Innovators

Barrie Carruthers

Barrie Curruthers is managing director of Precision Microcircuits Ltd, Barrie has 50 years manufacturing experience and he shares with us why he does what he does. What do you do? I am currently involved in several company operations. Electronics and farming is a mix I enjoy mostly, one dramatically different from the other. Electronics produces the challenges, the demands, and in many respects the satisfactions, that for me are the spice of life. Farming gets me outdoors in a clean, relaxing andÊdramatically contrastingÊway away from the pressures of commerce. Improving a block of land allows endless scope for creativity and to really leave your mark. You can look behind you and see where you have been. Why do you do what you do? ÊMostly for the love of it, what better reason is there? ‘Work’ has a ring of drudgery about it. For me what I do is mostly enjoyable, I enjoy the challenges, and mostly I enjoy the achievements. ÊI enjoy working with young creative people. At this point in my career I seem to be functioning more as a sounding board, and cross fertilizing ideas. It is not really work, it is still an adventure. I enjoy what I’m doing so why do anything else? How is business in New Zealand for your company? Manufacturing here in New Zealand, as elsewhere in this day and age, has inevitably been affected by the current financial meltdown and associated recessions which have affected businesses to some degree across the board. Much of our product is ultimately exported into the American market, and America is still in a very difficult situation. I believe this has sharpened our perception of where we stand in the marketplace and how we must move forward in today’s climate. What is your philosophy for success? “It […]

Manufacturing Heroes

They are everywhere, manufacturing heroes. And they have been for years. Think Bill Gallagher, Blair McPheat, Robert Darroch, Peter Rocque. Think the inventors at Rex Bionics, Ultrahelicopters, Metalform with their wheelchair and Inovent with the Rotacrane. And you, the reader, is probably thinking why isn’t my name on the list as well? These are a few examples of New Zealand companies who dare to dream and are going ahead in tough economic times. All over the country there are fantastic products being made. The dream became the reality and the markets are being found. I receive a lot of information from companies in the prototype stage, who need the capital to move on, to test the market, to be the next big thing. Then there are the companies who, for their own good reasons, want to be hush, hush and not let anybody know what they’re thinking, let alone making. They’ll come round, we’ll be writing about them and any others who want to share with the readers of NZ MANUFACTURER what they are making and how they got there. Manufacturing Heroes are whom we support and the more they are supported the better New Zealand’s economy will be. Send me your story to words@xtra.co.nz and prepare to be read about. -Doug Green

World first robotic legs provide new option for wheelchair users

When Hayden Allen was spinal cord injured five years ago he became a full time wheelchair user and doctors told him he’d never walk again. Today a revolutionary product developed by Auckland-based company Rex Bionics has enabled Hayden to walk again. Hayden has been one of the first people in the world to use Rex, the Robotic Exoskeleton. Rex is best described as a pair of robotic legs that supports and assists a person who usually uses a wheelchair, enabling the person to stand, walk and go up and down steps and slopes. “I’ll never forget what it was like to see my feet walking under me the first time I used Rex,”says Hayden, who is 6’4” (193cm) tall when standing. “People say to me, “look up when you’re walking” but I just can’t stop staring down at my feet moving.” Being out of his chair and on his feet again allows Hayden many more options on a day to day basis, increasing opportunities for employment and recreational activities by providing access for him to independently go places previously inaccessible to him. For example – up stairs! Rex users self-transfer from their wheelchair into Rex, strap themselves in and control their movements using a joystick and control pad. Rex is the brainchild of two childhood friends, Richard Little and Robert Irving – co-founders of Rex Bionics. “Both of our mothers are in wheelchairs so we are aware of some of the obstacles and access issues faced by many wheelchair users,” says Richard. Robert’s Multiple Sclerosis diagnosis seven years ago was the catalyst for these men to put their engineering skills to use to develop a practical, standing and walking alternative to wheelchairs. The founders are quick to point out that Rex is not a replacement for a wheelchair, but a complement […]

Never underestimate the importance of brand

Michael Holt, Managing Director, gardyneHOLT design Our country and our industry is based on a practical sense of getting things done, usually with little fuss or fanfare. However, times are changing and in particular we’re less reliant upon our domestic markets to offer sufficient demand, especially with our own markets wide open to competition from overseas. The message from government, now more than ever, is to develop our export markets and international revenue base. But have we properly developed the knack for self-promotion that we really need in order to compete vigorously. The essence of commodification is where two or more seemingly similar things are only really differentiated on price. Price competition is a common and often painful element in contract negotiations, leading to ongoing cost control. But it’s a tough way to make fair profits. Furthermore, why would anyone want to sell their product or service based primarily on price? There’ll always be others striving to be even cheaper, so price really is a fickle way of winning and maintaining sales. Competitive advantage must be woven into the products, service and ongoing relationship in order to maintain demand, differentiation and where possible, premium. For example, Hi-Q Components, a smart and reliable Kiwi business with a great reputation for supplying thousands of different small components to manufacturers (electrical components, bushes and bearings, caps, covers etc) realised that their brand is the first and best way to express their value. They started with the idea of supplying anything that can fit within a shoebox, and that’s still true today. Their brand should say that for them but the problem was that their brand didn’t say anything much at all. Our task was to add all the right qualities while keeping a connection to the original brand. In the process, we’ve created […]

