Q-West Boat Builders

Headnote

The leading New Lealand aluminum builder waking the talk

Producing high quality at a fair price and never ck'livering late are among the core principles that continue to drive leading New Zealand aluminium vessel craft ing firm. Q-West Boat Builders.

Established in 1994 and currently employing 32 people in facilities on the banks of the Whanganui River, the company quickly grasped that winning the business of leading industry operators meant matching and exceeding their standards, explains Q-West general manager Colin Mitchell:

"World-class companies like Whale Watch Kaikoura, which have ordered four boats from Q- West over the past 1 1 years, arc a very good example for this type of high-achieving business," he says.

"It is quitt1 common to hear other boat builders being two to tour months or more late. For any commercial operator involved in fishing, tourism and passenger transport, this is totally unacceptable. They need the confidence you, as the boat builder, are going to be able to deliver on time."

Implementing the competitive manufacturing process - albeit troni a "restrained" approach - has been one of the contributors to the company's "proven system", says Colin.

"Some may say that's not how it's done, but over the past few years we have made significant gains in production, staff communication and stock reduction. There is a long way tí) go, but to date we feel good about what we have achieved."

Q-West is also a leader on the technological Iront, being one of only a handful of yards...