Nestled in the heart of Te Puke, New Zealand, Fraser Gear Limited is a company that has been making waves in the Kiwifruit industry since its inception in 2000. The company has come a long way from its humble beginnings in a shed on an orchard. Initially known as Orchard Engineering Ltd, the name was later changed to Fraser Gear Limited in 2007, to broaden the scope of the company beyond just orchard work.
The company's journey has been one of growth and innovation. Their success can be attributed to unwavering commitment to customer satisfaction and ability to adapt to changing times. Currently, Fraser Gear has a team of 12 dedicated employees, who work tirelessly to deliver high-quality solutions to their clients.
Fraser Gear Limited is a family-based company with a strong culture of loyalty and commitment. The company has many long-term employees, and in the last few years, three of their sons have joined the team.
Before finding Tidy in 2014, Fraser Gear's team relied on spreadsheets, job cards and paper notes to keep track of their projects. However, as their business continued to grow, it became increasingly difficult to keep track of the parts and materials purchased for specific projects. This became frustrating for the team, and they needed a more efficient and effective way to manage their operations.
After careful research, the team at Fraser Gear decided to adopt TidyWork. A key factor in choosing TidyWork was that it was easy to use and allowed for edits to be made to both materials and time loaded against a project. The ability to also manage a vast number of projects simultaneously and the robust stock item register, were key factors in choosing TidyWork.
Graham Fraser, Fraser Gear Director said,
“Since adopting TidyWork, Fraser Gear has seen significant growth. In the time since introducing TidyWork project management software, the company has grown from 5 staff to 12. One of our major achievements has been surviving the PSA event, (Kiwifruit bacterial disease Pseudomonas syringae pv. Actinidiae) which affected many of our customers and our biggest area of business disappeared overnight. We were approached by industry leaders to work with them to build machinery to help limit the spread of the disease. This in time, led to the need for artificial pollination and prompted the production of the first pollen Trimill in 2015.”
Fraser Gear's revolutionary Tri-mill speeds up the Kiwifruit flower milling process by combining three mills into one highly efficient flower-cutting machine. Their pollen equipment range has continued to grow and is currently used in New Zealand, Australia and the USA. The company sees the pollen equipment sector as a growth area and is exploring the possibility of using their equipment for other crops.
The company values doing a great job that not only works well but also looks good. Their commitment to quality and innovation continues to drive their success in the Kiwifruit industry.
Fraser Gear's journey is a testament to the power of innovation and dedication to customer satisfaction. Despite facing numerous challenges, they continued to push the boundaries of what's possible in the Kiwifruit industry. The future looks bright for Fraser Gear, and we can't wait to see what they will achieve next.
You can find out more about Fraser Gear here.
