ABOUT KVAR SOLUTIONS

kVAr Solutions can trace its origins back to the late 1970’s when Rotorua Electrical Contracting Company (Dawson Electrical), won several large tenders for the full electrical works in four new hospitals that the Government was building in Hawkes Bay and the Bay of Planty. The tenders were all basically the same, and they called for Power Factor Control to be installed on all switchboards. Dawson Electrical tried to find a supplier of power factor equipment to satisfy the tender requirements, but could not find a New Zealand Supplier. After making contact with the American Embassy in Wellington, Dawson Electrical was able to buy a second-hand Capacitor Manufacturing Plant from the Jard Corporation in America.

Manufacturing was brought to New Zealand, and Dawson Electrical set up an independent company called Metalect Industries and began producing capacitors and Power Factor Systems.

From 1995 onwards, the factory was expanded several times, and new capacitor types were added to the range. The factory could make almost any capacitor that the New Zealand market required. This included small motor run capacitors through to medium voltage power capacitors and pulse grade capacitors for electric fences.

During the 1990’s Metalect Industries formed partnerships with Canterbury University to develop several innovative products such as a modern power factor controller, zero-voltage switched solid state contactors and an Active Harmonic Compensator which today would be called an Active Harmonic Filter. The Active Harmonic Compensator was designed and made in Rotorua some ten years before these kind of systems became available from the big European companies such as ABB and Schneider.

In 2007, Metalect Industries sold out completely to Ampcontrol Pty., an Australian electrical engineering and manufacturing company based in Newcastle. Ampcontrol's primary interest was in Medium Voltage Capacitors, as it held significant market share in the coal industry. As a result of the slump in world coal prices between 2014 and 2015, Ampcontrol closed all overseas branches in late 2015, resulting in the discontinuation of all capacitor and power factor equipment manufacturing in Rotorua as of September 2015.

In early 2016, KVArCorrect Limited was formed in Rotorua, employing key people from Metalect and Ampcontrol. It re-established Power Factor System design and manufacturing in Rotorua, serving New Zealand using quality European parts. Over the next few years, KVArCorrect Limited became one of the nation's largest suppliers of power factor systems. It benefited from the knowledge and experience of the key people that had grown the business from Metalect, through Ampcontrol and then KVARCorrect

In late 2022, Allen Whitten and his sons acquired the business and re-branded it as kVAr Solutions. Allen and his sons have extensive experience in designing and manufacturing electrical switchboards, covering a combined period of over 30 years.

KVAr Solutions will continue to provide innovative, reliable, and expert power factor correction systems and harmonic mitigation advice in New Zealand, as Power Factor Correction is quickly becoming a necessity for increasing factory efficiencies, reducing energy costs, and future-proofing energy demand. kVAr Solutions is committed to providing solutions that meet your requirements anywhere in New Zealand