In episode ten of @AuManufacturing Conversations with Brent Balinski, we speak to Peter Torreele, founder and Managing Director of 3RT, a company that has developed automated machines for converting wood industry residue into products that look and feel like 100-year-old hardwood.
Peter is an engineer, economist and marketer by training and has worked at various manufacturing companies, as well spent five years as managing director of the World Economic Forum.
He shares 3RT’s story with us, which he began with a few insights into the flooring industry and built into a technology company which seems poised to make its mark on the world.
Last month 3RT announced that German chemical industry giant Henkel's venture division made an unspecified investment, which Peter said "will assist in turbocharging our technological advancements and global expansion.”
As well as Henkel, 3RT has developed its technology with the help of strategic partnerships with Bosch Australia Manufacturing Solutions and Flinders University.
Peter also shares some thoughts on what he believes innovation is, the importance of a networking approach to manufacturing, and why Australian companies need to better adopt a value-adding mindset.
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Episode guide
2:10 -- Company origin story plus professional background.
4:55 -- The types of wood waste that can be used.
6:50 -- R&D at the company, plus the differences between innovation versus optimisation.
10:52 -- Investment by Henkel Tech Ventures. Some explanations on strategy and partnerships.
12:20 -- Three distinctive phases: R&D, prototyping, and scaling. And why the Australian R&D tax incentive is "a godsend" for small companies.
14:30 -- More data = better wood.
16:40 -- The huge importance of market feedback in product development.
19 -- The more you dig into an industry, the more you appreciate its complexity.
20:50 -- "If there's one thing I learned at the World Economic Forum in my five years..."
23:30 -- It's not about machines, but about solutions.
25:50 -- Australian manufacturing must develop a value-adding mindset.
28:40 -- European expansion.
29:30 -- Curiosity and networking are the keys to innovation.
Relevant links
3RT's website
3rt.com.au
Article in The Lead South Australia from 2020 on 3RT's partnership with Bosch and Flinders University
https://theleadsouthaustralia.com.au/industries/manufacturing/bosch-deal-fast-tracks-smartwood-technology/
@AuManufacturing story on the recent Henkel investment
https://www.aumanufacturing.com.au/henkel-takes-stake-in-recycled-wood-innovator-3rt
Interview with Torreele in @AuManufacturing published December 2021
https://www.aumanufacturing.com.au/leadership-in-factory-automation-wood-from-waste-for-a-world-market
