In May, I wrote an article ‘Preparing Our Industry for Disruption’. Going one step further – what are the specific opportunities for our industry to not just respond to disruption but to initiate disruption and reap the benefits ourselves? I recently read an External Research Report by BRANZ titled When Did Disruption Become a Good…
Around mid July 2016, Fairfax Media raised the spectre of NZ ‘steel dumping’ claims on imports from China. The response from our Prime Minister was to play it down, whilst MBIE would not even confirm or deny whether it had received two complaints from NZ producers. Trade Minister Todd McClay, whilst in Indonesia, said it…
As members may have heard from Radio New Zealand’s interview of Stewart Askey on 19 August 2016 -concerns have again been raised on the quality of steel imports. Whilst the interview was largely on steel products used in reinforced concrete construction, comments were made in the closing remarks about sub-standard structural bolts. The Kathryn Ryan-led interview outlined in a…
If you’re like me – since the beginning of the 31st Olympic Games in Rio, you’ve been rushing home in the evenings to catch the highlights of the day’s events and see where New Zealand’s medal tally sits. The Olympics is an inspiring international sporting event hosting 207 nations in a celebration of sportsmanship and dedication,…
If you have no idea what Pokemon Go is, it’s safe to assume you’ve been living under a rock – and if so, it’s time to crawl out. As potential disruptive technologies surface our industry can’t afford to have our head in the sand – it’s time to be alert and reactive if we’re to…
The big breakaway happened – with a slim 48/52 vote in favour of exiting the European Union (EU). The positives and negatives of the decision have been covered in much detail since it was made – and it seems the immediate effects of the UK’s withdrawal have been limited when it comes to New Zealand.…
Paul Allen co-founder of Microsoft recent said in a statement. “That’s the thing about new platforms: when they become easily available, convenient and affordable, they attract and enable other visionaries and entrepreneurs to realise more new concepts.” The converse is also true, on your own without a platform, it’s a very hard road to get…
The ocean is not only vast, beautiful and integral to all known life on Earth, it also represents a potential goldmine for renewable energy generation. But like many emerging energy technologies – capturing the power of waves and tides to convert into clean, pollution-free electricity has only just begun to reach viability as a potential…
The steel industry continues to face a challenging economic environment due to the economic slowdown in China, volatility in financial markets, sluggish growth in global trade, and low prices of oil and other commodities. In the first quarter of 2016, per the World Steel Association, global steel production decreased 3.6% to 386 metric tons (Mt)…
Everyone has their views when it comes to the 2016 Budget. “Funding lift a thrill for scientists,” NZ Herald. “Top-ups for research bodies part of (business) growth agenda,” Minister Steven Joyce. “It’s likely that business will be feeling more rather than less confident,” BusinessNZ CEO Kirk Hope. “Budget 2016 held few surprises for business and sent a strong…
Quite simply put – yes we can! Low enthalpy-based power generation has recently seen a number of new entrants into its research and development sphere – strongly reaffirming its untapped potential. Couple this with growing climate concerns – it seems the time has never been better to serve a growing energy need worldwide. At HERA, we’ve…
The new Workplace Health and Safety legislation has been in force for a month and a good level of discussion has been happening within business circles. Certainly directors, owners and managers are far more ‘tuned into’ the requirements of this business critical function than previously as they become more familiar with new accountabilities. This is…