Rob Skurr has spent 26 years building hard-won skills across the water maintenance, pipe-welding and drainage sectors of New Zealand’s infrastructure industry, as well as supervising teams as a foreman.

In the past gaining certification for his experience was nigh-on impossible, but the recent expansion of Civil Trades eligibility criteria to acknowledge qualifications achieved before the current NZQA framework existed means Rob is about to be formally recognised.

The Polyweld Senior Polyethylene Welder and Supervisor is the first person in New Zealand to apply for Civil Trades certification using three older water reticulation qualifications that weren’t previously eligible, and is currently awaiting confirmation of his accreditation.

Rob is a civil infrastructure veteran who started out in 2000 delivering water reticulation maintenance for Tasman District Council while working for Works Infrastructure for five years. After that he spent 14 years involved with drainage projects for Ching Contracting in Nelson, working his way up to foreman, before enjoying a three-year stint in the irrigation industry, then moving to Christchurch and joining Polyweld almost five years ago.

He says gaining formal Civil Trades certification has been a long time coming, with one of his qualifications dating back to around 2005, but he’s pleased his “old school” achievements now carry the same weight as those gained under NZQA’s current framework.

“It brings everyone onto a level playing field and gives you something final to recognise all your hard work.”

Rob’s National Certificates in Water Reticulation (Service Person) Level 3, Water Reticulation (Service Person) Wastewater Level 3, and Water Reticulation (Supervisor) Level 4 are all now recognised under the new eligibility criteria.

Seeing his younger colleagues gain Civil Trades recognition gave him the drive to get his own experience formally recognised, he says.

Rob also credits Polyweld’s sister company Utilities Infrastructure for its strong support of the Civil Trades programme. Utilities Infrastructure has a Civil Trades ‘Wall of Fame’ with certificates of employees from both companies who have become certified and he says he is looking forward to joining their ranks. 

He also encourages colleagues to undertake Civil Trades certification to officially recognise what they have achieved in their careers.

“I say to them ‘you’re young enough, try to do everything you can’. It gives them different pathways too – if they don't want to go one way in their career, they can try another.”

When he’s not supervising colleagues, Rob puts his years of experience in civil infrastructure to use on the tools and enjoys opportunities to share the skills he’s developed across his multi-faceted career. Currently he’s busy working across multiple projects: subdivisions in Halswell, sewer installations, and water supply work at Rolleston Prison.

Rob says Civil Trades certification gave him something meaningful and tangible to aim towards, even after everything he’s accomplished in his career.

“Civil Trades is definitely worth it if you want to put in some hard yards. It brings your qualifications together and makes the years of effort worth doing.”