Economic Development

Creating Security and Opportunity for New Zealanders

A newsletter from the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, Jim Anderton, Minister for Economic, Industry and Regional Development, on Labour Alliance Coalition Government economic development activities.
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20 July 2001 / Issue No 4

This issue of Economic Development:
1. Jim Anderton announces Regional Development Conference.
2. Regional Partnerships announced.
3. Wood Processing Industry Steering Group
4. Enterprise Awards Scheme– Round 6
5. Industry New Zealand to assist Southern Traverse
6. Economic Development contact details

1 Conference to boost regional development

I am pleased to announce that there will be a major conference in November that will allow regional development experts to develop a shared approach to building our local economies and learn from each other.

This will be a significant boost to our Regional Partnerships programme and to the many groups and individuals working in the field already.

We could have tried to hold the event next year, but this work is a major priority and delaying it till next year, realistically March or April, would have wasted valuable time.

The Conference will be held in Rotorua on 28 and 29 November 2001 and will be for local authorities, iwi representatives, business people, community employment and regional development workers, advisers and government agency staff.

The Ministry of Economic Development is organising the conference and details of the event and the programme will be announced in the very near future.

This conference is going to be for over 500 delegates and will be the largest of its kind held in New Zealand.

The keynote speakers will be local and international regional development experts.

This Conference will develop and support the key partnerships that are essential to creating dynamic sustainable economic growth.

Jim Anderton MP
Deputy Prime Minister
Minister for Economic, Industry and Regional Development

Anyone interested in more information on the conference contact details are:
regdev@confer.co.nz
Conferences and Events Ltd
Fax:(03) 546 6020
Phone:(03) 546 6022
.
2 Regional Partnerships announced

Eight regions will receive funding from the third round of the Regional Partnerships Programme managed by Industry New Zealand.

Region Stage one Stage two lead agency
Canterbury $100,000 $100,000 Canterbury Development Corporation
Rotorua $49,375 $83,692 Rotorua District Council
Manawatu $100,000 $35,000 Vision Manawatu
Southland $100,000 Southland District Council
Eastern Bay of
Plenty / Mataatua $100,000 Whakatane District Council
Hawkes Bay $100,000 Vision 2020
Wellington $70,000 Wellington City Council
Wairarapa $82,500 Masterton Business Enterprise

Up to $200,000 is available to assist regions to make economic development plans and build their capacity to implement those plans.
Further funding of up to $2 million per region is available to contribute to major regional initiatives that develop out of the plans.

Fourteen regions have secured grants in the previous three rounds amounting to $1,300,000. This round sees the total committed increase to $2,220,500 for 19 regional partnerships.

3 Update on Wood Processing Industry Steering Group

Jim Anderton will release details of successes and the work programme for the Wood Processing Industry Sector Group in the next few weeks.

The steering group has had three full meetings as well as a number of subgroup discussions.

Steady progress has been made in areas such as Employment, Skills and Training, Resource Management Act issues, infrastructure, regional partnerships and biosecurity.

4 Role of business advisers key in assisting companies getting Enterprise Awards

Economic Development Minister Jim Anderton says that EDANZ and BIZ advisers are successfully helping smaller businesses with applications for the Enterprise Awards Scheme.

"As part of their business services advisers are informing businesses and people with business ideas that the schemes exist and helping them to apply, and this is helping generate some good proposals," said Jim Anderton.

The sixth round of Industry New Zealand Enterprise Awards was announced in June, and 34 recipients took the number of grants awarded to 174 since the first awards in September 2000.

The Enterprise Awards were launched last year and one of the second round awards went to a company called MSWITCH for a product known as Smitch. At the time they wanted no publicity for their invention. Geraldine farmer Gerald Pemberton decided he could work out how to use a cell phone to start up his irrigation pumps located on his farm five kilometres from his house without leaving his front door.

The idea was using pager technology to send a command to a small unit that is plugged in between the socket and the appliance you want to turn on.

He was awarded $8,550 in November 2000 for developing a prototype and business planning.

This year he displayed the invention at Mystery Creek Fieldays and is taking orders for the product now.

