Palmerston North's Oliver Britz invents pooper scooper Slick Stick

Eco Toilet Solutions director Oliver Britz (left) and Absolute Tooling Solutions CAD designer Matt Williamson in front of the moulding machine used to make the Slick Stick. Photo / Supplied

Made in Chi. Hang on a minute, no that's not right. The Slick Stick is made in New Zealand.

The Slick Stick pooper scooper is the invention of Palmerston North's Oliver Britz, the director of Eco Toilet Solutions.

Britz says the cost of having products manufactured in New Zealand is now competitive with that of Chinese manufacturing because of logistical problems caused by Covid-19 and the ever-increasing cost of shipping. And products manufactured in New Zealand do not have the same environmental footprint as bringing goods in from Asia.

The pooper scooper is made by Absolute Tooling Solutions in Palmerston North. The precision engineering business has four staff, plus managing director Mark Buxton. It undertakes maintenance and general repairs for Manawatū food manufacturers, and makes new blow moulding tools and modifications to existing ones.

Absolute Tooling Solutions was established about 22 years ago and Buxton has owned it for 12 years.

He says he's noticed a shift from products being made in China to being made in New Zealand. For example, his company is now manufacturing a seed sprouter that used to be made in China.

Britz says having the scooper made in the city gives him confidence; he knows it will be delivered on time due to the much shorter logistical chain. Businesses want products on their shelves all the time rather than sporadically.

Britz says because Palmerston North is already a distribution hub it makes sense to start rebuilding the city's manufacturing industry.

Britz used to be a dog owner and to deal with his pooch's poop he wanted something lightweight, easy to use and that wouldn't get his hands dirty.

The concept came to him while riding his bike in the space of 15 minutes and the unique design is now patented.

Users' hands don't need to touch the soiled bag, poop or bottom of the scooper.

A QR code on the scooper's packaging takes users to a video showing how to insert a bag into the loop, scoop up the poop and then carry the closed bag to the bin.

There is a built-in bag holder and the scooper can also be used for cat poo or faeces of other animals. It has export potential, Britz says.

• The Slick Stick is available from Mitre 10 Mega in Palmerston North.