Manufacturers' Monthly June 2014

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MANAGEMENT >> TECHNOLOGY >> SOLUTIONS

JUNE 2014

Marand strikes twice at

Endeavour Awards

INSIDE >>

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Free Trade Agreements Are they good for us?

44

Regional Manufacturing The High Performance Consortium

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Waste Management Turning trash into treasure

>>

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Inside

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JUNE 2014

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Publisher: Martin Sinclair martin.sinclair@cirrusmedia.com.au

6 Editorial

Managing Editor: Kevin Gomez Ph: (02) 8484 0976 Fax: (02) 8484 0722 kevin.gomez@cirrusmedia.com.au

■ Industry needs a change of mood

Editor: Matt McDonald Ph: (02) 8484 0645 Fax: (02) 8484 0722 matthew.mcdonald@cirrusmedia.com.au

8 News & Analysis ■ The future of manufacturing ■ Budget reflects changing focus of assistance

Journalists: Brent Balinski Ph: (02) 8484 0680 Fax: (02) 8484 0722 brent.balinski@cirrusmedia.com.au Editor-at-Large: Alan Johnson Ph: (02) 8484 0725 alan.johnson@cirrusmedia.com.au

12 Comment

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■ Cut the red and green tape ■ The need for clear R&D objectives

Production Co-ordinator: Mary Copland Ph: (02) 8484 0737 mary.copland@cirrusmedia.com.au

16 IT@MM

VIC/Overseas Sales: Michael Northcott PO Box 3069, Eltham, VIC 3095 Ph: 0448 077 247 michael.northcott@cirrusmedia.com.au

■ Addressing BYOD challenges ■ Mobile printers make a splash

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18 Endeavour Awards 2014 ■ Wrap up of the ceremony ■ Profiles of all this year’s winners

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42 Plant Maintenance

■ The latest in forklifts, stackers and loaders

■ The benefits of CMMS

■ Manufacturers learning together

55 What’s new ■ Double diaphragm pump ■ Customisable protective eyewear ■ Handheld thermography cameras

50 Women in Industry Awards

58 The last word

■ Introducing our 2014 award sponsors

■ Closure of car industry was not inevitable

On the cover

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52 Motors & Drives ■ Driving down costs

48 Materials Handling

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46 Waste Management ■ Turning treasure into trash ■ Recycling equipment

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44 Regional manufacturing

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Marand Precision Engineering was named Manufacturer of the Year at the recentlyheld Manufacturers’ Monthly Endeavour Awards in Sydney.

The company, which recently began delivery of vertical tails for the Joint Strike Fighter F35 Lightning II Global Program, received the award at a soldout ceremony.

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It was a good night for Marand.

The company also took out the Global Integration Award (also for the JSF Program).

The Awards’ principal sponsor was Bluescope Steel. Ken Liddle Market Manager - Manufacturing at BlueScope was on hand to present Marand Managing Director David Ellul with the award.

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Manufacturers’ Monthly JUNE 2014 5

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Comment

KEVIN GOMEZ – Managing Editor

Industry needs a change of mood

O

NEXTISSUENEXTISSUE • Automation and Production Control • Metalworking & Machine Tools • Compressors & Pneumatics • Workplace Safety • Production Software • Materials Handling • Process M A 1Control 1 1 3 _ 0 0 0 _ T UR

NE barometer on the health of an industry is the number of students it attracts to that profession. Well, the number of law students in the country has doubled in the past decade while interest in engineering and the trades has slumped to its lowest level. That says a lot.

Law schools are big business for universities, with courses being offered by 42 universities across the country.

Arguably, they are profitable and easy to set up. Engineering and trade courses - so desperately needed to take our industrial capabilities to the next level - are much harder to set up and run as they need expensive equipment and well-equipped laboratories.

Manufacturers I speak with often say that the apprentices and entry level staff they recruit have inadequate maths and science skills. And this is going to hurt us as our industry evolves.

The recovery of manufacturing in the US has been widely reported. Now the UK is following suit and the government is encouraging this transformation at the source. For both countries, the focus is on education. The concern is that Australia is ushering a generation of young people into the workforce with poor STEM skills. For the leaders of any country, that ought to set up alarm bells.

Unfortunately, no one in Canberra seems to be listening.

The 2014-15 budget makes education more expensive and proposes cuts to some of our institutions that foster research and entrepreneurship.

To be fair, the government is attempting to shift the focus away from encouraging multinationals to use 1 2 0 1 3 - 1 0 - 0 9 T1 4 : 1 2 : 1 9 + 1 1 : 0 0 Australia as a manufacturing base (a lost cause) and

towards fostering home-grown innovative companies, especially those with export potential. There is money allocated for a Manufacturing Transition Grants Program and an Entrepreneurs’ Infrastructure Program. The devil is in the detail, but is this really adequate to kick-start Australian manufacturing and drive it up a more sustainable path?

More importantly, what is the government doing to convey to the industry that it really cares?; that manufacturing is key to our country and the economy? A positive outlook by industry, about industry can be a game changer. It needs a mind shift and I don’t see that happening as yet.

The reshoring trend that started in the US is beginning to take a hold in the UK as well. Eleven percent of respondents to a recent BDO survey talk about bringing manufacturing back to that country. The key reasons stated were quality of manufacturing, better skills in the UK and maintaining unit costs.

Australia has proven success in selected areas such as biomedical and high-end low volume manufacturing. And we saw ample evidence of this at the recent Manufacturers’ Monthly Endeavour Awards where 308 people gathered to celebrate the country’s best and brightest. There’s more detail about the awards in this issue and on our website www.manmonthly.com.au so do ckeck it out and think about entering the Awards next year. It is a fantastic networking event, an occasion to celebrate and is truly loads of fun.

As always, the team at Manufacturers’ Monthly would love to hear from you, so do drop us an email, follow us on Twitter and join the discussions on Facebook and Google+. kevin.gomez@cirrusmedia.com.au

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News&ANALYSIS In brief...

Bradken to close facilities, cut jobs Bradken has announced it will be shutting down its “highest cost manufacturing facilities” and cutting its workforce. It follows the manufacturer’s announcement of a “reorganisation of its manufacturing” in an aim to reduce the company’s operating costs by $27 million annually.

CSIRO, CRC get trimmed in budget Funding for the CSIRO and Cooperative Research Centres program was cut in the federal budget. The CRC program faces cuts of $80 million over the next four years, with its 17th selection round not going ahead. The CSIRO will have its funding reduced by $146.8 million over the four-year forward estimates period.

Holden may quit car making early Holden may stop its Australian car making operations before its planned departure date of 2017 because its component suppliers may not last that long, according to an industry figure. Goran Roos, chairman of the South Australian government’s Advanced Manufacturing Council believes that the company may have no choice.

Hills opens centres for innovation The company that gave us the Hills Hoist has joined with the South Australian government to open two centres to encourage innovation. The two facilities are located at the headquarters of Hills Ltd. The Lance Hill Design Centre has been set up to focus on new products.

The other centre, Hills D-shop will concentrate on digital innovations.

China bans Tassie teddy bear Chinese authorities have banned the import of lavender heat pack teddy bears made in Tasmania because of fears they pose a biosecurity risk. The toys, called ‘Bobbie’, have become a real hit in China. They are not just teddy bears, but double as heat packs and can be used to treat pain and encourage sleep.

8 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

Can Australia make things?

WRITING in Manufacturers’ Monthly, Barry Burgan a Torrens University academic said that, while Australia can have a viable and prosperous manufacturing sector, it will be different to that of the past.

Burgan said that “...the manufacturing sector will increasingly be based on value added on natural resources (obvious for minerals based, but the new opportunities are seen to be in food products) and on smarter end manufacturing (based on creativity and innovation and higher value products).

“As the Asia Pacific continues its strong growth demand for a variety of food products – and Australia has a strong competitive advantage in

quality product (including the environmental context), this provides opportunities to add value and therefore create employment and income in manufacturing activities.”

And he said we need to work smarter.

“The Australian Workplace and Productivity Association recently gave a consistent message to this, highlighting the need for intelligent manufacturing with the ability to export,” Burgan said.

“To do this, we need to introduce better products and processes on the one hand, better management practices on the other, and improved and innovative education and training has a very important part to play.”

What members of our manufacturing community think about Australian workplace culture...

Simon Bella Australian workplace culture is a huge problem. Getting away with the least and bare minimum effort is an in-grown culture that stems from government and began with the public service/government ideology a 100 years ago which manifestly exists today, adding up to massive inefficiency, costs, and lower productivity.

A fair days pay for a fair day’s work hardly exist today, especially with government and semi government enterprises like Australia Post, Tax Office, State & Federal politics, Local Councils, public transport, etc.

Australia Post for example has a huge number of employees on what they call “light duties” (unable to lift the normal 20kg limit or other minor complaints) where they wander around or become hidden amongst the crowd, virtually doing nothing but collecting pay. The largest number of stress related claims, early retirements, payouts and worker abuses stem from public departments!

There are bigger problems and issues to overcome now because the era in human employment, especially in manufacturing and administration is shortly to come to an end where there

will be little need for human involvement due to advanced machinery, robotics and artificial intelligence.

The unions will then be fighting against modernisation!

BLEAK Not sure how soon Simon, but you are quite right about the future where there will be little need for human employment in the not so distant future.

While governments call for high tech manufacturing to be more competitive I can only see this leading to mass unemployment where humans will no longer be required. So what do we humans do for a living, how do we earn an income if our services are no longer required, how much can we expect to be paid if anything?

I suppose we will all end up on some kind lowly paid pension for unemployed humans and the high tech manufacturers and businesses will need to pay high taxes so governments can afford to give us these low paid pensions?

I suppose we will line up in long street cues to collect our daily food vouchers or cue up for mundane work crews on a daily basis or complete

with AI robots for mundane jobs we will never get? Further down the line, I suppose there will be wide spread anarchy and “blood in the streets” or man verses machine battles?

The future doesn’t look good for the majority of us and only those minority groups with sufficient money or assets will be able to afford the basic essentials like a roof over their heads, food, medical treatments, and happiness.

Editor’s note: These comments are as received. Corrections have been made for spelling and grammar only.

What do you think?

Go to www.manmonthly. com.au and make a comment about this or any other issue.

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News&ANALYSIS Budget reflects changing focus of assistance Manufacturers could be forgiven for seeing recent media coverage and budget tightening as suggesting a bleak future for the sector. The reality is quite different, with significant opportunities on offer for manufacturers to seek support for their activities – assuming they are the right ones. Damon Cantwell explains.

A

cross state and Federal governments, a shift in the focus on government assistance has been on foot for some time.

There are a couple of key themes to this that are worth noting. The first is the focus on transformation.

Manufacturers are being encouraged to consider their business models, and to make the move ‘up the value chain’. In many ways the market has spoken here, and it is a trend that had taken root long before the recent closures in automotive manufacturing.

For decades Australian manufacturing had lost jobs and businesses that were focused on commoditised manufacturing, with typically low levels of technology and differentiation. over time, many of these businesses learned the hard way that competing on cost alone in the Australian context was not sustainable. one of the common threads of more recent Government programs has a focus on assisting those manufacturers who are trying to identify what sustainable business looks like for their organisations into the future. This can be seen in the Victorian Government’s Investing in Manufacturing Technology initiative, the south Australian package in response to automotive closures in that state, and the Federal Government “Jobs for Tomorrow” Growth Fund. Last week’s budget saw the Export Market Development Grant program extended, a $50 million Manufacturing Transition Grants Program, and $484 million for an Entrepreneurs’ Infrastructure Program (while we are yet to see the detail, the title gives a fair bit away).

These programs are based around assisting manufacturers to improve their product and process innovation activities, consider new export markets, or look to adjacent product opportunities in domestic and international markets that might be viable. As a whole, they recognise that

10 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

Australian manufacturing has and will continue to change, and the basis of competition for successful local companies will not be cost based.

The other key theme is around facilitation.

Government funding support to various co-operative research centres, and the two innovation precincts that appear to have survived the budget (manufacturing and food) provide practical opportunities for manufacturers to engage with the research community to shift to a more high-tech type of manufacturing model.

By definition, these are more medium term prospects for manufacturers (although there may be the more immediate silver bullet in regard to digital and advanced manufacturing techniques for certain companies).

In conjunction with the efforts of various Universities, these programs provide a framework for those manufacturers seeking to access new ideas and concepts to try to find a competitive edge.

All of this begs the question about the best approach individual manufacturers can take to accessing assistance. As with the most effective government programs, these are

based on manufacturers being proactive in regard to understanding what their future looks like.

It is always preferable for manufacturers to be seeking to understand (at least) three key variables at any given point in time.

The first is knowing the next stages in product and process in-

“

...These days governments are much more diligent at evaluating the effectiveness of their programs. novation for their business. In our experience, lack of information is not the issue here. Trade shows, publications, industry associations and online intelligence all offer significant insight in this regard (as does an on-going dialogue with customers about how their needs will change over the medium to long term).

The second is to ensure internal systems exist to identify, sort and

prioritise this information. It is critical that this includes comprehensive benefit analysis tools that ensure individual companies comprehensively understand how their businesses can benefit from a certain investment in innovation - and the cost of not acting.

Finally, excellence in the implementation of the investment, including understanding what other business processes need to change to optimise an investment in innovation is key. Examples here include fully integrating new products into an existing production process, rather than simply bolting them on, or ensuring sales teams are fully briefed of the features of functions of new products before they are introduced. Too often companies don’t capitalise on their innovation investments, creating a vicious circle when they don’t fully realise benefits along the way, which in turn impacts their decisions to invest the next time.

Despite a tough budget, there are support mechanisms to assist manufacturers at each stage of these processes. All government can do through industry assistance is provide a framework – it is up to individual manufacturers to ensure they are continually identifying and evaluating opportunities for investment in innovation.

And a final comment in regard to levels of assistance.

While they appear at first glance to be light, these days governments are much more diligent at evaluating the effectiveness of their programs.

The best way for the manufacturing sector to encourage more targeted support for their future is to make use of the framework that is being provided, and evidence to government that its focus on transforming Australian manufacturing into a more sustainable future is working.

[Damon Cantwell is the Manufacturing Partner at Deloitte]. manmonthly.com.au

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Comment

INNES WILLOX – CEO Australian Industry Group

editor@manmonthly.com.au

Cut the red tape, cut the green tape The big three areas of regulation are labour, taxation and green tape. If we can reduce the burden of these, the whole economy stands to reap the benefits. Innes Willox writes.

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ed tape is a red hot issue.

Ahead of the last Federal election, when we asked our members what the major issues were for them, the regulatory burden was in the top five.

And so it should be: for one reason or another, regulation is not something that Australia does well. And over the recent past we have been getting worse.

So, the Australian Industry Group is right behind the Commonwealth Government’s commitment to reduce regulatory burdens by $1 billion per year each year over the term of the parliament.

Two factors will be very important to the success of the assault on removing red tape.

The first is the willingness of the business community itself to step up to the mark to help identify major areas of red tape reduction and the solutions.

This is critical. Unless businesses buy into the process, we will get a top-down view of priorities and solutions. If we leave it to the bureaucrats to locate the problem areas and the ways they should be fixed we could well end up with the fox in charge of the hen house.

Second, to make really substantial headway across the business community, we will need to move beyond the fallen and low-hanging fruit and address the major areas of regulatory burden that impact on businesses.

The extent of the red tape burden facing Australian business is highlighted in a new Australian Industry Group (Ai Group) CeO survey.

Businesses in the survey rate the major areas of regulatory burden as:

Labour-related areas of regulation • 8 3% of CEOs who responded to the 2014 survey ranked the regulatory cost burden in these areas as medium or high.

• These areas include industrial 12 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

• A s with taxation compliance, onerous reporting requirements and regulatory inconsistencies across jurisdictions are frequently cited, but ‘green tape’ is often also characterised by lack of clarity, repetition, duplication and lack of consistency in regulatory requirements across agencies. A major clean-up is essential.

Singling out these areas should not be taken as meaning that we don’t also need to address the myriad specific regulations in areas such as infrastructure; planning; natural

“

If we leave it to the bureaucrats... we could well end up with the fox in charge of the hen house.

relations regulations as well as occupational health and safety.

Reducing duplication and improving harmonisation in OH&S laws has been sought by Australian business for many years, and it is still outstanding. Industrial relations regulation will be the subject of a forthcoming Productivity Commission inquiry.

Reducing regulatory burdens must be a leading priority for this inquiry.

State and national tax compliance • C ompliance costs associated with payroll and other state taxes was ranked as medium or high by 68% of CEOs while 64% ranked the compliance costs burdens linked to national taxes including com-

pany tax and the GST compliance (64%) as high or medium.

• This is separate from the level of taxation that is imposed. In this area, business costs could be reduced by addressing onerous and repetitive reporting requirements, online access, and national inconsistencies across jurisdictions.

Reducing the costs of compliance and the distortions to business decisions must be a major focus of the Government’s foreshadowed taxation review.

