Headquartered in Sydney, Australia, W&E Platt Pty Ltd is a world leader in the design, prototyping, manufacture and installation of weapon mounts and equipment for all types of military vehicles. In recent years, the company has expanded - opening offices in North America, the United Kingdom and Europe. W&E Platt is now ranked as one of Australia’s top exporters of defence products and the world’s premier supplier of machine gun mounts for armoured vehicles.
Customer Stories
CASE STUDY: W & E PLATT - A TRANS-TASMAN PARTNERSHIP DESIGNED TO SUCCEED
Originally developed for the Australian Army, the Platt Swing Mount is the most widely used of the company’s products due to its high quality, reliability and proven performance. To date, the company has supplied over 17,000 of these systems world wide, including more than 11,000 to the US military. Other end-users include Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the UK. Constructed from either stainless steel or aluminium, the Platt Swing Mount is suitable for a wide variety of military vehicles. Using purpose-built adaptors, the system can also be tailored for use with a range of weapons. Sales of the Platt Swing Mount continue.
With quality and reliability being the hallmark of Platt products, the company has carefully aligned itself with top-flight suppliers that will seamlessly support that high-level goal. Over the years, Platt has forged a partnership with Supreme in New Zealand which provides precision castings of various components used on Platt Swing Mounts. A Platt spokesperson said Supreme was chosen as a key supplier for several reasons including quality and price.
“They are always ready to meet repeat deadlines and urgent orders, which are driven by field requirements from military forces operating at the forefront of the fight against terrorism. “Providing a precision product that is both reliable and consistent from one Swing Mount to the next is critical. As a result, Platt is only comfortable working with trusted suppliers that it can rely upon – in Supreme we have that trust. “Given the nature of our work, we also need to be 100 per cent confident that our suppliers have effective processes in place to safeguard our intellectual property. Supreme has proven that it has a comprehensive and robust security programme in place specifically designed to protect our design files and commercial interests.”
CASE STUDY: ACCORD PRECISION AND SUPREME COLLABORATE FOR INTERNATIONAL SUCCESS
Auckland-based Accord Precision Ltd had for many years supplied the world’s leading supplier of commercial diving helmets with machined components for deep-sea diving equipment. Then, in 2008 the company approached Accord to create a stainless steel deep-sea diving helmet. Accord Precision Ltd, Chief Executive, Alec Mandis, said there were ongoing concerns within the international diving community about the durability of fibreglass helmets in rugged and hazardous underwater environments.
“They felt stainless steel would provide the required additional protection.”
Several attempts had been made by various companies over the years to create a stainless steel helmet, but none had managed to create a die that successfully incorporated the many complex and intricate design requirements including, a 3mm thick wall, and a host of curves and shapes. Keen on a challenge, Alec immediately saw the opportunity to partner with Supreme Products - one of the foremost precision casters in the Pacific Rim - to assist in developing a solution. Accord and Supreme worked collaboratively on the creation of several prototypes finally hitting on the winning design in 2009.
The two companies now collaborate on the manufacturing of the helmets. The cast helmet shells are manufactured by Supreme then passed onto Accord who completes all the required machining work, before dispatching the finished product to the customer. “The process is rigorous and exacting - it has to be, lives depend on it. Numerous safety tests are carried out throughout the manufacturing process, from radiographs through to pressure test and checks for porosity and thickness,” Alec said.
The customer was so impressed with the finished product that they have awarded Accord and Supreme a significant contract, to supply the stainless steel deep-sea diving helmets for the international market. Alec believes that Supreme and Accord’s successful collaboration shows that international manufacturing success can be achieved in New Zealand. “Our focus is on delivering smarter products for our customers every time. The commitment we make to high-quality manufacturing and our investment in cutting edge technologies means that we can deliver and exceed customer expectations.”