A local company which has just celebrated 20 years of success has proven the adage: manufacturing in Australia is dead, long live manufacturing in Australia.
Sevaan Group in the Minto industrial estate is a cutting edge metal manufacturer that was borne from the amalgamation of two long standing fabrication companies in 1997.
Husband and wife Jim and Artemis Tzakos were the co-founders of Sevaan Group.
At the time there was doom and gloom about the Australian manufacturing sector and the amalgamation was seen by some people as a risky venture.
But Sevaan Group proved the doubters wrong by becoming a manufacturing powerhouse that’s delivered growth and expansion every year of those 20 since the amalgamation.
“Many people told us we were mad,” says managing director Jim Tzakos.
“But that’s only because their interpretation of a manufacturing company was pretty much based on 20th century ideals and practices.
“Right from the outset, the two relatively tired fabrication companies we amalgamated were transformed into cutting edge, software driven practices which today deliver arguably Australia’s best tolerances, accuracy and workmanship.
“Not only have we become a team that offers a high degree of engineering and fabrication, our clients know repeatability is guaranteed so they can just leave us to handle jobs from start to finish,” Mr Tzakos said.
Employing the latest technology is a very important reason Sevaan Group has been so successfully.
But there’s an even bigger reason: its people and training.
To say that Sevaan Group place strong focus on training their people would be an understatement.
Every person at Sevaan, from the top down, receives the required training to do their job at an optimal level.
“By making this strategy a mainstay of our business, it means our tailored assembly service gives us quality and control from design and production all the way to completion,’’ Mr Tzakos said.
“It means our clients have the confidence each component is being managed by employees who share a professional investment in the outcome.
“Remember, it’s not all about technology and machines – a large part of our planning for the future is to ensure that our staff is not just highly trained but also very comfortable in their positions and workplace.
“Without our people we can’t run our machines and without this mix there is no way our business would grow.’’
Looking ahead and planning for it is another Sevaan Group reason for their success.
“It’s our responsibility to ensure the security of our future through innovation and cultural development,” says Mr Tzakos.
“We do this by keeping abreast of the latest in metal componentry machinery and technology.’’
Last year Sevaan Group was awarded a Macarthur Workplace Learning Program (MWLP) Business of the Month Award for its work in offering apprenticeships and work placements to local TAFE and high school students.
These placements give students a chance to grow their skills and get a taste of the workforce, and hopefully entice them to become apprentices with Sevaan.
To the company’s co-founders, the biggest accolade – more important than any award – is recognition that whenever any student is identified by the scheme as a natural talent for the fabrication sector, he or she is offered an apprenticeship with Sevaan.
Also last year, Sevaan Group was recognised for its manufacturing specialities after being shortlisted for the Manufacturers Monthly 2016 Endeavour awards as Australia’s most innovative manufacturing company.
Now the company is focused on the next 20 years of growth and expansion.
♦ For more information, visit Sevaan’s website, https://www.sevaangroup.com.au/
