CareerStructure.com, part of Totaljobs Group, and Catalyst Recruitment are working towards helping New Zealand find the necessary construction and built environment talent following the earthquake that recently hit Christchurch.

On 4 September 2010 an earthquake struck New Zealand’s second city, only to be followed by a second more devastating earthquake on 22 February, which cost 200 people their lives.

CareerStructure says project and site managers, quantity surveyors, estimators and civil engineers make up most of the demand. Over the next five years, structural engineers and designers with seismic experience will be essential, while geotechnical engineers and civil engineers with a specialisation in geotechnical designs will be the most highly valued throughout the initial stages of the recovery process.

Phil Ponder, director at Catalyst Recruitment in New Zealand, says: “The rebuild has taken on a completely new complexion as the landscape has literally changed.

“The government has indicated that around NZ$15bn (£6.8bn) damage has been caused. And 100,000 of the 140,000 homes have been damaged, with 10,000 no longer habitable. The centre of Christchurch is devastated with somewhere between 25-33% of the buildings having to be demolished.”