Green tape regulating the environment, waste and energy • T he regulatory burdens in these areas are a bugbear for around half of all businesses.

resources; transport; product safety; food safety; competition and fair trading.

Of course they should be addressed and, in fact, these areas are ripe for finding productivity and efficiency improvements that will bring cost savings to business as well as potential savings to Government.

But the big three areas of regulation - labour, taxation and green tape - are where the most impactful, economy-wide benefits from reducing burdens will be generated. These areas affect the vast majority of businesses and even small reductions in regulatory burdens will be spread across a very large number of businesses. They deserve a particular emphasis. www.aigroup.com.au manmonthly.com.au

Australian Mining, Manufactures Monthly and PACE Magazine invites you to attend the 2014 Women in Industry Awards in Melbourne. This exclusive event aims to raise the profile of women within industry, as well as promote and encourage excellence. The winners will represent high achievers from mining, engineering, manufacturing and process control industries, from the most senior to the stars of tomorrow.

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Comment

editor@manmonthly.com.au

Australia needs clear R&D objectives If Australian industry is to prosper we need to be a nation which values science and education; and we must be prepared to invest in them. John Blakemore writes.

C

ommoDIty trade involves large volumes of raw materials which are of low value compared with moderately transformed or highly transformed manufactured goods. the main drivers of economic growth are productivity due mainly to improvements resulting from the application of technology and the new creation of intellectual property and its application, particularly by adding value to lower value products. mIt and Harvard have come up with a new method of measuring this and forecasting economic growth. It is called Economic Complexity. (ref.

Hausmann, Hilgalgo et al., “the Atlas of Economic Complexity”, 2014.) this is a good indicator of the sophistication of a country and can be used as a guide to future growth. the key is innovation.

As the accompanying table shows, Australia performs very badly by this measure when compared with the UK, USA, Germany and Japan.

In simple terms the economic complexity index (ECI) is a measure of the productive knowledge that is implied in our export structures. It is

a measure of innovation, knowledge and our use of and understanding of the economic factors that will be paramount in the future.

In Australia’s case, it is a reflection of our under-achievement in mathematics, physics and chemistry… the so called hard subjects.

It is interesting to correlate this with the total expenditure on R&D in these countries, Japan at 3.67% of GDP and Australia less than 1.1%.

We must create a value adding society, which has a focus on innovation and education and acknowledges our natural comparative advantages. Some of this can be in the service industry (e.g. education, design, research, medicine). But the opportunity is greater in manufacturing because some significant comparative advantages are there already.

It is essential in an advanced developed nation that equal opportunities are given to all talented people regardless of their profession or special skills

As the figures for Australia, Japan, UK, USA and Germany show, there is a corelation between ECI and projected economic growth. (Graph by Manufacturers’ Monthly. Statistics from “The Atlas of Economic Complexity”).

14 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

(provided that these are in the general national interest).

Increasing our manufacturing capability is one significant way of achieving this. It would also broaden intellectual opportunity at the same time as improving our standard of living and balancing our trade.

We urgently need to develop an intellectual culture that values science and engineering. this starts with our education system.

An innovation policy must aim to create wealth from industries and activities in which, at least in the first instance, we have a comparative advantage. Later we can create such strategic advantages. Such advantage must factor in natural and human resources as well as moral considerations. this means we must develop an innovative system which enables small Australian owned businesses to tap into the world’s intellectual knowledge quickly and seamlessly. they need access to technological, scientific and engineering resources.

It is useless, however, to train more scientists and engineers if there are no jobs for them.

Professional bodies can also play a significant role in the wider community. Scientists and engineers

should no longer be invisible.

As the current financial crisis has illustrated, a totally free market is not the answer. Denmark, a country which balances the welfare state with Adam Smith’s invisible hand and flexible security systems offers a possible alternative path.

Such a model could improve Australia society significantly, but first we need to trade in surplus. the government and Keynesian economics are the way forward.

Incentives are needed in a truly cooperative system with an emphasis on the need to create a new society focused on long term growth. the drivers for all this need to be education, science and engineering. they need to be harnessed to help us come up with innovative products and processes.

[John Blakemore set up Blakemore Consulting International, a specialist in the application of Lean Manufacturing continuous flow and innovation of process and product].

Blakemore Consulting International 02 9357 2518 www.blakemore.com.au manmonthly.com.au

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TechnologyIT@MM Addressing BYOD challenges Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) seems ideal for companies when it comes to mobile technology. But, as Denise Carson explains, it should be introduced cautiously.

B

YOD makes great sense, especially to Gen X and Y employees and tablet-wielding executives, but ICT Operations must take a measured approach to the phenomenon in order for it to be successful.

Two years ago, most organisations were seemingly in denial about mobility. Since then, the BYOD trend has been adopted by increasing numbers of workers, both officially and unofficially.

Despite the many benefits of BYOD for employees, the proliferation of personal devices at work seems to present just as many challenges for operational ICT teams.

Operational ICT teams must learn to survive in a warzone of continuously-evolving mobile devices, fragmented operating systems, unsupported mobile apps and all their accompanying security threats.

Choice of device, security and management are the principal challenges BYOD presents to operational ICT teams. How should companies address them?

ing BYOD can result in an increased need for IT resources and support, increased costs, difficulty maintaining network performance, and challenges in managing devices and applications.

In response, models such as Choose your own Device (CYOD), where a very limited number of approved devices and platforms are permitted, is now supplementing or even replacing BYOD. Another emerging policy model is Corporate Owned Personally Enabled (COPE), which provides the user with more flexibility while the organisation retains control over usage and support costs, security, and other areas of potential risk such as legal and HR implications.

a single device. Sensitive business information is encapsulated within a trusted workspace or container on the device. However, for ICT to impose dual personas on users, they must also expend resources on supporting it.

Management

Many ICT teams struggle with tablet and smartphone management due to the sheer variety of operating Security systems and features and the rapid While BYOD, CYOD and COPE may be a matter of flexibility and conveni- evolution of devices.

Businesses can reduce the effort ence for users, data leakage, policy or involved in managing end devices regulatory compliance breaches and by placing parameters around malware pose a very serious risk to BYOD and deploying mobile device the business. management (MDM) software.

Without a robust Enterprise Mobility Management strategy, risky em- The provision of corporate portals, enterprise social network groups and ployee behaviour, whether accidental Choice of device wikis can also help alongside regular or deliberate, is inevitable.

BYOD was initially seen as a way to training updates on policy and usage.

One approach to solving this reduce costs and improve productivIdeally, every organisation will challenge is separating personal and ity and flexibility. However, BYOD MA 0 4 1 4 _ 0 0 0 _ S O U 1 2 0 1 4 - 0 3 - 1 8 T1 4 : 3 1 : 5 3 + 1 1 : 0 0 create a mobility strategy and work data through dual personas on can pose data security threats. Allow-

16 JUNE 2014 Manufacturersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Monthly

Choice of device, security and management are the principal challenges BYOD presents to operational ICT teams.

management plan with rules for the use of mobile devices in the workplace.

A mobility management plan that closely mirrors your corporate management guidelines is the best way to ensure there is no confusion.

This should be developed before users have access to corporate information assets via personal devices.

[Denise Carson is UXC Connectâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Practice Manager â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Enterprise Mobility & Wireless].

UXC Connect 02 9847 7100 www.uxcconnect.com.au

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Mobile printers make a splash Flexible labelling system significantly cuts the amount of time pool/spa equipment manufacturers now spend printing labels. Karl Perry reports.

W

ITH Australian manufacturers looking at ways to make operational improvements, it is clear they should be researching ways to modernise their processes through technology.

Smart mobile printers, that is printers that can run printing applications stand-alone rather than having to be connected to a PC, are one such technology that many manufacturing plant managers are turning to for the cost, efficiency and productivity benefits they offer.

One leading international manufacturer that was faced with the challenge of modernising their operations to better compete in Australia and globally was AstralPool’s swimming pool and spa equipment manufacturing facility in Melbourne.

Brendan Butler, Production Manufacturing Manager with AstralPool said the company had experienced growth of around 20% per year, over the past five years, and was looking for a technology solution that could significantly boost the efficiency of its product and packaging labelling process.

“Specifically, we wanted to invest in a modern labelling system that could significantly cut the amount of time spent printing labels, offer the flexibility to meet the varying

manmonthly.com.au

labelling requirements of our international and local customers and reduce waste.”

He said, the decision to upgrade was made after many frustrations caused over the past five years by a dated manual process that saw the labelling software system run from a desktop computer connected to a printer which was managed by the production planner. The production planner printed up to 5,000 labels per day prior to the products actually being produced.

With the company’s strong growth over the past ten years, the number of labels needed to identify these products had sky-rocketed. The database containing all the different label templates required for each customer had become a complex maze to navigate each day.

The main catalyst for change eventually came when AstralPool’s labels were no longer approved for all the markets that they sold into around the world.

This predominantly applied to the US market, which began requiring that labels adhered to UL Standards for Safety, the labelling standards introduced in the European market as well as the Australian Gas Association requirements.

Driven by the need to source a new labelling solution to meet the

The printer can operate in a completely stand-alone operation due to its ability to be updated remotely with a locally stored database of world-wide customer label templates.

UL Standards, which would likely require them to add another labelling supplier to an already long list, AstralPool decided it was time for a system overhaul.

AstralPool needed to find and integrate a new technology solution that would allow the company to have one labelling system that could generate a range of labels suitable for all its different customer requirements.

It became clear the best option was the Intermec PM43 smart printer: it could operate in a completely stand-alone operation due

to its ability to be updated remotely with a locally stored database of world-wide customer label templates, it was a rugged industrial printer easily repaired locally and suited to the factory floor and it had a reliably fast print speed for as-required label printing.

[Karl Perry is Product Manager, Printers, with Intermec by Honeywell].

Intermec by Honeywell 02 9330 4400 www.intermec.com.au

Manufacturers’ Monthly JUNE 2014 17

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EndeavourAWARDS

2014

The Endeavour Awards have come and gone for another year. We take a look at the evening’s highlights and profile all this year’s winners.

PRINCIPAL SPONSOR

And the winner is – Marand!

M

ARAND Precision Engineering was named ‘Manufacturer of the Year’ at the recently-held Manufacturers’ Monthly Endeavour Awards at Sydney’s Ivy Ballroom.

The company, which recently began delivery of vertical tails for the Joint Strike Fighter F35 Lightning II Global Program, received the award at a sold-out ceremony, hosted by Vince Sorrenti.

It was a good night for Marand.

The company also took out the Global Integration Award, also for the JSF Program. (See that section for a more in-depth profile Of Marand Precision Engineering. - Ed.) Marand Managing Director David Ellul was on hand to receive the award. He told Manufacturers’ Monthly that, despite the current doom and gloom, Australia can survive the coming death of the car industry.

“I personally don’t believe that all the supply base for the automotive industry will survive. I believe some of it will,” he said.

“The companies that have prepared early and started to look in different areas could more than likely survive.”

However, praising the skills precent in the auto industry, he said that people with those skills would move into new, evolving industries.

“It may not be manufacturing.

It could be engineering and project 18 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

management and development of technology,” he added.

This was perhaps the most successful year in the eleven-year history of the Endeavour Awards.

Despite tough times for the manufacturing sector, there were a record 138 entries in the 13 categories and there was an audience of 308 on hand to congratulate the winners.

The keynote speaker was Allan Ryan, founder of the Hargraves Institute.

An innovation catalyst, Allan enjoyed a long career in manufacturing before setting up the institute as an innovation resource for large organisations. In addition, he is an Adjunct Professor at UTS Business School, Associate at Macquarie Graduate

Judges’ Comments “Marand took a long term view and invested substantial resources into a complex international engineering manufacturing project. The SME company did this with the full knowledge that profits would not flow through for a very long time. The judges felt that Marand demonstrated remarkable vision, skill and persistence.”

School of Management and the Melbourne Business School at Mt Eliza.

In an entertaining address, Allan emphasised the importance of networking, connections, and being open to new ideas. Citing the ongoing battle between battle and Samsung over Smartphone technology, he suggested manufacturers not be averse to using other people’s ideas. He suggested it has paid off for Samsung.

Manufacturers’ Monthly would like to thank the sponsors of the 2014 Endeavour Awards. Without their support, the event would not have been possible - Principal Sponsor: BlueScope Steel; SICK; Enterprise Connect; BOC; Ifm efector; Atlas Copco; ICN; EFIC; SEW Eurodrive.

In all, there were 13 awards presented on the night. Nominees were free to nominate in multiple categories and initial nominations were reduced to a list of finalists who were present on the evening.

The big award - Manufacturer of the Year was chosen from amongst those lists of finalists.

Manufacturers’ Monthly would also like to thank this year’s judges: Derek Lark – Executive Director of the Industry Capability Network; Dr John Blakemore, CEO and Principal

Marand Precision Engineering Managing Director David Ellul receives the ‘Manufacturer of the Year’ award from Ken Liddle of Bluescope Steel.

Consultant Blakemore Consulting International; Dr Ivan Cole, Research Team Leader for CSIRO Materials Science and Engineering; Stephen Johnson, Acting Manager Industry Team for Manufacturing and Electrocom, NSW Department of Education and Communities; Mark Goodsell, NSW Director of the Australian Industry Group; Alan Johnson, Editorat-large, Manufacturers’ Monthly.

Congratulations to the winners, bad luck to those who missed out, and thanks to all who participated.

See you next year! manmonthly.com.au

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EndeavourAWARDS TECHNOLOGY APPLICATION OF THE YEAR AWARD

MICREO GAIN SHAPER Micreo is a specialised designer and manufacturer of high performance microwave and photonics sub-system products for defence.

It was founded in 2002, originally with 17 people, and has grown to 72 staff. Located in the Brisbane Technology Park since 2003, it currently has 14 design engineers and over 40 manufacturing and technical staff.

Micreo is the only manufacturer of such products using bare chip technology in Australia. Micreo believes the key to its success in the microwave Electronic Warfare subsystems market is reliability of supply.

This encompasses the ability to supply products which consistently meet all specifications, at the right price, and on time.

“We’re part of a global supply chain, supplying to aerospace prime contractors, delivering Australian content,” explained Jeff Abell, managing director of Micreo.

Micreo’s patented “Gain Shaper” technology was successfully deployed into its latest product design and achieved significant cost savings, enabling them to successfully compete for new opportunities in foreign markets. In addition, the inclusion of the Gain Shaper into a design upgrade for an existing product resulted in production at a lower price

Micreo’s patented “Gain Shaper” technology was successfully deployed into its latest product design.

20 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

than when it was first sold by Micreo in 2003.

Of the patent process, Abell said, “We very carefully went through and we had a lot of good advice from patent firms and legal advice there, and it’s, well, it’s a long process, but we certainly believe it’s worthwhile and protects that technology and we can get royalties for it going forward.”

And what does a gain shaper do?

“The Gain Shaper corrects for the natural frequency response of a microwave or millimetre wave circuit and can be tuned electronically,” explained Abell.

It’s a massive labour saving for us. It used to take days. Maybe even weeks of time to align a microwave or millimetre wave circuit and we’ve done that electronically in a much quicker timeframe and therefore massive labour savings and electronically programmable rather than getting in and doing risky work under a microscope circuit.

Judges’ Comments “The judges were impressed by Micreo’s approach to overcome the challenges posed by the high Australian dollar and wage rates. The application of unique home-grown technology has given the company an edge in a competitive international market.”

Micreo’s core business is the design and manufacture of products to transmit and receive signals in the microwave region of the electromagnetic spectrum.

Its Microwave Integrated Circuits (MICs) and subsystems as well as photonics products are supplied to global defence companies and Micreo products are currently installed in

The Technology Application of the Year Award was presented to Micreo Managing Director Jeff Abell (left) by Dave Delany of ifm efector. several of the world’s leading military aircraft and ships, and supplied directly to defence forces both here and overseas.

“The products are, as you said, highly technical,” agreed Abell.

“I’m just really pleased for the company to be recognised for this quite groundbreaking technology that we developed. Our engineering team put a lot of effort into it.

“It’s putting our products in a competitive position against the United States, as they’ve been building these types of product historically have been the world leaders.”

Micreo’s products utilise high performance microwave and advanced photonic techniques for optimum performance. These products have to operate in extreme environments and, to be able to manufacture them, Micreo has installed facilities which include ISO Class 6/8 cleanrooms, laser welding, environmental testing, and extensive state-of-the-art assembly and test equipment. Much of this equipment is unique to industry in Australia.

As an Australian high-tech manufacturer exporting 85% of

its production, Micreo has faced significant challenges due to the high value of the Australian Dollar and increasing domestic labour costs that have set its hourly rates at more than 25 per cent above those of its US competitors (a complete reversal to the situation prior to the Global Financial Crisis, it says.)

The judges noted that they were “impressed by Micreo’s approach to overcome the challenges posed by the high Australian dollar and wage rates.

