Queenstown Engineers & Consultants

Your Trusted Engineering Partner in Queenstown

From the picturesque city of Queenstown, our local engineers and consultants look forward to saying hi. Operating across numerous markets including buildings, transport and infrastructure and the water sector, they are helping to transform our world. As part of one of New Zealand’s larger engineering consultancies, our Queenstown team brings together structural, civil, geotechnical, mechanical and electrical engineers who understand what it takes to design and deliver projects in an alpine environment.

Located in the heart of the Queenstown Lakes District, our company is proud to deliver projects across the Wakatipu Basin, Central Otago Region, and Southland Regions. With a proven track record of success throughout the South Island, Beca's multidisciplinary consulting engineers are dedicated to delivering structural and civil services tailored to the unique needs of each project. Over many years we’ve delivered hundreds of jobs across Queenstown and the surrounding regions, applying cost-effective, practical, design-focused solutions to local transport, water and property challenges.

Whether it’s large-scale construction and architectural engineering or infrastructure development, we work closely with clients to provide innovative, high-value outcomes. Strong relationships are at the core of what we do, giving you the confidence to move forward with a trusted partner by your side. Whether you’re a local business, public agency or project team working elsewhere in the South Island, you can tap into services that are tailored to the landscape, regulations and development demands of this part of New Zealand.

Services We Provide

From our Queenstown office we offer a mix of engineering and advisory services for projects across the town centre, the Wakatipu Basin and the wider Central Otago and Southland regions. You can draw on civil, structural, geotechnical, mechanical and electrical engineering support as well as planning and delivery advice, all from a team that works in and around Queenstown every day.

A lot of our work involves designing and delivering infrastructure, buildings and public spaces that have to perform in an alpine environment. Steep slopes, natural hazards, seasonal tourism peaks and tight construction windows all shape how projects are set up and built, so we tailor our services and advice to those conditions rather than applying a one-size-fits-all approach.
 

Civil Engineering

Our civil works engineers help shape the streets, paths and water networks that keep Queenstown running – from local road and intersection upgrades to new walking and cycling links, and stormwater or wastewater renewals. Working to Queenstown Lakes District Council standards and engineering acceptance processes, we plan each job with busy and constrained streets in mind. This approach lets us deliver staging, temporary traffic management and service replacements safely and efficiently.
 

Architectural Services

We work alongside architects, planners and developers on projects such as town centre streets, mixed-use buildings and tourism facilities, providing the civil, structural and servicing input needed to get them built and working well. That can mean sorting out levels, structure, drainage and access on tight or sloping sites, and finding practical details that fit with what’s already there, including older or heritage buildings.
 

Structural Engineering

Structural engineering work in Queenstown often involves steep sites, snow and seismic loading, so designs have to suit both New Zealand standards and local ground conditions. The team works closely with our building consultants on new commercial and residential buildings as well as checks, alterations and strengthening for existing structures, with a strong focus on seismic performance and long-term durability.
 

Mechanical and Electrical Engineering

Our mechanical and electrical engineers work on building services and plant around Queenstown, from hotels and apartments to public facilities and utility sites. We design and review heating, ventilation, air conditioning, piping, power distribution, lighting and control systems so they cope with winter temperatures, support how the building is used, and can be operated and maintained without fuss over the life of the asset.

Our Work in Queenstown

Queenstown engineering work on an airport runway

Beca’s work on the Queenstown Airport runway widening reflects our commitment to delivering quality and excellence. For the airport to begin allowing evening flights into an area surrounded by difficult and mountainous terrain, the runway had to be widened from 30m to 45m – all while daytime operations continued uninterrupted.

Our team provided structural and civil expertise to ensure the project's uniquely challenging needs were met. Through expert construction solutions and advice, we helped enhance safety and efficiency, giving our clients confidence in the airport’s future.


 

Frankton Upgrade Project

The Frankton Upgrade Project is a major step in strengthening the electricity supply for Queenstown, Arrowtown and the wider Wakatipu Basin. Working with Transpower and other partners, Beca has helped design and plan new transformers and associated substation upgrades at Frankton, so the network can handle growing demand from homes, businesses and tourism while staying resilient in extreme weather. Alongside boosting capacity on this critical part of the grid, the project includes measures to manage flood risk at the substation site, supporting a more secure, reliable power supply for the region into the future.
 

Queenstown Town Centre Street Upgrades

The Queenstown Town Centre Street Upgrades have transformed key streets in the CBD – including Brecon, Rees, Beach and Park Streets – into safer, more people-focused spaces. As part of the Kā Huanui a Tāhuna alliance, Beca has helped deliver wider footpaths, improved walking and cycling connections from the Queenstown Gardens to the Gondola, and renewed underground services beneath major streets. The upgrades follow the Queenstown Town Centre Masterplan and Design Guidelines, using high quality materials and integrated cultural design elements so the streets tell local stories while supporting everyday business, access and events.
 

