Land Information New Zealand (LINZ) is improving access to property information following a survey ranking it among the most in-demand types of government data, says Land Information Minister Louise Upston.
The findings were included in the results of a LINZ survey published today, which asked New Zealanders about the top 10 datasets they would most like to be able to access.
“With more than 400 survey responses, this high participation confirms the importance of LINZ’s work in encouraging government agencies to release their data,” says Ms Upston.
“The results of the survey have been released to all government agencies to help them to think about the types of data they might release and the best way to go about it.”
Undertaken by the Open Government Data and Information Programme at LINZ, the survey was done to inform understanding of what types of data New Zealanders had an interest in and was promoted through a variety of digital channels including Twitter, social forums and email.
“This new, more direct, way of gathering feedback represents a shift towards encouraging more participation from the public in shaping our public services and what they deliver.”
“Releasing public data to Kiwis will ultimately lead to more efficiency, transparency and accountability,” says Ms Upston.
LINZ makes data it holds available through the LINZ Data Service. This includes property boundaries and title information.
To view the survey results please visit: https://www.ict.govt.nz/guidance-and-resources/open-government/engagement-activities/top-10-datasets-survey/
Source: A press rease out of the Beehive
A new project to enable robots to accurately machine holes in composite aircraft components, is on track to save BAE Systems millions.A research project to enable robots to accurately machine holes in composite aircraft components, has matured into a production system and is on track to save BAE Systems millions of pounds in capital and operational costs over the coming years.
The robotic countersinking technology was developed through collaborative research, led by the AMRC and involving KUKA Systems UK. This production system has now been installed at BAE Systems in the UK, where it will be used to processes a wide range of composite components for military aircraft.
The robotic countersinking technology includes the use of multiple robots to automatically handle composite components and then countersink high tolerance pre-drilled fastener holes.
Non-contact metrology integrated with the machining robot locates predrilled holes and corrects the robot’s position before countersinking. A separate robot provides support to the component eliminating expensive holding fixtures. The system is controlled via the latest S7 Siemens programmable login controller (PLC) and includes the use of augmented reality to aid component fixturing.
Ben Morgan, head of the AMRC’s Integrated Manufacturing Group, said
The architecture of the system will allow the technology to evolve over time and embrace the ideas behind Industry 4.0. We’re now advancing the development system further, enabling process monitoring and generating ‘Big Data’. Analysis of this data, i.e. ‘Data Mining’ will provide an understanding of quality in process.
Source: CompositesToday July 13, 2016
A new workplace health and training centre has opened in Hamilton New Zealand, the first dedicated location in the region.
Vertical Horizonz provided training in the Waikato area since its beginning in 1998, with its services also provided throughout New Zealand, the Middle East, and Australia.
The centre features a large training area, two classrooms, and confined space units to train a wide range of skills including pole and rope rescue, first aid, gas testing, and construction health and safety.
Training Quality general manager Phil Hokianga said the company sought to develop a purpose built training facility in 2018 to further demonstrate what they can do, in a report by Stuff.
“This is just a temporary measure for us. We want to provide training as realistic as we have it to the environment people will be working in,” he said.
Hokianga went on to say that business had increased following changes to New Zealand’s Health and Safety Work Act. The legislation, enforced in April 2015, which heightened responsibility of all levels -from contractors to directors -to enhance the health and safety of their workplace.
More than 17,000 people were trained last year in categories from industrial safety, transport and crane, first aid, professional development, and rural operations.
Source: Logistics&Materials Handling
July 13, 2016 - Air New Zealand has taken out World’s Best Premium Economy Class and World’s Best Premium Economy Class Airline Seat at the prestigious Skytrax World Airline Awards held at the Farnborough Air Show overnight.
July 13, 2016 - The Reserve Bank regularly reviews and refines its monetary policy decision making process to help it better handle economic uncertainty and improve the quality of policy decisions, Assistant Governor John McDermott said today.
In a speech to the Manawatu Chamber of Commerce, Dr McDermott explained the Bank’s process for formulating and assessing monetary policy. The speech does not contain any messages about upcoming monetary policy announcements.
“Each OCR decision and Monetary Policy Statement publication is complex involving many staff from across the Bank. The significant amount of background work reflects the uncertainty we face when setting monetary policy to achieve the objectives of the Policy Targets Agreement,” Dr McDermott said.
Dr McDermott said the Bank has adopted a process to help deal with this uncertainty and improve the quality of its monetary policy decisions. Two important elements are committee decision making and the regular review of the Bank’s forecasting process.
“The Bank has used committees in its monetary policy decision making for many years. Historically, their use has been most prevalent in policy discussion and advice. In 2013, the Bank maintained the advisory role of its committees, and strengthened the role of committees in making a monetary policy decision. The Governing Committee, comprising the Bank’s four governors, was established with the committee being responsible for monetary policy decisions.
“These changes mean the Bank now relies less on the single decision maker model. Making a decision by committee allows the consideration of a greater range of viewpoints.”
Dr McDermott said reviews of the Bank’s forecast performance also help to update its understanding of economic relationships, evaluate risks to the current outlook and identify areas where accuracy can be improved.
