Luc Bohyn - Director

Luc’s background is in trading. His hobbies and interests are wide-ranging from art, nature, photography and aviation. Before moving to New Zealand in 2009, Luc was trading coal, bauxite and magnesite in Europe. He bought an interest in the Roa Mine near Greymouth in 2001 and was a Director of Roa Mining Company and New Zealand Coal and Carbon until April 2019. In April 2019, Luc took over Verum Group Ltd. He has also established Atarau Sanctuary for breeding and re-introduction of great spotted Kiwi and this is an ongoing interest and passion.

Andy Englefield - Chief Operating Officer

Andy, who formally coordinated the Air Quality team in Christchurch, was appointed Chief Operating Officer in December 2022. In his previous role he specialised in point source and ambient emissions for industrial and commercial clients, who are looking to fulfil their resource consent requirements. Andy manages the workplace exposure monitoring services that Verum Group provides while upholding quality and best practice procedures. He also is involved in environmental monitoring, performing site investigations, sampling and reporting for resource consent requirements. Providing high quality and responsive service are Andy’s priorities. Away from work Andy has a young family, enjoys classic cars, barbequing, and exploring the outdoors.

Zingara McDougall - Financial Administrator

Zingara is currently a CAANZ Provisional Accounting Technician, nearing completion of her Diploma in Business Management (Accounting) through Te Pūkenga. Having previously worked in finance roles in tourism and aged care industries, Zingara joined Verum Group in November 2022. She is responsible for Verum's accounts payable and accounts receivable functions, preparing and managing the company’s financial accounts, and delivering effective reporting to Verum's management group to support the success of the company.

Outside of work Zingara enjoys keeping active through walking, gym classes and netball,spending time with friends, family, and her two dogs, and attending music festivals.

Kelly Lamers - Office Administrator

Born in Canada, Kelly is Verum Group’s Office Administrator/Accounts Payable person based in Christchurch. She has a Business and Administration Certificate from SenecaCollege with a Major in Human Resource Management and has a Bookkeeping Certificate from Durham College. Before coming to New Zealand, Kelly worked in management but also in recruitment and office administration. Kelly brought her broad experience to Verum Group in March 2020. Outside of work, Kelly enjoys travelling and experiencing the great kiwi outdoors, kayaking, snowboarding, scuba diving, and practising martial arts.

Billy (William) Porter - Industrial & Workplace Monitoring Manager

Billy is an Environmental Scientist and Occupational Hygiene Manager with Verum Group's Christchurch-based industrial monitoring team. Billy’s current work involves environmental monitoring in the fields of water, soil, and air, and workplace exposure testing. His previous work experience includes agricultural contracting and trucking. He has a BSc in geology with an environmental endorsement. Outside of work Billy enjoys his time golfing, fishing, diving, and getting out and about.

Nathan Frost - North Island Industrial Monitoring Manager

Nathan is the National Quality and North Island Industrial Monitoring Manager, and he also coordinates Hamilton’s emission and environmental team. Hamilton born and bred, Nathan completed his BSc in environmental science at the University of Waikato. His role involves maintaining IANZ accreditation for Verum Groups laboratories and performing quality audits. Specializing in point source and ambient emissions, Nathan also provides environmental monitoring for industrial and commercial clients to meet resource consent requirements. During his spare time he enjoys the outdoors and playing hockey.

Alex Aitken - Environmental Scientist & Section Manager

Originally from the UK, Alex has a BSc(Hons) in Environmental Studies and Philosophy from the University of Hertfordshire and a breadth of experience in asbestos consultancy. At Verum Group Alex’s main focus is on emissions testing, but he is also involved in asbestos identification and other lab work. In his spare time, Alex enjoys cycling and spending time outdoors.

Jacob Hamill - Environmental Officer

Jacob is originally from Taranaki. He moved to Australia for a couple of years before settling in Hamilton to complete his master’s degree in environmental science. Jacob recently integrated into Verum Group's Hamilton-based emission and environmental testing team where his focus is on emission testing and water sampling for a wide range of industrial businesses. During his spare time, Jacob enjoys going tramping.

