Christchurch apprentice graduate soars to the edge of New Zealand’s space future
When a spaceplane flew last year carrying experimental hardware developed for California Polytechnic (Cal Poly), a young Canterbury engineer was watching closely – knowing components she had helped manufacture were on board. Yelena Cunningham, 21, a Manufacturing Engineer at Dawn Aerospace in Christchurch, played a role in building parts used […]
The cost of Deindustrialisation: How New Zealand’s manufacturing decline threatens our economic future
NZ Manufacturer magazine wants more business owners and decisionmakers to speak up and positively make suggestions on issues affecting the future of manufacturing. Dont be silent when your ideas can make a difference. Speak up for your country. Doug Green, Publisher By Sean Doherty, Manufacturing Commentator | NZ Industry Trends […]
Turning manufacturing around
The announcement by McCains of their closure in Hastings and that of Heinz Wattie’s to close three sites around the country has come with a (wait for it) vacuum of comment, suggestions and concern. Neither does it affirm the benefits of having fifty cent cans of vegetables coming into NZ […]
Ecostore: Building world-class sustainable manufacturing from Auckland
Offering environmentally responsible and eco-friendly alternatives to conventional products has been the goal of Ecostore since its foundation in 1993. That purpose is backed by a sophisticated manufacturing operation in Auckland, where ecostore develops, manufactures and packs its home cleaning, personal care and baby products at its own Toitū Net Carbon […]
Exporting in 2026: Sustainability and proof
Exporters are not being asked for their sustainability commitments. They are being asked to prove them. Across global markets, sustainability is becoming a condition of doing business. Not because it is the “right thing to do” (although it is), but because regulators, retailers and procurement teams are building sustainability into […]
Why our car dependence is now a strategic liability
Timothy Welch, Senior Lecturer in Urban Planning, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau The war in Iran and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz have sent oil prices past US$100 a barrel – and Kiwis flocking to fill up. Petrol just hit NZ$3 a litre and some stations have reported running […]
Tech companies are blaming massive layoffs on AI
Uri Gal, Professor in Business Information Systems, University of Sydney In the past few months, a wave of tech corporations have announced significant staff cuts and attributed them to efficiency gains driven by artificial intelligence (AI). Companies such as Atlassian, Block and Amazon have announced they would lay off thousands of employees due to increased […]
Workplace literacy: The hidden lever of performance
Adam Harvey, Business Performance Partner – Manufacturing, The Learning Wave We all know the story: New Zealand productivity lags behind much of the OECD. For years, it’s been in reports, debated at conferences and written in board packs. You feel it when the same issues resurface, rework creeps back […]
In God we trust: All others bring data
David Altena is Head of Growth & Partnerships at SmartSpace.ai & Co-Founder & Host of The Better SMB Podcast. david@altena.solutions Rob Bull is Director of the New Zealand Lean Academy. rob@nzla.nz Edwards Deming’s line has been quoted so often it risks becoming wallpaper. But for New Zealand […]
Uncertainty and opportunity for Kiwi exporters
By EMA Head of Membership and Export, Simon Devoy With the global trading environment shifting rapidly, uncertainty is the new normal for Kiwi exporters. The latest developments around tariffs from the Trump Administration show just how quickly the rules can change, and how vulnerable small, open trading economies like […]
Busy Isn’t Productive: The Hidden Cost of Broken Flow
A practical reset for factories stuck in firefighting, batching and workarounds. By Neil Robinson, a Senior Business Consultant with Argon & Co (Auckland) specialising in productivity improvement, Lean systems and capability building. A Six Sigma Black Belt and experienced facilitator, he helps manufacturing teams make flow visible, stabilise performance […]
Find a Business Partner – DIY or Not ?
Mike Warmington, Director, Platform1 New Zealanders often like to try their hand at projects especially when it comes to DIY jobs around the house. We pride ourselves on having a can-do attitude. This can transcend itself into business when owners are looking at exit planning strategies. It may sound […]
Power Politics: How high electricity prices are squeezing NZ Manufacturers in an Election Year
By Sean Doherty,Manufacturing Commentator | NZ Industry Trends New Zealand’s electricity market is producing two parallel realities. For the country’s four major generator-retailers, business has never been better. For manufacturers, the same market is steadily destroying the economics of making things in this country. If the balance is not corrected soon, the closures already under way will accelerate – and some of the damage will be permanent. Generators cash in while industry burns out In the six months to December 2025, New Zealand’s four major gentailers – are forecast to deliver a combined operating profit of approximately $1.86 billion, an increase of around 45% on the same period a year earlier. These are not one-off results. In 2023, the same four companies posted combined operating profits of $2.7 billion – roughly $7.4 million in profit every single day. The Electricity Authority’s own energy margin dashboard shows big generators regularly earning weekly gross margins in excess of $70 million, peaking at around $119 million in some high-price weeks. Consumer NZ chief executive Jon Duffy has put the problem plainly: “We hear the same lines every year. Big profits are needed to fund investment. But the investment is always coming, never here in sufficient quantity“. The numbers back him up. Analysis by the NZCTU and 350 Aotearoa found that over the past decade, the four gentailers paid $10.8 billion in dividends to the government and shareholders while investing only $4.5 billion into plant, property and equipment. Transpower data showed that as of late 2025, only around 986 MW of new generation had been committed and financed – far short of the 1,500 GWh of new capacity needed every year until 2031. The system, in other words, is structured to reward generators most when supply is tight and prices are high – […]