The oceanic blindspots of lost radio and radar contact were highlighted by the crash of Air France flight AF477 with the loss of 228 lives. If the Air France flight had been fitted with the TracPlus system the plane’s position could have been pinpointed with no need for costly search activities. The TracPlus system updates the plane’s or vehicles whereabouts every 20 seconds anywhere on the globe, whereas usual  radar does not penetrate beyond about 200 nautical miles from the coastline.

The TracPlus founder Chris Hinch has announced he is stepping aside as CEO of TracPlus to become director of product development and innovation. The newly appointed CEO is Stuart Campbell formerly of Xerox, Canon and Lion Nathan.

An obviously proud Hinch says the attempt gave the fledgling Kiwi company unprecedented publicity for its new US office and a great deal of credibility within America’s aviation world. Using TracPlus technology, record watchers were able to clock Kasprowicz and Sheik’s progress on the Grand Adventure website.

Closer to home, Kiwi and Australian internet sports fans were equally enthralled with kayakers James Castrission and Justin Jones’ epic trans-Tasman voyage. Jones’ mum was so impressed by the technology, she was quoted as saying that it was the first time in years that she had known exactly where Justin was.

TracPlus volunteered its technology to the kayaking pair after reading that they were persisting with the record attempt, even after the tragic disappearance of fellow Australian kayaker Andrew McAuley on his trans-Tasman attempt a few months earlier.

Hinch says McAuley did have a tracking device, but it wasn’t appropriate for sea conditions. That’s the beauty of TracPlus, he says. It’s designed to work with any tracking software or hardware, and across any satellite or cellular network, delivering data to whoever might need or want it.

This flexibility led Coastguard New Zealand to install TracPlus on all the 96 boats and aircraft in its national search-and-rescue fleet in August last year. Mike Lawrence from Coastguard Northern Region says choosing TracPlus was basically a no-brainer, because it was the only system providing a national solution.

Hinch is a former staffer at Ian Taylor’s Animation Research, which developed America’s Cup software Virtual Spectator. He says the idea for TracPlus was born out of a fatal boating tragedy in 2003, when three men died off the north Otago coast after precious rescue time was wasted due to a mix up with beacon signals.

In his spare time, backed by revenue from his own software firm, Hinch set about developing a system that would allow rescuers to locate all their craft and seamlessly share that information with other rescue agencies to maximise coordination efforts.

But all that effort would have come to nothing, Hinch says, if not for TracPlus’s relationship with Dunedin’s Upstart business incubator and the advice of its chief executive Norman Evans. “Prior to our incubation, he said, ‘Look, tracking systems are a dime a dozen. Go away and work out what the value proposition is.’” That’s what prompted Hinch to develop a system that would work with any hardware, software and satellite system on the market.

Throughout the two-and-a-half year incubation of TracPlus, Upstart helped mentor the fledgling company, helping it build a board that kept Hinch’s eye on strategy and off the operations minutiae of the business. Without Upstart’s input, Hinch says TracPlus would probably still be a struggling bespoke software company with delusions of grandeur. “Now we’re a little multinational company with delusions of grandeur.”

To date it’s been all up for the company, having never lost a customer since TracPlus was launched in August 2007. As well as the Coastguard in New Zealand, TracPlus now supplies its tracking technology to more than 80% of New Zealand air rescue operators and support operations in 22 countries from Mongolia to Antarctica. Its main focus this year is the US, but there are plans to set up a European office within the next 12 months. Hinch is cagey about finances, but says the company is on target to break even this financial year.

Mr Geddes, the Otago Forward Chairman said the economic strategy had the 100 per cent support of all the region’s elected leaders and had the potential to spur growth of many new and existing businesses. “The key element is the call to look at what assets we have and find ways to hook one area in with another to create new growth” he said.

Businesses and ideas that fitted with the strategy could apply for Otago Forward funding to investigate feasibility of projects, and the strategy would help Otago businesses access central government funding. The strategy identifies theme areas which ae believed to provide the best opportunities. The top five are the film sector, entrepreneurs and high growth businesses, co-ordinating tourism development, improving communication and networks, and access to China. Many of these projects have already begun including the expansion of Upstart throughout Otago.

The new $5 million angel investment fund is targeting investors in a bid to boost the capital available to seed and start up companies. Basically, the fund allows registered angels to take a passive stake in a diversified portfolio of startups that have been selected by the rest of the significant angel community in New Zealand, and SCIF (the government Seed Co-investment Fund).  Halo will contribute 50c for every dollar invested into a business by the Seed Co-investment fund to a maximum of $125,000.

It’s a brilliant concept, in that it allows people to buy a diverse portfolio of 15-30 qualified investments. Angels can put in as little as $25,000. Proceeds from liquidating investments will be distributed to investors immediately. Once the fund closes there will be no further opportunity to invest. 

