Business News

Infrastructure spending good news for SMEs

Today’s major infrastructure spending announcement is good news for members in the EMA’s upper North Island region. EMA Head of Advocacy and Strategy, Alan McDonald, says an additional infrastructure spend of $12 billion over four years is a welcome boost, especially with $6.8 billion of it going into the transport sector. “We’ve already seen an additional $400 million allocated to school infrastructure, and the $300m announced for new spend on hospitals is also going into an area that needs the additional funding attention,” he says. For EMA members the most welcome news is the new transport spend, as its region from Taupo North continues grow rapidly without having the necessary connectivity and ease of movement to support that growth. The new funding will be in addition to what has already been allocated in the National Land Transport Plan (NLTP). “Our understanding is that in some cases the funding may speed up projects in the NLTP or supplant already allocated funds. Where that happens the funding that is freed up from the NLTP will then be reallocated for other NLTP projects to further accelerate that pipeline,” says Mr McDonald. “While details about which projects will receive the new funding are being held back – they are likely to be announced in the New Year – there are a number of public transport, rail and road projects across the upper North Island that are virtually ready to go and if brought forward will bring considerable benefits to businesses in the region,” he says. The new National Infrastructure Commission will rightly prioritise the projects, but the EMA’s wish-list of shovel-ready projects would include: The third rail main, rail electrification between Papatoetoe and Pukekohe, the airport to Puhinui link, the north western busway and Mill Road in Auckland; the route south from Whangarei to […]

HERA launches future-focused leader category in innovation award

The engineering and metals industries are at an exciting but challenging crossroads. While BAU is vital from a cash flow and business stability standpoint, the work of future proofing is urgent, both to shore up the sector now and protect it over the volatile next decade and beyond. This is the philosophy behind HERA’s Future Forum 20/20 VISION and the aligned HERA Innovation Awards, which will be presented at the HERA Future Forum Nation Dinner at the Auckland Museum Events Centre on 21 February 2020. To this end, HERA is looking for the industry’s top future-focused leader – the person who is the greatest exemplar, in the current market, of the combination of quality BAU leadership with a practical but bold and ambitious vision for the future. Troy Coyle, HERA’s CEO, says, “We are excited to see who in our industry emerges as the nominees and finalists for the Leading Metalhead Award. This award recognises major innovation being implemented within our industry. “We know our industry could be disrupted by the end of next decade by technology and alternative materials, and we want to identify, acknowledge and reward future-focused leadership which offers a way forward for other members who are looking to push innovation in their own companies and specialist areas.” Starting from 2020, the HERA Industry Awards will be every three years to recognise who has significantly contributed to the industry’s success. These were previously presented as part of the Metals NZ conference’s Industry Gala Dinner to those who had demonstrated considerable achievements in export and innovation. HERA is now shaking things up and aligning the awards with the new Future Forum series, which is about building a tribe of metalheads and casting a collective gaze to the future so the industry can prepare for disruption. About the HERA Industry Awards There […]

Cheap, lookalike hydraulic cylinders give NZ companies headaches

Cheap comes out expensive – lookalike cylinders cause downtime headaches Global advanced industrial tools and services leader Enerpac says the NZ market is falling victim to cheap, lookalike hydraulic cylinders that are causing significant headaches when they fail in service. Enerpac New Zealand Hydraulic Specialist, Mr Neville Stuart, says that unlike genuine Enerpac branded gear, lookalike cylinders have not been engineered for rugged conditions and optimum durability and are not backed by Enerpac’s nationwide service and warranty commitments. “Everyone is conscious of working within budget limitations, so when a $2,500 cylinder is available for under $500, it looks like a good deal. But what costs are incurred when that cylinder breaks down prematurely?” asks Mr Stuart. “It can be ten times that amount in terms of lost time, and hundreds of times that amount in terms of safety liability if they fail.” “Not only does production grind to a halt, but you now have to seek a replacement part, because there is no warranty or service with lookalike brands,” he says. Enerpac equipment is used in major projects where safety, precision and uptime are critical, in industries such as building, construction, civil and mechanical engineering, electrical utilities, manufacturing, mining and exploration, metal processing, oil and gas and transport maintenance. “At the end of the day it’s a case of ‘cheap comes out expensive’ because when you add up all the bills, a lookalike cylinder ends up causing far more costs, downtime, delays and other problems.” Mr Stuart has been raising awareness of New Zealand’s lookalike cylinder problem for years but says that the lookalike brands are persistent because they know they can make a quick dollar, then disappear before things go wrong. “The lookalike cylinders are usually painted in an almost identical yellow, and catalogues can even use […]