“The application of unique homegrown technology has given the company an edge in a competitive international market.”

In order to maintain their customer base and have a chance for repeat orders, and to compete internationally for new business, Micreo has had to improve manufacturing processes and efficiency and introduce innovative technology to reduce both the time to market for new products as well as the manufacturing cycle times for existing products.

Micreo 07 3340 6200 www.micreo.com manmonthly.com.au

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EndeavourAWARDS

PROUDLY SPONSORED BY

ENVIRONMENTAL SOLUTION OF THE YEAR AWARD

LONGWARRY FOOD PARK Longwarry Food Park is a dairy business based in Gippsland region of Victoria. It converts fresh milk from the region into various products for domestic and export market.

Its products are sold in all three major supermarkets (ALDI, Woolies and Coles) and exported to over 30 different countries. Their business has grown every year, except for a year when they had a serious fire at the factory.

Longwarry purchased a sick factory from Bonlac Foods in 2001, which Bonlac had closed four years earlier.

Longwarry has grown from being a one-product company, and exporting 200 containers per year in 2006 to now exporting over 1,200 containers per year as a multi-product company.

When it was purchased, the plant had obsolete technology and was uneconomical to operate, and was converted into an energy efficient and growing business, which has received numerous awards (including the fastest growing business award 2008

by BRW).

The plant has been upgraded from 2.3 MT/hr to 6.0 MT/hr using inhouse technology.

The company is engaged in continuous R&D involving improving plant efficiency, process automation and productivity.

In the last two years plant capacity has been increased to 6.0 MT to reduce the cost of production and

22 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

increase productivity. This was achieved by in-house innovation and process optimisation. It has involved about 20 innovations (one patented as well) like viscosity control, preheat, Humidity measurement, cleaning time reduction with higher velocities etc.

A $500,000 Ausindustry grant for reducing energy consumption helped them match the best practice through a project that has made a significant impact on productivity and energy consumption.

“The time that we got the AusIndustry grant it was very important for us,” said Rakesh Aggarwal, the company’s managing director (and also finalist in the Lifetime Achievement category of these awards).

“We were going through the fire stage and without the grant it would

Judges’ Comments “The judges commended Longwarry Food Park’s technology solutions that significantly reduced energy consumption and reduced the use of packaging material. The business has made a remarkable recovery after being affected by a fire.”

The Environmental Solution of the Year Award presented to Managing Director of Longwarry Food Park Rakesh Aggarwal (left) by Alian Lefranc of Atlas Copco. be very difficult for us to continue this project. So it was really helpful for us.”

Then installation and marketing took place for two new product lines, Cream Cheese and UHT Milk. They are struggling to meet the demand for these two products.

Challenges for Longwarry are a declining milk supply in Australia, milk powder being a commodity exposed to world markets, currency fluctuation (all trade is in USD and managed by a conservative hedging policy) and rebuilding customer confidence postfire.

The $500,000 AusIndustry Retooling Grant environmental friendliness grant was used to increase Longwarry’s milk powder evaporator efficiency, updating an inefficient steam process by adding mechanical vapour recompressor (MVR) technology to achieve a 57.9TJ reduction in energy consumption for the evaporator process.

A project funded by a $50,000 Victorian state grant helped reduce the use of packing material by increasing the carrying capacity of a pallet from 1.6 MT to 1.8 MT.

A $1 million project for insulation of the factory buildings to reduce the noise impact on the community has also been undertaken, as have other projects including the installation of waste compactor and waste segregation and the installation of product recovery stations at the point of bottle milk filling to recover milk from the over-production and damaged bottles.

Given that his company has successfully earned grants to improve its efficiency, Aggarwal was asked his view on the Abbott government’s apparent hostility towards such things.

“The current government has got a different view in terms of energy efficiency and grants,” he said.

“But I guess the [elimination] of the carbon tax is going to be a lot more helpful to a company like ours than an energy efficiency grant could be. Our energy bill has gone up by 25 per cent with the carbon tax and we’re looking forward to the carbon tax coming off.

Longwarry Food Park 03 5629 9551 www.longwarry.com manmonthly.com.au

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EndeavourAWARDS

PROUDLY SPONSORED BY

AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRIAL PRODUCT OF THE YEAR AWARD

KEYHOLE TIG K-TIG K-TIG, named after the keyhole TIG process it uses, was the product of ten years of research and four years of product trials in six countries.

Developed at the CSIRO’s former Division of Manufacturing Technologies, K-TIG is a high speed, single pass, full penetration welding technology that eliminates the need for wire, edge bevelling or skilled operators and produces exceptional welds up to 100x faster than TIG welding in materials up to 16mm in thickness.

“K-TIG uses self-induced effects to generate a plasma jet,” explained the company.

“There is no orifice, making the process extremely simple to manage and optimise. Just one welding gas is used, and its flow rate is not critical.”

The keyhole method was was patented by the CSIRO. Trials, including with Samsung Heavy Industries in Korea, formed a big part of the development period.

The organisation ended its welding

research in 2006 and moved its Adelaide lab to Melbourne. After this, Dr Laurie Jarvis, K-Tig’s inventor at the CSIRO, took the IP back from the research organisation and commercialised it.

“The company itself is commercialising some quite incredible technology that’s come out of the CSIRO,” explained CEO Neil Le Quesne after K-TIG’s victory.

“So I think the first thing we have to do is recognise the heritage of the product. It’s quite staggering what’s been done. I guess the success has really come down to something that’s come up so much tonight: it’s really about innovation.”

Profiled in Manufacturers’ Monthly’s May edition, the small company is based in Salisbury, in Adelaide’s north, and expects 2014 to be a major year in its short history. There are major two businesses in the USA - one a household name - who have installed K-Tig’s systems, and the welding technology company believes it has a

Judges’ Comments “Despite being a small automation company, K-TIG was able to profitably leverage and maximise CSIRO’s unique technology enabling it to go up against much larger American and European competitors.” lot to offer those involved in pipeline welding. It believes that boosts to the speed jobs can be carried out, massive savings and automation benefits would translate into big benefits for companies working on pipeline jobs.

“Pipeline welding is an enormous field, with every one of the problems the broader welding industry,” 24 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

Australian Industrial Product of the Year Award, presented to Neil Le Quesne CEO & Executive Director of K-TIG (Keyhole TIG Limited) by Chris Barnes of BOC (right). the company’s Belinda Latz told Manufacturers’ Monthly earlier.

“These [include] huge skilled labour issues and weld quality, and we believe that K-TIG will be a huge innovation in that area that can bring costs down and bring up quality. It’ll be an enormous market for K-TIG and will really shape our development and growth.”

The technology is also cloudenabled, and able to record every weld made. Moreover, if connected to the internet, K-TIG controllers update their firmware and software from K-TIG in the background, automatically.

K-TIG has been formed with the sole purpose of commercialising the keyhole TIG welding system, and is developing a high calibre international distribution network and has fulfilled orders in 6 countries including Australia, UK, Norway, United Arab Emirates, India and China and will fulfill orders in Malaysia shortly.

For all the excitement around what the company currently offers, it insists you ain’t seen nothing yet.

“Arguably the biggest innovation is yet to come,” it hinted in its entry.

So what is the feeling after the company’s success? What can we

learn from K-TIG’s example? And is there reason for the industry to be optimistic?

“I think it can,” said Le Quesne.

“We’re certainly extremely optimistic from our perspective I think it’s about finding a niche, it’s about finding competitive advantage, and I think it’s about being bold.

As well as the importance of pipeline welding in the future, the company hopes to capitalise on the international sales and marketing abilities it has built up.

“We’ve pretty much decided that we shouldn’t be limited by the Australian domestic market,” explained the CEO. “We’ve recognised that we’re only going to get so much growth domestically, the vast majority of our focus is on the international market.

We’re putting a lot of emphasis to create an international distribution network to give us the growth that we’re anticipating for this and so far so good.”

K-TIG 08 7324 6800 www.k-tig.com manmonthly.com.au

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Supporting innovation and success BOC is the proud sponsor of the Australian Industrial Product of the Year category in the 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly Endeavour Awards.

It is fitting that we supported the category which recognises innovation in new industrial products, as it is something that is very close to our hearts at BOC and an important hallmark of our own business.

At BOC, we aim to be admired for our people, who provide innovative and sustainable solutions that make a difference to the world. These awards reflect and promote the same kind of spirit, and we acknowledge the terrific efforts of all entrants who share our passion to excel.

BOC wishes to congratulate the winners of the 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly Endeavour Awards, particularly Keyhole TIG Limited for winning the Australian Industrial Product of the Year category for their K-TIG welding process. We encourage all businesses, big and small, to strive for continuous improvement with commitment, courage and creativity.

BOC Limited

Riverside Corporate Park, 10 Julius Avenue, North Ryde, NSW 2113 Australia boc.com.au |131 262 BOC is a trading name of BOC Limited, a Member of The Linde Group. © BOC Limited 2014. MP13-0350-5|ML|MM|0614

facebook.com/bocsouthpacific

A Member of The Linde Group

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EndeavourAWARDS BUSINESS TRANSFORMATION AWARD

SMART FARBRICATION Smart Fabrication is a fast-growing engineering and specialist steel fabrication company headquartered in Port Adelaide, South Australia.

Operating across two sites, Smart Fabrication services a variety of industries including oil and gas, water, defence, civil and mining and is capable of planning, designing, constructing and installing a wide range of steel and aluminium solutions to these industries.

Business growth over the last 15 years has strained the company’s cash flow, its personnel, business systems and processes, technology, infrastructure, equipment and even the facilities that it operated out of.

The industries Smart Fabrication has serviced has grown from wool in 1999, to include mining, then automotive, then civil, then defence, then water, then oil and gas. Its workforce progressed from one in 1999 to 10 in 2003, 16 (2007), 52 (2012), and 65 (this year).

Smart Fabrication has transformed the business by up-skilling its staff (from the shop floor all the way up to the managing director), diversifying and responding rapidly to changing market conditions, investing profits back into the business each year, and sought professional expertise and implemented many of the improvements suggested through undertaking an Enterprise Connect Business Review in 2008 and the Enterprise Connect Supplier Continuous Improvement Program (SCIP) in 2011 (currently about to enter final year of program).

The importance of continuously upgrading its workers’ skills has been vital to its success.

Simon Kennedy, owner, founder and managing director of the fastgrowing enterprise said simply, “Without upskilling people constantly, you’re never gonna survive,” when asked about the subject.

“Look, if we weren’t upskilling our people - including myself - constantly, we wouldn’t be changing with the 26 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

ever-evolving marketplace and we wouldn’t be at the forefront of the industry we’re in at the moment.”

Smart Fabrication boasts a 35,000sqm footprint across two sites, 10,000sqm of undercover workshops and a 170m water frontage at its Port Adelaide headquarters. The company employs 65 people across a variety of trades (boilermakers, welders, pipe fitters, painters, etc.) and specialist professions (mechanical engineers, marine engineers, draftspersons, project managers, etc.)

Since its inception in 1999, Smart Fabrication has been faced with many challenges, the majority of which can be attributed, according to the company, to tremendous year on year business growth. The biggest issue for Smart Fabrication has always been business growth and its associated challenges.

It has attracted and retained professional, experienced staff from “big business”; moved from a flat organisational structure where everyone reported directly to the managing director to a more

Judges’ Comments “The judges were impressed by the steps Smart Fabrication took to transform the company – right from up skilling its staff to diversifying, responding rapidly to market conditions and seeking and acting on professional advice.” hierarchical structure, invested heavily on internal, custom written software systems including the Smart Fabrication database, providing time capture systems, quotes registers, project registers, reporting and tracking capability, and CRM. It has also complemented existing product range by adding services to

The Enterprise Connect Business Transformation was presented to Smart Fabrication Director Simon Kennedy (left) by John Murray of Enterprise Connect. the business’ core activities (manufacturing) – developed knowledge around this by undertaking a specialist 8-month program on business servitisation with Adelaide Thinker in Residence Professor Göran Roos.

Smart has nurtured a culture of continuous improvement through identifying “progressive” as one of the organisation’s core values, measuring each employee’s behaviour against that expected of them and linking it to remuneration reviews as well as the organisation’s reward and recognition program.

Other improvements include becoming an ISO 9001 Quality Management System certified company, putting an action plan in place in Q4 2013 to become ISO 18001 Safety Management System and ISO 14001 Environmental Management System certified by Q4 2014, and moved locations 4 times to larger premises and expanded to a fifth location in Q3 2013.

Between 2007 and 2012, Smart

Fabrication grew its revenues by 381% and its number of employees by 225%.

Smart Fabrication is currently on track for another record year, having recently posted its best quarter in the history of the company (approximately $3 million).

Has it been hard to bring employees along for what has been a fast-paced and exciting journey?

Not at all, said Kennedy.

“We employ great people,” he said after winning the Endeavour Award. “We have a saying at Smart Fabrication that ‘we don’t do average’. Basically we give people opportunities and anyone given an opportunity to upskill themselves will have the opportunity to increase their opportunities in life, earn more income, have a more secure career.

“I think it’s something people jump at.”

Smart Fabrication 08 8240 1876 smartfab.com.au manmonthly.com.au

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Sweet returns for dessert company.

When the thought of turning on the lights started to leave a bad taste in the mouth, multi-award winning dessert maker, Exquisine Pty Ltd, decided it was time to act. Like many companies the rapidly rising and fluctuating energy costs were severely affecting their bottom line. But as it turned out the solution to their needs was to be found in an overhead, literally.

Their Thornbury based factory has a large north facing roof space that was ideal for solar panels.

So in 2013 Exquisine Pty Ltd commissioned EnviroGroup, a leading commercial installer, to install a 80kW Yingli Solar PV system. They chose Yingli Solar high efficiency polycrystalline panels because of their proven ability to produce ongoing high energy yields under the harsh Australian climate, making them an excellent return on investment. In fact, this large solar PV system will not only offset a significant portion of the company’s electricity usage, approximately 300 kilowatt-hours per day, but will also help reduce carbon emissions by 139.7 tonnes a year.

Exquisine can now invest this energy cost saving back into the company to allow an expansion of production in the future. Sweet!

For more information please visit yinglisolar.com/au or call 1300 309 489.

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EndeavourAWARDS

PROUDLY SPONSORED BY

EXPORTER OF THE YEAR AWARD

RØDE MICROPHONES RØDE Microphones is based at Silverwater, in the outer suburbs of Sydney, where its product design and manufacturing facilities are housed alongside supporting business functions including the company’s in-house marketing department.

Founded in the early 1990s, RØDE originally focussed on the burgeoning home music studio recording market.

Capitalising on a gap in the market for high-quality, reasonably priced microphones, it quickly secured distribution in major international markets.

Founder Peter Freedman quickly realised that owning the manufacturing capabilities would provide increased economies of scale and ensure a barrier to entry for competitors.

Manufacturing in Australia is a sustainable competitive advantage for RØDE (see Manufacturers’ Monthly’s recent interview with Freedman) with vertical integration allowing the company to fully control its product lifecycle from ideation through to design, manufacturing, servicing and distribution. In the last twelve months the company added a complete painting and finishing line, further consolidating its self-sufficiency and facilitating the introduction of a proprietary ceramic finish for even further durability on select products.

“Labour [cost] is of no consequence because we’ve designed for manufacture,” explained Freedman, the company’s founder and managing director, after RØDE’s victory at the Endeavours.

“We don’t touch the part very much.

So the future is incredibly rosy. It’s just ‘keep on going’. It’s onwards and upwards.

“We’ve never been busier, profits keep rising, we can’t get enough people, more machinery, we have no problems at all manufacturing here.”

RØDE distributes its microphones and accessories through an indirect sales channel, with an extensive global distribution network of over 2,000 retailers contributing to its sustainable competitive advantage. The release of 28 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

the iXY stereo microphone for iPhone in 2013 demonstrated that RØDE can go from product announcement to retail shelves in under a two week period.

Just over a decade ago the company acknowledged an emerging market in home video editing and entered the broadcast audio market segment. Since then RØDE has become the defacto standard for on-camera audio around the world and has grown its export business to be more than 90% of all manufacturing.

RØDE Microphones has gone from strength to strength in the past year, following up its 2012 NSW Exporter of the Year award with the Australian Export Awards’ Manufacturer of the Year award in 2013. With total revenue growing by more than 20% and its already impressive level of market penetration continuing at a staggering pace, the Australian owned company that prides itself on Australian design and manufacturing is an international success story.

Some manufacturers bemoan the increase in trade liberalisation since the early 1980s, and are negative

Judges’ Comments “The judges were impressed by high degree of vertical integration achieved by RØDE Microphones. This allowed the company to fully control its product lifecycle from ideation through to design, manufacturing, servicing and distribution.” about recent and upcoming free trade agreements.

No so RØDE. “Free trade agreements are fantastic for our manufacturing industry - no question at all,” said Freedman.

