Top exporter started in home basement

Fisher & Paykel Healthcare won the agritech, life sciences and biotechnology category.

Technology company Rakon, which makes crystals and oscillators for mobile phones and global positioning systems, was last night named the country's top exporter.

The Auckland-based family business, which started in a home basement 38 years ago and now makes more than $60 million in export earnings annually, beat 20 other finalists for the title of Supreme Exporter of the Year at the New Zealand Trade and Enterprise Export Awards in Christchurch.

The privately owned company was founded in 1967 by Warren Robinson to manufacture quartz crystals for the local VHF and marine industry by hand from his basement.

Today it employs about 500 people in its Auckland headquarters and is recognised as the best producer of high performance crystals and oscillators in the world.

Almost all its sales are export, and these have increased 762 per cent between January 2002 and December 2004. It has customers in 45 countries, and its major markets are North America, Asia and Western Europe.

Sales manager Justin Maloney said the company had survived radical changes in direction and the boom and bust years of the international telecoms market, when many other crystal manufacturers went bust.

Category winners at last night's award were:

* Agritech, life sciences and biotechnology: Medical equipment manufacturer Fisher & Paykel Healthcare, (Auckland)

* Creative and design: Boutique production house The Sweet Shop (Auckland)

* Education: The University of Auckland

* Food and beverage: Health products company Comvita (Bay of Plenty)

* Information and communication technology: Quartz crystal manufacturer Rakon (Auckland)

* Services: Fitness programme exporter Les Mills International (Auckland)

* Specialised manufacturing: Air conditioning systems maker Noske-Kaeser New Zealand (Manawatu)

* Wood processing, building and interiors: Fletcher Construction South Pacific Division (Auckland)