A year in focus for HERA

In 2019, HERA imbedded its new focus on automation and Industry 4.0 within its new strategy. In support of this, it was announced that we’ll build a new Innovation Centre. This will address the strategic need for the physical facility to facilitate technology transfer, prototyping, research and training to prepare our member companies for the Industry 4.0 transformation. This will also propel our NZ Welding Centre into the only Welding 4.0 facility in New Zealand – and support its rebrand to the Centre for Innovative Fabrication. Supporting the creation of the Innovation Centre was the appointment of our new Innovation Centre Manager, Greg Buckley. He will work closely with Holger Heinzel, our Industry 4.0 Engineer and will see him oversee construction of our Innovation Centre which will commence in early 2020, as well as enhance industry engagement in Industry 4.0, and create a community of practise around this thinking. Recognising the other underlying issues within the sector, we also created Kotahitanga, a HR Innovation Cluster (to address the skills crisis); Matauranga, the Digital Innovation Cluster; (to address industry communications) and Whakamarumaru, the Defence Innovation Cluster (to explore future pipeline opportunities within the Australian Defence program). We also launched “Stirring the Pot”, our new industry-focused podcast. Episodes include: “Ensuring you’re a ‘factory of the future’ in New Zealand”; “The future of manufacturing in New Zealand”; “Addressing the skills gap through diversity”; “The new breed of smart industry- advanced manufacturing”; and “Avoid death by a thousand cuts and automate!”. Improving productivity and capability Last year, we also initiated welding productivity and automation capability assessments for our members. This identifies improvement opportunities and benchmarks performance relative to the rest of the industry. Supporting this focus on improving productivity, we hosted world renowned international expert on the Theory of Constraints (bottlenecks), Arrie van Niekerk. […]

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Invert Robotics partners for better aircraft inspection

NDT Solutions, a long-established USA aerospace non-destructive Testing (NDT) service group, has teamed with innovative Invert Robotics company from Christchurch in a joint venture certain to change the process of aircraft inspection at the In-Service, OEM and Maintenance levels. Invert’s remotely controlled robot employs a patented suction mechanism that adheres and traverses a range of aircraft surfaces made of aluminium, carbon or glass-fibre-reinforced plastic (CFRP and GFRP). This unique process allows the technician to scan both the upper as well as the lower fuselage/wing surfaces from the remote location in both wet and dry environments. Currently the robot is equipped with a high-resolution camera to visualise and document surface conditions by transmitting video images to a ground-based screen for analysis by the technician. This process facilitates efficient inspections that can be shared immediately with an offsite engineering team. NDT Solutions will extend the capabilities of the robot by adding NDT functionality such as Ultrasound, Eddy Current, Thermography and will continue research on other inspection modalities. These enhancements will reduce the labour, improve safety and minimise tedious inspection processes allowing the skilled aircraft technicians to focus on more complex tasks. NDT Solution’s COO Larry Culbertson comments; “Our team is constantly looking for ways to improve inspection services and reduce the costs to our customers in this highly competitive industry. The unique technology that Invert brings is the ideal automated delivery platform for many of the NDT technologies already in use manually. “Time savings mean cost savings and our aerospace customers will have their aircraft returned to service sooner utilizing this cost-effective inspection approach in a safer environment. Recording the state of an aircraft proves the quality of our work and allows more accurate scheduling of required maintenance. We are excited to be part of this partnership that we believe will have […]

