A Director of the Australasian Hydraulink businesses was honoured by The King for services to engineering, business and the community says, “having served for 21 years in the Royal New Zealand Navy, retiring in the rank of Lieutenant Commander and been exposed to all forms of personal and professional training, I am a strong believer in ongoing training, staff development and a customer-first focus as keys to success”. 

Noel Llewellyn Davies – who is a Director of the Hydraulink hydraulic hose and fittings businesses in New Zealand and Australia – was appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit (NZOM) in this year’s King Charles’ Birthday Honours.

Noel, along with company fellow Director Lee Short, have been Directors of Hydraulink since 1989. They have grown Hydraulink to where the business now has more than 400 service points in both countries, complemented by a fleet of 24/7 mobile service vehicles servicing almost all types of industries, and on-site service facilities servicing primarily the mining, oil and gas industries.

“We are strongly committed to delivering uniformly high world-class standards of services, safety, and compliance to business across multiple sites, whenever and wherever they are required. Top training, staff motivation and customer service makes for a top service organisation. We are committed to providing the best and are constantly providing updated training to our in-house staff, owner operators, distributors, and their teams. “Servicing of mobile and hydraulic machinery is a critical and rapidly advancing business,” says Noel. He also champions Hydraulink’s policy of training its staff for success, particularly if they want to step out into their own business as a member of the Hydraulink network.    

Noel’s views are founded on decades of practical success, with the King’s Birthday honours noting his long service with the New Zealand Heavy Engineering Research Association (HERA) Executive Board in 1992, becoming the first non-engineer Chair of the organisation in 2003, stepping down in 2023.

He was appointed as a voluntary Board member of the New Zealand Engineering Federation in 1986, where his work elevated the profile of New Zealand manufacturing companies, providing a voice with industry and stakeholders, including government. Through HERA, he led cross-sector industry initiatives and was instrumental in HERA developing a research and development-related industry advocacy role. From 2006 he was a Trustee and Chair of the HERA Foundation, providing industry scholarships and establishing an industry member recognition awards programme. He was a category winner of the Ernst Young Entrepreneur of the Year in 2003 and has chaired a significant number of different enterprises.

He was a Trustee for 15 years of the Auckland Medical Research Foundation and chaired the Development and Communications Committee. He is a Life Member and past Chair of Baseball New Zealand and has chaired Tuatara Baseball, Tuatara Basketball and is Chair of the Aotearoa Pathways Foundation who’s core objective is to bring indoor basketball into schools. He held offices with The Navy Club Association and HMNZS Otago Association. Noel has mentored younger business leaders and entrepreneurs through the Young Presidents and Entrepreneurs Organisations. He is currently involved with several trusts involved in eradicating noxious weeds, pests and vermin, plus planting native trees and building tracks through reserve land in the Waipu/Langs Beach areas.

Noel’s business partner Lee Short says “Noel’s record of community and business involvement speaks volumes about the ethos he fosters within Hydraulink. He is a champion, not only of high standards of business and customer service, but also of the development of people within our business, many of whom have gone on to forge their own future as a member of our Hydraulink network. Like so many quiet achievers in industry, Noel doesn’t seek the limelight, but gets on with the job. So, it is wonderful to see that industry and the community is honouring him through this Kings Birthday recognition for success on so many levels.”

Noel said he has been humbled that he was nominated for the honour and proud for the amazing support he has received.