Business News

Key technologies driving manufacturing transformation

While Covid-19 has been disruptive across industries, the manufacturing industry is presented with an opportunity to come out the other side stronger than before. Manufacturers must re-examine their processes and even their entire business model to find new efficiencies and ways to compete with offshore firms. As the sector moves closer to Industry 4.0, it is essential for manufacturers to be aware of the technologies that are likely to shape strategies and priorities across the next five years, according to Epicor Software. Greg O’Loan, regional vice president, ANZ, Epicor Software Corporation, said, “Manufacturing is a sector ideally placed to benefit from emerging technologies. Industry 4.0 is a global concept that predicts the manufacturing sector will experience a fourth industrial revolution, this time based on digital technology. “With the right solutions in place, manufacturers will be able to make smarter decisions, optimise processes, deliver a better customer experience and, ultimately, outperform their overseas counterparts. “To achieve this, decision-makers in manufacturing firms need to gain a thorough understanding of the solutions lining up to transform the industry in the next five years.” Epicor has identified the top four areas of technology that will drive digital transformation in the manufacturing sector: Artificial intelligence (AI) AI and data strategies are fundamental for all businesses, and organisations that do not already have a roadmap in place for AI could face an uphill battle to compete. Three-quarters of C-suite executives surveyed by Accenture said they believed if they did not scale AI in the next five years, they could go out of business entirely. (1) In manufacturing, AI can be used for everything from optimising production lines to automating defect checking, resulting in fewer costly defects and increasing overall productivity. Internet of Things (IoT) and 5G IoT solutions are continuing to gain rapid momentum in manufacturing […]

Technological change and the future of work

The Government asked the Productivity Commission to explore the impacts of new and changing technology on the quantity and nature of work. The final report makes 35 findings and 18 recommendations. It focuses on what steps the Government can take to improve the ability of New Zealand and New Zealanders to adapt to and benefit from greater technological change. What did the inquiry find? Technology doesn’t just replace jobs; it also creates them. Technology has many effects on the labour market, some of which are positive for workers, the quality of work, and jobs. Predictions that technology will inevitably replace work are simplistic and out of step with historical experience. There isn’t much sign of looming technological disruption. Faster technological progress would be evident in labour market and economic measures, such as productivity growth, occupational churn, and business start-up rates. But across the developed world, all of these measures are slowing or declining. New Zealand needs more technology, not less. Technological progress and adoption drives productivity and income growth. If we want higher incomes for ourselves and our children, New Zealand firms need to take up technology at a faster rate than has been the case in recent years. New Zealand is well-placed for faster technology adoption in some respects, but not in others. By international standards, adult New Zealanders are skilled and train at high levels. Our policy settings generally encourage openness to ideas, goods, services, investment and skills. And our labour market has historically done a good job of creating lots of jobs. On the other hand, core skill levels in our schools are dropping; high house prices make it hard for some workers to move to better jobs; and New Zealand’s business environment lacks dynamism. New Zealand should build on its strengths and address its weaknesses. The Productivity Commission recommends a number of policy changes […]

Manco Rail boosts NZ engineering sector with multi-million dollar Sydney tunnel contract

Auckland company Manco Rail has given New Zealand’s engineering sector a multi-million dollar boost by securing a contract to supply specialised equipment for two 15 kilometre rail tunnels being built under Sydney Harbour. Manco Rail won an international tender against Australian and European competitors to supply automated equipment to transport the rail through the two tunnels, lay the sleepers, and then thread the rail onto the sleepers. All this equipment is radio-remote-controlled. Manco is also supplying the equipment to install the overhead wire to power the trains. The New South Wales Government, via Sydney Metro Trains, is in the advanced stages of building the north and south tunnels under Sydney Harbour and a significant amount of equipment will be shipped out on 2 July. Manco Rail managing director Bryan Black said the contract, worth tens of millions of dollars, will secure employment for about 300 people and provide new jobs for the 40 New Zealand companies supplying Manco with components. “Manco Rail has about 75 employees at three locations in New Zealand but we have three times that number in long-term subcontractor alliances, mainly throughout the North Island. We have taken on six additional university-qualified design engineers, three auto-electricians, and a wide range of skilled engineering personnel from many industries including some redundancies from the airline industry.” Manco Rail’s subcontractors for the Sydney project include: Gaminco, a large Tauranga machining company with world-class facilities which does extensive work for John Deere, G90 Engineering and Juno Engineering in Matamata which supply machine and fabricated parts, Piako Engineering in Morrinsville which supplies fabricated parts, and 35 other New Zealand companies, mostly locally owned, which supply a range of hydraulics, electronics, and radio-control equipment. Mr Black said the capability of the New Zealand engineering sector is constantly underestimated. “Many of these companies are third-generation […]

Can we be more productive?

