Fisher & Paykel commenced business in New Zealand in
1934 as an importer of refrigerators and washing machines, and began
manufacturing appliances under licence in 1938 for several major
international appliance companies. Driven by a desire to export they
moved to manufacturing products utilising their own in-house
technology in the mid 1960’s. The founders realised that as a small
operation, they needed to innovate to survive and grow.
Today that innovation is reflected in appliances
like the Smart Drive washing machines, Active Smart
refrigerators and DishDrawer dishwashers. The strategy to
grow through commitment to research and development and a culture
that encourages all staff to innovate continues to this day.
Innovation and product stewardship are natural
partners. Product stewardship has also been part of the Fisher &
Paykel culture for many years and originally did not have the name
product stewardship. An F&P staff member was part of the official
New Zealand delegation to the Montreal protocol and continues to
provide data and technical assistance to some UN committees on
refrigerant gases and their global warming potential.
In 1993 F&P initiated a product recovery facility
in Auckland for the return of appliances. This facility has been
expanded so that it now handles products from the North Island of
New Zealand.
The Smart Drive washing machine was the
first electronic top load washing machine on the Australian market.
This introduced considerable energy and water savings. Subsequent
innovation has introduced load sensing which maximises both water
and energy savings. This washing machine was the first top load
washer in Australia to achieve an AAAA water rating and is still the
most energy efficient vertical axis top load washer in the
Australian market.
In 1994 F&P eliminated CFC foam insulation and CFC
refrigerant from their complete refrigerator range. This they did
without resorting to the use of HCFCs. Both changes give a
significant environmental benefit as they reduce the global warming
potential of the refrigerator. The innovation of Active Smart
electronic controls for the F&P refrigerators, including an adaptive
defrost system, reduced energy consumption by up to 40%.
Product stewardship does not end with product
design and at F&P they also focus on their production facilities.
The Brisbane facility uses Green energy and is designed to have
minimal environmental impact on the bushland site. They strive to
eliminate toxic substances in production and recycle and re-use
wherever possible. Plastic waste in the manufacturing facility is
collected, re-ground and re-used. They recycle cardboard, metal and
also damaged wooden pallets. The water used to test the washing
machines is treated and re-used to keep the total water used to the
absolute minimum.
The commitment of F&P to water and energy
conservation has been recognised by winning the 2001 Galaxy Star
award. The commitment of F&P to product stewardship has been
recognised by winning the 2002 AEEMA product stewardship award.