Round 6 Enterprise Award Scheme June 2001
Auckland
Burns Enterprises. Rebeckh Burns, (09) 376 5707, $4,489. Market research for self development projects
Wild Daisies Publications Ltd. Jill Mitchell, (09) 813 1132, $15,354. Develop children's books for the Korean market
Promax Technology Ltd. Nigel King, (09) 307 1771. $9,495. Intellectual property protection, design and manufacture of prototype neck support system
Kiwi Mazes Ltd. Colin Wells, (09) 415 5561, $ 5,000. Assist development of an interactive maze & cave
Dave Mark Partnership. $ 6,469, Plant growth stimulant research
Airopac Industries Ltd. Charlie Borrell, (09) 277 7900 $1,575, Market research for packaging firm
Chances Fashion Surf & Street. Leon Jacobson, 09 297 7863, $ 7,380. Assist with expansion of retail chain
Lautofa Iuli. (09) 846 1499, $2,652. To assist with a dry waste disposal system
SRB Pacific. $11,257, Development & intellectual property protection for a carrier system
Surfbrains.com Ltd Simon Angelo (09) 625 5590, $ 2,150. Optimisation of search engine
On-line Advertising Solutions Ltd, $10,668, On-line marketing
Cherri-Toms Ltd, John Hamilton (09) 298 1879, $4,500. Feasibility study and business plan for growing roses.
Owltech Ltd, Rod Gates, (09) 302 3659, $1,654. Market research
Mahanga Holdings Ltd , Ron Davey, (09) 444 0663, $ 10,000. Feasibility study into the application of fuel cells
RMSD Ltd, Kay Madigan, (09) 419 1219. $ 7,994. Prototype design for electronic anchor winch
Footbridge Health Ltd. Graeme Ford, director, $20,000. Prototype design & testing
WAIKATO
Rennacs Ltd, Glenn Thornley. (07) 823 6552. $13,413. Intellectual property protection.
BAY OF PLENTY
Stonemark Timber Products Ltd, Peter Marks, (07) 575 2530, $4,980. Development of roofing shutter system
Echo Absorbing Art Ltd, Bob Russell. 025 741 377, $ 4,097. Product development, business planning & market research, Acoustic engineering
Puma Dart Products Ltd, John McCormick, (07) 549 0253, $1,238. To assist with market research of sporting goods
GISBORNE
Milly Molly Group Holdings Ltd, John Pittar, (06) 868 7769, $18,219. Assist with intellectual property protection.
MANAWATU -WANGANUI
Powerstick, James Hill, 021 118 3492 $14,429. Assist with the development of a remote control aid.
Western Harvest, Craig Jones, (06) 364 5030. $3,165. Develop frozen food product.
Tuff-Lite Ltd, Kevin Halsall, (06) 364 7188, $7,500. Intellectual property protection for a trailer.
WELLINGTON
Infinet Solutions Ltd, Anton Donde, (04) 939 2263. $9,483. Develop marketing strategies & objectives for knowledge management system.
Musacus Ltd. $20,000. Assist with a music teaching device
Kapiti English Language Academy, Tony Gan, (04) 902 6868, $3,600. Develop a new course
CANTERBURY
Ultra Fuels Ltd , Ross Moffatt, (03) 366 7154., $ 6,446. To assist with the development of the “Heatlog” project
Ashford Handicrafts Ltd. Elizabeth Ashford, (03) 308 9081. $3,187. Market research
Abretec. Philip Ivory, (03) 367 1029, $4,782. Develop prototype air filter
G P Steel Ltd. Graham Pell, (03) 338 8441. $5,000. Development of a domestic wood pellet fire
Long Plastics Ltd. Peter Spackman, (03) 323 8219. $2,363. Market research for polystyrene products.
Lanowool. Lene Alexandersen, (03) 358 7619. $2,301. To assist the prototype development of breastfeeding pads
OTAGO
CKI Ltd. $4,932, Business and financial planning

6 Industry New Zealand to sponsor Southern Traverse
Industry New Zealand announced in June it will provide sponsorship of $121,000 for the New Zealand adventure race Southern Traverse to be held in Queenstown 9-16 November.

Jim Anderton welcomed the announcement, "Funding the international Southern Traverse is part of the government's goal of having as many positive international events in New Zealand as possible. The Southern Traverse showcases our country and will attract tourists".

"The Southern Traverse will be seen by millions of people around the world and will bring in tourists and generate additional income for New Zealand," said Jim Anderton.

7 Economic Development contacts:
www.executive.govt.nz/minister/anderton/index.html
www.industrynz.govt.nz
www.med.govt.nz
www.bizinfo.co.nz 08004BIZINFO
Venture capital information www.vcapital.co.nz 0800VCAPITAL
www.alliance.org.nz

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