By Ian Walsh, Managing Director, Intent Group Over the past 50 years, New Zealand has been on a negative GDP trajectory versus the OECD, sliding from 5th place to 22nd! The top 10 countries average 60% more productivity per person per capita in US$ than we do, and this gap has been widening since the mid 1980’s.* The general consensus is that we work hard, and the statistics say we work more hours than most. Clearly this is the harder not smarter argument. Perhaps Sir Paul Callaghan captured it best when he said, “In New Zealand we sense, somehow we are not as prosperous as we would like.” Without highly productive businesses we will not be able to generate the income to invest in human and physical capital, to create the society and country we aspire to. So why are we less productive? There has been a lot of research over the years, with the traditional arguments being that our costs are higher as we are further away from market. The research, however, shows that we should be 20% above the average** and playing in the top 10, but we are not. This is due to: Weak international connections. New Zealand firms face reduced access to large markets and limited participation in global value chains, where the transfer of advanced technologies now often occurs. Underinvestment in “knowledge-based capital”. In particular, R&D undertaken by the business sector is among the lowest in the OECD, reducing the capacity for “frontier innovation” and the ability of firms to absorb new ideas developed elsewhere (“technological catch-up”). The quality of management in New Zealand is low, which decreases the productivity gains from new technology. I find these outcomes interesting, but not surprising. 90% of NZ businesses are SME’s who can’t afford HR or a training manager, let alone an innovation manager! Most investment is managed by the entrepreneur who started the […]

NZ set for rapid increase in large scale manufacturing Post-Covid – 19

New Zealand is set to see a rapid increase in large scale manufacturing in the coming months according to new figures from the country’s largest industrial and residential development. More than a fifth of the 170 hectares of commercial land available at Drury South Crossing in South Auckland has been sold to a wide range of manufacturing, logistics, fabrication, construction and industrial businesses. The development is expected to contribute $2.3bn to the economy, employ 6,000 in the manufacturing, distribution, food processing, tech and logistics sectors and provide affordable housing for 2,000 Kiwis when it is completed in 2027. According to developers, Drury South Crossing will be one of the first large scale manufacturing hubs to be designed and completed in a post-COVID-19 environment. Design and planning for a number of the new plants are already well underway with construction on the first of the new facilities expected to come on stream in 2021. Stephen Hughes, CEO of Drury South Crossing says interest from local and international manufacturers has been strong, particularly from the agricultural sector with several food suppliers looking to establish high volume processing capability locally. He says New Zealand’s success in controlling the virus has meant the country is well-positioned for an expected uplift in post-COVID demand for New Zealand made goods. “The agricultural sector is seeing significant growth potential for New Zealand branded products as the pandemic stretches supplies around the world and consumers focus their attention on where their food is sourced from,” he says. He says increasingly a new generation of businesses operating at a high volume throughput need sizable footage and heights of 25m in order to accommodate robotic automation. “What we are seeing is a need from local food producers to store large volumes of export-ready product where it can be accessed using […]

Profile: Tendai Masamba, Fonterra

What is your role at Fonterra? Logistics Planning Manager. What do you do? My team is responsible for supply chain resource forecasting and distribution planning across our 80 plus warehousing network in NZ. Where did you start your working life? Zimbabwe, I completed an Electrical Engineering degree in Canada. After graduating I went back to Zimbabwe ready to contribute to my country. Doing What? My first job was in Electrical Wiring for new commercial buildings, I did that for three months and decided I needed something more exciting, so I moved into Supply Chain Consulting. What projects do you enjoy doing? I enjoy strategic and business improvement projects that strongly leverage IT and automation. I think I enjoy these sorts of investments because they create opportunities and purpose for our people and free them up to be able to focus on value added tasks. How do you find current business conditions? At the back Covid 19 or before. Challenging as many others are, but as part of the food supply chain Fonterra’s operations were considered an essential service. Our farmers, our factories and our supply chain continued to work and ensured that we provided access to dairy nutrition across all our markets. Has the Covid-19 had much of an impact on your company’s activities? One of the strengths of our Co-op is our ability to adapt to change in the global market. We have learnt a lot over the last few years and build resilience and BCP capability. Like many businesses we had to respond to changing business requirements, for example redirecting milk meant for “out of home” (cafes and restaurants) consumption to ingredients and retail categories Looking back, I am very proud of our leadership at Fonterra through Covid. We were all focused on doing the right thing for our […]

