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About us

3rd Generation
Family-Owned & Operated
Kiwi Company

Since 1972 we’ve been a trusted trading partner to New Zealand’s rural and construction sectors, with our products earning a reputation for quality and performance. 

We’re passionate about wire and steel, and over the years we’ve amassed vast experience and expertise for manufacturing right here in New Zealand. With the majority of our product range manufactured in-house, we manage all aspects of quality control – from the selection of raw materials, product design and manufacture, right through to customer service and after-sales support. 

Our products, designed to comply with industry building codes and tough rural conditions, are used in residential & commercial buildings, farms, orchards and vineyards across New Zealand and around the world.

The early days

Our story began in 1972, with Doug Bishop and his son Paul. Having spent several years as a contractor working in quarries, Doug longed for a roof over his head at work and the ability to earn a living rain, hail or shine, all year round. He also wanted a business where he could employ his intellectually handicapped son, Paul’s brother.

As luck would have it, an opportunity presented itself when he acquired a building paper machine following the sale of Millers Marathon Roofing to Fletcher Dimond.

It was this machine that could turn out bituminous building paper for the construction industry that marked the start of the Bishop family business. Much trial and error followed, with Paul, only one year out of school, hands-on with his brother and their Dad in makeshift premises at Tauranga’s Sulphur Point.

But before they could start trading, their business needed a name.

After calling the Companies Office to register, Doug Bishop was told that Douglas Industries was already taken. But what about Paul? Fortunately, Paul Industries was available and, in that moment in May, Paul Industries was born.

They started by manufacturing bituminous building papers and underlays for walls and rooves. Competing against established brands like Malthoid, Duroid and Penroid, it made perfect sense to Doug and Paul to call their bituminous building products Pauloid.

It’s true, not a lot of thought went into naming conventions in those early days. Instead, we focussed our energy on supplying premium quality products and service, a reputation that has stuck with the company for half a century.

B&W bitumen close-2
1972

The early days

In 1972, Doug Bishop and his son Paul, built a machine that could turn out bituminous building paper for the construction industry. Naming their business Paul Industries, they began trading.

1972
Hex machine unloading '75-01
70’s

Responding to the building boom

All around New Zealand, new homes and buildings were going up and construction products were in short supply. Spotting a new business opportunity, Doug and Paul purchased machinery to produce 75mm hexagonal roof netting to support roofing underlays.

70’s
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80’s

A passion for wire

Over the next few years, our business branched out into a range of hexagonal netting sizes and products. When we were able to produce 41mm hex netting for rabbit fencing, this opened the door to the rural market. Our product range expanded to include fencing wire, barbed wire, chain link fencing and fence staples.

80’s
Kiwimesh Roof Safety Wire Mesh
90’s

Safety drives innovation

Labour requirements for safe working environments in the construction industry, particularly working from heights, sparked the development of our Kiwimesh brand. The first to manufacture this specialist roofing product in New Zealand.

To this day, Bayonet is the only manufacturer of roof mesh and roof netting in New Zealand.

90’s
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2000’s

It’s a wrap

When the construction industry called for faster wrapping systems, we responded by producing the latest technology membranes, using synthetic materials to prepare house wraps that met the highest quality standards.

2000’s
DCIM100GOPROG0011152.
2010’s

New purpose-built facility

Paul Industries grew rapidly and in July 2015, the business consolidated three sites into one purpose built facility and office complex in Tauriko, Tauranga.

This new base is our hub for national sales and service, and is where we manufacture all of our products.

North Island orders are distributed from Tauranga and stock is bulk shipped to our South Island distribution centre for South Island orders.

Rural range expansion

With the backbone of Paul Industries being construction, it was time to grow our rural range of products. We invested in plant and equipment to manufacture prefabricated netting (Bayonet Fixed Knot), which was one of the core products of our rural fencing range.

In the years following, we invested in a purpose-built machine which is the only machine of its kind in New Zealand – a brand new UMC Fixed Lokk Fabricator that could produce high quality and quantities of Fixed Knot and Kiwi Knot with ease.

2010’s
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2020’s

Family succession

In March 2020, after nearly five decades in the business, Paul Bishop officially passed ownership of Paul Industries to sons Joel and Frank. Their succession extends the Bishop family legacy, enabling a third generation to carry the business forward and demonstrate their ongoing commitment to supplying high quality products into the rural and construction channels.

Business rebrand

In January 2021, Joel and Frank Bishop rebranded Paul Industries as Bayonet and consolidated all its product brands under the same name.

2020’s
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2022

Celebrating 50 years

Employing Kiwi’s, manufacturing product right here in the Bay of Plenty and using Kiwi made wire with a solutions focused approach are at the core of the values we continue to hold tightly to. A lot has changed over the 50 years, however we remain passionately committed to supplying high quality products to Farmers, Fencing Contractors and Roofers New Zealand wide.

2022

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