Washdown thermal transfer overprinter is industry first

Linx Printing Technologies has launched an IP65-rated version of its best-selling thermal transfer overprinter. The new Linx TT5 Washdown Printer uses a specially designed Washdown cassette to ensure that the equipment is protected against water and dust ingress. The new coder is a response to market demand to reduce downtime and other costs associated with washing down thermal transfer printers. Since unprotected printers are liable to expensive damage if splashed, traditionally additional covers or enclosures are required for wash down – which is inconvenient and wastes time that operators could use for other tasks. Another area of concern amongst manufacturers is that, traditionally, printers and controllers must be taken off-line for washdown preparation, which adds costly downtime. Linx’s solution is to supply a special IP65-rated Washdown cassette, which is inserted in place of a standard ribbon cassette prior to washdown. This fast, simple process is achieved within seconds and seals the printer for maximum protection. At the same time, the printer’s User Interface controller has been redesigned so that it is IP55-rated when the caps are replaced and the cable set connected out of the box – a fast, easy operation. The new version is the same width as the standard TT5 printer controller but longer, to enable a fully sealed enclosure. Typical applications for the TT5 Washdown Printer include food applications where washdown is required to meet hygiene regulations, including meat, fish and frozen food factories, as well as confectionery and snack food industries were products must be free of dust contamination. Extensive field trials conducted at installations in the UK, USA and Germany confirmed the suitability of the Linx TT5 Washdown Printer in combating fluid and particle ingress in such environments. “Factory efficiency is paramount, and washdown is an operation that can easily be improved by ensuring that […]

Green energy system could power the home and the car

A wireless green energy system to supply the home and the car is being designed by University of Auckland engineering research fellow Duleepa Thrimawithana. The proposed green energy system would harness and integrate renewable energies, such as solar and wind, to power a house and an electric vehicle. The first working model of the concept is being built in the Faculty of Engineering over the next three years. “Household renewable energy systems need a very large battery to store power, which usually cost tens of thousands of dollars, on top of the cost of installing solar panels or wind turbines,” says Duleepa, from the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. “The concept here is to use an electric vehicle, which already has a powerful battery, to store some of the power for the system. This would make its installation much more financially viable.” While such systems may be many years off, the project aims to demonstrate that they can work in practice. The system would make use of emerging technologies in wireless power transfer and intelligent power management. In comparison to existing systems, it would be more cost effective, safer and versatile. Duleepa intends to develop new technologies in bi-directional power transfer and new circuitry techniques to improve the efficiency of the system. Duleepa’ project recently won a Foundation for Research, Science and Technology Postdoctoral Fellowship, awarded to New Zealand’s brightest young scientists, funding it for three years. Duleepa says the system could be retrofitted to an existing home or become a feature of new developments. It would draw on renewable energy generated for a single home or a cluster of houses. The system would make use of intelligent technologies – meaning it would automatically schedule charging of the electric vehicle, transfer power back and forth from the grid at […]

PlanetSolar Superyacht Designed by Kiwi Firm

When a German businessman set his sights on building a solar-powered boat to circumnavigate the globe, he called on Kiwi design company LOMOcean to make it happen. PlanetSolar Auckland-based LOMOcean naval architects and yacht designers drew up plans for the radical $NZ36 million PlanetSolar superyacht, which is due to set off on a world-first, solar-powered, global circumnavigation attempt in April 2011. LOMOcean director Craig Loomes didn’t know much about solar-power when his Auckland design company was approached to build a catamaran capable of circling the globe on no more than the sun’s rays. Now he’s well aware of the cutting-edge solar technology that will propel his company LOMOcean’s design around the equator from April next year. LOMOcean started work two years ago on the design of the PlanetSolar superyacht, unveiled in Germany in February. The catamaran’s German owner and French and Swiss skippers say, at 31m long, 15m wide and weighing 75 tonnes, PlanetSolar is the largest solar-powered boat in the world. Construction began in January 2009 at Knierim Yachtbau boatbuilders in Kiel, northern Germany, necessitating more than 100,000 man hours. The catamaran features more than 500sqm of solar panels, but the design was not only about creating the first vessel to circle the globe on solar power. After the circumnavigation challenge, PlanetSolar will be kitted out as a luxury vessel for use as an air-conditioned superyacht capable of hosting 50 guests and sleeping 12. The boat has a price tag of around $NZ36 million. A variety of challenges PlanetSolar presented a variety of challenges for LOMOcean, not least of them creating a boat that was both technologically-advanced and luxurious enough for a second life as a luxury pleasurecraft. LOMOcean is owned by former boat builder-turned-designer Craig Loomes, his wife Kirsty, who is the company’s financial controller, and composite structural […]