Transport boost impactful for Auckland and Upper North Island

The four-lane highway from Whangarei to Tauranga may be the eye-catching part of National’s new infrastructure plan but it is arguably the significant rail upgrades and busway projects that could have the biggest impact on Aucklanders says the Employers and Manufacturers Association (EMA). National Party leader the Hon Judith Collins announced a comprehensive and far reaching infrastructure plan with an emphasis on Auckland but highlighted by a four-lane highway from Whangarei to Tauranga with new tunnels through the Brynderwyn Hills and the Kaimai Ranges. “That road plan north would be very welcome by our members in Whangarei and the Far North as it opens a true gateway for significant expansion in the north, particularly in the horticultural and manufacturing sectors,” says EMA Chief Executive Brett O’Riley (pictured). “But we are most excited about the announced plans for public transport. It is the rail links in Auckland, the third and fourth main lines, rail to the airport, completing links from the airport to Onehunga -supported by rapid buses to the CBD – and electrification to Pokeno and other proposed new rail links that are game changers. ‘These initiatives could take significant freight volumes off the motorway networks, enhance commuter options and provide a genuine fast-rail link from the city to the airport and Hamilton, driving productivity gains across the regional economy. “Electrification to Pokeno and new services to West Auckland would service rapid residential growth. Completing the Eastern Busway and building a North-Western busway should have similar impacts for commuters as the highly successful Northern Busway. A second Waitemata crossing has long been identified as a priority and planned ferry upgrades take advantage of the harbour as a key transport link.” National’s plan also includes funding changes that would allow the Transport Agency to borrow more and carry more debt on […]

Critical workers needed for economic recovery

BusinessNZ has welcomed changes to immigration settings announced today. More occupations have been added to the skill level exception test and criteria for Essential Skills work visas have been changed. BusinessNZ Chief Executive Kirk Hope (pictured) welcomed the plan for phasing in remuneration tests as criteria for entry, reducing reliance on ANZSCO, an outdated occupational classification system which is not fit for purpose in a modern, changing labour market. But he said Immigration NZ needed to urgently provide clarity to companies on bringing in critical workers. “Right now we need a range of high-skilled workers to support the economic recovery efforts. They are needed for company operations that will save and create jobs, e.g. specialist engineers for commissioning and installing new plant and equipment. “Immigration NZ needs to be able to approve the entry of highly specialised skills that cannot be found in New Zealand. There is no cost to the taxpayer for allowing these specialist workers in, and the businesses applying for the critical worker exemptions will need to put up an economic case for exemption. “From the cases we have heard of, there are hundreds of jobs on the line if Immigration NZ is not able to approve entry for such critical skills,” Mr Hope said.

40 million to support NZ businesses a welcome relief

Minister for Economic Development Phil Twyford and Minister for Small Business Stuart announced a further $40 million will be invested in the Regional Business Partner programme (RBP) today. This is a welcome relief for businesses trying to plot a path back to a thriving business after the Covid-19 pandemic says the EMA Chief Executive Brett O’Riley. “Financial support via the wage subsidy and small loan scheme helped businesses stay afloat, but what is going to get them back to profitability long term is good advice and mentoring around changing the way they operate,” said Brett. The RBP offers eligible businesses help with HR, health and wellbeing, business continuity, cashflow and finance management, strategy and digital capability. In the announcement today a further $10 million of funding for tourism businesses will also be channeled through the RBP. “One of the sectors that was hit as far back as January by COVID-19 was tourism. They were feeling the effects of dwindling tourist numbers, the China tourist ban and accommodation, hospitality, tourism, and tourism related retail were all on the decline. “Six months later and with border closures still in place they are in desperate need of the type of support the RBP offers.” Brett said. The fund is open to registered New Zealand businesses with fewer than 100 full time equivalent employees and provides access to up to $5000 of expert advice and support. The RBP is a partnership between NZTE and Callaghan Innovation. Businesses looking to register should call the Business Helpline on 0800 500 362 in the North Island or 0800 505 096 in the South Island.

Where are we going, how are we getting there?

-Doug Green, Publisher, NZ Manufacturer Business people have been thinking it, they have done it. The statement released today by Sir Peter Gluckman, former Prime Minister Helen Clark and former Air New Zealand chief Rob Fyfe is long overdue. Not necessarily by just them, but by New Zealanders concerned about the economy…and our going forward. Or by the 94% of SME’s who wonder what tomorrow is going to bring. They are saying – what many businesspeople are thinking – that Government does not have a plan for the difficult journey we all face. Maybe because its an election year Government is not sharing its plans for the economy until closer to September? In the meantime, however, business owners are looking for the way ahead. One example, Fletcher’s laid off 1,000 workers in New Zealand as the economy closed down. They abided by the decisionmaking process of ‘the Team of 5m’ to play their part in making the country safer through the time of the virus. What we need is a Business Council – bringing together representatives from key business sectors like EMA, the chambers of commerce, BusinessNZ to make the financial decisions to move the economy forward. Soon we will learn National’s and the coalition’s plans. Pity its an election year, the parties will put forward ideas that will not necessarily start immediately, but make them look good. Think the ‘Shovels Ready’ projects. The shovels are not ready yet.

«‹ 53 54 55 56 ›»

News Ticker

Business News