Developments

Photo credit: Stephen A’Court. COPYRIGHT ©Stephen A’Court

Delivering more for less – achieving New Zealand’s productivity potential

-Paul Conway, Productivity Commission The New Zealand economy is currently doing well in some important ways – our public finances are relatively healthy, the labour market has been one of the most successful in the OECD at creating jobs, and incomes have improved over recent years. But despite this optimistic view, New Zealand’s productivity performance continues to be weak. Achieving New Zealand’s productivity potential is the Productivity Commission’s commentary on New Zealand’s productivity performance. The paper draws on a large body of research and the Commission’s previous 10 inquiries. This shows that leading NZ firms do not achieve the same productivity growth as leading international firms in the same industry – our top firms are slow to adopt new technologies that enhance productivity. The pace at which new technology and ideas diffuse across firms in the domestic economy is also an important key to lifting productivity. But too few New Zealand firms implement and benefit from advances in technology and knowledge. Despite having relatively open borders, we are not well connected internationally. New Zealand firms have not been strong investors offshore, they don’t tend to be well connected to global value chains, and our stock of foreign direct investment as a share of GDP is growing more slowly than the OECD average. This lack of international connection means that competition is weak and that NZ firms have limited opportunities to learn from leading international firms at the top of their game. We also have onshore challenges – our small and insular domestic markets mean that small firms struggle to achieve economies of scale and specialisation. Our productive firms have limited scope to grow and expand within these markets and, with limited competition, our unproductive firms survive for longer than they ideally would. This results in valuable resources being locked up […]

Driving business forward with Trade Shows

How Trade Shows can thrive when combined with Digital Marketing: An XPO Exhibitions Observation For millennia, traders have showcased their products face to face in market squares around the world. Trade Shows were the cornerstone of the business calendar. In more modern times, before the days of Google, Skype and in fact e-mail, trade shows were a hub for industry professionals to network and for businesses to launch initiatives which they hoped would keep consumers and competitors talking for months to come. What made trade shows so special is seemingly being surpassed and made irrelevant in the digital age. However, despite this trend, trade shows for pretty much every industry imaginable continue year on year and hundreds of thousands of people annually clear a space on their calendar to attend. So why do trade shows remain popular? The answer is to get people talking and not just the industry professionals and journalists, but the businesses and consumers who they really want to target. Compliment your Trade Show presence with online interaction When supported by online activity trade shows can provide an opportunity to put your service or new product into the spotlight. This means putting it right under the noses of the important figures who can help your idea, as well as your content, to go viral. Bloggers, vloggers and opinion leaders are often only a click away online. Touch base with advocates and early adopters of your product, utlilise testimonials and speak with them face-to-face. People do business with those they like and trust. Great content online is ideal for building a following of subscribers receptive to your pitch. Marketing your product online can be pretty cost-effective, but getting it the recognition it deserves is what trade shows were designed for. The development of trust is most effective when […]

University increases presence in China

The University of Auckland’s new Innovation Institute China (UAIIC) will provide unprecedented access to an extensive range of networks, research and funding opportunities in China. The University of Auckland’s knowledge transfer company, UniServices, has established the institute in the Chinese city of Hangzhou. It is due to formally open in the first quarter of 2017 and will focus on collaboration. The Innovation Institute will allow the University of Auckland, UniServices and its partners to: • Develop stronger local relationships in China with local and central government, Chinese universities and research institutes, Chinese companies and international companies with a presence in China. • Provide access to a wider range of public and private good funding opportunities in China to support research at the University of Auckland. • Improve market knowledge and market access, allowing the University to undertake a wider scope of projects across China. “By developing a wholly foreign owned entity in Hangzhou, China, we are enhancing our position in the world innovation ecosystem,” says Dr Lisbeth Jacobs, General Manager- International Auckland UniServices. “It will enable a safe pathway for international clients who have a desire to undertake research in China with the University of Auckland.” University of Auckland researchers will have access to the facilities when the building is completed enabling closer collaborations with Chinese universities, government agencies and commercial partners. “Both Auckland UniServices and the University of Auckland have extensive relationships and collaborations in China, and we look forward to the outstanding research and commercialisation work we will do together,” says UniServices CEO Andy Shenk. “The University of Auckland and Auckland UniServices support economic growth locally and internationally through innovation and entrepreneurship, creating quality jobs and high-value businesses, producing graduates and spin-out companies that contribute to and strengthen our economy and society, to the benefit of all. The […]