 The fund will operate for 10 years and it is the result of NZVIFs desire to recruit 1000 new Angel investors.

After seven successful years helping both emerging designers and fashion businesses, the Fashion Incubator is being relocated to the Otago Polytechnic in a move to achieve synergies with the Otago Institute of Design, and the Design Department. The team at Upstart are delighted the Fashion Incubator has found such a good home where it will be able to keep working with Dunedin’s thriving fashion community.

Over the years there have been many highlights with 13 full time business clients, and hundreds of Outreach and Hatchery clients. Clients have shown at both New Zealand and Australian Fashion Weeks, and a number of clients now sell widely throughout the country and offshore.

This year one of our full time clients, Sarah MacDonald and her label Doe-a-Deer, won the Otago Chamber of Commerce business award for Design with their innovative mix of functional, design led clothing for women who hunt, fish and work in the great outdoors.

The team at Upstart look forward to following the progress of all our graduates, and those transferring to the Polytech, confident that Dunedin will remain at the forefront of the fashion industry, and proud to have played our part.

Being selected as a finalist is quite an honour given the quality and quantity of submissions received in 2008 for the 2009 award.

Upstart was the High Growth category winner in 2008, with the 2009 winner in each category being announced in May.

The Gen-i sponsored awards underlined the growth of New Zealand’s incubation industry, with the winning companies representing everything from robotics and GPS tracking, through to wireless power solutions and mobile banking.

Recent winners of the Global Technium Challenge, TracPlus, won the Start-up Exporter of the Year Award with their revolutionary tracking service for commercial, government and non government agencies that is now operating in 14 countries and areas, including the Antarctic. TracPlus allows users to not only monitor the status and location of their assets, but also to securely share that information with other users, regardless of tracking hardware and network chosen.

The full list of this year’s winners:

• Start-up Exporter of the Year: TracPlus Global Ltd from Upstart in Dunedin.
• Start-up of the Year: INRO Technologies Ltd from The ICEHOUSE in Auckland.
• Start-up Entrepreneur of the Year: eBUS’s Carmine Masiello from The ICEHOUSE in Auckland.
• Innovation of the Year: PowerbyProxi Ltd from The ICEHOUSE in Auckland.
• Hall of Fame Award: Mobile Mentor and M-Com, both from The ICEHOUSE in Auckland.

TracPlus Global Limited is a finalist for three out of the four categories of the Incubator Awards; Start-up of the Year, Start-up Exporter of the Year and Start-up Entrepreneur of the Year.  It is also a finalist in the TUANZ award category of Initiative of the Year for 2008.

TracMap NZ Limited is a finalist for the fourth of the Incubator Award categories, Innovation of the Year, and is a finalist for the following TUANZ Awards; Initiative of the Year 2008, Mobile Application of the Year, Rural Award and ICT Innovator of the Year (Managing Director Colin Brown).

Although the company names have a similar sound they are two very different businesses.  

TracPlus is the recent winner of the Global Technium Challenge.  It has developed a revolutionary tracking service for commercial, government and non government agencies that is now operating in 14 countries and areas, including the Antarctic. TracPlus allows users to not only monitor the status and location of their assets, but also to securely share that information with other users, regardless of tracking hardware and network chosen.

TracMap provides a complete agricultural and horticultural GPS guidance and proof of placement mapping package for vehicles operating in demanding outdoor environments. For fertiliser spreading contractors it can achieve a 15% productivity gain and reduce environmental impact from fertiliser application. In less than two years TracMap has grown from 2 to 14 staff, sold over 300 units nationally and developed a product variant for the aviation industry.

Upstart CEO, Norman Evans is delighted to have finalists in so many award categories and says, “It is rewarding for us to see our companies being given the recognition they truly deserve.  Dunedin is a hot-bed of innovation and entrepreneurs and these companies are two more examples of the exciting innovators that are coming out of the city at the moment.  Since starting the incubator in 2004 we have worked with some truly outstanding companies.”

Winners of the Incubators NZ Awards will be announced on 5 August at a function in Wellington and the TUANZ winners will be announced on 28 August at a function in Auckland.

All investors are New Zealand based.

It can be hard to know what investors expect, or even know how to get their attention. The $unlimited Investment Challenge will tell you what they are looking for, help you get ready and then put you right in front of them!

From last year’s Challenge one company has confirmed investment of NZ$1,000,000 and up to a dozen other companies are in different stages of discussion/negotiation for varying sums of money. We were also able to introduce four companies to UK investors through UK Trade & Investment’s Global Entrepreneurs Programme.

If you think your business idea is the next big thing and need to secure funds to grow your business into the UK market and beyond, the 2008 $unlimited Investment Challenge is for you.