When the Sydney Harbour Bridge opened in 1932, it wasn't the only event to herald change in Australia.
It was also the year that Diver Consolidated Industries opened its doors for business.
The Melbourne-based family business is one of Australia's longest-established metals manufacturing and engineering companies with a proud history serving the local automotive industry.
It has weathered many storms; endured the vagaries of business during times of boom and uncertainty; established a reputation for innovation and enterprise while upholding the ethics of fair trading that has characterised Diver Consolidated Industries for more than 75 years.
In more recent times it has forged a close relationship with VCAMM. This partnership has been critical to the expansion of Diver Consolidated Industries into new and complementary markets, allowing it to prosper despite the challenging economic times.
Its ability to adapt to change, and to revise its business model to embrace diversity at a time when companies are reducing their exposure due to market uncertainty, gives it every reason to declare itself as 'an Australian success story'.
Its investment in MicroHeat Technologies is a 'Case' in point.
Diver Consolidated Industries operates from two locations in Melbourne. Its head office, stores & distribution, and metal stamping division are based in Reservoir. The thermal and acoustic products division is based in Thomastown. It employs more than 100 people. This year Diver Consolidated Industries was inducted into the Victorian Manufacturing Hall of Fame and was a finalist in the 2008 Innovation Excellence Awards which are conferred by Advanced Manufacturing Australia.
It has built on its core competency of metal stamping and fabrication to include the manufacture of thermal and acoustic shield products, body structures and hinging systems.
It enjoys strong export sales to China, the US, Canada and Thailand.
MicroHeat Technologies Pty Ltd is a newly-established company involved in the research and development of highly-advanced systems involving rapid water heating technology, for both domestic and industrial applications. The technology, which is protected by patent in more than 52 countries, saves energy, water and greenhouse gas emissions.
The global market potential is enormous. The company has attracted funding grants from Government with the ongoing support and mentorship of VCAMM.
In March this year, Diver Consolidated Industries invested heavily in MicroHeat Technologies. It made the decision despite the tough economic conditions, buoyed by the start-up's market potential and the synergies recognised by VCAMM.
Jim Griffin, the CEO of Diver Consolidated Industries said the decision reflects the family's belief in seizing opportunity irrespective of market conditions.
"The economic conditions have impacted on us as much as everyone else," he says. "We've had a 50% reduction in volume over the past year, which has required us to downsize in certain areas of our business.
"At the same time we were on the lookout for a business that would complement our own, where we could bring our expertise and financial muscle together with our export experience and networks for mutual benefit."
In 2008, Diver Consolidated Industries approached VCAMM with a request to research and identify a business opportunity where it could value-add for mutual benefit. VCAMM introduced MicroHeat Technologies as an appropriate 'fit'.
Jim Griffin paid tribute to his Board for making a "brave and far-reaching" decision to invest at a time when the markets for its core business were contracting.
"We wouldn't have had the confidence to go forward without the involvement of VCAMM," he said.
"They believed in MicroHeat Technologies, and helped to guide us through an exhaustive due diligence process. They were impressed by that company's invention and its long-term potential, and by the way they conducted themselves as a business.
"VCAMM also saw an immediate opportunity for us to supply metal stampings to help with their electrodes, which are a core part of the technology, and to extend that involvement over time."
VCAMM also identified another important element that was critical to the negotiations.
Brad Dunstan, the CEO of VCAMM, says environmental concerns will increasingly inform how businesses conduct themselves.
"Australian companies are proving to be as capable and entrepreneurial as any of their compatriots internationally," he said.
"They recognise that acceptance on world markets will depend to a large extent on their social responsibility. The way we do business in Australia lends itself to frank and open discussion, and consequently we enjoy support in markets throughout North America, Asia and Europe."
Jim Griffin says that MicroHeat Technologies' invention is a great business opportunity as well as a socially and environmentally significant development in reducing water and energy consumption.
One of the attractions for Diver Consolidated Industries is the opportunity to assist MicroHeat Technologies with product design and engineering support as well as part manufacture. Diver has capability in advanced metal stamping and fabrication, suitable for production of components such as electrodes, as well as subsystem assembly.
"If VCAMM didn't understand our needs, then the relationship with MicroHeat Technologies would not have happened," says Jim Griffin.
"Our investment took us outside our normal area of business, but it fitted our strategic objectives which were to partly shift away from automotive while still calling on our key competencies to develop new products and expand our area of expertise.
"It was the first investment our company had made in speculative technology at the ground floor, and without VCAMM's counsel we wouldn't have felt comfortable taking the position we have."
The Board of Diver Consolidated Industries liked VCAMM's business model which puts commercially savvy people in contact with research institutes to effectively 'match make' successful partnerships with a commercial edge.
Importantly, VCAMM recognises that industry has pressing needs which need to be fulfilled in a time and cost-appropriate manner. Having the ear of government, both state and federal, means there is dialogue, mutual respect and the potential for funding solutions. This, says Jim Griffin, is the formula that other organisations either fail to understand or are too slow to implement.
"We applaud VCAMM for creating partnerships and nurturing their development," says Jim Griffin. "I can only imagine what local business would look like had they been around when we opened our doors."
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