Grahame Hutchinson, grandson of the founder, took over the business in 1983 and realized that for the company to grow and prosper it needed access to more opportunities than those the domestic Australian market could provide. So began the development of a vision for international trade and the concept of a “new business”.

The term “knowledge economy” had not yet been coined, but Grahame Hutchinson, knew that the company’s future was inextricably linked with the ability to do “smart things” with import replacement products, solving problems that others could not. This realization and the vision of exporting both products and knowledge (intellectual property) have been the driving force for the business ever since.

Isolation rubber and steel elastomers being imported by construction machinery suppliers provided Vulcanite with an excellent import replacement opportunity. These components were expensive to import and required a high level of engineering understanding and production resources which made them hard for our competitors to copy, but gave us a challenge that was to be the seed of our success in global markets.

The success in this construction equipment field provided the strong foundation for growth, technological development, improved production resources and management practices along with a growing financial base.

The production techniques and engineering design capability developed, provided Vulcanite with skill and resources to enter the Railway Rolling Stock industry. This industry now represents 65% of our total market and is growing both domestically and internationally.

Vulcanite has successfully developed very specialized rubber diaphragm seals to replace the imported component on the Sydney Tangara fleet of passenger trains. The complex technologies associated with this development provide us with an excellent Hong Kong supply opportunity, as our only world competitor is the original supplier from Europe.

Research and development expenditure is up to 15% of turnover and growing.

“In House” computer solid modeling as well as finite element analysis software, combined with design verification testing equipment, provide Vulcanite with flexible and affordable design capabilities managed under our ISO 9001 system.

Alliances and co-operative agreements form a key part of Vulcanite’s development strategy. Marketing and manufacturing agreements with major multinationals, links with Universities and manufacturing joint ventures with both Australian and off shore organizations form an essential part of our future import and export strategies.