“Since the financial crisis, inflation has been weaker than forecast, and the Bank has continually reviewed its forecast performance over this period. Recent research has shown that the Bank’s forecast performance has been reasonable when compared to a number of external and model-based benchmarks. This suggests that there were no obvious major sources of new information that the Bank could have used from these benchmarks in its decision making.
“The persistent period of weaker-than-expected inflation remains a focus for the Bank, and the Bank’s research programme is shedding light on the drivers of low inflation. Increasing our understanding of low inflation is a strategic priority for the Bank.”
Source: A RBNZ press release, July 13, 2016
July 13, 2016 - AccorHotels Group has aquired FRHI Hotels & Resorts (FRHI) and its three prestigious luxury hotel brands: Fairmont, Raffles and Swissôtel, positioning the group as a leading player in the global luxury hotel market.
July 13, 2016 - Air New Zealand has taken out World’s Best Premium Economy Class and World’s Best Premium Economy Class Airline Seat at the prestigious Skytrax World Airline Awards held at the Farnborough Air Show overnight.
July 13, 2016 - New rules governing trans-Atlantic data transfers were formally approved Tuesday, months after Europe's top court ruled against the previous arrangements amid concerns over the surveillance activities of U.S. intelligence agencies.
The North American Corporate Headquarters of Saint-Gobain, one of the world’s largest building materials companies, announced today that
Successive governments by trying to appease fashionable activists end up by pleasing nobody
Napier, MSCNewsWire, Wednesday 13 July 2016 - In quite recent times New Zealand governments in seeking to placate powerfully placed, but non-productive, lobby sectors have systematically disrupted and damaged the entire house building sector, one of the nation’s core industries. Below are listed the main appeasement policies with, in bold type, the lobby and activist category that caused them to happen, and the result of each of these as they made their impact on house building. The lesson is how a bedrock national industry has become so vulnerable to passing socio-political drifts and the way in which these overrode technical imperatives.
GREENS Emerging from the old Values Party, the Green Party with its instant access to the media starts flexing its power and campaigns against what it sees as enviro- unfriendly building timber treatment processes. Policy shift: Ban on un-treated timber in house construction is lifted. Result: Very soon after this new application of un-treated timber residential developments across the nation take on the appearance of giant fungus houses. This is because the fast-growing introduced softwoods species used in New Zealand construction and now minus their customary protective vacuum-infused insecticides and fungicides now become filled with insects and funguses.PROGRESSIVES A fashionable coalition of pressure groups, some professional, now call for a relaxation on the nation’s sternly enforced building structural codes which it claims give insufficient scope for modernist construction expression. Policy shift: Building industry codes relaxed to accommodate use of monolithic cladding and chemical resin adhesives and fillers. Result: Structures especially of the multiple town house type are not weather proof and this problem is compounded by the presence of the untreated framing timber.FREE MARKETEERS The move to contract-out local government “non-core” services accelerates. These are deemed to include the once-rigorous local government building inspectorates. Policy shift: Many of those employed post policy shift in the new external farmed-out inspectorate organisations are not in fact qualified for the work that has been contracted out to them. Result: They fail to identify the consequences of the use of untreated softwoods and also the application of the monolithic man-made cladding. By the time these independent inspectorate organisations are eventually called to account, most of them have dissolved in the same manner as the structures they were supposed to supervise.UNIVERSITIES The National government, always prone to the lure of the groves of academe now concurs with a university-originated policy to give priority to an academic-based professional veneer to training and instruction in construction. Policy shift: This is to take the place of the traditional applied craft apprenticeships. Universities now shoulder aside the apprenticeship system replacing it with their preferred lecture-hall technique . Result: At the time of a major wave of new construction demand nationwide the building industry has insufficient practically qualified craftsmen to meet it.COMMENTARIAT The National government severely rattled by highly publicised injuries sustained by forestry workers needs to be seen to be doing something about it. Each mishap and its aftermath is always outlined in anguished terms and becomes a bulletin staple of the broadcast media and over a long period of time. Policy shift: The government seeks to provide visible proof of its safety-at-work policies and now imposes them on the relatively accident free home construction industry which is already vigorously policed by the now restored and extremely vigilant local government inspectors who are now employed directly by the local government authority. Result: Safety compliances now pushed to an absurd extent mean that small bungalows under construction must be encased in full scaffolding complete with safety nets at all stages. This now adds $10,000 to $15,000 onto the price of each new house.
From the MSCNewsWire reporters' desk
Palace of the Alhambra, Spain
By: Charles Nathaniel Worsley (1862-1923)
From the collection of Sir Heaton Rhodes
Oil on canvas - 118cm x 162cm
Valued $12,000 - $18,000
Offers invited over $9,000
Contact: Henry Newrick – (+64 ) 27 471 2242
Mount Egmont with Lake
By: John Philemon Backhouse (1845-1908)
Oil on Sea Shell - 13cm x 14cm
Valued $2,000-$3,000
Offers invited over $1,500
Contact: Henry Newrick – (+64 ) 27 471 2242