Dandenong South business Dotmar Injection Moulding are forging their own path and achieving new heights.
The company specialises in injection-moulded plastic components (anywhere from 2g to 4kg) across industries such as automotive, spa and pool, food and beverage, pharmaceuticals, consumer goods and others.
Towards the end of the pandemic, the company was finding it difficult to recruit employees, as were many industries at the time.
They brainstormed what do to, and an idea was born.
“We found that if we could offer flexible hours, school mums were a great source of employment,” says operations manager Michael Nagengast.
The business began offering flexible working arrangements, whether it be three days a week, 9am to 2.30pm, or whatever hours worked for prospective employees. And it did wonders not only for their recruitment, but also their retention of staff.
Nowadays, 64% of their workforce are female, which is almost unheard of in what is traditionally a male-dominated industry. Not only that – the workforce is extremely culturally diverse, which Mr Nagengast says brings value to the team.
“It’s a really nice place to work, and several employees have been with us for decades,” he says.
“I think more than anything, it’s the family atmosphere that makes people want to work here.”
Aside from its innovative hiring processes, Dotmar Injection Moulding has found other ways to evolve and minimise their environmental footprint.
“There has been a big push for the environmental side of things, so as of January we are now 100 per cent carbon neutral,” says Mr Nagengast.
So, what does that look like in practice? The factory uses 1000-plus solar panels and purchases carbon credits to offset what they can’t cover with solar.
Any new machines have to be efficient and environmentally friendly, and the business uses a closed-loop system – a sustainable circular production approach where materials are recycled, reused and repurposed, minimising waste by feeding products back into the production cycle.
Dotmar Injection Moulding is part of the Dotmar Engineering Group, which operates in most Australian states and New Zealand. But they’re still very much focussed on keeping it local and working with other manufacturers in the industry.
“There’s massive competition coming from China, so a few years ago, we formed partnerships with local manufacturing injection moulders,” says Mr Nagengast.
“We believe that working together is key to making ourselves stronger.”