Canterbury Employers' Chamber of Commerce - Chief Executive Leeann Watson

Twelve months of steady evolution

-Leeann Watson, Chief Executive Canterbury Employers’ Chamber of Commerce The last year has been– not quite the transformational 2019 that many expected – but as we head into 2020 and the general election, I think that will likely change. There was the release of a Government Budget focused on wellbeing, as well as the announcement of a $7.5 billion surplus, which may well be called upon – at least in part – as the political parties start to ramp up activity before the voting booths open. There was also the reversal on the tabling of a capital gains tax. There were various changes to employment legislation, with Fair Pay Agreements one of the more highly publicised issues through the year. Immigration too was in the spotlight with changes to employer-assisted temporary work visa settings to help address skills shortages, which are particularly prevalent in the regions. There were also the local body elections in October, with some level of movement across most electorates. Hopefully this will result in a fresh burst of energy for Councillors to really gain traction on key local issues to help enable our business communities. In the vocational education sector, the big news was the launch of the Reform of Vocational Education (RoVE) – one of the most significant changes in education for some time, which will redefine roles for industry bodies and education providers and establish a unified vocational education funding system. It was also good to see the Government’s support of literacy and numeracy training in the workplace through a new funding commitment of $14.5 million over four years – meaning the Government will contribute nearly $45 million to the employer-led workplace literacy and numeracy fund between 2019 and 2022. I am optimistic that this sector shake-up will encourage collaboration between the business community […]

Exporting New Zealand agri-technology to Ireland

When Hamilton manufacturer Innovative Dairy Systems (IDS) won a Euro 4.5 million contract to deliver a cheese making machine to a large food manufacturing company in Ireland it encountered a significant challenge. The challenge wasn’t a technical one, even though the buyer wanted a machine with the capacity to produce up to eight tonnes of cheese per hour – that’s the equivalent of four hundred 20kg blocks of cheddar, gouda or mozzarella! IDS had already provided a similar cheese making machine to this buyer, who was now building a new site to become one of Europe’s largest diversified cheese manufacturers. Instead the challenge related to funding this large project, over several months and involving key sub-contractors. For example, IDS sub-contracts the stainless-steel fabrication, and the manufacture of conveyor belts and valves to local Hamilton-based companies, who all require advance payments. IDS negotiated a 30% (Euro 1.4 million) advance payment from its Irish buyer to assist with its working capital. In return, the buyer required IDS’ bank to provide an advance payment bond that matched this amount. An advance payment bond is an on-demand financial guarantee which allows a buyer to have its deposit fully indemnified in the event its supplier fails to properly perform its contractual obligations. “An advance payment bond is a reasonably common requirement where a higher deposit is sought on a project, “explains Phil Quinn, NZEC Senior Business Originator. “Because it’s on-demand, a bank will require tangible security from their customer. This can be a challenge for many small to medium enterprises, particularly for larger contracts.” When IDS encountered difficulty providing its Bank with security for 100% of the value of the advance payment, they both approached NZEC for its General Contract Bond Guarantee support. “New Zealand Export Credit performed due diligence on our company and financials, […]

Renewable energy skills from Canterbury to benefit Bhutan

New Zealand expertise in renewable energy will be put to good use in the Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan when a University of Canterbury (UC) engineering student returns to her homeland. Sonam Zam is a new graduate of UC’s Master of Engineering Studies (Renewable Energy) programme in the Civil and Natural Resources Engineering department. Her travel to Christchurch and study at UC was funded through a New Zealand Scholarship provided by the New Zealand Government. The scholarships are aimed at providing tertiary students with vital skills and knowledge to promote development in their home country. Sonam, who graduated top of her 2012 civil engineering class in Bhutan, says she has learnt a huge amount from the UC master’s degree which will have practical application when she returns to her role at the state-owned Druk Green Power Corporation in Bhutan, which operates and maintains hydropower assets. “What I’ve studied in New Zealand is renewable energy, hydro, solar and wind and I’m hoping I can apply these back at home. In some remote areas of Bhutan, hydropower isn’t viable so solar and wind-generated energy would be more practical options. I was completely new to those when I came here.” Sonam says the UC degree provided an up-to-date world view of climate change. “It also covered what can be done, not necessarily a solution, but a way forward.” “My Master’s project was focused on pumped hydro which will be important in Bhutan because at present we don’t have reservoirs for storing water.” She and several other international students awarded New Zealand Scholarships to study at UC, including people from Brazil and Zimbabwe, took part in a completion ceremony in November before returning to their home countries.

