Seeley International has further strengthened its commitment to local manufacturing by investing in the development of a state-of-the-art tube bending cell at its Albury factory.
By developing the technology at Albury Seeley International is providing a much needed boost to local employment rather than sending work offshore.
The fully automated tube bending manufacturing cell is the first of its kind in Australia and was officially opened by NSW Premier, Mike Baird in August.
Seeley International founder and executive chairman, Frank Seeley AM said the concept for this technology was first discussed more than a year ago.
"We wanted to support our workforce by manufacturing heat exchanger tubes in-house for our ducted heaters in Australia rather than having to go to overseas for cost-efficient supply,”he said.
With the support of the Seeley International Board, a project plan was developed which proved it would be a highly viable investment if it adopted innovative technology to automate the processes as much as possible.
“I am delighted that after more than 12 month’s hard work and an investment exceeding half a million dollars, we have created this highly automated tube bending cell to complement our existing manufacturing operations," Seeley said.
The new manufacturing technology has resulted in the process being fully integrated, with two tube benders, one end former and three robots all working in perfect unison to transform pipes of varying lengths and diameters so that they fit perfectly into a premium quality, highly energy-efficient heat exchanger.
“These components were being externally sourced from a supplier that was using imported tube, and escalating production and supply costs meant having to consider sourcing them offshore – but our manufacturing process has reduced costs, taken the quality to an even higher standard, and kept this work in Australia,” Seeley said.
“Bringing this process in-house will create additional jobs as our sales continue to grow, and it is anticipated that our commitment to continuous innovation will result in this technology ultimately producing many other components for our various gas heaters.
“As the home of Braemar gas heaters and air-conditioners, our Albury-based plant has established a vertically integrated manufacturing and assembly operation that employs more than 120 people, and we are proud to have been a major employer in the area for more than 20 years."
Seeley said the opening of this new manufacturing cell reinforced the company’s passionate belief that local manufacturers can effectively offsethigher employment and production costs by focusing on innovation, using world class technology and embracing high levels of automation.
Seeley International brands include Breezair, Braemar, Coolair, Convair and Climate Wizard. The company continues to design and manufacture most of the components for its Australian-made products, which it exports to more than 120 countries around the world.