"It is fair to say things have certainly settled down here," says Michele Creagh, Chief Operating Officer - Southern for Firth. "The people of Christchurch are extremely resilient they just want to get on and get the re-build moving."

"It's a big job and it will take time," adds Michele. "With parts of the city completely devastated some people are living in difficult conditions and feelings of frustration caused by the delays to the repair or rebuild to their homes is understandable. It will be a 20 year timeframe before we can say that the city has been re-established."

The Earthquake Recovery Business (EQR) - part of Fletcher Building - estimates that the under $100,000 repairs to homes in Christchurch will take up to 5 years to complete.

"The biggest problem we see is insurance cover which causes frustration not only for those in the midst of trying to settle property issues but also for those moving to the city. CERA have been organising the clearance of the CBD in preparation for the rebuild. We are also seeing real progress with initiatives such as 'Restart the Heart', which is based in two precincts on either side of the city mall, where shipping containers will be used to create 27 temporary shops. This project is set to open by October 29."

"The EQR repairs are progressing but it's the construction of new homes that is extremely slow with delays due to the lack of insurance cover and continued aftershocks. One of the challenges will be finding enough labour as the Christchurch re-build builds."

"In terms of Firth we have been thinking for the past six months about how to be well positioned for the re-build. The challenge for us is around capability and making sure we have enough people and build that capability quickly in time to match demand."

With the addition of several new concrete trucks to their fleet, with more to come, Michele expects the Christchurch fleet to expand significantly in the near future. Substantial upgrades to the Firth Hornby plant and extensive work to the Canterbury Concrete plants have also been carried out. Plans are also underway for the build of a new plant in Christchurch in the very near future.

"We are confident that we are ready," adds Michele. "Clearly things have started to move. In the last few weeks we have definitely seen the market pick up. Firth does have a bright future in Christchurch. We will continue to be a successful business generating profits and will create work for our people by making the most of the opportunities made available to us. Although it's been tough we can see we are making progress in our city."