This year marks 90 years since Fulton Hogan began its journey to becoming a household name. 

On Sunday (April 16), the business celebrated with an open day with the people of Central in Alexandra.

Fulton Hogan's first recorded job was here in Central Otago. In 1934 a drag scraper was purchased, and an early task was to excavate a pond at Tarras for the Bendigo Gold Light Company's dredge.

The equipment may seem primitive now, but it was cutting edge at a time when the world was transitioning from real horse-drawn power and steam. 

Bendigo Gold Light Company contract, Tarras, 1934. PHOTO: Bob Hogan

Those who carried out that first work would find it hard to bend their minds around the array of technology on display 90 years later at the Fultonn Hogan Alexandra headquarters yesterday.

Fulton Hogan regional manager Anna Sinclair said it was hard to gauge how many people had attended the open day, but the number surely surpassed the number that attended the Parkburn Quarry open day two years ago that attracted 850.

Old and new machinery side by side. PHOTO: The Central App  

“It’s been great to share the occasion with Central Otago Fulton and Hogan staff, their families and people that don’t often get a chance to see all the equipment in a fun and safe environment,” Anna said. 

Fulton Hogan currently has 300 full-time staff in Central Otago employed on various projects and tasks, from grit application on the district's roads to keep traffic flowing in the depths of winter, to the soon-to-be-completed Lake Dunstan water supply above Clyde.