“We have our own offices already, in China, and a [further] reduction in tariffs, the more open it is for trade, the better it is for us. We’re very

Exporter of the Year Award presented to RØDE Microphones Founder and Managing Director Peter Freedman (left) by Andrew Hunter from EFIC. competitive anyway, but to be able to get into those countries is just the best.

I’m hoping for India soon as well.”

RØDE has continued to innovate, expanding its business into the consumer smartphone market with the iXY stereo microphone for Apple’s iOS devices – the only product on the market capable of providing recording at 24-bit/96kHz quality. RØDE was one of only a handful of Australian companies exhibiting at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas last January, where it launched the iXY. Since this time it has shipped more than 10,000 units worldwide. The product has been recognised by the most prestigious of international product awards programs, including the European Red Dot and IDEA from USA. All of RØDE’s 100+ products are designed in Australia, and more than 85% of products are manufactured here.

In closing, Manufacturers’ Monthly asked Freedman his opinion on the

decline of the auto industry and about what effect it might have on the broader industry.

“For me? None. And I’m saddened to hear all the stories about people losing their jobs, but unfortunately I think a lot of those industries were going to go,” he said.

“And they were just propped up that was the problem. They weren’t competitive.

“But there are some stories [regarding diversification] even tonight, where people have modified what they did into other industries and were super-successful, with big contracts.

“You just have to look at what you have capability-wise and say ‘Well, that’s gone, what can we do with the people, and the plant and equipment,’ and change to that.”

RØDE Microphones 02 9648 5855 www.rodemic.com manmonthly.com.au

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CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL ENDEAVOUR AWARDS WINNERS

Export Finance and Insurance Corporation (EFIC) is the proud sponsor of the Endeavour Exporter of the year Award.

As Australiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s export credit agency, we support the growth of Australian companies in their international activities by providing tailored financial solutions when banks are unable to.

We assist a variety of Australian-based businesses: exporters, subcontractors to Australian exporters and those looking to invest overseas.

To find out if EFIC may be able to help you, contact us on: 1800 093 724 or visit our website: www.efic.gov.au

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EndeavourAWARDS

PROUDLY SPONSORED BY

GLOBAL INTEGRATION AWARD

MARAND PRECISION ENGINEERING JOINT STRIKE FIGHTER F35 LIGHTNING II GLOBAL PROGRAM Marand celebrates 45 years in business this year. It remains privately owned and operated, with a proud and rich history in manufacturing and boasting substantial engineering/design and manufacturing facilities located in Moorabbin and Geelong.

Marand employs about 200 and expects revenues for 2014 to exceed $50 million.

Marand has a reputation as a leading advanced manufacturer and technology enabler, maintaining preferred supplier status with many valued, long term domestic and global customers. It has experience in most key manufacturing industries including aerospace, defence, rail, mining, automotive, aviation, food processing and white goods.

Marand sought to continually diversify its core skills and capabilities, beginning over 30 years ago in aerospace. Historically a key nonproduct supplier to Australia’s auto sector, it manufactured a large percentage of body and engine production.

“We’ve always had the desire to grow our business and make sure that we’re trying - we’ve had a big investment in plant and equipment, we’ve had a big investment in engineering and people, and in the automotive industry we’re not a component supplier, we’re an equipment supplier,” said Tony Ellul, the company’s managing director.

Marand also exported products into the heavy freight and passenger auto sectors to China and Thailand.

Australian auto manufacturing will disappear by 2017 but export markets still remain open to the company.

Automotive now represents less than 10% of turnover.

“To maintain a steady workflow through our organisation the auto manufacturers would bring a model out every three or four years, and we would continue to go through cycles,” Ellul said.

30 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

“So we said ‘where else can we use our key assets?’ one being the engineering, and our equipment and facilities, and we started to diversify, trying to reduce some of those troughs we had in the auto days.

“What we’ve found in growing our business throughout those times is there was opportunity in a lot of other sectors and we were fortunate enough to be in the right place at the right time where programs were taking off and we were able to maximise our position with those opportunities.”

Marand’s specialisation is now in precision engineering and highly engineered products, including systems, machinery, equipment, complex assemblies or flying aerostructure components.

Marand has been very successful in exporting in support of the Joint Strike Fighter F-35 Lightning II project, the world’s largest defence program in

Judges’ Comments “As a company that was reliant on the auto sector, Marand has made a significant transformation by becoming a supplier to the JSF F35 program.

The company now exports over $100 million of high precision products to 11 customers in 8 countries – a remarkable achievement.” history, since May 2002.

It has rapidly become recognised as a proven supplier and an exporter of highly engineered and extremely complex ground support equipment, tooling and automated production solutions and fully assembled aerostructure components.

Their diversification journey wasn’t easy or simple, of course.

“It doesn’t happen overnight; it’s a long, strategic commitment that you’ve

The Global Integration of the Year Award presented to Marand Managing Precision Engineering Director David Ellul (left) by David McLachlan of ICN. got to make,” said Ellul.

“And trying to break into new sectors like defence - which we’ve successfully broken into - or rail.

“Breaking into the defence sector actually has taken us a long time. And we’ve had to invest a lot of money and a lot of people over that time to actually make the breakthrough. So diversification... needs time, it needs money, and you need to prepare yourself for that transition.”

Marand’s senior managers have travelled the world on industry or government missions, now regularly visiting the same countries and often the same customer sites nearly monthly. It has had many engineers based at BAE Systems in the UK being trained in all aspects of F35 Vertical Tail (VT) production. They have been fully integrated into BAE’s process with daily, weekly and monthly global review meetings and conference calls over multiple time zones.

Marand has a number of people sitting on industry association and government-appointed industry advisory councils which also exposed them (and Marand) to regular updates on global business development and supply chain opportunities.

The initial integration of Marand - the only SME on the JSF Industry Advisory Council (JIAC), back in 2003, saw them rubbing shoulders with the Australian CEOs of the

Global Aerospace & Defence Prime Contractors such as Boeing, BAE Systems and Thales. This occurred at the invitation of the then Defence Minister Robert Hill, after Marand’s business development director was recommended by the then JSF industry director in the federal department of industry. Ironically it was his direct knowledge of Marand’s reputation and standing as a major supplier to the Australian Automotive industry, from his days working on the Button Car Plan.

It was this same person who invited Marand to attend the very first Lockheed Martin Industry Briefing Day in May 2002. Having a high level knowledge that was a direct result of being integrated into the JIAC has led to eventually Marand being invite to bid for the Strategic Second Source Vertical Tail (VT) assemblies opportunity on behalf of Australia Now, as a fully Integrated Global Supply Chain Partner to all 9 F35 program (tiered) partner countries, Marand has to date received multiple contracts for all partner countries, except for Turkey, and has exported well over $100 million of high precision products to 11 customers in eight countries.

Marand Precision Engineering 03 8552 0600 www.marand.com.au manmonthly.com.au

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EndeavourAWARDS

PROUDLY SPONSORED BY

MOST INNOVATIVE MANUFACTURING COMPANY AWARD

KEECH AUSTRALIA Keech Australia had traditional foundry beginnings and, through constant investment in its capabilities, has grown to be known as one of Australia’s most innovative companies.

The Bendigo-headquartered company now employs the latest technology in design, research and additive manufacturing to produce carbon neutral steel castings for the global mining industry. The company employs around 117 people in Australia and this year celebrates its 80th anniversary.

Over the past four years Keech has transformed from a foundry to a global provider of innovation, services and products, and seen 60 per cent growth. It currently has revenues of about $50 million.

“Keech Australia stays true to its principle of continuous innovation, finding solutions to current challenges, anticipating future needs and rolling out new products to benefit its customers worldwide,” was how the judges put it.

After being named the Most Innovative Company at the Endeavour Awards, this magazine asked CEO Herbert Hermens what advice he might give to other companies. How can other up-and-coming companies develop and increase their capacity to innovate.

“Clearly there’s a major commitment necessary,” he said, pointing out that - aside from anything else - a dedication to innovation was absolutely necessary.

“We live now in a world that reaches all parts of the globe, and to imagine that you can survive in Australia without being able to meet with customers in Canada, Sweden, South Africa and Chile means that need to invest in developing your organisation, your product, your production systems, so that it can compete with all parts of the world.”

An OEM and direct supplier to the world’s largest miners and equipment makers, Keech spends over seven 32 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

per cent of its revenue on R&D. Part of this has been spent on a $10 million redevelopment of its Bendigo Foundries, which began in 2010 and was completed in 2013.

It employs six full-time staff at its innovation division and five in a Quality Assurance team.

It opened a dedicated on-site Innovation and Quality Centre in 2012, which operates under the leadership of international metallurgy and foundry specialist Dr Bala Hebbar.

Over the next five years it aims to grow the value of the Innovation and Quality Centre to ensure that 50% of the products it sells are less than two years old. To achieve this it will further increase investment in R&D and ensure patented products are developed with customers’ future needs in mind.

When asked about the future, Hermens is bullish. “[We are] Very optimistic,” he said.

“And no doubt it’s a big challenge working in Australia on a fundamentally very small customer base, but we are reaching the world.

And that makes the market huge for us. And what we’re investing in is

Judges’ Comments “Keech Australia stays true to its principle of continuous innovation, finding solutions to current challenges, anticipating future needs and rolling out new products to benefit its customers worldwide.” making sure that we can service them from Bendigo right through the rest of the world.”

Innovation is also reflected in Keech’s push towards carbon neutrality, which also saw it qualify as a finalist in the Endeavour Awards’ Environmental Solution of The Year category. To minimise the company’s

Most Innovative Company Award presented to Herbet Hermens (left) CEO of Keech Australia by Martin Broglia of SEW Eurodrive. impact on the environment Keech has invested millions of dollars in innovative new technologies to reduce wastage, energy required and emissions.

The implementation of a unique cultural change program called “Think Green” promotes sustainable behaviour by staff both at work and home.

Keech has also spent significantly on additive manufacturing production systems over the last year, and in January re-branded its pattern-making subsidiary Keech 3D, to reflect the new importance of the technology to the company. Keech 3D is the first commercial supplier of large format additive manufacturing in Central Victoria.

Hermens is cautiously optomistic about the future of Australian manufacturing.

He believes that Australian companies can be world-class, but “only if we commit ourselves to that.”

He said that we should learn from others who have had the type of success that we, as a nation, aspire to.

“You know, there are many countries and many examples that have show that the challenge is huge but it can be done if you work together,” he said.

“A great example that’s really alive today is in Germany, where people have worked with management to make sure that manufacturing can thrive and develop. And we can do the same in Australia.

“People always say we have a small customer base, and that’s true for Australia. But we live on the edge of a huge market in south-east Asia.

“And if we properly manage that then Australian manufacturing can survive.”

Keech Australia 02 9648 3100 www.keech.com.au manmonthly.com.au

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EndeavourAWARDS

PROUDLY SPONSORED BY

.

SAFETY SCHEME OF THE YEAR AWARD

BRANACH MANUFACTURING TERRAIN MASTER SAFETY STABILISER Branach Manufacturing is an Australian SME that began in 1990.

It is a “working at heights” company that specialises in innovative products which focus on making working at heights safe.

It first delved into the extension ladder arena after realising an opportunity to design and manufacture a far superior product than what was already on the market.

A patented design saw a fibreglass box rail and a unique joining section resulted in a leap into the future for extension ladders. The new materials and design, provided a new level of strength, stability, lightweight and non-conductively that had never been seen before, according to the company. With this product Branach quickly made its way into the power utility market where it is now the major supplier in Australia.

The design team at Branach then saw the need to redesign the old step ladder as there were numerous safety issues and accidents from them.

Workers and employers required a greater safer product that resolved the issues of a step ladder. The Branach safety step platform was developed. Using the same techniques to manufacture an industrially strong, lightweight and safe platform. These platforms are now world’s best practice and are exported around the world.

The main industries are mining, power, telecommunications, construction, aviation and emergency services.

“I think the large driver of our innovation really is our customers,” said Michael Walsh, the company’s director, when asked about what drives the Branach’s innovation.

“So listening to your customers, going to see them, seeing what they’re trying to accomplish in their day-to-day work, and looking for opportunities to help them solve their problems.”

Statistics indicates that falls from ladders are a significant cost to the community. With this background, the 34 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

company developed a product that increases stability but is light weight portable and easy to use, therefore cost effective.

Falls from heights result in over 112 deaths (2008 - 2011) and 11% of these are from ladders and another 8% from working from a platform. (Safe Work Australia Oct 2013) These deaths have been caused by, climbing the ladder, overbalancing, and the ladder moving.

Branach has engineered a solution that greatly reduces the number of incidents off ladders by providing a base that is three times the ladder footprint.

The Terrain Master- Safety Stabiliser, is attached to the foot of the ladder. A quick release mechanism extends the legs. The legs can then be independently deployed to whatever angle is required. This increases the margin of safety when working on uneven ground and into tight corners.

The system can also be utilised in day to day work, as the level of stability is unparalleled. It feels like the ladder is

Judges’ Comments “With the Terrain Master Safety Stabiliser, Branach Manufacturing has boosted the margin of safety for those working on ladders on uneven ground.

It is a smart solution that can make working at heights safer.”

bolted to the pole, tree, whatever work area is in use.

The Terrain Master was originally a design concept but a joint project with Lendlease saw it come to fruition as part of a system for their roof access to switch boxes. This is a complete system which is now been nominated for a Work Safe Award.

From concept to product has

The award was presented to Branach Manufacturing Managing Director Michael Walsh (left) by David Duncan of SICK. taken 16 months, utilising a new lean design methodology. We undertook a combination of field trials and testing and design iteration to deliver a product that exactly matched the customers’ needs.

Challenges were to produce a lightweight portable system to use that provides a much greater stability to the ladder whilst being compact and lightweight.

According to the expert panel of judges who named Branach the winner in this category, “With the Terrain Master Safety Stabiliser, Branach Manufacturing has boosted the margin of safety for those working on ladders on uneven ground. It is a smart solution that can make working at heights safer.”

It’s currently in low volume production with plan to be in full production in three months time.

This reduces the number of employee hazards, and provides state of the art working at heights equipment.

The reduction of falls lowers the number of lost days working, but also, and more importantly, the cost to

the individual and family is reduced.

Any effort to provide a safe work environment so workers can come home safely must be taken.

The design team at Branach is fiercely proud of this innovation as it brings a whole new level of safety to those working at heights.

Branach Manufacturing 1800 244 624 www.branach.com.au

It provides a base that is three times the ladder footprint.

manmonthly.com.au

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EndeavourAWARDS AUSTRALIAN STEEL INNOVATION AWARD

TECHNOFAST INDUSTRIES EZITITE TR & CAMNUT TURBINE CLOSURE SYSTEMS Technofast Industries has been involved with the power generation industry for many years, and has provided unique solutions to bolt tensioning problems which have often existed since the invention of the steam turbine.

Technofast recognised significant difficulties with the bolting of the large casings of steam and gas turbines, and developed unique and innovative fastening systems to enable these processes to be undertaken far more efficiently, accurately, economically and safely than any incumbent method.

“Development comes about I suppose from looking at what we can improve in various industries,” explained the company’s owner, John Bucknell, when asked about product development.

“Very few people know even the basic technology behind a nut and bolt and seem to think ‘well you screw the thing up and everything’s fine.’ But in reality it’s a very complex engineering calculation to have the right balance to make the thing work properly. And the nut and bolt really is the heart and soul of keeping all those machines all around the world going all the time. Very much applicable to the power generation industry as you can imagine.”

Technofast is based in Queensland, with its headquarters and manufacturing located in Richlands, an industrial precinct in the Western Corridor of Greater Brisbane.

It also has a branch in West Australia, located on the Kwinana Strip, and provides clients with rental services for bolt tensioning tools and additional on-site services.

“Technofast has quite a long history with the power generation industry especially,” said Bucknell.

“We’ve been involved in bolting of all kinds for quite a few years.

And we’ve done everything from the tensioning cylinders that align the Kingsford Smith control tower, right 36 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

through to putting the lids on nuclear reactors in the United States.”

Technofast’s CamNut technologies reduces the time to tighten 80 or more bolts ranging from 100 mm (four inch) to 150 mm (six inch) in diameter from several days to as little as four hours.

Technofast’s EziTite TR Hydraulic Nuts have been used to tighten all bolts in a large gas turbine in a total of 90 minutes. As both technologies are based upon the use of hydraulic power to apply the massive forces required to hold such machines together, no torque tools are used, and all bolt threads remain undamaged.

Technofast’s CamNut System is the only alternative to current methodology which can be effectively used to tighten the typically massive bolts used in large steam turbines without either replacing the entire set of bolts at huge cost or extensively modifying bolts, casings, or both. The System is designed using unique features such as stacked hydraulic power cells to reduce tool diameters and a tapered

Judges’ Comments “Technofast has engineered unique products to replace the existing nuts with custom fasteners which allow the use of hydraulic pressure to precisely elongate the bolts and fix them in place.

