About 3M New Zealand

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History of 3M New Zealand

HISTORY

3M began doing business in New Zealand through a local agent in 1953 and in 1956 officially opened a branch office of 3M Australia Pty Ltd in Auckland city. There were just 4 employees in those early days, operating a business based on sales of imported finished rolls of Scotch brand pressure sensitive adhesive tapes and Thermo-Fax brand copying machines.

Severe import restrictions imposed by the government late in 1957 led to a decision being made to start up a local manufacturing operation the following year, which necessitated a shift from the original office to a small leased building in the Penrose industrial area. At first, local manufacturing was limited to converting imported tape jumbos into finished rolls and the production of Underseal brand automotive underbody protective coating.

By 1962 there was sufficient confidence in the growth potential of 3M’s business in New Zealand to justify the purchase of an 11 acre site in the Wairau Valley of Auckland’s North Shore and the building of 20,000 square feet of office, manufacturing and warehouse facilities. This move enabled production activities to expand into tape coating and abrasive disc making by 1967 and by then employee headcount had risen to 80. Business and the organisation continued to grow, new buildings increased the total complex to 56,000 square feet, and by 1973 180 people were employed. In that year 3M New Zealand Ltd became a fully autonomous subsidiary.

Further building expansion and the employment of an additional 40 people were necessary over the next two decades to cope with growing sales of a highly diversified range of 3M products, the acquisition of 4 companies (Microfilm Services Ltd, Riker Laboratories Ltd, NZ Posters Ltd and Transport Publicity Ltd) and new production operations for Scotchbrite brand cleaning and finishing materials, coated abrasive sheeting and aluminium foil tape - the first New Zealand made product to be exported in significant quantity.

With the completion of a modern, 24,000 square feet distribution centre in 1988, the Auckland facilities now comprise approximately 94,000 square feet of buildings, together with leased sales offices in Wellington and Christchurch.

PRESENT

3M New Zealand today employs approximately 220 employees in all business fields - technical, accounting, sales, marketing, production and many other specialist roles. Our export business in specialty foil tape now extends to many 3M subsidiaries and the significant growth of this business has seen us as a finalist for three years in the New Zealand Export Awards. Recognition by the International Standards Organisation as conforming to ISO 9002 quality standards has been an important factor in achieving further export growth in the nineties.

3M New Zealand’s strong local presence, efficiency through continuous improvement, strong presence in the industrial, commercial, healthcare and consumer markets, combined with a continuous flow of new products, has the company well positioned for sustainable growth in the future.

Our tradition of innovation has become part of the company’s vision and self-image. We are always producing solutions in response to a specific customer need because we have always done business at 3M in close cooperation with our customers. We have the ability to serve our customers locally with the diversified breadth of our product line so if you have a business need that requires a solution, why not give us a call.

AUCKLAND

WELLINGTON

CHRISTCHURCH

Ph: (09) 444-4760

Fax: (09) 444-2773

Fax: (04) 384-5880

Ph: (03) 366-4559

Fax: (03) 366-5036

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Community and Sponsorships

Young Enterprise Scheme

3M New Zealand is a major supporter of the Lion Foundation Young Enterprise Scheme. Under YES senior secondry school students raise capital, form a company, establish a board of directors and market and sell a product. a teacher acts as the initial start up person with a mentor from the business community acting as adviser. Young Enterprisers have an opportunity to earn rewards for their efforts and all YES directors receive certificates at the end of the year if they have met the necessary criteria.

We are proud to be associated with the Lion Foundation Young Enterprise Scheme and see it as an excellent vehicle for teaching the fundamentals of business to New Zealand's future business community. As one of the world's foremost innovative companies we are well placed to sponsor the 3M New Zealand Award for Innovation in support of the YES programme.

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This sponsorhip is part of our worldwide involvement in the educational community - 3M is one of the leading corporate supporters of Junior Achievement in the USA and is a positive contributor to other business education partnerships in which we are already engaged here in New Zealand.

AIESEC

3M New Zealand is also a key supporter of AIESEC - an international student organisation which fosters leadership and personal development for young professionals.

For 50 years AIESEC has been committed to developing commercially aware, socially responsible and culturally sensitive citizens. It's core activity is its international exchange placement programme, which assists young New Zealanders to work and live overseas. New Zealand companies also benefit from the programme, gaining access to a global network of top quality young professionals.

3M is a long term key sponsor of AIESEC conferences and events including careers seminars, an annual corporate breakfast and national and international conferences for members. The company is proud to be associated with this vibrant and forward-thinking organisation which is playing a vital role in the development of New Zealand's future leaders.

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Environmental Responsibility

3M worldwide is dedicated to continuous improvement of environmental performance.

We initiated an innovative environmental programme in 1975, "Pollution Prevention Pays" (3P). More than 20 years later this 3P programme continues to encourage us to find innovative ways to minimise waste and reduce costs. Throughout the 1980s and early 1990s 3M progressed beyond the demands of regulatory compliance by implementing policies and programmes that significantly reduced waste, emissions and other environmental impacts. Some 3M worldwide results since 1990 include -

Air emissions cut 70%

Water releases cut 52%

Solid waste cut 32%

Waste as a percent of product cut 30%

Here in New Zealand our anti-pollution efforts have positioned the company as a leader in environmental management and we are regularly called on by other companies and industry sectors to share our experience.

Five years ago 3M New Zealand spent nearly $2 million on a sophisticated solvent recovery plant to reduce solvent emissions from our adhesive tape manufacturing plant.

We have been able to not only reduce emissions into the atmosphere by 90 percent but we have been able to also recycle most of those previously emitted solvents back into our manufacturing process so both our company and the environment are benefiting.

We have also relocated our solvent storage tanks above ground to avoid any potential problem with ground water contamination if there is leakage.

We are also a member of the Energy Wise Companies campaign, the industry/government initiative established by EECA in 1994, aimed at fostering improved energy use in New Zealand, and in1996 we were highly commended in the northern regional section of the inaugural Energy-Wise Companies Awards. We have been measuring energy use and targeting improvement since 1990.

Overall, our key to success has been a strategy of setting measurable environmental objectives and then regularly monitoring activities to achieve results.

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