Apart from lives, the Christchurch Earthquake on February 22 claimed a number of properties, throwing businesses out of gear. Among them was the Wyatt & Wilson printing plant located in Heathcote.
As well as damages to the building, the Company’s three large Komori machines went out of action, leading to the closure of operations.
But Chairman & Chief Executive Steve D’Souza was more concerned about the safety of his 60 strong staff.
“As soon as I heard of the disaster, my thoughts were about the health and safety of our 60 employees and their families. They were worried about their future, since many companies in Christchurch announced redundancies leading to loss of jobs,” he said.
The Kalamazoo Stable
Mr D’Souza and his wife Odelia own the Kalamazoo Group, arguably the largest printing house in the country, incorporating among others, Kalamazoo NZ Limited, Wickliffe Solutions, Publishing Press, Print Shop and Computer Forms Limited (Auckland), Wyatt & Wilson (Christchurch) and Astra Print (Wellington).
Their immediate objective was to assure staff and customers of their continued attention and service.
Mr D’Souza’s first task was to visit Christchurch and assure the staff that their jobs were secure and that the printing plant will become bigger and better.
“Instead of moaning and groaning, let us look at the positive side of this disaster. Let us rebuild Wyatt & Wilson with better machinery, improve productivity and profitability and offer better quality and higher levels of service to our customers. Christians celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus Christ as a New Beginning. It would be the same here; we are a family and we will be together at this difficult time,” he told them.
Option to Staff
He also offered the staff the choice to move to other centres where the Kalamazoo Group has operations. It is understood that five employees of Wyatt & Wilson opted to move to the Group’s recently acquired Astra Print in Wellington and to Wickliffe Solutions in Auckland.
The Group has lost about $5 million in damaged property and machinery due to the February 22 Earthquake but that has not shaken Mr D’Souza.
He is confident that the annual turnover of Wyatt & Wilson, placed at $15 million, will rise to $25 million by next year.
“This disaster has brought my family of 60 people and their families closer than ever before. We are determined to commence operations as soon as we can and return to the marketplace with a greater commitment to our customers. The rebuilding process is in progress and new machinery will soon arrive from Japan. We have suffered a loss but it is time to get up and move. We are confident that Wyatt & Wilson will be in better shape in about three months,” he said.