The time taken to tighten bolts is reduced from days to hours – a remarkable achievement.” breakaway coupling with a doublestart thread for rapid engagement of the tensioning tool. These features are claimed in PCT Patent Applications lodged internationally to protect the technology.

“Technofast has engineered unique

The Australian Steel Innovation of the Year Award presented to Technofast Industries’ owner John Bucknell (left) by Ken Liddle of Bluescope Steel. products to replace the existing nuts with custom fasteners which allow the use of hydraulic pressure to precisely elongate the bolts and fix them in place,” noted the judges for the award. “The time taken to tighten bolts is reduced from days to hours – a remarkable achievement.”

The EziTite TR High Temperature Hydraulic Nut has a number of significant features which are also the subject of Patents and PCT Patent Applications. Technofast has developed a highly innovative metal seal which is unlike any other hydraulic sealing mechanism in existence. The unique action of the seal mechanism permits the EziTite TR fastener to be cycled many times without failure.

Some months of in-house testing has confirmed an operational life in excess of 100 cycles, which far exceeds any projected usage. There are few competitors attempting to use metal sealing technology, and none (including Technofast’s previous “HydraNut” product) can claim such an extensive cycle life.

“So this is a new product,” said Bucknell.

“It’s an extension of our technologies that we’ve become very

comfortable with, with the industry over the years. This particular one is in its infancy yet we’ve found some great results with it and we’re looking forward to some very big things overseas and in Australia.”

In areas where there is a dependence upon low-cost electricity supply, it is imperative that utilities take every opportunity to improve plant availability of their most economical units and limit downtime. Use of Technofast’s products ensure that plant can be returned to production days ahead of schedule, and allow almost instant access in case of breakdowns, as components do not have to be completely cooled for disassembly.

Technofast’s fasteners have a number of unique patented features which enable peak performance. These include quick-release tool engagement, sintered metal bleed porting to prevent tool damage, long-life replaceable metal seals, and release mechanisms to provide an alternative dismounting option in case of component or seal damage.

Technofast Industries 07 3375 1431 www.technofast.com manmonthly.com.au

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EndeavourAWARDS YOUNG MANUFACTURER AWARD

PHILIP WYSOCKI FROM ANCA Philip Wysocki works at ANCA’s Melbourne head office as an electrical systems engineer and project manager.

Still in his twenties, he came first in Mechatronics and was on the Dean Scholars List in his second and third year before joining ANCA. ANCA, itself the overall Endeavour Awards Manufacturer of The Year winner in 2013, describes Wysocki as an inspirational employee, always willing to help others, and one who does whatever it takes to deliver on projects he is managing.

Did he receive any mentoring?

“Pat, the co-founder, both the Pats actually [founders Boland and McCluskey], they built ANCA up themselves, and they actually both mentored me in terms of electrical system design and the grinding machines themselves,” explained Wysocki after receiving the award.

The founders at Bayswater’s ANCA, which exports almost all of what it makes, shared their expertise with the talented young engineer, who now manages his own projects.

“So [the Pats] and other senior engineers were all mentors for me.”

Wysocki is a team player and he often implements innovative ideas that improve how ANCA develops new products, says the company.

From the start of his career at the machine tools and software specialist, Wysocki has excelled, and came to ANCA with first class honours in his Bachelor of Engineering (Scholars) Degree, Mechatronics Engineering, from the University of Wollongong.

Wysocki has delivered on all the projects he has undertaken and provided the company with significant cost savings and quality improvements.

He implemented new software and processes that significantly improved the development of new products in his section. He is currently project managing an important new product that is anticipates to be very successful.

Wysocki is ANCA’s specialist in manmonthly.com.au

motor design – all motor related issues are directed to him. His projects vary and have included projects where cost saving was the goal, where quality issues needed to be solved and his latest project, the development of a major new component for ANCA tool grinders – Linear Motors.

“It’s a new type of motor development we’re doing at ANCA,” explained Wysocki. “So we won’t actually manufacture it in-house.

Generally a lot of the motors we manufacture are overseas.

“So we want to bring the new technology in-house, make our machines more competitive against other companies in CNC grinding manufacturing engineering.”

For his latest project 4 key people are involved and he also manages the interaction between departments of about 15 others, including quality, marketing, production, manufacturing and engineering. He is also required to liaise with ANCA branches, external suppliers, customers and university researchers. The job involves managing

Judges’ Comments “Still in his mid-twenties, Philip Wysocki has played a key role in several challenging projects and demonstrated keen problem solving, engineering management skills that have served his employer, ANCA, well over the past three years.” the project from end-to-end including the design specifications, prototypes, testing, manufacturing, release, service support and initial field analysis.

There’s also a great deal of market and product research, new product selection and design, collaboration, investigation of technical issues, system integration, and creation of

The Young Manufacturer of the Year Award presented to Philip Wysocki from ANCA (left) by Martin Sinclair of Cirrus Media. engineering specifications. Wysocki’s job requires a very high level of product knowledge to enable him to manage the projects he does. It helps him to solve the quality and technical issues he is given and to ensure new components he has designed are the most innovative possible for ANCA tool grinders.

“We’re going to create an entire new manufacturing assembly line at ANCA for Australian manufacturing that will give us a competitive edge,” he said.

“So it’s a new type of motor development that we’re going to implement into our CNC grinding machines.”

Wysocki’s job involves the establishment of a project plan, milestones and deliverables. He then provides the leadership, time management and people skills to ensure these are all delivered on time and budget. This process includes monitoring and controlling project risks, ensuring quality standards are met and submitting ideas that continually improve our processes and products to make them both more innovative and cost-effective.

ANCA is a global market-leading manufacturer of CNC tool grinders and the only one in Australia. ANCA exports 99% of its products and has achieved success through innovation and a commitment to research and development. The company’s strength is its versatile, precise and user-friendly machines. It celebrates its 40th year this year and serves industries including automotive, tool manufacturers, aerospace, medical and electronics.

Does the young mechatronics virtuoso have any advice for those considering a career in what he’s doing? What would he tell them?

“It’s hands-on, so whatever you think you can possibly do, most of the time there are possibilities of actually developing it,” he offered.

“And it’s a matter of sticking to your goals. And if you see something that you think is possible, try and achieve it, get mentoring from other people, get their opinion, and just keep going forward.

ANCA 03 9751 8200 www.anca.com Manufacturers’ Monthly JUNE 2014 37

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EndeavourAWARDS LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

GEORGE HELLYER FROM AW BELL George Hellyer began with AW Bell as a patternmaking apprentice and as he developed he became wood patternshop foreman.

Through a series of promotions Hellyer eventually became a director of the company. When he started there were three employees, and by the time of his eventual semi-retirement there were 65.

When asked how life might be different if he was starting his trade now compared to way back then, he said,“That’s hard to answer, because my trade, patternmaking, has changed such a lot. It’s now, really, controlled

by IT.” A.W. Bell began as a general patternmaker and developed into supplying high volume sand foundry tooling, investment and sand casting of ferrous and non ferrous metals, gravity die manufacture and production machining. In the early 1970s Bell was noted as the largest patternshop in the southern hemisphere. The company has been located in Victoria over its 63 years and has occupied three locations; each being substantially larger than the previous, due to expansion and development.

In 1955, Hellyer manufactured sand production tooling for the tap industry and entered into the Apprentice of the Year award, the first given. His success with the tap program resulted in him being the first apprentice of the year.

In 1956 he became the first recipient of the Victorian overseas foundation Scholarship. (now known as the Australian Overseas Foundation). Through this scholarship, George studied his patternmaking trade over a two-year period in the UK and the USA. On his return, AW Bell had begun to direct its attention to automated automotive foundry tooling work . The company’s persistence culminated in it being the first company in Australia to produce automotive high volume pattern tooling. The success of this, together 38 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

with Hellyer’s overseas knowledge assisted the company to grow and develop. By 1972, A.W. Bell had nearly 85% of the Australian car engine tooling market. Hellyer grew with the company and was heavily involve in apprentice training, probably training some 100 wood and metal apprentices in his time. One of his protégés won the silver medal for patternmaking at the Japan Skill Olympics.

Hellyer continues with this mentoring today along with keeping the company informed of its OH&S responsibilities and assisting in maintaining the relevant records.

“Even today, when he has been working two days a week and semiretired for over 15 years, there would be very few people in the pattern and foundry industry who would not know George or have been helped in some way by him,” said AW Bell in nominating Hellyer.

Hellyer has trained approximately 100 apprentices, many of whom have begun their own businesses.

When asked about the collapse

The Lifetime Achievement Award was won by George Hellyer (left) from AW Bell. The award was presented by Allan Ryan of the Hargraves Institute.

Judges’ Comments “George Hellyer started as an apprentice and finished as a Director with AW Bell. It is remarkable that he trained over 100 wood and metal apprentices during his outstanding career.”

of the car making in Australia, he expressed optimism about the future of manufacturing in general in Australia. There was still a sadness attached to the end of automotive manufacturing.

“I am hopeful, let me put it that way, because I was brought up through the automotive industry, basically, and I was sorry to see that go,” he said.

George Hellyer, photographed with Young Manufacturer of the Year winner, Philp Wysoki.

“And I’m just not sure what will replace those skills.”

The judges praised Hellyer’s broad range and mentorship at Bell with the words, “George Hellyer started as an apprentice and he finished as a Director with AW Bell. It is laudable

that he trained over 100 wood and metal apprentices during his remarkable career.”

AW Bell 03 9799 9555 www.awbell.com.au manmonthly.com.au

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EndeavourAWARDS AUSTRALIAN CONSUMER/TRADE PRODUCT OF THE YEAR AWARD

HOSHIZAKI LANCER LANCER SOFT DRINK SUPERCHILLER Operating for over four decades and everywhere (though not always necessarily seen), Hoshizaki Lancer employs about 130 in Australia and is based in Beverley, Adelaide.

If you’ve bought a beverage at a major event, there’s a good chance you’d’ve enjoyed Hoshizaki Lancer’s expertise.

There are approximately 10,000 Superchillers and C02 systems already in use, according to Hoshizaki.

Superchillers enable multiple chilled soft drinks to be distributed through the one unit and are the system of choice for beverage customers such as CocaCola Amatil, Pepsi and Schweppes, fast food and convenience outlets including Hungry Jacks and On The Run as well as entertainment venues.

“We occupy a really important niche in the drinks business in Australia and we in fact export through New Zealand, the Philippines, up through Asia,” explained Joe Thorp, the company’s managing director.

By their estimates, their Beverley factory ships “approximately one million order lines a year”.

“We have a superior product with technology and performance that matches the needs of our customers, it’s high-volume carbonation that’s designed to operate in high ambient temperatures,” said Thorp.

The company’s beverage – beer and soft drink – dispensing, ice and refrigeration systems are used in fitouts at stadiums (or stadia, if you prefer) all over the world. They are the major soft drink equipment platform for “on-premise, fast food restaurants, cinema and convenience store outlets.”

Within Australia, it is an exclusive supplier to Coca-Cola Amatil and Asahi Schweppes/Pepsi, with other clients including CUB and Lion, McDonald’s and ANZ Stadium in Sydney.

Thorp credits their success to listening to their customers’ needs, using these to drive product development.

“We work very, very closely with manmonthly.com.au

our customer base,” he said.

“We’ve formed quite deep, enduring relationships with our customers and we ensure that we’re right on top of their needs and we can work on the innovation pipeline to meet their needs over the long-term.”

The Endeavours panel decided that Lancer “demonstrated excellent technical skills as it reengineered its Superchiller and CO2 regulator to reduce energy consumption and cost while improving reliability.”

The company’s new Soft Drink Superchiller (and its C02 regulator) saw them take a product that was already successful and improve it significantly. In the past 12 months, Hoshizaki Lancer has re-engineered the Superchiller and the CO2 regulator assembly to significantly reduce energy consumption and cost while improving reliability.

The chiller got a major revamp, with energy consumption taken down by 34 per cent and price by 15 per cent. The highest field failure case was decreased from 9 per cent to nothing.

The machines’ regulator was tweaked so that savings of 35 per

The Australian Consumer/Trade Product of the Year Award was won by Hoshizaki Lancer for the Lancer Soft Drink Superchiller. The award was presented to Joe Thorp, Managing Director of Hoshizaki Lancer, by Kevin Gomez, Cirrus Media (right).

Judges’ Comments “Hoshizaki Lancer demonstrated excellent technical skills as it reengineered its Superchiller and CO2 regulator to reduce energy consumption and cost while improving reliability.” cent were achieved, and failure rates reduced from two to zero per cent.

When quizzed on whether or not Australian companies could be successful overseas, Thorp said, “I don’t see any reason why not.

“It’s true the costs are high here, but you’ve got to make sure that you’re competing in areas where you can add

Joe Thorp, Managing Director of Hoshizaki Lancer up on the podium. high value or your niche, and you can really add value to your customers’ needs.”

To local businesses, he suggested that high-value, specialisated products were what they should try and provide.

Staying at home and trying to be all things to all people was a recipe for failure, according to Thorp.

“I think the thing for Australian

manufacturers to focus on, which is what we’ve tried to do, is to try to be really, really good at something that’s got a global demand, rather than try and do a little bit of everything for a small domestic market,” he said.

Hoshizaki Lancer 08 8268 1388 www.lancerbeverage.com Manufacturers’ Monthly JUNE 2014 39

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InsiderSERIES FTAs - good or bad news?

In theory Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) result in a win-win for both countries involved.

But it seems politicians are far more excited about them than industry.

Alan Johnson reports.

T

ONY Abbott and his team made a lot of noise recently about the signing of FTAs (Free Trade Agreements) with Japan and South Korea. But are they such good news for manufacturers? And then there’s the proposed FTA with China - how will that work?

It all sounds good on paper, but our car industry’s experience with Australia’s FTA with Thailand should send warning bells to exporters to these countries.

While Thailand does reciprocate in having no import tariff on Australian-built cars, our vehicles attract an engine size duty, which for our vehicles can be as high as 80%.

Other countries use other slightly more subtle ways to keep foreign cars out. For example, while Japan has a 10% tariff and a 5% consumer tax on imported cars, the country has numerous technical roadblocks that make it virtually impossible for foreign cars to get regulatory approval for Japanese cars.

It’s a similar story in South Korea.

40 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

While Australian cars face a 10% tariff, there is also an arduous registration process to get through, and then there is an unwritten rule that says the new owner will be subjected to a tax audit.

It’s all academic now, with the Australian car industry set for the history books. But it offers an insight into the extremes some foreign countries go to protect their industries.

In another ironic twist comes the news that General Motors’ operation in South Korea is likely to start making Holden vehicles for the Australian market once Holden stops domestic car manufacturing here.

General Motors’ new international operations chief Stefan Jacoby told reporters recently that there is a “good likelihood” South Korea will ship more cars to Australia.

He pointed to Australia’s FTA with South Korea as a factor in the decision, as it will cut tariffs even further on Korean cars coming into the country.

The FTA with South Korea, which

is still to be signed, highlights the difference between industry winners and losers.

The proposed agreement will see tariffs on beef of 40% to 72% and a 35% tariff on white sugar phased out over 15 years. Other positives for the food industry include the phasing out over three years of the 500% plus

“

We were hoping there would be more for us in the FTA Rakesh Aggarwal, Longwary Food Park.

tarrif on Bluefin tuna. And the 300% trade barrier on chipping potatoes will be lifted immediately, along with the 15% tarrif on Australian wine.

However rice and honey were excluded from the deal, with the Australian

honey industry continuing to face tariffs of up to 250% as a result.

Manufacturers say The headlines suggest everyone is happy with the FTA agreements, but talking to Australian manufacturers that is obviously not the case.

Nicole Allmann, operations manager with horse safety stirrup manufacturer SmartRider, is very wary of FTAs. “While I agree with the FTA concept, I still believe the agreements have damaged Australia’s manufacturing industry,” she told Manufacturers’ Monthly.

Allmann explained that the company designs, develops and manufactures horse safety stirrups, with around 40% of its Breakaway stirrups exported around the world.

“While products coming out of China used to be of a poor standard, today the quality is right up there.

“I’m not looking forward to a FTA with China. With the cost of manufacturing here in Australia, it is manmonthly.com.au

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very difficult to compete with Asia,” she said.

Brent Baxter, director of Baxter Laboratories, a leading TGA licensed developer and manufacturer (OEM) of pharmaceutical, sun care and skin care products, is also not convinced of FTAs merits.

“Basically if you can’t compete now then having a FTA will probably mean you can’t compete then.”

He explained that Baxter Laboratories exports a high number of its products all around the world, but has a strong reputation as an Australian company trading in Asia, with a branch office in Hong Kong.

“If a FTA with China does go ahead, that’s fantastic, but we are not letting that dictate what we do in regards to marketing and growing the business into those markets.

Tony Abbott has made it clear he is expecting to sign an FTA with China by year’s end, yet some hurdles remain. China is pushing for Australia to allow Chinese workers to come to Australia to work on projects backed

by Chinese investors. However, the Australian Government is resisting the demand.

