Waikato Business News January/February 2020

24 WAIKATO BUSINESS NEWS January/February 2020
Gallagher achieves
certification
Gallagher has achieved
certification under Plastics New
Zealand’s Operation Clean
Sweep programme, which
aims to keep plastics out of
marine environments through
good housekeeping and pellet,
flake, and powder containment
practices. Gallagher’s
manufacturing site in Hamilton
is one of just 59 New Zealand
premises to achieve this
certification.
Waitomo takes
low-emission step
Energy companies Waikatobased
Waitomo Group and
Taranaki-based Hiringa Energy
have announced their intentions
to work in partnership to
develop New Zealand’s first
nationwide hydrogen refuelling
stations network. They will work
on the detailed engineering
requirements and consenting
for a network of hydrogen
refuelling sites - some of which
will be on existing Waitomo Fuel
Stops.
Tompkins Wake
ranks
Tompkins Wake has gained
rankings in six practice areas
in the Legal 500 Asia Pacific,
up on two the previous year.
The Hamilton-based firm
now has 16 recommended
lawyers – seven more than
last year. It is the only law firm
in Waikato and Bay of Plenty
to be ranked in The Legal 500
Asia Pacific this year. Tompkins
Wake featured in the rankings
for their work in dispute
resolution, corporate and M&A
(mergers and acquisitions),
intellectual property, real estate
and construction, banking
and finance, and projects and
resource management including
environmental. The Legal 500
is an independent organisation
that analyses the capabilities of
law firms around the world.
Real estate ups
and downs
Hamilton house prices
increased by 63 percent in the
decade since January 2010,
rising from an average asking
price of $408,739 in January
2010 to $664,696 in December
2019, according to data from
realestate.co.nz. In Matamata-
Piako and Waipa the average
asking house price increased
by 47 percent and 45 percent
respectively. During the same
perioed, Waitomo district
bucked the trend, with a 20
percent decrease in average
asking price from $381,098 to
$304,484.
Grad set for US
bootcamp
Hamilton-based product
development manager and
Wintec engineering graduate
Huzaifa Mohsinally is about
to take part in an exclusive
MIT-Harvard Medical School
Healthcare Innovation
Bootcamp in the United States.
It is an accelerated learning
programme which prepares
participants to comprehensively
contribute to healthcare
innovation. Mumbai-born
Mohsinally, 26, works for DEC
International NZ.
Cannasouth appoints new CFO
Hamilton-based medicinal cannabis
company Cannasouth has appointed
Colin Foster as the company’s new
chief financial officer.
Foster will succeed Rob
Braithwaite, who has
been working with
the Cannasouth team since
its inception and played an
important role in preparing the
company for its public listing
in June 2019.
Cannasouth CEO Mark
Lucas says the transition is a
logical progression as Cannasouth
grows from a purely
research-based organisation
into a fully commercial enterprise.
“Rob played an integral
role in the formation of Cannasouth
and helped us navigate
our way through the complex
process of becoming a listed
NZX company.
“Rob has built a solid financial
foundation from which we
can now grow into the next
phase of our business.
“Colin is a chartered
Karl Retief
accountant with strong corporate
and financial management
skills gained over 33 years of
senior financial leadership at
Tatua Dairy Co-operative Ltd
and Anchor Products Ltd.
“His wide general management
experience will add significantly
to the senior leadership
team of Cannasouth.”
In October 2019, Cannasouth
expanded with the acquisition
of a 60 percent strategic
stake in Midwest Pharmaceutics
NZ Limited. Since then,
the Government has released
its new medicinal cannabis
regulations and Cannasouth
Cultivation Ltd has received
resource consent to begin construction
of its medicinal cannabis
cultivation facility in the
Waikato.
In announcing Foster’s
appointment, Lucas said the
company is now well placed to
move to full commercial production
as soon as the appropriate
licences can be obtained
once the Government’s scheme
comes into force on April 1.
Foster was the general manager
finance and administration
for Waikato-based Tatua
Dairy Cooperative, where he
was instrumental in developing
subsidiary businesses in Asia
and the US.
He also held a senior
financial management role
at Anchor Products, which
subsequently became part of
Fonterra. He holds a Bachelor
of Management Studies and
a Diploma in Treasury Management
from the University
of Waikato and is a member
of the Institute of Chartered
Accountants in Australia and
New Zealand.
