Vaughan is originally from the Waikato area on the North Island of New Zealand, where he grew up on various dairy farms with his parents and sister. While in school, Vaughan spent a lot of his spare time helping on the farm, which included milking cows, cropping, fencing, and water repairs. He also worked on various farms, where he began riding dirt bikes, modifying and repairing vehicles, and fishing, which continue to be his main hobbies. He attended various small rural schools and moved onto Te Aroha College to complete his high school education.

 

After high school, he completed his apprenticeship in Maintenance and Diagnostics in Mechanical Engineering at Cullen Engineering Co. Ltd. in Te Aroha. After that, he spent 6 years with Cullen’s, which specializes in building and installing conveyor systems, tail lift gates and structural steel work. While primarily based in the machine shop, Vaughan also spent time performing site work and working in the fabrication shop.

 

In 2010, Vaughan moved to Australia and began working in the mineral sands mining industry. He spent 2+ years working on cutter wheel dredges, wet concentrator separation plants, magnetic separation plants, heavy mobile equipment, rigging and cranes. During this time he also completed an Advanced Diploma in Mechanical Engineering. 

 

Vaughan spent some intermittent time in this period traveling in Europe and the UK where during the summer months he built and rigged concert festival tents for Kayam Tents; in winter, he worked for a backpacking hostel in Edinburgh.

 

Following his time in Europe, Vaughan and his girlfriend Emily travelled to Halifax, where he began working at Volcano Construction Services. He began his employment doing asbestos abatement and a range of demolition work. He soon moved on to become a field supervisor, working on some of the larger mechanical removal and rigging projects. Currently he is a Mechanical Estimator and Project Manager with Volcano. He has grown with the company, taking on a range of increasingly challenging roles and is looking forward to being part of the Volcano team for many more years to come. Vaughan is currently on an extended holiday in New Zealand and we look forward to his return.

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