Sigrist – A Brief History of an Australian owned Technology Business

Raptair

The release internally of the Raptair fan selection tool brings substantial scalability to the business.  When combined with internal control tools like DinoRider it resulted in a more than doubling of quote output.  This was followed by the public release of Raptair to estimators, contractors and engineering design consultants.  Read more about Raptair here.

DinoRider

DinoRider was developed by the Sigrist team to take the data generated by Raptair and provide the tools to complete the scalability that boosts Sigrist for the coming years. A brief summary of DinoRider functions includes: Quality checking – data sheets generation, NCC compliance and key design factors like correct motors on smoke spill fans, correct features on kitchen and carpark exhaust etc. Lead times – real time lead times for each item including allowance for public holidays, alternate suppliers. This includes the ability to identify supply chain constraints to allow redirecting of purchasing to alternative sources. Pricing Allows pricing at the non-manufactured and manufactured levels, then splitting to product groups and finally down to individual products. This includes list prices adjustment tools to show margin, adjusted margin and applied discounts. Historical reference quotes can be used for consistency across bundled projects. Finally to give overall project value and achieved margin. Reporting Quote report for the customer and engineering summary report for the consulting engineer are the most common reports used. Supply chain reports are available for sending to the customer to plan their deliveries timeline for their project. Production control and supply chain management The schedule management tool allows the splitting of a project into batches, such a per building level, in combination with the control of the content of each batch and the planned delivery dates. This tool also identifies shipped items and remaining items on an order in real time. The production pipelines are integrated to the supply chain tools so changes in planned delivery dates are reflected at the production line in real time. Sigrist has built and sustained a reputation since 1989 for high quality, robust and well engineered equipment manufactured in Queensland, Australia.  

Sigrist – an Australian fan manufacturer since 1989

Sigrist was established in 1989 by Robert Sigrist. The business began by installing and refurbishing imported ventilation and dust-management systems, and within a decade had moved into designing and manufacturing its own fans and ventilation equipment in Queensland. About ten years ago the company diversified into higher-volume HVAC fan production for building construction and recruited a full design engineering team. In 2018 Robert Sigrist retired and private investors took over, funding the transition from 2D to 3D CAD and a programme of LEAN manufacturing improvements. From 2024, LEAN methods extended into sales and administration, backed by expanded in-house software development. Today Sigrist designs and builds fans at Richlands, Brisbane, and supplies them Australia-wide. The company manufactures replacement fans for all major commercial and industrial fan brands, and supports the installed base with replacement impellers, replacement motors, and workshop impeller rebuilding. Sigrist is a manufacturer, not a service agent – installation and on-site servicing are carried out by mechanical services contractors, many of whom Sigrist supplies.