The latest New Zealand Manufacturers and Exporters Association (NZMEA) Survey of Business Conditions completed during October 2016, shows total sales in September 2016 decreased 6.72% (year on year export sales decreased by 11.72% with domestic sales increasing by 17.12%) on September 2015. In the 3 months to September, export sales decreased an average of 7.0%, and domestic sales increased 5.2% on average. The NZMEA survey sample this month covered NZ$276m in annualised sales, with an export content of 78%. Net confidence fell to -23, down from 22 in August. The current performance index (a combination of profitability and cash flow)…

Wanaka, Nov 7, 2016 - Wanaka-based global exporter Aquasystems Australasia has collected a business excellence award in recognition of the company’s innovation and growth. Aquasystems Australasia, owned by former Invercargill innovator Bruce Henley, won the Outstanding in Infrastructure/Trades category at the inaugural Ignite Wanaka Chamber of Commerce Business Awards on Friday night (November 4). Aquasystems Australasia designs and supplies wastewater aeration systems for industrial and municipal clients, including Fonterra in New Zealand and Australian Government-owned authorities Melbourne Water and Water Corporation. It has recently been involved in the major expansion of Fonterra’s Lichfield plant in the South Waikato, for the treatment…

Napier, 3 Nov 16 - The installation of an auger conveying system for Hawkes Bay Proteins kept a team fromNapier Engineering busy over this last Labour Weekend. The manufacture by the NEC engineers  was not without its challenges factoring in ease of access for maintenance in the future. Time down is a major factor and has to be kept to a minimum hence HB Protein’s client being so impressed with the short time frame for installation which resulted in minimal loss of production time for the client - that all important consideration for contract manufacturers when they look at the installation or maintenance…

Ports of Auckland chief executive Tony Gibson, who has recently signed an alliance with the Port of Napier, explains why he pursued an alliance solution.“Alliances between ports are particularly important in New Zealand, where we have a small population spread thinly across a long, skinny island. Land transport is expensive so the supply chain needs to be fully optimised to keep costs low. “This means eliminating unnecessary landside moves, ensuring the fronthaul and backhaul legs are full and making the best use possible of coastal shipping. Alliances between ports in New Zealand, combined with strategic investment in inland freight hubs…

Heavy Haulage a division of Machinery Movers ltd, succesfully swapped out a small CD 160 drier for a larger TST 70 drier which will enable an increase in production for Taranaki By Products. Ken Evans of TEKAM NZ Ltd said it was impressive work by the heavy haulage team using very sophisticated lifting and transporting gear along with   Hawera based Croucher and Crowder who carried out the dis-assembly of the CD 160 long with the rebuild and commissioning of the TST 70.  A great job in a short time frame. The CD 160 is now scheduled to be installed in…

More working New Zealanders are gaining skills and qualifications on the job, earning while they learn, says the Industry Training Federation. Our industry training and apprenticeship system is improving steadily, according to recently released Tertiary Education Commission 2015 performance reports. Programme completion rates in 2015 were 75 percent, up from 72 percent, and 2015 credit achievement rates were at 80 percent, up from 75 percent in 2014. "More people are getting real skills for real jobs while gaining national qualifications. The results are very pleasing and make an even more compelling case for investment in work-based learning as an effective…

Includes Sigpack VPF for powder filler, compact horizontal flow wrapper, and complete lines from a single source. Following the introduction of the Sigpack TTMP topload cartoner for pharmaceutical products, the company now adds two further machines to its portfolio: the Sigpack VPF vertical flat pouch machine and the horizontal flow wrapping machine Sigpack HML. The new vertical flat pouch machine Sigpack VPF was developed especially for the packaging of powders. Pain killers in powder form are among the products typically filled into sachets. Thanks to the innovative sealing technology from Bosch, the machine produces hermetically sealed packages, which safely protect…

BISON, the specialist developer of portable container weighing solutions, today announced the launch of a world first system for weighing containers on trailer chassis. The new container weigh system is a timely innovation, with recent amendments to the SOLAS convention forcing shippers around the world to verify the weight of every export container with certified weighing equipment or processes. The SOLAS rule change has added cost and complexity to container shipping operations, with many shippers having to adopt inefficient or poorly timed weighing processes, such as hauling containers extra distances to offsite weighbridges or weighing every single cargo item before…

New wireless control technologies are being adopted by manufacturers and users of cranes and other lifting equipment. Most of us find it odd to look back five or ten years to when our home computers were tethered to the wall by a cable. Somehow we just accepted that the cable restricted the mobility of the device and lived with that limitation. Now, of course, it is completely normal to pull a mobile phone out of your pocket and dial up the internet so that we can look up obscure information, book tickets or connect with a computer many miles away.…

Organisers, Exhibitions and Trade Fairs, have opened registrations for the free to attend AUSPACK 2017, taking place at Sydney Showground, Sydney Olympic Park on 7 – 10 March 2017. AUSPACK 2017 is on track to be the biggest Sydney show in its history coinciding with the recent announcement that with five months out, 95% of exhibition space has already been sold. “Visitors can expect a number of new elements to the offering on the exhibition floor,” said Exhibition Director Luke Kasprzak. “We’re always looking for ways to innovate, which includes the ongoing strategic partnership with the Australian Institute of Packaging…

Kyle Maxey writes on engineering.com that the CAD landscape is littered with firms trying to sell you their CAD products. But when the rubber meets the road, there are only a handful of firms that are swallowing up most of the market share. In this infographic, you'll get a precise look at exactly who the biggest players in the CAD market are and find out how one of the biggest and faster emerging trends, cloud-based CAD, is quickly gaining ground and even overtaking many established software stalwarts. Further reading on cnccookbook