“I am excited to join Cannasouth
at this early stage of
its corporate development,”
Foster said. “The focus of Cannasouth
will be on delivering
value added, top quality, highend
medicinal cannabis products
and I am looking forward
to playing a part in making that
happen.”
Colin Foster
TGH appoints GM property
Tainui Group Holdings
has appointed Karl
Retief as general manager
property.
TGH chief executive Chris
Joblin said Retief brings
almost two decades of experience
in managing multi-property
portfolios.
“His appointment is timely
as we look to grow our capability
as a significant commercial
property investor in
Waikato and South Auckland
and deliver long-term returns
for Waikato-Tainui,” Joblin
said.
Windows 7 a security risk
By DAVID HALLETT
Company-X co-founder
and director
Hundreds of millions of
Windows 7 computers
became vulnerable
to cyber-attacks after Microsoft
ended support for its
popular operating system on
January 14.
The end of support means
Microsoft will no longer provide
security updates for the
11-year-old operating system.
Technology writer Ed Bott
estimated about 19 percent of
more than a billion computers
running Windows were still
using Windows 7 after support
ended. One of the UK’s leading
enterprise IT websites IT
Pro suggested it was almost
double Bott’s estimate at 36
per cent.
“If you continue to use
Windows 7 after support has
ended on January 14, 2020,
your PC will still work, but it
may become more vulnerable
to security risks,” Microsoft
said in a post.
A high percentage of the
Windows 7 machines still
in use will be in small and
medium sized businesses,
many without on-site technology
staff in the loop about the
end of Windows 7 support.
Windows 7 machines can
either be upgraded to Windows
10, providing they meet the
minimum requirements, or be
replaced with new models with
Windows 10 pre-installed.
Users reluctant to
upgrade to Windows
10 are playing into
the hands of cyber
criminals who
unleashed nearly
68 million strains of
Windows malware
(malicious software)
in 2018.
The minimum requirements
for Windows 10 are a 1
gigahertz or faster processor,
1 gigabyte (GB) of RAM for
a 32 bit processor or 2 GB of
RAM for a 64 bit processor, 16
GB of hard drive space for 32
GB processors and 32 GB of
hard drive space for 64 bit processors,
and DirectX9 graphics
card or later with Windows
Display Driver Mode
1.0 driver with a minimum
800x600 display.
Business users also have
the option of opting in to
Microsoft’s Extended Security
Updates for up to three
years. Prices start at US$25
per machine per year and double
each year. The idea behind
this offer is to give large corporations
with hundreds or
thousands of machines time
to finalise their upgrade plans.
But it will only delay the inevitable.
Microsoft would prefer
businesses to upgrade.
Some businesses, with a
Retief has been working on
contract for TGH since July.
His most recent property role
was 17 years with listed company
Kiwi Property where his
role as general manager retail
portfolio involved running
New Zealand’s largest retail
property portfolio, including
developments such as Sylvia
Park in Auckland and Centre
Place in Hamilton.
Retief said he was
attracted to work at TGH by
the opportunity to deliver new
and exciting property projects,
and help the iwi build an
history of light usage, may opt
for Apple iPads or Android
tablets. Some will switch to
Apple Macs, but the majority
are likely to remain on PC,
especially if they rely on legacy
software for their business.
Those who remain on Windows
7 are putting their passwords
and business critical
data at risk.
Users reluctant to upgrade
to Windows 10 are playing
into the hands of cyber criminals
who unleashed nearly 68
million strains of Windows
malware (malicious software)
enduring high-performance
team.
Tainui Group Holdings
manages around $950 million
of assets, including significant
whenua and property holdings
within the Hamilton CBD.
Other major projects underway
include the 480-hectare
Ruakura inland port and logistics
hub, construction of the Te
Arikinui Pullman Auckland
Airport Hotel with joint venture
partner Auckland Airport,
as well as a 40-room extension
to the Novotel Hamilton
Tainui Hotel.
in 2018.
Computer Emergency
Response Team operations
manager Declan Ingram said it
was important computer software
was up to date and fit for
the modern environment.
“Updating systems can
be a fine balance for organisations.
There are cost and
security aspects that need to
be balanced by the business,”
he said.
Read Cert NZ’s top 11
cyber security tips for your
business at https://www.cert.
govt.nz.