20 May 2026
Two engineers have been fined, and one has been suspended from the Chartered Professional Engineer register, for their role in the Harington Street Transport Hub project in Tauranga.
A third engineer involved in the project has appealed the decision to uphold the complaint against them and cannot currently be named for legal reasons.
An Engineering New Zealand Disciplinary Committee has issued liability and penalty decisions following a complaint from Tauranga City Council.
Design work on the multi-level car park started in 2017. The project was abandoned in 2020 after structural design deficiencies were identified during construction and subsequent design reviews.
Andrew Thompson was the engineer responsible for the revised design and James Knight was the engineer who carried out peer reviews of the design work.
Mr Thompson made changes to the original design to resolve inconsistencies identified after a beam twisted during a concrete pour.
He failed to properly consider how adding seismic movement gaps would affect the building’s overall structural behaviour. He also designed ramp separations and associated connections that did not provide adequate capacity.
Mr Thompson was found to have performed engineering services incompetently when he confirmed the revised design complied with the Building Code when it did not.
He was fined $4,500 and ordered to pay $20,000 in costs.
The Committee noted the more confined nature of Mr Thompson’s conduct, that he accepted responsibility at an early stage, apologised, and made changes to the way he practices engineering to prevent a similar situation occurring in the future.
Mr Knight was responsible for reviewing the original and revised designs. He was found to have done so incompetently and negligently.
A key finding was that he issued review documentation (Producer Statement – Design Review) for the original design without proper verification that the issues he raised were satisfactorily resolved.
Mr Knight was fined $2,000, ordered to pay costs of $40,000 and suspended from the Chartered Professional Engineer register for three months. He was also ordered under the Engineering New Zealand Rules to undergo a review of his competence to carry out regulatory peer reviews.
The Committee noted that while the findings against Mr Knight were serious, they were confined to two regulatory peer reviews he undertook. It was accepted that Mr Knight has taken steps to improve his understanding of these review requirements.
Both engineers were also formally censured.
Engineering New Zealand Chief Executive Dr Richard Templer says engineering plays a critical role in public safety and the built environment.
“Accountability and professional standards are essential. These decisions are never taken lightly, and they are an important part of maintaining trust and confidence in the profession.”
A summary of the liability and penalty decisions is available below:
Disciplinary Committee decision on complaint against Andrew Thompson and James Knight | 88.6 KB
Notes to reporters
Engineering New Zealand is New Zealand's professional body for engineers, with some 23,000 members. We represent – and regulate – our members. We also act as the Registration Authority for Chartered Professional Engineers.
The maximum fine available for each engineer was $5,000. The Disciplinary Committee determined costs based on a proportion of total hearing costs and apportioned them according to each engineer’s level of responsibility.
The Committee’s decision was based on the evidence presented and the grounds for discipline established under the CPEng Act and the Engineering New Zealand Rules for all three respondents. The Committee’s role is to consider professional conduct and competence matters; it does not determine civil liability.
