Brett Hamilton, managing director of Techlam and Stuart Nash.
Two sustainable manufacturing businesses, Techlam in Levin and Plentyful in Rangitikeī in New Zealand will receive investment from the Government’s Regional Strategic Partnership Fund (RSPF), Economic and Regional Development Minister Stuart Nash announced. Source: Timberbiz
Techlam, a company that manufactures sustainable timber, will receive up to NZ$1.75 million to procure and install machinery for reducing manufacturing landfill by up to 25%, and capturing off-cut timber pieces for converting into heat energy.
Plentyful, a company that creates sustainable plastic products, will receive up to NZ$2 million to begin developing a high-class manufacturing facility in Marton.
“The investment criteria we set up in the RSPF has innovation and sustainable at its heart. Both Techlam and Plentyful are paving the way for sustainability in the high-tech industry with their cutting-edge, environmentally friendly manufacturing processes,” Mr Nash said.
“From framing for houses to paper packaging for pies, there are so many products that can be made more sustainably, and with a better fit for the circular economy, and these companies are at the forefront of this sector-wide shift.
“The RSPF is all about regional economic development, and these world-class Manawatu-Whanganui businesses are further proof that innovation doesn’t have to come from big cities or huge research institutions.
“Investing into Plentyful and Techlam will not only support local job creation and the development of sustainable products but will also help these regional businesses export to new international markets.
“These projects align with the regional priorities of Manawatū-Whanganui, in particular fibre production and specialised manufacturing, as well as with the wider Government strategy to develop a low-emissions, highly-skilled economy, while making our regions stronger and more resilient,” Stuart Nash said.
For Techlam the funding will be going towards a new E-Grading, Docking & Finger Jointing line to improve efficiencies and eliminate the amount of waste going to landfill by utilising more of the raw timber feedstock. The new line will enable the company to finger joint shorter lengths and produce these products much faster.
Also, the company will be commissioning a new CNC machine, a significant upgrade to its processing capacity which will enable faster processing of prefabricated components.
The investment will also create more jobs for the local community.
“At the moment we’re unable to process some of our feedstock, and this waste currently goes to landfill. Very soon we’ll significantly reduce these waste streams because we’ll utilise them to create new product lines,” Brett Hamilton, managing director of Techlam said.
“This along with additional CNC capacity, will significantly increase our capacity in the areas we’re growing in, both the project market and also our general markets.
“It will increase capacity and thus increase productivity. We’re aiming to increase production by more than 30% and reduce waste currently going to landfill by 25%.”
