer Place site has 11 years remaining, plus one further six-year right of renewal.

There is an additional agreement in place with Vodafone to construct a telecommunication facility on a small portion of the land which will generate another $12,000 plus GST per annum.

The property for sale also includes approximately 11,000 square metres of vacant usable land with multiple buildings.

The freehold land and buildings at 3,6 and 7 Spencer Place, Brightwater, are being marketed for sale through Bayleys Real Estate. Sale will be by deadline private treaty closing on Wednesday 1 December, unless the property is sold earlier.

Bayleys Nelson Commercial and Industrial Director Paul Vining said the property’s scale, along with its elite long-term tenant and vacant land meant it would appeal to a wide range of buyers – including owner-occupiers, add-value investors, developers and land-bankers.

“An industrial offering of this scale, in this location, is a genuine rarity and when you add a tenant of the calibre of Brightwater Engineering into the equation, it’s certain to be hotly sought-after,” Mr Vining said.

The property for sale spans five freehold titles with a combined land area of some 45,450 square metres and more than 20 buildings and structures in a wide range of types and sizes.

Largely dating to the 1990s, these incorporate workshops, offices, storage sheds and, in the largest central building, the main headquarters and industrial facility occupied by Brightwater Engineering.

Bayleys Industrial salesperson Sunil Bhana said the site’s Light Industrial zoning under Tasman District Council’s district plan presented buyers with a diversity of future options.

“This zoning can support a wide range of activities and occupiers in fields spanning manufacturing, processing, packing, storage, maintenance or repair of goods,” he said.

Neighbouring sites are home to major businesses and exporters including Fonterra, Comvita and Tasman Bay Food Co.

“This location also benefits from its proximity to the new Richmond industrial estate, which is adding critical mass to Nelson/Tasman as a hub of South Island industry amid a national shortage of industrial real estate,” said Mr Bhana.

Bayleys Industrial salesperson James Hill said the Richmond area was a significant regional growth hotspot with a fast-rising population, while Nelson-Tasman generally was prospering thanks to buoyant primary industries such as forestry, fishing and horticulture, and a growing knowledge economy.

The site for sale also benefited from fantastic access to key transport routes, he said.

“Spencer Place is barely a minute from State Highway 6, the main arterial route from Brightwater to Nelson, via which it’s about 15 minutes’ drive to Nelson Airport, and 20 minutes to the city’s port,” Mr Hill said.

Click here for more information on the listing.

© Scoop Media