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<strong>June</strong> <strong>2021</strong> BAY OF PLENTY BUSINESS NEWS 11 Envico is flying high NZ DRONE COMPANY ATTRACTING INTEREST WORLDWIDE By DAVID PORTER Sam Vye and Cameron Baker set up <strong>Bay</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Plenty</strong> company Envico Technologies two and a half years ago to develop tech for conservation. After some world firsts with drone technology and becoming well known for “big drones” both domestically and internationally, the partners have also recently started Syos Aerospace. “The vision is to become a world-leading drone manufacturer, specialising on heavy-lift utility drones,” said Vye. “By 2024 we aim to have a production facility in the <strong>Bay</strong> producing 200 units per annum, exporting 95 percent to target regions, tapping into a projected $45 billion market.” MANUFACTURING BUSINESS PLANNED FOR BAY Vye said the company decided to set up a manufacturing business in the <strong>Bay</strong> to develop the drone platform, and to become a certified aircraft manufacturer. According to Vye, the response to the company’s products has been huge. “It will most likely be more <strong>of</strong> an international market, but there will be some domestic sales,” Vye told <strong>Bay</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Plenty</strong> <strong>Business</strong> <strong>News</strong>. As noted, the company is expecting around 95 per cent <strong>of</strong> its sales from abroad – markets such as the US and Europe and Asia. The company plans a Series A investment round at the end <strong>of</strong> <strong>2021</strong> to facilitate this growth. According to the company’s mission statement, the aim is to develop pioneering technology solutions for environmental sustainability. “Our purpose is to identify and develop suitable solutions that can overcome our present problems that negatively impact our environment. Whether that problem is detecting invasive species, effective invasives control or deforestation. We are focused on practical and viable solutions for every problem we set out to solve.” “There definitely is high interest in New Zealand, but we don’t really have competition in the class we’re in, anywhere in the world,” said Vye. He pointed out that any company that starts <strong>of</strong>f in New Zealand most likely they will be doing more overseas than domestically simply because <strong>of</strong> the sheer size <strong>of</strong> the available markets overseas. “The response has been huge,” he said. “The attraction has been because we’ve developed a product that is highly practical and not just based on aesthetics or just to get the investors interested. We’ve actually developed a product we would like to use ourselves.” “We don’t really have competition in the class we’re in anywhere in the world,” he said. Vye said that one <strong>of</strong> the requirements <strong>of</strong> the Drone prototype unveiled. Photo/supplied. drone was that it could be delivered to sites anywhere in the world or around New Zealand – either on the back <strong>of</strong> a trailer or in a shipping container – without any disassembly being required, most places worldwide. This reduced transportation costs, he said. <strong>Bay</strong> company survives pandemic THANKS TO GLOBAL SUPPORT By DAVID PORTER SwipedOn Pocket – employee companion app For <strong>Bay</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Plenty</strong> company SwipedOn, as for many others, dealing with Covid-19 hasn’t been easy. And as an ex Ship’s Captain on container ships, cruise ships and superyachts, Hadleigh Ford isn’t your standard tech entrepreneur. The idea for SwipedOn came when he noticed that they still used a standard paper visitor book to register guests on his ships, and the realisation that a digital solution would <strong>of</strong>fer their guests a vastly better experience. SwipedOn is a company that has gone from a tech startup to a global-leading visitor management system, with clients that include <strong>Bay</strong>er, Disney, FedEx, 3M, Krispy Kreme, Gate Gourmet, Bosch and Skyscanner. SwipedOn is a cloud-based iPad application that replaces paper visitor books with an elegant and simple tech solution. Founded by Ford in 2016, the company experienced rapid growth within its first two years <strong>of</strong> operation. GROWTH COMPANY HERITAGE In 2018, SwipedOn won the Callaghan Innovation Growth Grant, was nominated as finalists in the NZ Hi-Tech Awards for start-up <strong>of</strong> the year, and was sold to British based Smartspace S<strong>of</strong>tware PLC. 2020 saw another year <strong>of</strong> growth for SwipedOn and the company diversified and expanded on their product <strong>of</strong>fering in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, to include solutions for workplace screenings and contact tracing among other functionalities. SwipedOn is unique in that over 80 percent <strong>of</strong> their business is international and their biggest markets are the UK, USA and Australia. “The past year or so <strong>of</strong> Covid-19 has been wild from my perspective,” Ford told <strong>Bay</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Plenty</strong> <strong>Business</strong> <strong>News</strong>. “We had a global audience so perhaps saw the impact faster than most in New Zealand. Our customers were either closing up or working from home. Or they had issues using a touch screen device because <strong>of</strong> the potential risk <strong>of</strong> cross contamination. So our fundamental business model was in question in question at the same time that many global economies were falling over. So yes, that was quite a torrid time.” However, Swiped On responded, putting its team together for a brainstorming session to explore alternative ways <strong>of</strong> operating. MOVING CONTACTLESS As the pandemic got underway they shifted the entire app from iPad to contactless in a matter <strong>of</strong> weeks, introduced visitor screening questions and provided training in using the app for contact tracing. Ford’s visitor management system eventually saw huge growth due to a global demand for visitor screening and contact tracing. Developed during the height <strong>of</strong> the pandemic in response to real-time needs, SwipedOn’s new products include: contactless workplace sign-in, visitor and employee screening questions, a dedicated employee sign-in app, contact tracing and SwipedOn Desks – a new feature for shared workspaces. Contactless sign-in ● Contactless sign-in allows visitors to smoothly and safely sign in and out <strong>of</strong> the workplace using their own mobile, eliminating the need to touch a communal device. SwipedOn Desks Hadleigh Ford, SwipedOn founder. Photo/supplied ● SwipedOn Desks helps utilise shared spaces effectively, optimising operational costs, and <strong>of</strong>fering greater control over workplace health and safety policies. The new feature allows administrators to manage hot desks, agile or activity-based working environments, keep track <strong>of</strong> <strong>of</strong>fice occupancy, and even set resources as unavailable to help ensure effective social distancing. ● SwipedOn Pocket is an employee companion app that helps facilitate a risk-free workplace via a contactless sign-in experience for staff using their Android or iOS smartphones. The app includes screening questions and employee movements are logged - giving a full oversight <strong>of</strong> who is in the building at any one time. SwipedOn Proximity ● SwipedOn Proximity <strong>of</strong>fers verified on-site sign-in for employees by alerting users through the pocket app that they are within a predetermined radius <strong>of</strong> the workplace, prompting them to sign in. Visitor and employee screening questions ● <strong>Business</strong>es can easily screen employees and visitors by asking them custom yes/no questions to determine if they are a safety risk to the workplace. Contact tracing button ● The ability to contact trace has always been possible with SwipedOn, but it used to be a manual process. In the recent product update, contact tracing has been transformed into an automated process. It now has the capability to alert users who could have had contact with an individual who is later deemed high risk. Ford said new owner Smartspace S<strong>of</strong>tware PLC had been consistently supportive and SwipedOn was able to push into new market segments. It also helped, he said, that SwipedOn had developed quite a “tail wind” that helped it to rally support from old and new customers. “We’ve had quite a significant customer base we’d managed to build products for, to help us ensure growth with the business,” said Ford. “Our buyers have been extremely supportive.”
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