Cameron Henderson - Environmental Scientist

Cameron works in the Christchurch based Air Quality team and focusses mainly on emission testing for resource consent requirements. He has a BSc majoring in Geography from the University of Canterbury. Away from work, Cameron enjoys swimming, biking and spending time with family and friends.

Kevin Fan - Environmental Officer

Kevin is part of Verum Group's Hamilton based team. He has a BSc from Massey University in Auckland. His work involves climbing a lot of chimney stacks to perform emission testing across a wide range of industries in New Zealand. Outside of work Kevin enjoys rock climbing, surfing, and scuba diving.

Kimberley McKee - Environmental Technician

A new graduate, Kimberley recently joined the Verum Group team and is currently in a training phase. She assists the emission team with stack testing and does odd jobs around the office. Kimberley has a BSc, focusing on geography, environmental science, and chemistry. In her free time she enjoys outdoor sports and hobbies.

Mike Young - National Laboratory Manager

Mike is Verum Group's National Laboratory Manager. He established the asbestos laboratory and leads the team testing solid fuels including domestic and export coal and all sorts of biomass.

He has an MSc in chemistry and in previous jobs he has been involved in quality control of petroleum products, development of horticultural fertilisers, compliance with hazardous substance regulations, and raw material purchasing.

Mike enjoys DIY and hates throwing anything out that he can fix. He has two teenage children and his spare time is spent on a bike or tramping.

John Cameron - Fuels Chemist

As Verum Group's Fuels Chemist, John provides petroleum and coal testing services as required. With a BSc in chemistry, John brings a wide range of skills to the group. His experience spans from quality assurance systems, Health & Safety and management in the petroleum and manufacturing industries, to supply chain logistics and continuous improvement activities. Outside of work John enjoys skiing and other outdoor pursuits, travel, board gaming, trivia quizzing, and keeping up with friends and family.

Phyllis Shi - Laboratory Analyst

Phyllis is our Laboratory Analyst for the Christchurch Lab. After studying chemistry and getting a bachelor degree in science in China and working as a teacher, Phyllis moved to New Zealand 24 years ago. She started at Verum Group as a casual lab analyst in our Lower Hutt lab with a focus on coal. She then moved to Christchurch as an environmental analyst working for Solid Energy. Phyllis became a permanent member of Verum Group Christchurch as a Laboratory analyst in 2012, focus on coal analysis and also undertake some testing for environmental projects. When Verum Group moved its coal lab from the North Island to Christchurch in 2019, her focus moved onto solid fuels (coal, wood and oil) analysis. On her free time, Phyllis enjoys spending time at the gym, especially in the Zumba class.

Khurram Malik - Laboratory Analyst

Khurram is Verum Group's lab analyst for XRF sample analysis and coal testing. He has MSc in Biochemistry and has more than 16 years of laboratory experience in the field of coal, minerals, and water analytical services. Outside of work, Khurram enjoys his time with his young family, reading, home improvements, and gardening.

Daniel March - Laboratory Technician

Daniel is a Laboratory Technician for Verum Group’s fuels division. He graduated from the University of Canterbury in 2019 with a BSc in Chemistry, focussing on physical chemistry and analytical methods. After graduating, he spent two years working as a sales representative for a chemical distributor before beginning his work at Verum Group. Outside of work, Daniel enjoys playing classical and bass guitar, board gaming, and spending time with friends and family.

Gareth Salt - XRF Analyst

Gareth is an XRF analyst in Verum Group for the Spectrachem team. Having completed an NZCS at Christchurch Polytechnic specialising in Chemistry, Gareth started working for Landcare Research in 1994 in Palmerston North. The work involved field trials and laboratory work on soil, plant, and water. During this time, he undertook further studies at Massey University. In 2013, Gareth changed careers working for Silver Fern Farms central laboratory in Christchurch, before coming to Verum Group. Outside of work, Gareth enjoys tennis, touch rugby, and outdoor activities.

