Jason Inness
A Waipā-based contractor has credited the Waikeria Prison redevelopment project with transforming his business and creating dozens of jobs.
Corrections director Graham Holman, left and Minister of Corrections Mark Mitchell at Waikeria.
JWI Earthmoving, a civil earthworks, concrete and logging company based in Ngāhinapōuri, was founded in 2016. The company was initially subcontracted for a small scope of work at Waikeria, but its role quickly expanded to include site establishment, landscaping, and support services.
Director Jason Inness, who returned to Te Awamutu after working in Australian mines, driving and civil construction, started the project in 2018 with four full-time staff.
Today, JWI employs 45 people – 30 full-time and 15 subcontractors – drawn from Waipā, King Country, and Hamilton.
Jason Inness
The company also provided employment to eight “return to work” prisoners, supporting rehabilitation efforts.
The Waikeria redevelopment was delivered by CPB Contractors and Pacific Partnership under a Public Private Partnership with the Department of Corrections.
CPB Contractors general manager Paul Corbett said local employment was a key priority, and JWI’s growth was a clear example of the long-term economic benefits regional infrastructure projects can bring.
“We invested heavily in new equipment to meet the demands of the project,” said Inness.
Te Awamutu News 10 July 2025
That included concrete plants, excavators, bulldozers, rollers, trucks, and advanced machine control systems.
“These assets have since enhanced our capability and efficiency across other projects.”
Inness said working with CPB Contractors was a turning point for JWI.
“JWI has grown from a small-scale operation with limited systems into a well-structured company capable of planning, managing, and executing large, complex projects with confidence.
“Over the past four years, we have developed and implemented robust systems and processes, including comprehensive quality assurance and cost control frameworks.”
Waikeria Prison exterior
The project helped JWI build its reputation in the civil construction sector and forge relationships with major industry players.
“It has also opened doors to new opportunities and demonstrated that a regional contractor like JWI can perform at the highest level on a nationally significant project,” said Inness.
Whangārei-based McKay, one of the largest privately owned electrical contracting companies in New Zealand, was another to benefit from the project. The company, founded in 1936, was able to use the project to grow its apprenticeship numbers to 60. Managing director Lindsay Faithfull said the opportunity presented growth opportunities for the business and for its employees who worked at Waikeria.
The new 500-bed facility includes a 96-bed mental health and addiction centre, offering enhanced care, education, and training to support prisoner rehabilitation.
Waikeria Prison interior
The project covers 21ha and includes 28 new buildings, associated infrastructure including perimeter walls and fences, covered walkways and recreational facilities, requiring approximately 8.5 million work hours to complete.
Waikeria Prison sits on a 1200-hectare site on King Country’s northern border, 15km south of Te Awamutu and surrounded by long-established farms.
It was established in 1910 as a reformatory farm after the government stopped sending offenders to Tasmania.
Six prisoners, one carpenter and three labourers built the prison camp which went on to become the country’s first male borstal in 1925.
In 1981, it briefly became a youth institution, but was reinstated four years later as a men’s prison. In 2011 it became the country’s largest prison only to be later usurped by Rimutaka Prison.
Corrections have recruited 300 additional frontline staff while preparations are underway for a further expansion which would add a further 810 beds which, when completed in 2029, would make it New Zealand’s largest prison again.
Jason Inness
