Discover the history behind the Portacom you know and see on construction sites, schools, farms and infrastructure development.
Today, Portacom has a network of eight branches across New Zealand in all capital cities and major regional centres. We have a fleet of over 2,500 buildings and manufacturing facilities on both the north and south islands. It is a legacy 45 years in the making so when you see a Portacom, and you will see one, this is the story of how it got to be a household Kiwi name.
In 1978, McConnell Dowell, now a customer of Portacom, launched the name and the modular business, headquartered in Hamilton, and there it stayed until 1982. It was in 1990 that McDonnell Dowell moved their portable building division to Auckland. In the same year, James Hardie Industries purchased the business from McConnel Dowel keeping the brand name Portacom.
By the early 1990’s, Portacom was an established name in New Zealand and there was a new name breaking into the nation’s consciousness, Team New Zealand. Portacom threw their support as an official supplier, a relationship which persists until today. It's an unlikely partnership of two Kiwi brands but one built on a mutual understanding of tenacity, innovation and national pride.
Six years later, Portacom moved to the national headquarters in Penrose where it is still today. In 1999, Portacom was sold to Waco along with an Australian sister company, Ausco Modular. A great partnership was formed across the Tasman.
The new millennium started and Portacom acquired and integrated smaller modular players and temporary fencing, Rhino. It signalled a move to complete site solutions and expanded the product offering to customers. The antipodean business joined a global modular business injecting capital and access to a global network of modular experts.
In another significant development, Portacom developed and launched the Interlink Modular brand in 2015. Interlink Modular supports the younger generation of New Zealanders with modular classrooms. In the last nine years, they have designed, manufactured and delivered 476 teaching spaces in 201 schools around New Zealand.
Now part of the Modulaire Group, the world’s largest modular company, Portacom has continually operated for 45 years. We have a proud history of being involved in some of New Zealand’s largest and most prominent portable building projects. We are equally as proud of our commitment to nurture and service a long-standing and loyal client base over this time. This is our legacy, and we aim to continue this journey for the next 45 years!