The government could potentially avoid the problem by targeting 457

demands from customs...,” Willox told Manufacturers’ Monthly.

“Australian industry doesn’t always compete against other companies. We also compete against countries. So excuse industry’s wariness – even often from those sectors who logic tells you will be big winners.”

If negotiated properly, a comprehensive FTA would not only promote trade and investment but also advance economic engagement with China, which is now Australia’s leading trading partner. Dominated by minerals and resources, 31% of our exports go to China, while 18% of our imports are from there.

Increasingly, even without an FTA, China is also playing the major role in terms of Australian business activity. Only the US outranks China as the major destination for Australian

in international supply chains and China figures large in the majority of these,” Willox said.

“Many of the manufactures imported from China are components for goods ultimately produced in Australia. For a ready supply of components, fast, easy and cost-effective procedures are needed at the export end, as much as at the receiving end.

“Business services, transport and logistics also play important roles in supply chains. The FTA must progress and foster the interests of the variety of industries contributing Australian value-added along global supply chains.”

With the abolition of tariffs, many Chinese imports will become 5% cheaper in the domestic market and further challenge the competitiveness of locally produced goods. For

visas towards projects that the Chinese want to build that require skills that cannot be obtained in Australia.

Therefore, the workers could be accommodated under existing visa arrangements.

The other main obstacle has been the Foreign Investment Review Board. China will probably receive the same offer as Japan and South Korea, where the FIRB threshold will rise from $248m to $1bn for investment by a private company.

Innes Willox, Chief Executive Australian Industry Group, compares FTAs with mine fields; saying they can be a risky business.

“The touted free trade nirvana with our partners never eventuates due to a myriad of behind-the-border barriers and protectionist measures including subsidies, licensing changes, regulatory amendments, and

businesses operating overseas. This includes exporters of manufactured goods and services suppliers. Surveys show the majority of Australian international businesses intend to increase their future involvement with China.

“Agriculture and agri-business will clearly be the biggest potential winners from any FTA. China’s growing middle class with its changing diets and habits will ensure that. The astounding growth in New Zealand’s agricultural access to China markets since its FTA was signed shows how that sector can benefit,” Willox said.

But Willox points out a wellnegotiated FTA should go beyond the agricultural sector and secure benefits for the full range of Australian industry.

“Around a quarter of Australian international businesses are involved

businesses operating on an already small margin, this will mean further potential erosion of their local market.

Willox said, if not negotiated with sensitivity, the FTA could spell the end for many Australian businesses already stretched by Australia’s high costs.

“The abolition of tariffs should not be too fast, giving business time to adapt and transform their products and processes. Abolition of tariffs should be progressive, in particular in the more sensitive sectors of our national economy.”

[Alan Johnson is Manufacturers’ Monthly’s former editor. He has researched and written about all aspects of the Australian manufacturing sector for more than 25 years.]

market for us, but in recent times we are getting more and more price disadvantage with the American producers, after Japan and the US came to a trade agreement.

“We don’t expect this FTA to reverse this trend; it hasn’t done much for the dairy industry at all,” Aggarwal said.

A China FTA

Stats: DFAT “We also export to the US, but the FTA with them made little difference,” Baxter told Manufacturers’ Monthly.

While the FTA with Japan pleased the cattle, wine and seafood industries, it’s not the case with Australia’s dairy industry.

Rakesh Aggarwal, MD of Longwary Food Park based in the Gippsland region of Victoria, said the FTA with Japan does not auger well for Australia’s dairy industry.

“We were hoping there would be more for us in the FTA,” Aggarwal said.

Longwary Food Park, which converts fresh milk from the region into various dairy products, exports over 80% of its products to over 30 different countries, with a strong focus on the Asian region.

“Japan has always been a good manmonthly.com.au

Manufacturers’ Monthly JUNE 2014 41

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PlantMAINTENANCE How to organise your maintenance regime They say there are two certainties in life, death and taxes.

Manufacturers can add a third item to the list – machinery breakdown. Matt McDonald looks at how to handle that third dreaded certainty.

M

acHinery is an essential part of most manufacturing operations. Put simply, when your machines break down your production grinds to an abrupt halt.

So it’s important to keep on top of plant and machinery maintenance.

What’s more, it’s important to be able to anticipate problems before they happen; and it’s important to plan for them – both in practical terms and financial terms.

How can manufacturers manage the upkeep and maintenance of their plant and machinery? according to Steve ninnes General M A 1of0MeX, 1 3 _they 0 4 have 2 _ G RA Manager two options.

Firstly, they can rely on the thoroughness of their own people to develop procedures and maintain an in-house maintenance regime. “...They may have their own system which is made of excel spreadsheets mainly,” ninnes told Manufacturers’ Monthly.

Or, alternatively, manufactures can invest in a computerized maintenance management system member of the MeX Suite, MeX v14 (cMMS). This is a software package is the next generation of the MeX designed to help keep track of the cMMS and is now fully browser upkeep of assets and its associated costs, with the goal of prolonging their based.

1working 2 0 1life.

3 - 0 9 - 2 3 T1 1 : 0 8 : 0 9 + 0 : 0 0 include an asset its1features register for the entire company; manninnes explained that the latest

MEX delivers functionality for the management of all maintenance and inventory needs. agement of requests, work orders, preventative maintenance plans, inspections and history; recording of readings and invoices; a comprehensive inventory management system; and management of the entire requi-

Send your part, see the mark Scan barcode to see video demonstration

42 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

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sition and purchasing process. according to ninnes, such a system is the way to go for any company which doesn’t have the above-mentioned in-house excel set-up and the diligent staff to go with it.

He said that cMMS can help “to save money... to save time...to make the place work safer. it’s to provide better service to the people who use the equipment ... it’s very simple.” “a manufacturer with good maintenance will have better up time, greater reliability, produce more, and i could list about 100 different benefits,” he added.

When asked if a cMMS is easy to integrate into a business, ninnes answered, “That comes down to personnel more than anything else. Do people want to use it? Do they understand why they’re using it? all that sort of thing.”

But he added that, all else being equal, he has had systems up and running for customers in as little as two hours. in addition, he said that MeX systems are suitable for businesses of all sizes.

“We’ve got single man operations using it, through to operations that may have over a thousand users. They’ve got 20 sites and they all work off a central database from around the world...multiple languages, etc.,” he said. asked what other considerations (apart from cMMS) are needed in a maintenance plan, ninnes answered that manufacturers need to ask themselves – “What’s the aim of maintenance in the operation? What does the business want out of it?” and the answer to those questions, he says, is generally “reliability, plan up time, things that don’t fail every three hours...and consistency.”

He points out that MeX v14 involves not only a standard PM program but also analysis functionality. Using this, a business could find that, while it does services just once a month, its machine fails once a week. So it can look at what is causing the problems and make the appropriate changes to its maintenance plan.

“So i think the thing is a maintenance plan is never set in stone. if you are switched on, you are always looking at making little changes,” ninnes explained.

The other important thing about

a cMMS, he added, is the request system.

“The guys on the shop floor use the gear. They know how it works. They know what’s good and what’s bad. and they want changes made. So you need the maintenance system to also handle all of those request ideas that come through in an efficient manner because they will get heaps of them every day.” a business which runs a cMMS has the capacity to log and deal with requests from the factory floor. Forum type communication can be opened and that communication can be recorded online in an efficient manner. “it’s basically a communication cycle, saying ‘yes we can do it, no we

“

manmonthly.com.au

...a maintenance plan is never set in stone. if you are switched on, you are always looking at making little changes - Steve ninnes. can’t or give me further explanation’,” ninnes explained. in a similar vein, the planning and implementation of other important maintenance functions are made easy for businesses employing a cMMS. “There’s the spare parts inventory, there’s purchasing, there’s the damage that’s done to equipment...and a lot of these things are handled by our system,” ninnes concluded.

So these are the options. Get a cMMS, rely on your diligent workforce armed with their spreadsheets, or hope and pray that your machinery just doesn’t break down.

[Matt McDonald, a Manufacturers’ Monthly journalist, writes on a broad range of topics. His special interests include Safety and Industrial Relations. Contact him at google.com/+MattMcDonald28] MEX 07 3392 4777 www.mex.com.au Manufacturers’ Monthly JUNE 2014 43

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REGIONALMANUFACTURING regional manufacturers learning together Companies in regional Victoria are benefiting from the group interaction facilitated by the High performance Consortium.

Hartley Henderson writes.

A

not-for-profit organisation, the High performance Consortium LtD (HpC) enables non-competing enterprises to work together to improve productivity and remain competitive through sharing best practice and applying lean manufacturing principles.

AME Systems in the Victorian town of Ararat produces electrical wiring harnesses and power and signal distribution systems for a range of applications including for heavy transport, automobiles, military equipment, marine craft, and aircraft. the company employs some 250 people and has been involved with HpC for about 10 years.

According to general manager, Dean pinniger, substantial benefits continue to flow from involvement with HpC. “there is a strong mentoring value through peer-to-peer contact by opening up a network of diverse businesses that are often dealing with the same problems and striving for continuous improvement. Benefits can be provided to a wide range of participants – from company startups to assisting the sustainability of established businesses,” he told Manufacturers’ Monthly.

“A forum for sharing information amongst like-minded people is provided and accountability is developed within the HpC group through the requirement for feedback to the group.”

AME Systems has undertaken a major factory realignment that is progressing in several stages and which pinniger says is aimed at ensuring that the company remains capable, reliable and sustainable. “this realignment is designed to provide a better work flow through the creation of reconfigured work areas including cutting and battery 44 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

sorting/pre-blocking/kitting, preassembly, and new clearly defined assembly areas.

“A new prototype and proving area has also been introduced with the ability to fully document and time the process so that operators will have accurate information and clear expectations when building harnesses.

“We have a focus on taking cost out of the business through removing waste and activities that do not add value, while at the same time retaining quality and reliability, and making a dollar to invest back into the business,” he explained.

“Key thrusts include incorporating the latest technology into the system, including Komax and Schleuniger machines from Switzerland for cutting and stripping cables, as well as advanced machines for cable twisting, and sonic welding equip-

“

Agricultural seeding machines manufactured by A F Gason operate with outstanding precision by utilising GPS technology. pinniger emphasises that a critical factor in enabling the company to compete in the global marketplace is the ability to build high quality products on short lead times, and in low volumes when required. “this also means that we need to ensure adequate stock is held and

A forum for sharing information amongst like-minded people is provided...

- Dean pinniger. ment. Such initiatives have resulted in substantial improvements in productivity.

“Some 20,000 to 30,000 circuits are cut per day utilising very complex processes, so smart product tracking bar code systems have been developed in-house and installed to replace manual processes. there is an electronic eye over the system that reads the bar codes and determines the process steps required. “previously, process flow had been disjointed, but now lead time in supplying to customers has been reduced by around 50 percent.”

that the over 8,000 products used in the plant are effectively sourced at the right price and quality level. Although about 80 percent of the items we use are Australian purchased, we need to keep a close watch on the exchange rate and commodity prices, especially for copper,” he said.

Diversification strategy founded in 1945 at Ararat as a one man motor trimming business, A f Gason pty Ltd today is a world class designer and manufacturer of broad acre agricultural machinery with a highly skilled workforce of some 130

people, including a team of design engineers. recognising the fluctuations that occur in the agricultural sector, through acquisitions the company has entered new markets by diversifying its product range to include domestic heaters, and large scale mowers and slashers. the farm machinery, heating and mowing ranges are distributed through an extensive network of over 400 dealers throughout Australia. in addition, Gason has further diversified by offering industrial services such as laser cutting, powder coating, welding and assembly to a wide range of industry sectors in major capital cities and other regional areas.

Gason’s Managing Director, terry pye, says diversification is an ongoing key focus of the company, particularly because agriculture is affected by a range of challenges including drought, pestilence, grain prices and exchange rates. “Currently, agricultural machinery now accounts for 46 percent of our total production, while heaters and sub-contracting of services, such as laser cutting, account for 37 and 17 percent respectively,” he told Manufacturers’ Monthly. “in relation to the production of manmonthly.com.au

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agricultural equipment and mowers and slashers, we research customer needs and then purpose-develop products to meet modern use practices including machines that are capable of placing seeds with outstanding precision by utilising GpS technology.

“We are faced with huge competition from imports, especially from Canada and China, so in our marketing we place a lot of emphasis on customer service and the quality, reliability and longevity of our Australian made products. “in manufacturing our products, we employ large state-of-the-art laser cutting equipment and robotic welders to increase efficiency and improve safety.” terry pye points out that an important challenge for the company into the future is to be continually alert to new emerging technologies. “the biggest challenge that i see is the emergence of 3D printing or Additive Manufacturing as it is M A 0 6known.

1 4 _ this 0 0 0technology _ A S S issometimes currently in its infancy, particularly

further improving productivity and performance.”

Introduction of the latest technology at AME Systems has resulted in substantial productivity improvements.

“Closure of the auto industry in the production of metal parts, but could take with it a lot of downit is improving with whole products stream suppliers, which might force rather than just parts being prous to look for new sources of supply duced,” he said.

“Decisions about investing in tech- in some areas of our operation. “the company recently became nology for the long term involve very a member of the HpC and we are challenging considerations. in relaalready seeing the benefits that can tion to 3D printing for example, we flow from group interaction, learning are taking a watch-and-see approach, from other companies, and getting but it’s possible that we could end up 1buying 2 0 digital 1 4 - 0parts 5 - from 0 2 Tsome 1 4 :sup0 4 : 4 employees 1 + 1 0 : at 0 0all levels closely involved in the business with a view to pliers as time passes.

[Hartley Henderson has been a regular contributing writer to Manufacturers’ Monthly for the past eight years, covering industry developments in Victoria and South Australia. Prior to that, he held senior positions in government, semi-government and business enterprises and was National Program Director with the Productivity Promotion Council of Australia].

AME Systems 03 5352 9000 www.amesystems.com.au A F Gason 03 5352 6300 www.gason.com.au HPC 0410 689 815 www.hpc.org.au

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WasteMANAGEMENT Turning trash into treasure Re-using waste from a company’s production process is gaining interest from smart manufacturing companies around the world. Alan Johnson reports.

W

hile the majority of manufacturing processes produce some form of waste that is literally thrown away, there is a growing thought that this material can, and should, be put to a productive and profitable use.

The concept of “by-product synergy” (BPS) is not new, but the practice of taking the waste stream from one production process and using it to make a new product is steadily gaining traction in the manufacturing industry.

Assistant Professor Deishin lee at harvard Business School says productively using waste instead of trashing it can cut costs by reducing disposal fees and opening up additional revenue streams through by-product sales. in her recent working paper “Turning Waste into By-Product” lee shows how it’s possible for companies

to turn their trash into their own treasure.

Using an analytical model, lee outlines how a modern manufacturing plant can use BPS to make any number of new products in order to both reduce its environmental impact and increase profits.

The greatest returns, she says, are realised when a company widens its scope to think strategically to consider waste processing as a jointproduction process. every manufacturing process creates something, be it a table, car tyres, or paint but there are other outputs generated, normally regarded as waste, with the default disposition of these outputs some form of waste disposal. lee says it’s this mindset that needs to change. in the simplest analysis, productively using waste instead of trashing it can cut costs by reducing disposal

Less waste going to landfill is just one positive with BPS. 46 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

fees, with some companies taking that a step further by opening up additional revenue streams through by-product sales.

But according to lee, the greatest returns are realised when a company widens its scope to think strategically to consider it as a joint production process.

Manufacturers, she says, should stop thinking of themselves as just a company that creates a certain product, instead they should think about the resources they have, including raw material resources, and how they can use them to produce as much value as possible. however she admits that in some cases, that might mean, paradoxically, creating more waste, not less, in order to maximise profit.

Developing a BPS lee has developed a model with three scenarios based on the relative value of the original product, the byproduct, cost of waste disposal, and cost of raw materials. in the first scenario, where the by-product is of low value, a company might maximise profit by only turning some of the waste into a new byproduct, while still disposing of some of it through traditional means. in the second scenario, as the value of the by-product increases, it might make more sense to actually increase the production of the company’s primary product in order to increase more “waste.” in that case, even though profits might fall for the primary product as the market becomes saturated, the increased profits from the secondary product would more than compensate for the loss. in addition, the production of more waste might have other beneficial consequences as well. One case study lee examined is a US manufacturer called Cook Composites and Polymers, which produces gel coats

for high-end yachts.

One of the wastes produced in the manufacturing process is styrene, a chemical used to clean moulds between batches, which can also be used to make coating for concrete.

Productively using the styrene waste stream gave the company more degrees of freedom to optimise the now joint production process, creating a win-win situation.

Using the waste stream to make new products doesn’t always create such serendipitous scenarios. A classic example, says lee, are chicken wings.

Years ago, wings were thought of as waste, processed into any manner of lesser quality chicken products.