Accord Precision leads the way in Kiwi manufacturing revival

Arising from the pessimistic view of New Zealand manufacturing reverberating around industry in the past decade, a new era of unique Kiwi capability is starting to emerge. Boutique and bespoke operations are finding new and exciting markets and products suited to our unique position, capabilities and attitude. The true picture of a modern New Zealand industry no longer dependant on that first refrigerated meat shipment is starting to emerge and this is no better illustrated than at Accord Precision. Behind the humble footprint of their Pakuranga operation, Accord Precision have stretched their reach into the worlds markets, creating products for global suppliers in industries ranging from agricultural implements to medical equipment. Alec Mandis the Chief Executive of Accord Precision and his team recently opened their doors for an informative evening enjoyed by 40 engineers from throughout Auckland as part of the MESNZ’s Kaeser Compressors Network Evening Series. Founded in 1980, Accord Precision has expanded into an engineering company offering exceptional service and innovation over a wide range of products. The company specialises in titanium machining, metal injection moulding using specialised CNC lathes and machine tools and a range of services including medical standard Assembly Clean Rooms. From John Deere to Fisher and Paykel Healthcare, Accord Precision is completely on top of their game when it comes to satisfying customer requirements. The Kaeser Compressors Network Evenings are hosted to showcase local operations and provide networking opportunities for engineers across all regions of New Zealand. The evenings offer the opportunity to take a look at the host operation and discuss common issues and solutions in a relaxed after work environment. Open to interested members of the public, the nights are well patronised as proven at Accord Precision. As well as learning firsthand about the capabilities and achievements of the Accord team, the […]

World Robotics Report 2016: Collaborative robots as market driver

Universal Robots welcomes new report that documents how “cobots” are now the hottest growth segment in industrial automation with forecasts showing no signs of slowing. The World Robotics Report 2016 recently released by the International Federation of Robotics (IFR) forecasts that compact, user-friendly collaborative robots will become a key driver in the automation market. The report predicts the worldwide annual sales of industrial robots to increase by at least 13 percent on average per year from 2017 to 2019. Human-robot collaboration will have a “breakthrough“ in this period, enabling robots and humans to work safely side-by-side without any fences, while increasing production efficiency and quality. “As the market leader of the cobot industry, Universal Robots welcomes the report which confirms the validity of our mission: lowering barriers and enabling automation in areas previously considered too complex or costly,” said Chief Commercial Officer of Universal Robots, Daniel Friis. “Our installed base of more than 10,000 cobots worldwide illustrates the dramatic growth potential of this game-changing automation technology. We enable small and medium-sized enterprises to optimise their competitiveness on the global stage with an industry leading payback period.” Industries predicted by IFR to adopt cobots at an increasing rate include automotive, the plastics industry, electronics assembly and the machine tool industry. These are all sectors where Universal Robots is seeing strong traction. “UR robots are now increasingly deployed on the auto assembly line, working hand-in-hand with employees, by relieving them of ergonomically unfavourable tasks. We have recent case studies documenting how cobots quadrupled injection moulding production, and how our new UR3 table-top robot is now a sought-after automation tool for light assembly, such as circuit board handling,” said Friis. In Australia and the Asia region in particular, strong, continued robot growth is forecasted by IFR, with the recent report suggesting a rise […]

SOLIDWORKS 2017 is here

SOLIDWORKS 2017 is the 24th annual release of CAD (MCAD, ECAD), simulation, data management and collaboration tools that delivers the power users need to drive innovation. In this release, 90 percent of the enhancements are driven by user feedback. This year, there are more than 250 new features and enhancements in CAD alone with a total of 520 new enhancements spread across all products. Beyond improving day-to-day productivity, approximately 20 percent of those involve new innovations. There are many core CAD enhancements such as variable Chamfer, super features that convert Chamfer to a Fillet for flexible modelling, advanced hole, enhancements to import mesh files, wrap feature, offset surface, better placement of components while mating that can deliver up to 5X in performance improvements over SOLIDWORKS 2016. Magnetic mates with speedpack enhancements makes it fast and easy to manage large modular assemblies. Like CAD, there are many innovations in simulation with advanced nonlinear (arc length control), better visualisation of hot spots, etc. There are over 100 enhancements in SOLIDWORKS Electrical alone. Extending the ECAD ecosystem, there is SOLIDWORKS PCB powered by Altium, and SOLIDWORKS 2017 is the first full major release for SOLIDWORKS PCB. Customers can now design a full system from PCB boards to electrical wiring, to mechanical and simulation of its connected device in a single environment. The best-in-class collaboration between mechanical, electrical and PCB engineers allows SOLIDWORKs customers to decrease development costs, significantly improve time to market and reduce the number of prototypes and errors. New in SOLIDWORKS 2017 is Term Licensing in additional to perpetual licensing model. This allows SOLIDWORKS customers to scale on demand, purchase from OPEX budget and entrepreneurs and startups to design in SOLIDWORKS while getting a Term License. Customers will have full flexibility – they can purchase SOLIDWORKS as Perpetual or a quarterly/annual Term […]

