Ahrens finds overflow storage at showground

They can rest-assured that the move is only temporary; with construction, engineering, rural infrastructure, and mining services company, Ahrens currently only renting the space from the Gilgandra Showground Committee in preparation for their expansion.

With a development application (DA) under review with Gilgandra Shire Council, Ahrens have future plans for a new factory on their current site. They plan to utilise the back-end of their block with the new factory to take-up a majority of this area, meaning that all aspects of their operation will then be able to be taken care of under one roof.

“The new shed will be about 73 metres long, and 43 metres wide,” local manager, Andrew Schier said.

“It will encompass four main divisions, admin and amenities, a welding area, a paint bay, and a tanking area, all under the one roof.”

The almost $6 million build will increase Ahren’s production to over double current capacity, and introduce around 70 new jobs to the area. Mr Schier said that Ahrens wanted to move the stock while they were in their quiet period, to save time and energy once the DA was approved.

“We formed a relationship with the show society to rent some space off them for car parking and, because we outgrew this site pretty quick, we also rented it for storage of field bins and augers,” he said.

For now however, the Ahrens stock will continue to make Gilgandra showground home.