Ford Civil

What Ford Civil does

Ford Civil is a privately held civil earthworks contractor headquartered in Auckland, New Zealand, that undertakes medium-to-large volume earthmoving projects across the infrastructure, land development and quarrying sectors. The company was established in 2015 by brothers Stu and Jonny Ford, representing the fourth generation of the Ford family in New Zealand's earthmoving industry, a heritage tracing back to Walter Ford's road and bridge construction work in the 1920s and the 1963 founding of Ford Bros Ltd in Kaikoura (sold to Road Metals in 2018). Ford Civil's primary offerings are bulk earthworks services (cut to fill, topsoil stripping, shear key excavation, backfill) and civil construction contracting, delivered through two commercial models: wet hire contracts supplying machines with operators, and measure-and-value project contracts. Its owned fleet of 50+ machines spans CAT and Liebherr excavators from 9t to 86t, articulated and rigid dump trucks, CAT 627G motor scrapers, D5-D10 bulldozers, CAT 825K compactors and ancillary equipment, with GPS machine guidance and GPS compaction technology deployed across the fleet to drive accuracy and eliminate rework.

The business generates revenue from three primary customer segments: government and private infrastructure (notably NZTA motorway projects such as Puhoi to Warkworth, Penlink, and Papakura to Drury Stage 1B, plus Watercare water infrastructure); industrial and residential land development subdivisions; and quarrying clients for overburden stripping and pit development. Disclosed engagements include subcontracting to Fulton Hogan on the Papakura to Drury Stage 1B SH1 project (Oct 2024 onward), the Kaiwaikawe Wind Farm in Northland (Jan 2025 - Apr 2026), and large subdivisions such as Spedding Block (52 hectares, 650,000m3 of bulk earthworks) and Tunicin (60 hectares, 650,000m3). The operating footprint is concentrated in Auckland with projects executed throughout the North Island; reach beyond the North Island is not disclosed.

Ford Civil is a bootstrapped, founder-operated business with no external funding rounds, no parent company, and no disclosed revenue. Leadership comprises Stu Ford (Director, 25+ years earthmoving experience spanning Fulton Hogan, Downer and Thiess), Jonny Ford (Director, Chartered Accountant managing commercial, financial, machine guidance and systems functions) and Sandra Ford (Administrator). Workforce comprises directors and administration plus approximately 50-60 machine operators and mechanics at peak, with in-house mechanics maintaining the fleet. The company is not publicly listed and has no API, app, or technology product offering beyond direct civil contracting services.

Name

Ford Civil

Legal name

Ford Civil

Website

https://fordcivil.co.nz

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Civil Earthworks Contracting

NAICS

Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction (237)

SIC

Heavy Construction Other Than Bldg Const - Contractors (1600)

akta.pro primary industry

Mass Excavation & Bulk Earthmoving (Cut/Fill, Grading) (IMAFAKAC)

Keywords

• Civil earthworks contracting
• Bulk earthmoving services
• Wet hire equipment
• Land development works
• Quarry overburden removal

Headquarters

HQ city

Auckland

HQ country

New Zealand

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Wet Hire Contracts: Supplying machines and operators to projects. Customers pay for equipment rental with operators included. Used for projects like Penlink Motorway, Puketutu Island, Transmission Gully, and Brynderwyns remedial works.
2. Measure and Value Contracts: Project-based contracts where work is measured and valued based on volume of earthworks completed. Used for bulk earthworks projects including subdivisions, motorways, and quarry overburden removal.
3. Civil Earthworks Services: Leading bulk earthworks and civil earthworks contractor undertaking medium to large volume earthmoving projects within infrastructure, land development and quarrying sectors.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Ford Civil is a leading bulk earthworks and civil earthworks contractor undertaking medium to large volume earthmoving projects within the infrastructure, land development, and quarrying sectors. The company delivers services through wet hire contracts (supplying machines with operators) and measure-and-value contracts, operating a fleet of 50+ owned machines including excavators, dump trucks, bulldozers, motor scrapers, and compactors equipped with GPS machine guidance technology. Work is primarily carried out in Auckland and across the North Island of New Zealand.

