Glidepath

Doing more, more quickly with NZTE

“The assistance New Zealand Trade and Enterprise has given us over the past 15 years has enabled us to do more, more quickly than we could on our own,” says Glidepath General Manager, John Fitzgerald.

Established in 1972, Glidepath's technology is in use in airports like JFK International Airport in New York, and it was selected ahead of competitors for new developments, such as King Shaka International Airport, which recently opened in Durban, South Africa, a vital part of the infrastructure supporting the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Fitzgerald says the company has built its reputation on providing end-to-end baggage handling solutions, from initial feasibility studies through to design, manufacture and installation, and ongoing operations and maintenance through its Airport Services division.

Glidepath continually invests in its technical capacity in order to provide the global airport industry with state-of-the-art baggage handling systems and products. Its sophisticated software control systems are designed and developed in-house in its Auckland operation.

Glidepath’s relationship with NZTE and its predecessors dates back to 1978 when it assisted Glidepath to find an Australian partner. Assistance during the early years was largely around export market development, specifically funding towards attending trade shows where the company could promote its services and products and make valuable contacts.

More recently, NZTE funding has helped Glidepath undertake new activities in existing markets and develop new export markets across Asia, South America, the Middle East and Africa.

Glidepath is part of a three-company collaborative group receiving NZTE funding to pursue new export business. The companies all work in the airport industry, but are not in direct competition with each other. That collaboration has been extremely beneficial, says Fitzgerald, with the companies sharing valuable marketing intelligence and information.

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Improving market presence

China and India are priority emerging markets for Glidepath. Both have big populations and economies, a fast-growing middle class who want to travel, poor infrastructure and governments that are investing heavily in airport development. Both countries are market leaders - by 2020, one in every two people that boards an aircraft will do so in East Asia.

“NZTE support has helped us travel more frequently to China and India and other new markets. We have been able to attend more trade shows, make important contacts and build networks,” says Fitzgerald.

NZTE funding has also assisted Glidepath with specific projects in a variety of markets, most recently in China, where it has expanded its presence by setting up a wholly foreign owned enterprise (WFOE) in Shanghai.

Glidepath regularly utilises NZTE’s in-market representatives across the world to give it introductions and insights into the way markets operate.

“Their people on the ground know how we should start dealing with potential clients, they know how business is conducted and the right approach to take at high level meetings,” says Fitzgerald.

Glidepath joined NZTE’s South America Beachhead in 2009 to help it develop Brazil, another emerging market that has big potential for this New Zealand firm.

“Brazil is hosting the FIFA World Cup in 2014 and the Olympics in 2016 and they’ve currently got airport infrastructure in need of improvement. We want to be ready when the work starts coming. We are currently working with a Beachhead advisor who is a specialist in Brazilian law, in setting up a business, taxation rules and legal frameworks.

“NZTE staff are also closely involved in the South American market and we are using their representatives in Brazil. They’ve done a lot of research for us around tax, accompanied us on sales trips around the country and translated for us at meetings. We will continue to work with them, and when we want specialist advice we will use the Beachhead advisors.”

In New Zealand, Glidepath went through the Better by Design programme in 2008, and found it very useful to have a qualified, external consultant assess how it could improve processes and systems across its business. Acting on a recommendation out of that programme, it is now preparing to contract a lean manufacturing consultant to look at its Auckland factory.

Fitzgerald says NZTE and the Foundation for Research, Science and Technology are jointly working to help Glidepath to strengthen its R&D programme.

“We invest a lot in R&D, but we have also got many ideas we know would potentially revolutionise the industry if we had the time and funds to put into it. Our NZTE client manager is supporting us in our discussions with the Foundation.”

Having a dedicated NZTE client manager who knows their business and all the programmes and markets where it is working with the agency is very valuable, says Fitzgerald.

“The funding we have received from NZTE over the years has meant we can push ourselves that little bit further. They’ve also opened doors and introduced us to markets, and we get the kudos from being associated with a government agency.

“There is also the general interest that NZTE takes in Glidepath and the advice they are prepared to give us and the specialists they put us in touch with. All of that really adds value to our business.”

Quick facts about Glidepath

Location: offices in New Zealand, USA, China, Chile, Australia, Canada, India (project office), South Africa (O&M), Peru (O&M)
Staff: 232
Revenue: approximately NZ$100m per annum.
Markets: 61 globally
Exporting: usually more than 95 percent export
Website: www.glidepathgroup.com