Engineers discussing notes on factory stairway

Be at the cutting edge of global innovation

With changing consumer and business demands bringing greater competition to global markets, companies in New Zealand’s engineering and manufacturing sectors must consistently evolve in order to win new business and succeed. A term that has saturated global markets for the last decade is Industry 4.0 – the digitalisation of manufacturing. What we are in fact witnessing is an industrial renaissance that is changing the way we do business through the unification of real and virtual worlds, laying the foundation for the future of manufacturing with platforms that enable data and digital continuity to maximise innovation, collaboration with the extended enterprise, and improve profit margins. This Industry Renaissance has enabled global connectivity on an unprecedented scale, which Invenio has witnessed in its network of dynamic New Zealand businesses of all sizes that enjoy success locally as well as globally. Taking advantage of this opportunity requires the right tools to be implemented, such as the Dassault Systèmes 3DExperience platform and modelling, simulation and collaboration applications such as Catia, Delmia and Enovia. The 3DExperience platform enables organisations to move from siloed designs and a document-based approach to a unified platform that is data-driven and model-based. Combining multi-physics, behaviour-modelling, big data analytics and social collaboration on a single, digital innovative platform, New Zealand businesses can quickly respond to a fast-changing industry landscape. Designers can bring their ideas to life with Catia applications, the world’s leading product design and experience solution including world-class 3D modelling performance and simulation capabilities. Information is communicated through the Enovia application data management platform, allowing designers to efficiently collaborate across departments. Finished designs can be fast-tracked towards production with Delmia’s digital manufacturing solutions, enabling manufacturing efficiency through the digital planning, simulating and modelling of production processes. Invenio’s partnership with Dassault Systèmes has also enabled the success of a number of […]

Collaborative robots set to change NZ’s manufacturing industry

Facteon’s new partnership with Universal Robots to benefit local manufacturers Global factory solutions specialist, Facteon, has announced its collaboration with Universal Robots – an international market leader in collaborative robots (cobots). The partnership, which will make cobots more accessible to the New Zealand manufacturing sector, is the latest move from Facteon and showcases the business’s commitment to delivering world-class factory technologies for the Internet Age. Cobots are a dynamic robotic technology that work safely alongside human operators to perform mundane, repetitive and dangerous tasks with accuracy and at speed. Unlike industrial robots, cobots can complete a variety of tasks and don’t require a robotics specialist in-house, making them a more affordable option for manufacturers. Nathan Soich, Head of Marketing and New Ventures at Facteon, says: “We are committed to making robotics accessible for manufacturers of all sizes. Cobots are a relatively new technology for New Zealand, but we’ve already experienced significant interest. “We’re looking forward to seeing how our partnership with Universal Robots will revolutionise manufacturing in a wide range of industries including the appliance, medical, pharmaceutical, automotive, food and beverage sectors. There are great opportunities for manufacturers in each of these areas to improve their operations through the integration of cobots. This is a logical first step for any facility moving towards automation.” Acting as a second pair of hands and eyes in the factory, cobots are flexible, reliable and safe. They can be quickly reprogrammed in-house to perform a variety of production tasks such as assembly, pick and place, packaging and palletising, quality inspection, machine tending, screw driving and fastening. Today, more than 37,000 Universal Robots cobots can be found operating in thousands of production facilities across the globe. While New Zealand and Australia have been previously underserved in the cobot space, businesses now looking to introduce cobots […]

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