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Chamber Member, NEC Corporation, Open Cutting Edge Technology Innovation Centre
New Zealand is now home to a leading edge, new Technology Innovation Centre showcasing a wide range of impressive technologies both sourced globally, and developed and enhanced right here in New Zealand.
The Technology Innovation Centre represents a multi-million dollar investment in New Zealand by NEC Corporation and marks 50 years of NEC doing business in this country. It showcases many of NEC’s innovative technologies and is the new base for local research, development and technical support for NEC in New Zealand.
The new 1640m2 centre includes a complete software development lab while The “Interactive Zone” of the centre replaces a traditional reception area and is an open, colourful space reminiscent of a technology café. It consists of a full scale telephone exchange and data networking laboratory, a digital biometric screen displaying your name, gender and approximate age, and an 8 screen video wall demonstrating the impressiveness of the latest digital visual displays. The latest local research and development projects between NEC and partners such as Weltec, Canterbury University and Auckland University are also featured. Much of the technology at the Centre has been developed locally and includes several New Zealand and World firsts.
NEC New Zealand Director and General Manager Mr Leonard Dench says, “While the technology we have on display here is spectacular and exciting, the Technology Innovation Centre is not merely a showroom. With the latest technology brought in from Japan and regional HQ (APAC), the centre is an engaging and interactive combination of office space and research and development facilities. It will enable NEC New Zealand to deliver on our promise of empowering people through innovation by developing total solutions to meet the needs of our local market. It is about the collaboration of companies and encouraging the open sharing of information to develop innovative solutions for various consumers, businesses and communities. It is also about bringing the knowledge, products, ideas and technologies of businesses together to create new possibilities, and share them with both New Zealand markets and for export.”
The new centre was officially opened by the Prime Minister, the Right Honourable, Mr John Key at an evening event attended by the Japanese Ambassador, His Excellency Mr Yasuaki Nogawa, many of New Zealand’s leading core infrastructure companies, technology and science leaders, Government departments and executives from NEC Corporation.