When buffalo wings began appearing at every US football game tailgate party, however, wings suddenly became a hot commodity.

Since BPS implies a proportional quantity relationship between products, it becomes more complicated to manage production. Should the demand for breast meat be driving the production of chicken, or should it be the wings?

The third scenario lee considered is where the by-product becomes more profitable than the original product. in that case, an industrial manufacturer might deal with the problem by sourcing virgin material to create more of the secondary product.

Not only does the company reduce costs for the original product by cutting down on waste, but it also gains competitive advantage over other companies for the secondary product that are limited to sourcing virgin material. however, for manufacturers to take advantage of these kinds of savings, and the potential profits of by-product synergy, a company must broaden its focus beyond a marketdriven managerial approach that only takes it cues from what customers manmonthly.com.au

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want, and also look at what the company is well-positioned to produce. lee says if manufacturers look at everything as market-driven, it’s very unlikely they’ll get to operational synergies that fully leverage natural resources and capabilities within the company.

They need to ask what are their

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resources, including raw material, labour, and capital, and how can they organise it to maximise the value they create? Merging this with the market perspective can then be very powerful, lee said.

Lee’s paper can be found at http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_ id=1337751

Recycling equipment APPlieD Machinery has available a range of recycling equipment from Genox Recycling Technologies.

The equipment offered ranges from stand-alone shredder or granulator units, through to complete turn-key systems for size reduction, washing and separating of contaminated plastics and other materials.

Over the past few years Genox has developed an extensive range of technically advanced machinery for waste materials processing which can be categorised into three specific areas: Plastics – including rigid or hard bottles, plastic film and general plastics; e-waste – including printers & toner cartridges, cables, computers and hard discs; and thirdly - scrap metal.

For plastics processing, the range is made up of single shaft shredders, twin shaft shredders, granulators, washing tanks and dewatering centrifuges.

When it comes to e-waste, copper cable, UBCs etc., the range includes shear shredders, heavy duty granulators, vertical crushers (densifiers), eddy current separators and various types of air separation systems.

David Macdonald, General Manager of Applied Machinery, said the company recently installed a copper cable recycling system where plastic coated electrical/communication cable is shredded, granulated and then the plastic is removed from the copper (or aluminium) via a density separation system.

“The customer reported extremely good results with the copper exiting the system having up to 99.5% purity. The value adding to the copper has far outweighed

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The recycling equipment can be customised to suit the requirements of customers. the cost out-lay of the equipment,” Macdonald said.

Another company, RPM Pipes based in regional Victoria, installed a Genox shredder in combination with an on-site generator to overcome the lack of power.

“Since installation, the equipment has been successfully running and has allowed on-site shredding of drums and wheelie bin to provide costs saving to the existing recycling facilities.”

Macdonald said other customers will use a shredder to cut down bulky items such as pipes and large offcuts for easier packing.

The company also gives customers the option of adding separators to their line in order to minimise waste and maximise return.

“When shredding cable for example, this allows for separation of the valuable metal components which can be on-sold to metal recyclers, whilst the plastic can be transferred to a recycling facility for a new life as a recycled product,” he said.

Applied Machinery 03 9706 8066 www.appliedmachinery.com.au

Manufacturers’ Monthly JUNE 2014 47

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Materials HANDLING The latest in forklifts, stackers and loaders In the world of forklifts, stacker, loaders and lifters there haven’t been any groundbreaking changes in recent times. Yet incremental changes, upgrades and improvements are happening.

The latest products are becoming more specialised and promising extra efficiencies.

Here is a collection of some of the latest offerings - everything from the latest large counter-balance internal-combustion forklifts to a new bin handling trolley.

Improvements have also been made in fuel and work efficiency

Palletising robot for sub zero temperatures KUKA Robotics Australia announces the release of a newly enhanced range of palletising robots designed to function in sub-zero temperatures.

The new KR Quantec PA arctic is a cold-resistant adaptation of the service-proven standard palletising robots from the KR Quantec series.

The palletising robot does not require a protective suit and can work in freezing temperatures. The palletising robot’s immunity to cold temperatures right down to -30°C makes it ideal for the food industry.

Key features include a reach of 3,195mm, short cycle times, high flexibility, extreme precision in stacking and setting down, and choice of three payload variants: 120kg, 180kg and 240kg.

The user can save on costs with no need for a protective suit for the robot and also eliminate the risk of bacteria development.

Kuka Robotics Australia 03 9939 9656 www.kuka-robotics.com

The palletising robot comes in a choice of three payloads.

Large counter-balance internalcombustion forklifts Toyota Material Handling Australia has launched a comprehensive range of counter-balance internal-combustion forklifts from 3.5 to 8-tonne payload.

The launch of the new 8-Series models means Toyota’s forklift safety and ergonomic features are offered with all its internal-combustion forklifts, from 1 through to 8-tonne capacity.

Improvements have also been made in fuel and work efficiency, reduced emissions, durability and reliability, operability and operator comfort, and visibility from the operator’s seat.

The new 8-Series range now includes 3500kg to 8000kg pneumatic-tyre models with the choice of LPG, dual-fuel or diesel, as well as a compact cushion-tyre range

of LPG-fuel models with 3500kg to 7000kg capacities.

Highlights of the range include a new 65kW electronic fuel injection-equipped 3.7-litre LPG engine offering fuel savings of up to 20 per cent compared with the superseded model.

The rear combination lamps are longlife/low power use LED type, and mounted high on the overhead guard for protection.

The steering system now has an active synchroniser, so the angle of the steering wheel always corresponds to the angle of the steered rear wheels.

Toyota Material Handling Australia 1800 425 438 www.toyotamaterialhandling.com.au

Articulated site forklifts The Manitou Group has launched its EMA II range of articulated site forklifts which are aimed at the industrial market.

Including seven models, the range is said to combine ease of use with efficiency and to optimise storage capacity.

Versatile and compact, the articulated electric site forklifts can be used both indoors for storage and outdoors to 48 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

unload trucks. The buyer can therefore avoid two separate load manipulations and reduce handling costs.

They have a working height of up to 12.7m and, thanks to their pallet lift with mast articulation, they can work in very narrow lanes which are less than 2.3m wide.

The forklifts feature an ergonomic driver’s compartment - the cab can be adapted for

different operators and there is an adjustable seat and steering column.

Further features include a speed limitation function at great heights, automatic cut-off when the operator exits the cab, a slope-start switch and easy rear battery change.

Manitou group (02) 9517 3174 www.manitou-group.com

By reducing the width of their lanes, they can increase their vertical storage capacity by 45%.

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Electric bin handling trolley WheelieSafe has released a heavy-duty version of the WheelieSafe Electric Bin Handling Trolley.

The HD Electric is an addition to the company’s line-up of three manual bin trolleys and one electric version.

The existing electric model is powered by dual 24-volt 180w electric motors. It has 2 x 12v 7.6ah deep cycle batteries, which deliver almost an hour of continuous operation at full power.

It is designed to move heavy bins uphill free

of the OHS risk associated with taking the tilt load and pushing the bin at the same time.

It also facilitates the movement of large numbers of bins - the trolley can handle up to three bins at a time.

The new model will have two battery sets, which will extend the time between charging considerably.

The main battery set in the new HD electric is made up of 2 x 12v 15ah deep cycle batteries

and the back-up set is 2 x 12v 7.6ah batteries.

Together, the two battery sets will deliver two and a half hours of continuous running at full power. It will also handle up to four bins at once.

Designed to move heavy bins uphill free of OHS risk.

WheelieSafe 1300 758 841 www.wheeliesafe.com.au

Pedestrian reach stacker

The stacker has an ergonomic handle.

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Lencrow has released its second generation pedestrian reach stacker. Designed for small to medium business, it only requires the operator to be instructed in operation and safe use. Operator licensing is not necessary.

The stacker includes proportionate hydraulics for lift and reach, as well as a new more ergonomic handle. According to the company, further features include safety rubber bumper for operator safety, improved reliability and easy maintenance.

The unit’s AC operation offers long duty cycles between 2 0 1charging 4 - 0 5 - 0 6 TTherefore 1 5 : 1the 0 units : 4 4have + 1a 0good : 0carbon 0 batteries. footprint. Charging has been improved with the use of

automatic chargers that gauge the battery condition while charging.

Plus, the addition of single point watering with water gun mean that battery maintenance is made easy.

The stackers are available in lift heights to 5500mm and with two capacities, 1500kg and 2000kg. They come with power steering and side shift.

Lencrow Materials Handling 1300 245 993 www.lencrowgroup.com.au

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WomenIN INDUSTRY AWARDS Introducing our 2014 sponsors

T

HE 2014 Women in Industry Awards recognises and rewards the achievements of women working within the mining, engineering,

manufacturing and process control industries. It aims to raise the profile of women within industry, as well as promote and encourage excellence.

Excellence in Mining Award Mining Machinery Developments (MMD) designs and manufactures mineral sizing (crushing) equipment and services to the mining, metallurgical, industrial minerals, alumina and other industries.

The core products; mineral sizers (crushers) and feeders offer a solution to problems such as variable ore properties, product requirements, site conditions and environmental issues.

Founded in 1978, to design and manufacture equipment for the UK underground coal mining industry, today MMD size over 60 different minerals worldwide, in many varied process industries.

MMD Sizing equipment is available for surface or underground installations, stationary or mobile, and for climatic conditions ranging from arctic to tropical.

The MMD sizer range

now includes, primary, secondary and tertiary sizers for wet and dry processing of metallic and non-metallic minerals for mining, industrial minerals and quarrying industries.

The latest range of MMD mobile sizers have the ability to offer mine operators unprecedented levels of productivity, and therefore very low operating costs per tonne.

These energy efficient electrically driven “Green Mining Solutions” are all designed to assist mining companies to achieve the double bottom line of being both economic and environmentally friendly.

MMD Australia is an equal opportunity employer, encouraging women to join not only the mining industry but the varied industry sectors in Australia and abroad.

MMD Australia 07 3112 2640 www.mmdsizers.com

The accomplishments of these women will be recognised at an event to be held in Sydney on Wednesday, June 25.

Employer of the Year Award Since 1984, NLT’s mission has been to continually develop and deploy the most advanced technologies to make mines safer and more efficient.

Known globally for its award-winning cap lamp technology, the company has directed the same passion, commitment and understanding into the design of its underground communication solutions.

Northern Light Technologies (NLT) provides one of the most comprehensive offerings of network-based mining communication solutions available today. Its open standards approach allows you to integrate existing and new communication technologies while removing the risk of becoming locked into a single platform.

Choose from a wide range of best-in-class monitoring applications including, Geotechnical, Proximity, Environmental and Airflow, with the ability to deploy solutions in any order and at a pace that matches your mines objectives.

In addition to being the first company to introduce Wi-Fi networks to underground coal mines, many of the largest and most reputable mining companies in the world rely on NLT Mining Networks communication solutions.

NLT is a turn-key partner in the design, manufacture, deployment, and support of scalable communication technologies that will change the way your mine communicates, collaborates and operates.

Northern Light Technologies 07 5495 2944 www.nltinc.com

Excellence in Engineering Award Automation Direct is a direct seller of automation and industrial control products such as PLCs, sensors, AC drives/motors, operator interfaces, pneumatics and process control products.

Through its free DVD catalogue and full-featured website, the company is able to offer the most practical industrial automation products.

Automation Direct follows that up with an efficient organisation that ships in-stock products the day you order them and then provides technical support that has been the leader in the industry. Customers have made the switch to Automation Direct because of their prices, products, service and helpful attitude.

The company’s history goes back over 48 years in the

50 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

industrial controls market starting as B.I Systems Pty Ltd and now Automation Direct. It has quickly grown from a tiny PLC company to a well-recognised name in the industrial automation market.

As the first industrial controls company to successfully use a DVD catalogue for PLC products, Automation Direct is now using its e-commerce site, in addition to its 1-800 number, to reach the next plateau in industrial control sales.

Automation Direct 1800 633 040 www.automationdirect.com.au

Rising Star Award QMI Solutions has a strong history at the forefront of industry in Australia and has much to be proud of since its foundation in 1993.

QMI Solutions played an intrinsic part in the successful introduction of 3D Printing to Australia. The company had the vision to ensure this ground breaking technology would not only be adopted but would dramatically change the capability of businesses in a number of industries.

QMI Solutions is the only company in Australia to have an Incremental Sheet Forming (ISF) machine. And stereolithography, water-jet cutting and laser sintering are just some of the many other techniques the firm has been involved in.

Thought leadership has won the company the respect of governments and academic institutions Australiawide and the company continues to encourage industries to adopt new technologies.

However, the company understands industries also need to improve productivity, reduce waste, identify new markets, innovate and, most importantly, engage and up-skill their staff. As such, it provides a complete service to address these needs and support business at all levels and stages of their development.

As an equal opportunity employer, QMI Solutions looks to encourage everyone involved in industry to find ways of reaching their full potential and is a proud supporter of the Women in Industry Awards for 2014.

QMI Solutions 07 3364 0700 qmisolutions.com.au

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Motors& DRIVES Driving down costs Suppliers are responding to market pressures with efficient, cost-effective motor and drive systems.

By Sarah Falson.

A

S Australian manufacturing markets continue to consolidate and businesses face increasing pressure to compete globally, many are turning to equipment and systems to help sustain their output.

‘Efficiency’ is the buzzword of the decade, and suppliers are following suit by developing new technology in areas such as motors and drives to help customers make the most of their assets and ease their bottom lines.

For Bonfiglioli Transmission Australia managing director, Malcolm Lewis, motor and drive suppliers today must offer equipment and systems at extremely competitive prices, allowing customers to compete not only in their local markets, but also abroad.

“Due to the continuing strength of the Australian dollar, together with the high cost of labour, exports remain difficult for Australian manufacturers,” Lewis told Manufacturers’ Monthly.

“A price-competitive package of motor, drive, and often an electronic inverter, are important for manufacturers at a time when the Australian market is flat; a competitive package available ex-stock is essential if they MA 0 2 1 4 _ 0 0 0 _ D A T 1 are to compete favourably.”

“

can simply hang from the shaft of the machine with a simple torque arm restraint. For continuous applications, there is also a trend towards more efficient gearmotors like helical and helical bevel instead of worm which remain a cheaper option but less efficient,” he explained.

Bonfiglioli is currently selling gearboxes and gearmotors to customers in a wide range of sectors – many of these for use in materials handling applications.

“Bonfiglioli gear drives are popular due to our ability to provide customers with swift technical selecAccording to Lewis, Bonfigltions and specifications, followed up ioli has experienced a rise in sales of by local assembly, and hence quick shaft-mounted gearmotors, allowing deliveries from the 12 million dollars manufacturers to save on costs associof local stock we have invested in,” ated with fabricating a pedestal for Lewis said. the in-line gearmotor and a guard for “We have made a big investment the chain drive, which are required for foot-mounted models with chain drives. in the heavy-duty gearboxes in both 2 0 1 4 - 0 1 - 0 7 T1 5 : 4 1 : 3 1 + 1 1 : 0 0 helical and planetary type. These “The shaft-mounted gearmotor can be used individually, or in a combined form, for very low-speed applications like feeders, and are WHEN YOUR SYSTEM LETS YOU DOWN suitable for industries such as steel, aluminium, grain, quarrying, cement, Control Systems — When you need an upgrade and / or retrofit ... sugar and mining.”

In Cerra’s experience, the food and beverage, and warehousing and logistics sectors are among the fastest to adopt new motor and drive technologies.

Servo and VS Drives — When you need repairs and / or retrofits ...

Computer Touch Screen Panels — When you need repairs and / or retroPLC Programming and Documentation For fast, professional service; we work with all major brands; Siemens, Allen Bradley, ABB, Emerson (Unidrive and Unidrive SP, Mentor), Mitsubishi, Panasonic, Bosch and many others.

Call now: 03 9874 7737 ww.datafactory.com.au 52 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

Local support NORD Drivesystems AU regional sales manager, Tony Sculpher, claims the high Australian dollar combined with the relatively high cost of labour in this country continue to push manufacturing offshore. However, sourcing equipment from overseas can be problematic, he warns.

“Decision-makers are working

A combination helical-planetary drive that combines HD helical drives assembled in Australia with Bonfiglioli’s compact and widely-used Trasmital planetary drives. harder to research their projects, and they have direct access to overseas manufacturers – especially in Asia.

The issue they face with sourcing overseas is that there may be non-compliance of components, for example electric motors may not be compliant with the Australian MEPS2 efficiency standard,” he told Manufacturers’ Monthly.

“Correcting this type of issue can be timely and expensive to the project. Many Australian-based component suppliers and original equipment manufacturers are involved in the research, specification and selections for these projects (mostly with no remuneration), but the work is being sourced from a cheaper country, driven purely to save costs.

The downside of overseas manufacture is that the whole project must be continuously monitored or managed by the Australian customer to ensure that the specification is met.

