DURATION: 2018-2021
BUDGET: $50M
CLIENT: ROCKIT GLOBAL

THE BRIEF
Based in Hawke’s Bay, Rockit Apples has thrived, expanding globally over the past two decades. To keep up with this expansion Rockit Apples required a modern apple post-harvest facility including coolstores, smart fresh, CA rooms, packhouse and ancillary plant buildings. The also required large modern office and amenities building.

THE SOLUTION
Navigating through the challenges imposed by Covid-19 restrictions was pivotal. The added pressure of ensuring completion for the 2021 apple harvest required meticulous planning. The facility had to be operational when the first apples arrived from the orchards, a challenge met successfully.

THE OUTCOME
The result is an impressive state-of-the-art apple packhouse over 20,600m², and a two-storey 420.00m² office building. With capacity for 120 permanent staff and up to 300 additional contractors during the bustling harvest season, this highly automated facility leverages technology to enhance productivity. Construction was successfully completed in 2021. Since then, several other projects have been completed by Strata Group including converting some Cool Stores to CA rooms as Rockit Global’s needs further develop. More than just a building, it is a growth-centric asset. Projections from Rockit indicate that over 400 million apples will be produced from this facility by 2025, promising significant contributions to the local job market and economy.