Manufacturing continues to be in very good heart with the Performance Manufacturing Index telling us that manufacturing overall has been expanding now every month since October 2012, which is way better than any other part of the world where this is measured. 

The report below on the importance of trade, points out that manufacturing in New Zealand is much more resilient than in many other countries due to our manufacturers being experienced at operating without subsidies or taxpayer support making them rely on innovation and quality to stay globally competitive.

Catherine Beard
027 463 3212 or cbeard@businessnz.org.nz

New Zealand's manufacturing sector saw expansion levels evenly spread across the five main indices during July, according to the BNZ - BusinessNZ Performance of Manufacturing Index (PMI).

The seasonally adjusted PMI for July was 55.4. This was slightly lower than June, and similar to expansion levels seen in February.  Overall, the sector has remained in expansion in all months since October 2012.

While the main result experienced a second consecutive dip in expansion levels, the make-up of the sub-indices made for interesting reading. Expansion across the five indices was very even for July, with the total difference between the lowest and highest results at only 1.2 points.  Of particular note was the highest level of expansion for employment (56.4) since September 2014, along with finished stocks (also at 56.4). More...

I was lucky enough to visit Auckland University’s new Newmarket Innovation Precinct – situated in the old Dominion Breweries manufacturing site. It's a massive site, so apart from the completely refurbished DB factory into a state of the art research campus, they have lots of room to expand in the future.  Any manufacturer that wants a problem solved or to tap into the new knowledge they are developing all the time, should go and see what is going on.  Simon Bickerton at Auckland University is the man to contact, and he is also the driving force behind the MAD movement – advanced manufacturing and design (which includes a consortia of Universities). 

The Newmarket innovation precinct covers a huge range of expertise, from advanced materials, robotic engineering, plastics centre of excellence, infrastructure research and much more.  Simon Bickerton is keen to have 12 businesses co-locate at the Newmarket Innovation Precinct by the end of 2018.  See the slide presentation here…

Also speaking at the EMA manufacturers’ forum meeting was Nathan Stantiall, from Callaghan Innovation.  Nathan presented on a recent trip to Europe, where he was with a business delegation checking out what Industry 4.0 was all about. Check out his presentation here...

A newly released NZIER report gives the facts on what trade means for New Zealand in this time of global political change.

The data indicates that in a world where free trade was the norm, New Zealand's GDP would be $18 billion higher, with an additional 62,000 jobs.

It's important for all political parties to be united behind an ambitious free trade agenda, because the benefits to New Zealand are overwhelmingly positive.

This 2 min video, The Benefits of Trade, shows what New Zealand's export sector accounts for - including nearly three quarters of a million jobs. Please circulate this video to your contacts to ensure a better informed factual debate on the value of trade!

Watch video here-->

You can read the full report here.

Waikato District Council's new cadetship programme is focused on starting small, with two Wintec students to be employed in 2018.

The council will increase the number of cadets in the following two years, and is considering how the initiative could be expanded in the future. 

A cadetship programme is a practical solution to the skills shortage in industry and the general lack of awareness around engineering careers – particularly the New Zealand Diploma in Engineering and Bachelor of Engineering Technology (BEngTech) pathways. More...

The New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Trade recently launched a new website called Trade Barriers to help exporters notify government of non-tariff barriers that are holding them back from competing effectively overseas. This is something ExportNZ has been pushing for, so a great win!

Barriers can include a wide range of issues – from government policies, through to regulations that favour local suppliers. And they are costing New Zealand businesses billions of dollars every year.

It aims for work with businesses to tackle these barriers. Part of this process is raising awareness of non-tariff barriers and the support available. Please share the Trade Barriers website with your networks.

This website does not stop businesses from approaching relevant government agencies directly for support in this area. Exporters can expect the same response whichever route they choose with an acknowledgement within two working days and work out next steps within six weeks.

Don’t forget to check out our contract manufacturers directory if you are looking for contract manufacturing support or you are wanting to advertise your services! 

There are some great resources - see here->>

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