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NZ Manufacturer May 2011
OPPORTUNITY HAMILTON
A budget tells us what we can’t afford, but it doesn’t keep us from buying it.
- William Feather
Skills shortage ‘new norm’ Innovation Park pilot spray dryer goes ahead
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Training session in progress
anufacturing leaders spoken to by Opportunity Hamilton, the city’s economic development agency, all agree the lack of qualified employees in the workforce has slowed growth of their businesses. Opportunity Hamilton chief executive Sandra Perry said the message from manufacturers is training staff from within is essential if their businesses are to grow. Many Hamilton-based manufacturers were taking the right step by implementing in-house training programmes, Sandra said. “It’s encouraging to see so many manufacturers taking the initiative and implementing training in the workplace. This is not only of benefit to them but to the industry as a whole,” she said. John Cook, of Stainless Design, Roger Evans, of Stafford Engineering and Les Roa, of Longveld Engineering all invest in training, despite the tough economic times. “Finding people with the right experience for a niche business like ours has been difficult for many years and not going to get easier. You’ve got to be prepared to invest in people and bring them up to speed,” Roger said. “A lack of skill and experience hinders business growth in many instances so retaining staff is critical. Our response is to operate a business model that allows us to carry them if need be and being prepared to invest in people. Business leaders have to work out that it’s just as important to invest in people as it is to invest in
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plant and machinery.” John Cook is another leader taking a stand on skills by establishing his own in-house training centre. New Zealand employers are competing on a global level for talent, with the skills shortage a world-wide phenomenon, John said. “We feel like there has been a skills shortage for years, even right through the recession. The situation is not going to change.” Stainless Design recently opened the Waikato Lean Gemba Academy. The aim of the academy is to deliver world-class training by lean experts and the opportunity to be immersed in the Lean culture at Stainless Design. Longveld Engineering’s Les Roa saw a glimmer of hope recently when he advertised for tradespeople and had some qualified response. “That’s the first time in 20 years that’s happened, with qualified, ticketed tradespeople applying. But it’s still not enough to fill all our vacancies,” he said. In-house training has become an essential part of the industry, as is being a ‘preferred’ employer, Les said. “We’ve got at least a third of our staff in some form of training. But it seems as fast as weíre training people they leave for Australia,” he said. Tradespeople can earn double what they earn in New Zealand ‘across the ditch’, with one former Longveld employee being paid $57 per hour in Australia compared with about $25, according to Les.
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he Innovation Waikato Ltd Board of Directors has approved the construction of an $11 million product development spray dryer facility to be built on the campus of the Waikato Innovation Park. The spray dryer will be the Waikato component of the Government sponsored New Zealand Food Innovation Network. The Innovation Waikato expects to break ground in April, with construction taking around 13 months. The pilot spray dryer will allow companies to research and develop new spray dried food products – something that is difficult to do in large, commercial factories. Capacity of the multi-purpose spray dryer will be one-half tonne/hour. As a comparison, the capacity of spray dryers at Fonterra’s Te Rapa dairy factory is 25 tonnes/hour. Innovation Waikato CEO, Derek Fairweather, says the spray dryer “will initially be set up to allow companies to research, develop and manufacture new whole milk powders. However, the long-term strategy is to expand its capability to manufacture infant formula, fruit and vegetable juice powders.” Finance for the dryer will come from Innovation Waikato Ltd debt and a Government grant of $3.95 million. Hamilton Mayor, Julie Hardaker,
says this spray dryer facility will be a great economic asset for the city. “Hamilton, as the heart of the Waikato region, contributes significantly to New Zealand’s economy through our dairy, food and agricultural exports. This pilot spray dryer facility is a significant opportunity to attract investment from companies outside our region, and even overseas, to the city,” says Mayor Hardaker. “Initially the spray dryer facility will focus on helping companies develop new dairy products. The dairy industry is the Waikato’s most important export sector, contributing around 27% of the region’s GDP. We believe this dryer facility is a key mechanism for moving the dairy industry from a focus on commodities to valueadded production,” explains Derek Fairweather. Once built, the pilot spray dryer facility will be the only independent development dryer available in New Zealand. The Innovation Park has received strong enquiries from companies outside of the region and overseas, interested in using the pilot plant for research and development purposes. Waikato Innovation Park Spray Dryer – At A Glance: • Only independent development dryer in NZ. • $11 million project. • Capacity of one-half tonne/hour.