Trinder Engineering

Established in 1948, with more than 60 years of experience and over 100 staff, Trinder Engineering provides innovative engineering solutions to the transport, agriculture, viticulture, food processing, forestry and nutraceutical sectors. They are renowned for their practical and innovative approach to mechanical design, research & development, structural engineering, consulting, fabrication and welding, manufacturing, assembly, maintenance and repair services.

Trinder produce innovative, bespoke machines often from scratch and transport solutions primarily based on the proprietary components of existing vehicles. Their solutions are frequently unique and host innovative features.

With a strong focus and pride in having some of the best-skilled tradespeople and workmanship in the industry, one of Trinder’s biggest challenges had been attracting new engineering talent.

“We have engaged with the Nelson Regional Development Agency several times and through them have accessed the Callaghan Innovation Student ‘Experience’ Grant for two consecutive years” said Principal Design & Innovations Engineer Dr David Aitchison.

The Student ‘Experience’ Grant is designed to allow businesses to bring smart, enthusiastic and fresh thinking into their R&D activities, as well as to allow undergraduates to gain work experience, through financing a mutually beneficial summer internship.

This grant enabled Trinder Engineering to explore new innovative products and engage with new engineering student talent, taking on intern Jeremy Whiting during his final year studying mechanical engineering.

“I’ve had two main projects I’ve been working on; one in viticulture spraying and the other in aquaculture. Both of these have involved doing a lot of concepts, design, development, talking to workshop staff and talking to clients.” Whiting said.

“At Trinders I’ve enjoyed the experience of working in a world-class, innovative, engineering business. Having professional mentorship has allowed me to apply and extend my university knowledge into real-world environments.”

In addition to this, Trinder Engineering also gained access to Callaghan Innovation’s research library services. With a focus on increasing productivity, Trinder Engineering have been developing new machinery for forestry and heavy transport for many years supported by a specialist design team. The research library services have assisted in providing sensible solutions to other challenges faced by their broad customer base as well as facilitate early-stage investigations to better inform their future development work.

A dedicated research and innovation (R&I) initiative was also established in 2019. The aim of this is to explore and pursue options for new product developments (IP generation) within Trinder Engineering and provide a product realisation pipeline to external customers and partners.

“For businesses across the top of the South who want to grow, I recommend that you contact the Nelson Regional Development Agency to learn about the suite of services available to you from the Regional Business Partner Programme.”

Watch their video below and get in touch with Mark Maguire, our Regional Business Advisor, if you would like to learn more about the support services available via the Regional Business Partner Programme.