Product overview

Ford Civil is a civil earthworks contractor offering bulk earthworks and civil construction services across infrastructure, land development, and quarrying sectors. The company operates a fleet of 50+ owned machines including excavators, dump trucks, bulldozers, motor scrapers, and compactors equipped with GPS machine guidance technology. Services are delivered through wet hire (machines with operators) and measure-and-value contracts for earthworks including cut to fill, topsoil stripping, overburden removal, and site preparation. The company primarily serves the Auckland region and undertakes projects throughout the North Island of New Zealand.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Infrastructure Earthworks Contracting Construction services for motorways, wind farms, reservoirs, and other infrastructure including SH1 projects, Penlink Motorway, Puhoi to Warkworth Motorway, and Kaiwaikawe Wind Farm. Includes bulk earthworks, drainage, pavement, and civil construction for government and private infrastructure clients.
• Land Development Earthworks Industrial and residential subdivision development including bulk earthworks, sediment retention pond construction, cut to fill, topsoil stripping, shear key excavation, backfill, and site preparation for commercial and residential developments.
• Quarrying and Overburden Removal Services Overburden removal, quarry face excavation, pit bench development, and material handling services for quarry operators. Includes loading and hauling operations using heavy excavators and ejector dump trucks.
• Wet Hire Services (Machines with Operators) Supply of machines and operators for earthworks projects, including GPS-equipped excavators, bulldozers, articulated dump trucks, motor scrapers, and compactors with trained operators. Used on projects such as Penlink Motorway, Puketutu Island, Transmission Gully, and Brynderwyns remedial works.
• Bulk Earthworks Services Large-volume earthmoving services including cut to fill, topsoil stripping, shear key excavation, and backfill operations for medium to large scale projects. Delivered under measure-and-value contracts.

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Fulton HogancoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 October 2024Ford Civil is subcontracting to Fulton Hogan (Head Contractor) on the Papakura to Drury Stage 1B SH1 project. Ford Civil undertakes earthworks and civil works, supplying supervision, operators, excavators, bulldozers, dump trucks, road trucks and watercarts.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Isaac Construction: South Island-based NZ civil contractor delivering bulk earthworks, subdivisions, roading and infrastructure. Closely comparable mid-sized contractor with similar service mix and head-contractor/sub-contractor model to Ford Civil.
• HEB Construction: New Zealand civil construction and earthworks contractor undertaking transport infrastructure, land development and quarrying projects. Highly comparable in service mix (bulk earthworks, civil contracting) and customer base (NZTA, head contractors, developers) to Ford Civil.
• Higgins Group: Fletcher Building-owned NZ civil contractor in roading, infrastructure and land development. Comparable service offering and customer base (NZTA, developers, utilities) to Ford Civil's earthworks and civil contracting work.
• Brian Perry Civil: Fletcher Building-owned NZ civil contractor delivering earthworks, drainage, bridges and infrastructure. Comparable in service scope and customer segment (NZTA, Watercare, developers) to Ford Civil's civil earthworks offering.
• J Swap Contractors: NZ civil contractor with earthworks, quarrying and forestry roading operations. Comparable in service mix (bulk earthworks, quarry overburden, civil contracting) and regional North Island presence to Ford Civil.
• Goodman Contractors: Mid-sized NZ civil earthworks and infrastructure contractor active across subdivisions, roading and quarrying. Comparable scale, service mix and head-contractor/sub-contractor positioning to Ford Civil.

Broad incumbents

• Fulton Hogan: Large Australasian civil contractor and head contractor for NZTA programmes including Papakura to Drury Stage 1B (where Ford Civil is a subcontractor). Overlapping capabilities in earthworks, quarrying and infrastructure make it the dominant incumbent in Ford Civil's market.
• Downer Group: ASX-listed infrastructure services group with large NZ road, water and energy infrastructure operations. Competes with Ford Civil for transport and civil infrastructure work and employs ex-Downer director Stu Ford's prior experience as a credential.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/fordcivilnz
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ford-civil

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ford Civil