Business View Oceania | Volume 3, Issue 12

69 70 BUSINESS VIEW OCEANIA VOLUME 3, ISSUE 12 BUSINESS VIEW OCEANIA VOLUME 3, ISSUE 12 YOUR PERFECT OFFSITE JOINERY PARTNER LEAN MANUFACTURING, MASS PRODUCTION ECOPOD CONCEPTS staff surrounding workplace health a safety measures, and machinery is regularly cleaned, serviced, and calibrated around the site for hazard reduction purposes. Alongside safety discussions, staff meet regularly to remain up to date on sustainability initiatives and keep operations as efficient as possible. Mr. Dyson elaborates, “We engage a lean manufacturing consultant to help us target and minimise the seven key wastes of manufacturing, including transportation, over-processing, over-production, etc. We are certified as Green Homestar Assessors and provide the framework for green building design in New Zealand to which we subject our plans, and also run a Lifecycle Analysis on one of our ecopods which determines the energy, carbon dioxide emission, and financial costs of our buildings over a 50- year timeline compared against alternative building methods available. Our products are also timber-framed as opposed to traditional steel.” solution to a range of building needs from bedrooms, offices, and workspaces to gyms, guest accommodation, holiday homes, and more. All of our ecopods are built in a fully enclosed facility using select materials to ensure building quality remains of the highest standard, from design through to completion. We are attentive to detail and love to work collaboratively with clients to optimise customisation and provide a unique solution to any project requirement.” A team of 15 staff supported by reputable sub- contractors, Ecopod operates out of Auckland, New Zealand. Buildings are manufactured on site from scratch, mostly utilising natural timber resources, and distributed to clients around the country. The company has invested heavily into innovative technology to supplement their success, Mr. Dyson explains. “Digital, manufacturing, and social technologies have enabled us to boost efficiencies in how we operate and build our transportable buildings at a higher volume and lower cost. For example, we’ve developed an in-house pricing tool using excel, which allows us to customise many aspects of our buildings and easily calculate an accurate price for our clients. We also work with Kaizen Lean manufacturing principles to improve our quality management and production systems, ensure a culture of respect for our people and deliver great value to our customers. We use a number of programs for quoting, timesheets, project management, online collaboration, file sharing, marketing, security, and sales. Just some of these include Workflow Max, which is a Xero company, Microsoft Suite, WordPress, Adobe Illustrator, ActiveCampaign, Ubiquity, and a fantastic architecture software called Chief Architect that creates customised plans and 3D renders. So, technology is a huge part of how we operate, and with new tools being developed every day, we keep a very close eye on what’s out there.” Safety is paramount at Ecopod. Senior representatives employ ongoing dialogue with