At last, effective job scheduling software for manufacturers

-By David Lawrence, Lean Manufacturing Consulting. I wrote this article in the hope it helps manufacturers and engineers with a far smarter and far better means of job scheduling. I have worked in the manufacturing industries as a Production Manager for most of my 30 year career. In the last six years I have also implemented Empower time tracking and factory productivity software in over 30 engineering businesses and 70 other manufacturing businesses throughout Australia and New Zealand. I am an independent contractor who works directly for engineers and other manufacturers. I myself have struggled with job scheduling with NO good software available until 2016. I have manually updated spreadsheets several times through the day to “rejig” the schedule, I have updated job lists on paper and on whiteboards and then held meetings with other management and factory staff through the day to communicate the revised schedule. Sound familiar ? In the last two years ‘Empower Job Scheduling’ has been re-built in the latest Cloud technology and it now works extremely well. This is a direct result of Empower implementing literally several hundreds of improvements suggested by many of our successful clients. Empower Software is a locally owned company and has been developed with NZ and Australian engineers and other manufacturers over 14 years, which has proved invaluable in the success of this development. Our Wish List at the start of the new Empower Job Scheduling Development included: 1 Must suit all forms of engineering, including general engineering, fabrication, sheet metal, structural, component manufacturing, trailers and all forms of agricultural and other equipment manufacturing. Must suit all businesses sizes from 6 factory staff to 100+ factory staff 2 Must allow Jobs and Tasks to be moved simply and quickly from one day to another by dragging and dropping within the […]

Why modernise control platforms?

As products age and give way to new technologies, the need arises to proactively plan and manage the transition from existing equipment to leading-edge products and technologies. Automation components, software and systems represent major capital investments that are instrumental to the success of industrial operations. In the face of rapidly changing markets and technologies, the industrial enterprise must keep step to remain competitive. Today’s contemporary automation systems offer unprecedented advancements in performance, flexibility, and security, with the potential to provide a competitive edge. Technology continues to advance at a rapid rate, accelerated by the emergence of the Industrial Internet of Things and advances in enabling technologies, including data analytics, remote monitoring and mobility. Rockwell Automation continues to incorporate these latest technologies in control and automation platforms and although the PLC-5 programmable logic controller has been a valuable part of their portfolio for more than 30 years, no technology can last forever. Modern control systems provide a higher level of integration, driving improved asset utilisation, increased system flexibility and easy access to information. The high performance, Rockwell Automation ControlLogix platform delivers the capabilities to converge production disciplines (discrete, motion, process and safety), including extreme environments and high availability applications, into an integrated plant-wide architecture enabling a connected enterprise. Information shared between Information Technology (IT) and Operations Technology (OT) across a secure network enables: · Greater production visibility, for quicker response to customer demand · Higher profit margins through improved inventory management, cycle times and quality control · Improved capacity and asset utilization, leading to greater Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) · Regulatory compliance and reduced exposure to security risks Migrating to the ControlLogix family of programmable automation controllers (PAC) provides the platform to leverage advancements in technology, including improved access to information, more informed business decisions, faster performance for more throughput and […]

Rexmoi controls temperature and humidity

Rexmoi® has now become a multipurpose tool with the ability to control temperature and humidity with applications such as drying various products, cooking at low temperatures, and controlled cooling of products. The units are sealed enclosed chambers which allows control of the atmosphere within, using smart controls and refrigeration technology. Air flow around the product is an important factor of how well the system works. There are different trolleys and trays and variable air flow to optimise this. Filters are used to control product particles in the chamber. An air sanitising system can be added. The Rexmoi® technology is not limited to our current units. It can be used to control the atmosphere in an existing environment, designed to suit your requirements. The existing units can be used for trials to obtain the information necessary to design a unit or environment to suit your product or situation. The Rexmoi® technology is not limited to food products. We have supplied a unit that heats and cures a material product at various temperatures for a certain length of time. The reason for choosing the Rexmoi® method is it a safer method of heating volatile products as there is no exposed electric elements or gas fire. This technology is available from Drying Solutions Ltd who are appearing at FoodTech PackTech on Stand 2100.

Thermaflo and Trepko tackle the New Zealand market with new agency agreement

Every single day thousands of milk, juice, and water bottles are filled along very sophisticated assembly lines in and around New Zealand. With that, there are very strict regulations in place that help ensure the products that end up on your supermarket shelf are safe for human consumption. Thermaflo have always employed best practice engineering principals as part of their design policies. This insures that they meet all of their client’s expectations as well as adhering to any local regulations relating to food safety. With the above in mind Thermaflo have been associating themselves with other world leading equipment suppliers. For many years they have been building relationships with companies not only in New Zealand but into other countries such as Italy, the UK and Denmark. These companies include Filmatic from South Africa who are a leading manufacturer of bottle, tub and jar filling lines and Trepko from Denmark, who specialise in high speed horizontal form fill seal, and other tub filling applications as well as butter wrapping and end of line packaging plant. It has been fortunate that Trepko and Filmatic have formed a joint venture and now together they are supplying complete filling and packaging lines, thus Thermaflo’s clients benefit from two world leading suppliers being represented here in New Zealand. With a large client base within the Australasian market it made sense for Thermaflo to partner with another company that had experience in these markets, but who were also looking to increase their market share. Recently, Thermaflo and Trepko signed a new agency agreement that has allowed Thermaflo to expand their product offering, while also assisting Trepko in their efforts to increase their client base in the New Zealand, Australian and Southeast Asian markets. With over 65 years of manufacturing experience Trepko are placed at the forefront […]

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