That decision to invest in GPS technology, starting with a skid steer fitted with a SharpGrade blade, changed the way the business operates across every division.
Today, Ryal Bush runs a tight, self sufficient operation. Rather than waiting on surveyors or subcontractors, the team handles their own set out and progress measurements in house. “I think one of the main benefits of the equipment is being able to do our own set out and our own pickups,” Quintin explains. “The efficiency we gain from doing that ourselves rather than waiting for a subcontractor or surveyor to come in is really immeasurable.”
That independence extends to their quarrying operations at the Viner Road quarry on the Oreti River. Without traditional weighbridges on site, Ryal Bush relies on certified excavator scales combined with end of the month drone flights to keep their numbers accurate. “We run certified scales,” Quintin says, “and being able to run the numbers from the scales with the drone flights at an end of month process allows us to reconcile the quantities going out and just really tighten up all our numbers. The combination of those technologies is working really well together.”
That same drone technology has transformed how the team handles progress claims across all their civil and demolition work. “Being able to do a progress claim after a drone flight is just super efficient,” Quintin says. “You can do a 20 minute drone flight, sit there for an hour and you’ve got all your quantities for a monthly claim. Whereas previously you’d be clambering around taking measurements. That’s a lot of unnecessary manual work.”
For the demolition side of the business, where accurate truck loading across multiple cartage sites is critical, excavator scales have become a key part of the workflow, ensuring every load leaves site at the right weight and every tonne is accounted for.
The results speak for themselves, including on a recent bike pump race track built for Winton School in New Zealand. GPS machine control made the bulk earthworks straightforward, even on a project type the team hadn’t tackled before. It’s the kind of confidence that comes from having the right tools and knowing how to use them.
Ultimately, what Ryal Bush is building is something bigger than efficiency on individual jobs. “What we’re looking to do now is just provide a more rounded package to our clients,” Quintin says.
Working with Aptella has been central to making that vision a reality. With solutions tailored to span demolition, quarrying, and civil construction, the partnership has given Ryal Bush’s operators consistency across every type of work. And given the business the control to keep growing on its own terms.