“Some Australian customers simply do not understand the engineering implications involved, and we have seen instances where part or complete machines are rebuilt on arrival to ensure that they will work satisfactory and will offer a better service life. Some purchasers will not support their projects with spares, manmonthly.com.au

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e.

Hyperdriv d Integrate

PLC otor Stepper M nd Driver. a r e ll o tr n Co

Kremford Pty Ltd is an Australian company with a strong background in Marketing, Electronic Engineering, Design and Computer Science.

Our range of imported and locally manufactured products are ideal for Australian standards.

A range of Motors, Ge ar Motors, Ge arboxes an d Speed Red ucers.

Groschopp Inc.

Lexium range of integrated stepping motors and stepping motor drivers.

is a US manufacturer of Drivers and highly engineered fractional horsepower motors, electric motors and gearmotors for OEM and distribution products.

Lexium MDrive (LMD) integrated motion solutions simplify system design by replacing multiple components with one compact product that tightly integrates the motion controller with the motor. Wiring is also reduced, simplifying EMC and improving machine reliability.

www.kremford.com.au 6a Erith Lane Kalorama, 3766 Victoria, Australia Main Telephone: 03 9017 0473

Sales Contact: Kieran Harford Telephone: 0400 830 039 Email: sales@kremford.com.au

Support Contact: Ron Kreymborg Telephone: 0410 448 864 Email: support@kremford.com.au

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Motors & DRIVES Is Australian Manufacturing Doomed?

We don’t think so!

Aussies love to invent Here are 3 examples:

SEW-EURODRIVE’s DRC IE4 efficiency motor consists of a permanent-field synchronous motor with integrated drive electronics. with their total focus being to save money and not focussing on the whole of life costs. Other considerations are the onsite commissioning, warranty support, and ongoing access to spares with locally-based, fast, 24/7 after hours service.”

Efficiency and reliability Black Box

Cochlear Implant

Open Architecture CNC Export hall of famer, ANCA designed Australia’s first CNC 40 years ago. They then invented the open, software based CNC architecture in the 1990s and have been refining it ever since.

Their tool grinders are sold and acclaimed worldwide. The amazing power and flexibility of their CNC is their secret weapon and why they have never considered using a Japanese or German controller.

Flexible to the core Advanced CNC functions Modern, all digital design Local engineering, worldwide support Single motor apps to complex MTs

This world class CNC is now available to OEMs, Machine Tool Builders & Systems Integrators.

ANCA Motion A division of The ANCA Group Australian designed & owned Ph: 03 9751 8900 www.ancamotion.com/cnc

54 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

According to SEW-EURODRIVE engineering manager, Frank Cerra, energy efficiency remains one of the most important factors affecting motor and drive selection, with many manufacturers opting for high-efficiency optimised drives and decentralised systems that incorporate fieldbus controls.

“Energy efficiency is important because of global trends and regulations as well as the benefits of reduced costs,” Cerra told Manufacturers’ Monthly.

In Cerra’s experience, the food and beverage, and warehousing and logistics sectors are some of the most advanced when it comes to adopting new motor and drive technologies.

“This is mainly because they are always looking to improve process efficiencies and streamline modern logistics processes,” he said.

Product innovation ABB Australia Discrete Automation & Motion product manager – high voltage machines, Csaba Szabó, agrees that efficiency is one of the main drivers affecting motor and drive uptake, along with product reliability and simplicity.

“For the petrochemicals industry for example, reliability and proven track records are extremely important,” Szabó explained.

“If the decision-making involves end-users, reduction in operation costs are high on the agenda, as they pay for running costs too – not just capital expenses. The fact that many engineering,

procurement and construction (EPC) companies are implementing energy saving systems is obvious when we see plant designs in which a large portion of small or large motors are operating variable-speed drive (VSD) systems.

“Of course, it is a problem that the electric motors are usually part of the ‘mechanical package’; OEM’s are not necessarily concerned about efficiency, but they try to keep overall cost down.”

For Szabó, electric motors are the ‘workhorse’ of the industry, and therefore vendors must continue to find ways to develop more efficient, user-friendly systems.

“I suspect the need for new innovations is the highest for such industries where they use mainly smaller motors in large quantities, as many industries are getting more ‘motorised’ and/or more ‘automated’.

Just think of electric windows in the car... a higher level of automation cannot be imagined without electric motors which actually will do the (mechanical) work,” he said.

“Further, practically all pump station installations nowadays use VSDs to follow changes in demand and avoid the losses associated with old throttling control...”

Bonfiglioli Transmission Australia 1300 601 320 www.bonfiglioli.com.au NORD Drivesystems 1300 050 347 www4.nord.com SEW-EURODRIVE 1300 331 968 www.sew-eurodrive.com.au ABB Australia 1300 619 118 new.abb.com/au manmonthly.com.au

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What’sNew Full function tablet PC for field applications Backplane Systems Technology has released Ubiqconn’s 7” Ip65 Rugged Tablet pc, the uTablet T70c, designed for field applications.

The Tablet pc meets the MIl-STD-810G rating for shock and vibration and can be dropped from five feet onto plywood on a concrete surface. It is fully sealed against the ingress of liquid and dust damage (Ip65) and has an operating temperature rating of -20°c to +50°c.

The tablet PC meets the MIL-STD-810G The 7” leD backlit screen with integrated 5-wire resistive touch screen features a display rating for shock and vibration. brightness of 400nits with optional 500nits sunlight readable functionality for outdoor applications.

The Tablet pc is based on Intel’s atom n2600 1.6GHz Dual core cpU and includes 2GB of DDR3 SODIM and 32GB of upgradeable SaTa Solid State Disk. The hot-swappable dual batteries offer up to 8 hours of battery life. a 5 mega pixel webcam with an leD light is embedded in the rear bezel and a 2 mega pixel camera with audio input is in the front panel. Seamless communication is available via the onboard GpS or optional 3.5G or 4G Tle modules.

The Tablet’s functionality and user-friendly interface ensure it can meet the requirements of a wide variety of field and vehicle applications.

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Brought to you by

The variable speed drives carry out soft start and precise speed control at protection ratings up to IP66/IP69K.

Intelligent drives for pumps and conveyors

nORD Drivesystems supplies efficient drive units for dynamic speed control and automatic process control in applications that need to be regularly cleaned with high-pressure steam jets.

They are suitable for use in the chemical, pharmaceutical, and food industries.

Developed for strict hygiene requirements and featuring Ip66/Ip69k ingress protection, smooth-surface motors with an integrated frequency inverter, they are available for the Backplane Systems Technology 2 0 1 4 - 0 3 - 1 7 T 1300 1 9 :403 3 866 0 : 0 60.37..1.1 + 1 1 kW : 0performance 0 range. common applications include www.backplane.com.au

conveyors, pumps, mixers, and agitators. Sensor data such as pressure or flow rate values can be directly communicated to the drives, enabling them to automatically adapt to current demand.

The company delivers complete systems parameterised for the customer’s needs and with the required communication interfaces.

NORD Drivesystems 1300 050 347 www.nord.com

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What’sNEW Air operated double diaphragm pump THe Sp100 Series, designed and manufactured in the USa by Tuthill corporation under the brand name Sotera Systems, incorporates several key features, such as the patented QuikSeal threaded ring construction.

The threaded ring is designed for quick-turn access to clear ball checks and replace diaphragms. This design is intended to eliminate the need for multiple fasteners (bolts) on the manifolds and fluid caps, reducing parts and complexity. It has the added benefit of reducing maintenance time by up to 50%. This design also reduces

“pinch points” on the diaphragm resulting in longer diaphragm life.

The QuickFlow air valve features an extremely fast trip-over, resulting in a 67% reduction in pulsation and high smooth flow (up to 17.5 gpm for the ½” model; 57 gpm for the 1” model).

In many applications pulse dampeners can be eliminated making the pumping system less complex and saving money.

The third benefit is a 20% improvement in air efficiency compared to

Optimum air circulation, reduced fogging.

Customisable protective eyewear Honeywell’s adaptec can be worn by a wide range of workers while delivering robust protection, superior comfort, customised adjustability, premium optics, and a stylish look. One style means simplicity of stocking and ordering as well as consistent usage by workers.

Three sizes means the right protection, improved performance and optical clarity for everyone in your workplace. customised fit and performance ensures personalised comfort for each wearer, as well as all-day protection and compliance with safety requirements.

The adjustable nose bridge keeps eyes centred in lens for clearer optics and reduced eye fatigue, while the vented, cushioned frame allows optimum air circulation and reduces fogging.

Ratcheting temple hinges adjust lens angle for greater protection and reduced fogging and the proprietary temple design adjusts temple tension for personal comfort and non-slip security.

Temple inserts slide from front to back for firmer fit, or in opposite direction for looser fit. Soft, flexible material covers frame components for a comfortable, secure fit.

Honeywell Safety Products 1300 273 608 www.honeywellsafety.com 56 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

competitive pumps. less air consumption saves money over the long run.

The pump can be configured in materials compatible with a wide range of chemicals.

Hurll Nu-Way 1300 556 591 www.hnw.com.au

Multiprotocol Ethernet in-cabinet block I/O stations TURck is expanding its line of In-cabinet, Block I/O stations with the addition of the Fen20 I/O stations for Industrial ethernet.

This station incorporates TURck’s Industrial ethernet multiprotocol technology into a fixed, economical, in-cabinet I/O product suitable for applications where digital I/O needs to be elevated to an Industrial ethernet layer such as ethernet/Ip, pROFIneT or Modbus Tcp. This first release in a family of Fen20 I/O stations is available with 16 configurable I/O, with power isolation between I/O zones, an embedded ethernet switch to support a variety of application topologies.

The station can be addressed via an external rotary switch or via a webserver which makes troubleshooting easier, quicker, and more cost effective. The Fen20 supports DHcp, llDp, and includes leDs for status and basic troubleshooting.

TURCK 1300 273 687 www.turck.com.au

The I/O stations support DHCP, LLDP, and includes LEDs for status and basic troubleshooting

Tape and reel discretes element14 has added to its portfolio of tape and reel discretes for electronics design and production over 1,000 of the most essential high-performance transistors, MOSFeTs and diodes from suppliers such as Fairchild, nXp, On Semiconductor and Vishay.

These new ranges for use in electronics manufacturing and design are compatible for use with modern tape-fed placement units ensuring efficient production runs.

In addition to 10,000 passives available in full reel, over 1,000 discretes for ceM and OeM use are available for network and data communications, consumer electronics, power supply and industrial applications. The range includes: Fairchild – single p-channel powerTrench MOSFeTs, with low on-stade resistance, are

designed specifically for battery charge or load switching in ultraportable applications.

NXP – its range of very fast switching n-channel enhancement mode Field-effect Transistors (FeT) are available in a plastic package using Trench MOS technology.

ON Semiconductor – their range of high voltage switching diodes are aec−Q101 Qualified and ppap capable.

Vishay – its surface mount Schottky rectifier is designed for applications requiring low forward drop and very small footprints on pcBs. customers have the flexibility of deciding what quantity they would like on each reel. element14 1300 590 443 au.element14.com

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Brought to you by

Full extended height of 12,800mm and 5000kN lifting capacity over entire stroke.

Mega gantries respond to safety demands a new 5000 kn hydraulic lifting gantry is being introduced by enerpac to deliver industry-best standards of safety and stability when lifting heavy loads to heights exceeding 12 metres.

The MBl5000 lifting gantries - the latest product in the company’s integrated solutions’ portfolio - are engineered to operate in confined areas with roller track self-propulsion reducing the footprint load of the gantry by more than 50 per cent compared with regular steel wheels.

The MBl5000s combine and extend upon product features that enerpac introduced with the SBl series of gantry lifters already widely proven in lifting heavy plant,

machinery and components in applications such as mining and energy developments, oil and gas plants, bridges and civil engineering and ports and infrastructure. according to the company, in order to expand safety factors to previously unachievable levels, enerpac decided to design the gantry to provide the safety and performance standard of the future. all features such as self-propelled tracks and wireless fully controlled synchronisation systems are therefore included as standard.

Enerpac 1300 198 007 www.enerpac.com/en-au

Handheld thermography cameras DeSIGneD to help streamline thermal inspections for intensive electrical, mechanical and utility predictive maintenance programs, the fresh line-up of T-Series cameras includes the updated T420 and T440 with 320x240 thermal resolution, and the feature-rich T620 and T640, both of which offer FlIR’s best handheld thermal detector resolution at 640x480 (307,200) pixels. every model includes the company’s patented The keypad buttons have been MSX, enhancement that highlights thermal images with optimized to make it easier to activate the interface with gloves on. key visible details in real time for easier recognition.

Flexible ergonomics, fast communication from the field and a holistic thermal imaging solution for greater workflow efficiency are key features.

The unique rotating optical block lets users easily aim overhead, under equipment and from other tough angles while keeping the large lcD in comfortable view.

To help reduce fatigue even more, all of the cameras include auto-Orientation which automatically keeps onscreen temperature measurement data upright for easier viewing whether the camera is framed for landscape or portrait imaging.

FLIR Systems Australia 1300 564 230 www.flir.com manmonthly.com.au

Manufacturers’ Monthly JUNE 2014 57

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The lastWORD Closure was not inevitable Former industry minister, Senator Kim Carr, has rubbished the idea that the demise of our car industry was unavoidable. He spoke to Alan Johnson.

T

car industry, than it was to keep it.

“We now spend more money on cows, sheep and goats than we do on the car industry, reflecting the fact that Governments make choices, and those choices are determined by political priorities.

“I see just this week, the government is prepared to rule out changes to the fuel excise bounties, which on an annual basis is at least four times the size of the support for the automotive industry.

“That’s why I say this Government has ‘cockeyed’ priorities.”

HE Abbott Government’s portrayal of General Motors and Toyota as the villains in their decisions to cease manufacturing in Australia has been described by Senator Kim Carr as “fraudulent”.

“I use that word because some people are implying the car companies were not sincere in their negotiations. The inference is that they were lying to us, however the amount of work they put into our 2020 car plan, puts a lie to that,” he told Manufacturers’ Monthly.

Carr explained that just prior to last year’s election, he was having detailed conversations with General Motors and Toyota about new investments.

“We were discussing two new models for GM and two for Toyota.

“The reason we announced a renewed car plan for the 2020s prior to the election was that I knew that the companies would be taking up

“

If I was still industry minister, we would still have a vibrant and exciting car industry in Australia, beyond 2017.

- Kim Carr

the investments if the policy settings were right.”

Instead, Carr says, General Motors and Toyota were hounded out of Australia by the Abbott Government, with their negative comments in December last year.

“You can’t describe international companies and their senior executives as grubby rent seekers and not expect a reaction,” he said.

“The car companies knew they 58 JUNE 2014 Manufacturers’ Monthly

Impact of closure

Senator Carr (right) with John Kotsios, Senior Manager - Manufacturing & Industrial Engineering, at Continental’s manufacturing facilities in Bundoora, Victoria, in April 2014. weren’t welcome here. I don’t rely on my passion for the manufacturing industry; I rely on what the companies actually said both publicly and privately to me.

“If the new government had been serious about keeping our car industry, the announcement that they were going to take $500m out of the co-investment program should have been discussed with them privately.

“They should have gone to Detroit and Nagoya and talked to the principals about their new coinvestment plans.

“If I was still industry minister, we would still have a vibrant and exciting car industry in Australia, beyond 2017,” Carr said.

Trade priorities Carr said the idea of raising the tariffs on imported cars back to

10 or 15% would have made little difference.

“The horse had already bolted.

Plus the tariff issue was dwarfed by the changes in the currency, which was a consequence of the mining boom.”

He said one of the most damaging developments in terms of our trade negotiations was the signing of a free trade agreement with Thailand.

“There is no doubt that some of the free trade policies pursued by the zealots in the trade department were always going to have an adverse impact on manufacturing.

“The idea that we could trade cars for cows was firmly set in the minds of some people in the trade department.”

He said the harsh realities are now dawning on these people, that it’s going to cost us a lot more to lose our

Carr describes the Coalition’s approach to the car industry as an attitude that is born of unreality about how a country’s economic system actually works.

“The government has not taken into account the cost to the budget in terms of social security, which will dwarf any co-investment payments that would have been made under Labor.

“Plus there will be the costs of social dislocation that comes about with the destruction of these industries, and also the economic cost to other industries because of the spill over benefits that come from automotive.

Carr said that while the car industry employs around 50,000 directly, using the normal multiplier of three or four to one, the figure rises to over 200,000.

“Just as the British after Thatcher realised what a terrible mistake had been made, there was a bi-partisan realisation that they needed to rebuild the industry, so will Australia.

It will come to pass.

“There is an inevitability that this country will come to realise what it has lost, and there will be a need to rebuild the capabilities. Labor will do all it can to assist Phoenix to rise from the ashes at the earliest opportunity we have,” Carr said. manmonthly.com.au

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2014-05-07T15:59:32+10:00

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2014-04-10T14:02:20+10:00

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Answers for Industry.