Queenstown Town Centre Arterial Roads

The Queenstown Town Centre Arterial Road project creates an alternative route around the CBD so through-traffic no longer has to use the core town centre streets. Stage 1, delivered by the Kā Huanui a Tāhuna alliance that includes Beca, links Melbourne and Henry Streets and provides a new connection towards Arthurs Point, improving access for buses and general traffic while opening up opportunities to make Stanley Street and nearby streets more people-friendly. Alongside the new road, the project includes major upgrades to wastewater, stormwater and other underground services, as well as improved walking and cycling connections into the town centre.
 

Whakatipu Active Travel Network

The Whakatipu Active Travel Network is a programme to create a connected system of walking and cycling routes across the Wakatipu Basin so people have a genuine alternative to driving for everyday trips. Beca, working with Queenstown Lakes District Council, Waka Kotahi and other partners, has helped develop and deliver parts of the network identified in the single stage business case, including routes linking Queenstown, Frankton and growing communities such as Lake Hayes Estate, Shotover Country and Jacks Point. The work builds on the existing Queenstown Trail but focuses on safer commuter paths that connect homes to schools, workplaces, bus hubs and other key destinations.
 

Gorge Road Natural Hazards Report

Gorge Road is one of Queenstown’s key corridors and sits below steep fans that are exposed to debris flows, rockfall, liquefaction and flooding. Beca prepared a detailed natural hazards risk assessment for Queenstown Lakes District Council, analysing how these hazards could affect people, property and infrastructure in the Brewery Creek and Reavers Lane areas and mapping life-safety and property risk across the corridor. The findings are now used to inform land-use planning, engineering options and future investment decisions along Gorge Road.
 

Awards

2024 Civil Contractors New Zealand Otago Awards

Winner – Supreme Contractor Award and Project Over $5M (Queenstown Town Centre Street Upgrades), recognising the Kā Huanui a Tāhuna alliance’s work – including Beca – to deliver complex street upgrades in the heart of Queenstown while keeping the town centre open for locals and visitors.
 

2016 New Zealand Airports Awards

Winner – Project of the Year (Queenstown Airport Runway Widening and Overlay), celebrating the successful widening of the main runway from 30m to 45m and associated works that enabled after-dark flights into Queenstown.
 

Frequently Asked Questions

What size of projects or jobs can your Queenstown team help with?

We take on a wide range of work, from smaller one-off jobs like assessments for individual buildings or short sections of street, through to multi-stage programmes such as town centre upgrades, active travel routes and major infrastructure projects. The key is less about the dollar value and more about whether the job needs the kind of civil, structural, geotechnical, mechanical or electrical input we’re set up to provide, so we’re always happy to talk through what you’re planning and quickly confirm if we’re the right fit.

We have sites across the South Island. Can your Queenstown office support projects outside the district?
Yes. While our team is based in Queenstown and focused on the Wakatipu Basin and Queenstown Lakes District, we regularly support projects elsewhere in Central Otago, Southland and across the South Island as part of Beca’s wider New Zealand network. Depending on the job, we can lead the work from Queenstown or combine our local engineers with colleagues in other offices so you get people who know your sites, your programme and the way your business operates, without having to manage multiple separate consultancies.
 

Can you help us assess a potential site before we commit to a project?

Yes. We can carry out early site assessments to help you understand key engineering considerations before you commit, such as ground conditions, natural hazards, access, services and how council standards might apply. That might involve a desktop review, a walk-over and, where needed, recommending geotechnical or other investigations. Then we summarise the main risks, constraints and opportunities in plain language so you can decide whether to proceed, renegotiate or look at other options.

Are your engineers members of Engineering New Zealand or Chartered Professional Engineers (CPEng)?
Many of our senior engineers are members of Engineering New Zealand, and a number hold Chartered Professional Engineer (CPEng) registration, particularly in structural, civil and geotechnical disciplines. For each project we can confirm who will be leading the work, what their registrations are, and how that aligns with your own technical or governance requirements, so you can check details on the public registers if you wish.
 

Do you have opportunities for engineers to join your Queenstown team?

We do from time to time. When roles are available they’re listed on Beca's engineering careers page, and they often include civil, structural, geotechnical and mechanical or electrical positions linked to projects in Queenstown and across the South Island. If you’re interested in living here and working in the local engineering industry, check the current vacancies and feel free to get in touch to talk about how your skills might line up with what the team is working on.