Have we stopped ourselves from being our best version because we’re scared of the unknowns we’ll have to cross or the outcomes it may or may not bring? I recall a popular article that has done the rounds lately which highlights a hypothetical (yet highly likely) conversation between a Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Chief…
The Statistics House investigation has highlighted that had the Kaikoura earthquake have happened at a different hour – lives would have been lost. Now more than ever, urgent action is required to safeguard and ensure existing precast concrete floor designs are checked and the 10-year old concrete design standard updated. On 14 November 2016 the…
Improved technology in transport and communication have seen the fall of geographical borders – so much so, that many businesses now find themselves not only competing locally for work, but globally as well. Now, remaining competitive in what has become an increasingly crowded market for the New Zealand’s steel industry has become a prominent challenge…
Steel dumping ‘steal’ talks and ‘dump’ the real issues Chinese Premier Li Keqiang’s recent visit to New Zealand last week brought much attention to free trade and export opportunities for our country – but did the right topics get the focus they deserved? Amidst steel dumping headlines, China’s strong interest to balance its trade by…
The Net Zero in New Zealand report makes it clear that our industry as energy users and carbon reducing solution providers have abundant opportunity to contribute to emission reductions and can play an important part in helping New Zealand fulfil its Paris Agreement commitments. Global warming is a scientific fact. Global temperatures and sea levels…
Preparing grant applications can be a daunting task requiring a lot of time and effort on the writer’s part. Having come out of three major funding applications prepared and submitted to government in the past three months (Regional Research Institute proposal, Research Partnerships proposal and Endeavour Research Programmes proposal), it’s safe to say – HERA…
In larger tenders, Government and most Public Sector Procurement Rules require best value for money rather than lowest cost as the decisive criteria – however despite this requirement best value for money (‘non-price’) criteria such as consideration of economic, social and environmental impact are seldom sought in the assessment of awarding such work. So, when…
Collaboration. It sounds great, but is it so easy to do when it comes to building and designing structures? Many say yes, but if we’ve learnt anything from the Canterbury rebuild it’s that this isn’t always the case. So much so, that the Institute of Professional Engineers New Zealand, the New Zealand Institute of Architects…
Ground breaking research and development. When it happens – it changes the lay of the land in ways we’d never imagine. Take Edison and his electric light – an apparatus which would cause gas lighting to be a thing of the past, despite naysayers saying it wasn’t possible. Oh how he proved them wrong. But…
There’s always two side to a story – even for Trump and his take on trade. Now Donald Trump has officially taken over as the 45th President of the United States, many of us Kiwis (particularly those in business) think New Zealand is well and truly Trumped. But is it really all doom and gloom for…
A week on from the announcement that John Key is stepping down as Prime Minister we’ve had some time to digest the news and perhaps form an opinion on what it all actually means for not only the country, but the metals industry as well. In this short time, we’ve seen the National Party quickly…
Firstly, I would like to thank the members for voting me onto the HERA Executive for a third term, and secondly a ‘Thank you’ to the HERA Executive for endorsing me as Chairman of our industry-owned research association. Being on the Executive since 2010 and having served as Deputy Chairman in the last three years…