Marand Precision Engineering
Marand Precision Engineering designs and manufactures complex equipment and products for the aerospace, defence, rail, automotive, mining and energy industries.
Need
To secure its first contract in New Zealand with KiwiRail Limited, Marand Precision Engineering required a performance bond.
Solution
We provided a performance bond to Marand Precision Engineering, which enabled the business to secure its contract in New Zealand and also helped support continued business growth.
Securing finance from Export Finance Australia allowed Marand Precision Engineering (Trading as Marand) to fulfil a large, international contract, while also pursuing ambitious growth plans.
Marand designs and manufactures complex equipment and products for the aerospace, defence, rail, automotive, mining and energy industries.
Operating out of Moorabbin, Victoria, Marand began its export journey in the early 2000s. To date, it has exported more than $500 million in equipment, products and services, predominately to clients in the US and Europe.
They’re not interested in just providing you with a tool like a performance bond. They actually want to know what you’re trying to do as a business and how they can support you more broadly.
According to Chris Sullivan, Project Manager at Marand, the business offers whole-of-lifecycle solutions for its clients around the world.
“We're a one-stop-shop. We do the project management, design, manufacturing, assembly and installation, commissioning, ongoing maintenance and support. We can cover the whole gamut of the project lifecycle.”
In early 2021, Marand won its first New Zealand contract with KiwiRail Limited (KiwiRail). “We’ll be delivering a full turnkey solution for a new semi-automated Wheel Shop Facility at KiwiRail’s Wellington workshop,” Chris said. “It’s a 24-month contract.”
However, to secure the contract the business needed a performance bond facility. That is where Export Finance Australia was able to help.
Securing the right finance solution
Ian Rodgers, CFO at Marand, explained that the business explored several options, including traditional bank guarantees, but they weren’t suitable for what the business needed.
“We were looking for a more commercial option that wouldn’t tie up too much cash in the short term, so we could really enable growth,” he said.
Ian said that Export Finance Australia looked beyond the numbers to gain a deeper understanding of the business and its goals.
Ian recommends Export Finance Australia to other businesses needing financial support to fund export activities. However, he also pointed out that even businesses that don’t export directly can benefit.
“There are a lot of ways Export Finance Australia can help. For us, it was a pretty obvious situation to work with them because we were exporting something to New Zealand. But don't limit your thinking to that,” he said.
“We're also doing projects with Australian customers involved in export activities, and while we aren’t exporting directly, we’re still exploring our options with Export Finance Australia.”
He says that some businesses are involved in the export supply chain without realising it. For example, selling to a local customer who may export their end-products. This means they could be eligible to apply for Export Finance Australia’s financing solutions.