Opportunities exist everywhere

With the recent disruption to the world’s aviation industry caused by the Norwegian volcanic eruptions, we known that anything is possible to cripple the world economy and our freedom of movement. Let’s face it the last 18 months have been a devil of a time for peace of mind and financial security. About the only thing left to happen – god forbid! – would be a closing down of the World Wide Web and our national and international business and personal communications. It’s all pretty complex. The sum of outside forces cannot be controlled easily but there is no better time than now for us to have a look at how we can manage our businesses in times such as these. The Warren Buffets of the world say to research well, invest wisely and then make very good products. They believe that no time is the wrong time to take initiative and that opportunities exist everywhere. At EMEX 2010 you will see the efforts of such people who continue to find markets by making very good products. It is simply a case of manufacturing being crucial to the continuing growth of a country’s systems and economy. The problem for New Zealand is that most of the required equipment – nearly all of it – is made overseas and we are hugely dependent on imports. If the required equipment is not available the food industry does not process, if wings are not made planes do not fly, if motherboards, keyboards and hard drives are not made computers don’t exist. The issues with delayed freight planes for supply are very real, our dependence on reliable transportation systems -the life blood of our industries – all goes out the window if the system goes wrong. So value the finely made manufacturing products at […]

High quality plastic welding systems from Techspan

Techspan Group’s is range of high quality plastic welding systems for New Zealand and Australia includes hand-held welders, automatic welders, wedge welders, and extruder welders. Made in Switzerland, the heavy duty welders are designed for optimal performance and reliability under extreme working conditions. A number of technically advanced innovative features are incorporated into the welders, including ultra-reliable plug-in ceramic heating elements and very high performance materials, in a fully self-contained ergonomic design. Geomembrane welders For welding geomembranes in the field, the Techspan Comon wedge welder uses two knurled pressure rollers and a patented ceramic heating ‘wedge’ to produce two continuous welds, each 15mm wide, with a central 15mm un-welded test channel. PVC materials can also be welded, without the necessity to change the wedge. The Techspan Mion is a compact and lightweight wedge welder. It is believed to be the most compact wedge welder in the world, and is designed for vertical and overhead welding of tunnel liners. The Techspan Mion also features two knurled pressure rollers to produce two continuous 15mm welds with a central test channel. The Mion also incorporates a patented ceramic wedge to enable different geomembranes to be welded without changing the wedge. Hand-held plastic welders Techspan “hand-held” plastic welding tools are designed for fabrication and repair of rigid plastics up to 8mm thick and thermoplastic fabrics and liners. The integrated precision electronic temperature control allows virtually all types of thermoplastics to be welded. Extruder welders Extruder welders, with welding capacities up to 6kg/hr are used for welding geomembranes for landfills and reservoirs and also for welding rigid plastics over 8mm thick. Extruder welding shoes are interchangeable for fillet, V, X, and overlap welds. They are designed for welding PE and PP, and several models will also weld PVDF and PVC materials, without changing the plasticising […]

New Plymouth based Howard Wright wins metal in National Design Awards

New Plymouth based designer and manufacturer Howard Wright Limited has been awarded one of the country’s top design prizes, picking up silver at the national BeST Design Awards – New Zealand designs equivalent to the Oscars. Howard Wright was awarded silver in the non-consumer product design category at this years prestigious awards – which were held at a glittering black tie awards ceremony, attended by around 500 of the country’s top designers – for the M8 Intensive Care Bed. Developed in conjunction with healthcare professionals, the M8 Intensive Care Bed is safe and intuitive to use, requiring minimal training and servicing. A revolution in the hospital care sector, it has full electric functions and X-ray imaging capabilities allowing a full range of procedures to be performed on the bed without the need of transferring a patient. Largely manufactured in New Zealand both in-house and using local suppliers, the innovative bed features a sliding backrest and leg raise providing greater patient comfort. Howard Wright is a world leader in the design, manufacture and distribution of medical beds and stretchers, with nearly all of the beds found in New Zealand hospitals having been produced by the company. Leading industrial designer, Professor Tony Parker, product judging convenor at this year’s awards and Head of the Institute of Design for Industry and the Environment at Wellington’s Massey University, said Howard Wright was a great example of a company that had changed its culture to produce high quality products for its niche. “The future of New Zealand’s business is likely to lie with companies such as Howard Wright, who combine good design and engineering with market research of a very high international standard.” Organised by the Designers Institute of New Zealand, The BeST Design Awards recognise New Zealand’s best designs from the past year across […]

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