Rachel Skews - Geochemistry and West Coast Technical Manager

Rachel has a dual role as Verum Group's West Coast Technical Manager and as an environmental chemist at Verum Group in Christchurch. After finishing her Bachelor degrees in Science (Hons) and Arts at the University of Auckland, she worked in water and wastewater treatment, chemical manufacturing, wet chemical laboratories, and health and safety training/consulting. In 2021, Rachel received a Master of Water Resource Management with Distinction from the University of Canterbury. Since then she has enjoyed crossing between coasts to provide technical leadership for Verum Group’s Greymouth laboratory, and working on environmental and analytical projects at Verum Group’s Christchurch office, as well as at client sites. Outside of work, she enjoys swing dancing, walking, reading, and handicrafts.

Dr Laura Molles - Bioacoustics Manager

Laura is a behavioural ecologist with a particular interest in animal communication. Originally from California, she worked on several field-based projects around the US and in Costa Rica before moving to New Zealand in 2000. Here in New Zealand she has studied kōkako, kakapo, little blue penguins, bellbirds, tui, and great spotted kiwi, including working on reintroductions and other projects that integrate behaviour and conservation biology.

Dr Carol Bedoya - Data Scientist (Bioacoustics)

Carol is Verum Group’s data scientist. Born in Medellín (Colombia), Carol has a background in Electronic Engineering (BSc, MSc) and Biological Sciences (PhD). At our company, Carol develops artificial intelligence techniques to address research questions in biology and geology. His areas of research include clustering algorithms, unsupervised deep learning, and animal communication. In his free time, Carol enjoys playing the violin and practising martial arts.

Adele - Greymouth Operations Manager

Adele is the West Coast’s Operations Manager. She has extensive administrative experience in many different fields. Adele's role at Verum Group's Greymouth branch includes sampling and testing drinking water, waste waters and environmental waters throughout the West Coast Community. Tests vary from pH, turbidity, suspended solids, total coliforms, E.coli, faecal coliforms, and enterococci. The Greymouth team also sample coal from various locations. Outside of the office, Adele enjoys spending time outdoors, watching movies, and eating tasty treats.

Dave Trumm - Senior Scientist

Dave Trumm is an environmental scientist and geologist for Verum Group in Christchurch. Dave has over 20 years of experience in commercial geoscience and geological research and an MSc in geology. His current work involves research and consulting on environmental impacts from coal and gold mining in New Zealand, with a focus on Acid Mine Drainage. He also has expertise in managing and remediating sites contaminated with petroleum hydrocarbons. Away from work, Dave has a young family, is a keen mountain biker and holds several New Zealand speed skating national records.

Keeley Stewart - Laboratory Technician

Keeley is a laboratory technician at the Greymouth branch of Verum Group. She has recently graduated from Otago University with a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology, and is excited to put her learning to use testing the waters on the West Coast.

Ruby Mackenzie - Environmental Field Technician

Ruby is a field technician and sample analyst based out of the Greymouth office. Ruby has recently graduated from Lincoln University with a Masters in (vertebrate) pest management which compliments her BSc in ecology and zoology from Massey University. Her work in Greymouth involves predominately water sampling and its analysis. Ruby thrives in the outdoors, with environmental monitoring being her favourite part of her role. On her days off she enjoys spending time with her dogs and partner, and going hiking in the bush.

Dr Nigel Newman - Associate Senior Geologist

Nigel Newman has trained in geology, geochemistry, and coal science. Nigel has a PhD in geochemistry and 20+ years experience in geological science from academia to exploration. He currently works in the fields of exploration, applied geology, coal quality, coal and environmental chemistry, petroleum chemistry, and marine surveying. Away from the office Nigel has a mature family, and enjoys tramping, beekeeping, and fixing stuff.

Wayne Hennessy - Associate Senior Scientist

Wayne is Verum Group’s specialist in greenhouse gas accounting. He has a BSc (Hons) and an MSc in Chemistry from the University of Canterbury. His current research work is assessing synthetic greenhouse gas emissions for the Ministry for the Environment's national inventory, with particular expertise in the refrigeration industry. He has also researched emission reduction in relation to energy efficiency and renewable energy utilisation. Wayne enjoys spending much of his spare time bird and pest monitoring at Nelson's Brook Waimarama Sanctuary. He is excited at the prospect of re-introduction of kiwi, tuatara, carnivorous snails and other rare species.