Talk to a few Australian manufacturers, and you’ll hear from one whose hard work has been plagiarised and profited off of by an unscrupulous overseas rival.
This panel considers the importance of protecting your design, brand, intellectual property, and mental wellbeing, and the ways this can be achieved. Are patents worth it? What’s the role of trust within your supply chain? And what happens when things go wrong?
Our expert panellists are Simon Dorries, CEO, Responsible Wood; Robert (Bob) Panitzki, Business Development Manager Furntech-AFRDI; Mark Lazarus, Director, Lazarus Legal; Amma Boakye, Practice Project Officer, IP Australia.
The discussion is moderated by Patrizia Torelli, CEO, The Australian Furniture Association. Scroll down for streamable audio of the session, which is also available to download via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and other platforms.
Simon Dorries – Responsible Wood
Simon Dorries is the Chief Executive Officer of Responsible Wood. Responsible Wood is accredited as a Standards Development Organisation by Standards Australia to write, maintain and updating the Australian Standards which underpin the Responsible Wood Certification System. These Standards include AS4707- Chain of Custody for Forest Products and AS/NZS4708 Sustainable Forest Management.
Simon holds a Bachelor of Applied Science and has worked in the Forest and Wood Products Industry for over 40 years. Commencing in 1985 as a cadet scientist while undertaking a science degree through part-time study. Simon has significant experience in developing product certification systems, compliance testing and assessment, delivering education and training across the Wood Products Sector, product development, and standards development. In addition to his role at Responsible Wood, Simon is currently Chair of Standards Australia Committee TM-011 Engineered Wood Products.
Robert (Bob) Panitzki – AFRDI
Bob graduated in chemistry from the University of Tasmania in 1970 and later earned a Diploma in Secondary Metallurgy (1976) and completed the Program for Management Development at UTAS (1985). He spent 32 years at ACL Bearing Company, rising from technical and manufacturing roles to General Manager, overseeing 400+ staff and $50M+ turnover. In 2003, he joined Furntech-AFRDI as Institute Manager and became CEO in 2005, serving until 2019 before moving to part-time Business Development Manager. Bob has been a Council Member of Standards Australia since 2007, chairing Technical Committee CS 088 (Furniture) since 2015, and has served on the NATA Council as Tasmanian Representative.
Mark Lazarus – Lazarus Legal
Mark works with founders who are scaling, raising capital, or defending what they have built, helping them lock in their IP, protect their leverage, and build companies that last. He has helped more than 300 businesses secure trade marks so they truly own what they create. Mark has advised over 2,000 founders, from garage stage to industry leaders, and has worked on capital raises up to $50 million, structuring deals that bring in capital without giving away control.
Episode guide
0:25 – Introduction to panellists.
5:20 – The first things businesses should do to protect their intellectual property.
6:29 – Different types of IP.
8:08 – Some of what’s patentable, copyright-protectable, trademarked. And why you might not need all of these options.
9:33 – The role of IP Australia and some of the tools its website offers.
10:40 – A recap of patents, trademarks and design patents.
11:50 – Plant breeders’ rights.
12:55 – Responsible Wood Australia, Standards Australia, and these labels being used in a misleading way.
13:43 – When deception on standards has fatal results.
15:05 – Where certification chain of custody comes in.
16:50 – Countering greenwashing that wrongly uses RWA certification.
18:10 – The types of certifications AFRDI issues and how it deals with forgeries.
19:25 – The example of a plastic monoblock chair.
20:50 – Clients claiming compliance to the full standard when only being part-way there.
24:10 – Checking that what’s sourced is legitimate.
25:14 – Unfortunately we live in a world where there’s not a lot of enforcement.
26:40 – How the AFA can go into bat for those that have been unfairly treated during a procurement process.
27:30 – The imported knockoff chairs that removed the toes of a cafe-goer in Queensland.
29:02 – Why it would be difficult to take action against a non-compliant overseas manufacturer in the above case.
34:17 – A tolix bar stool copy was identical to what it was based on, but made with thinner steel and featuring a dangerous shear point. “But outside of that you probably couldn’t tell the difference.”
36:02 – Voluntary standards and ones that are policed.
36:50 – A question from the floor about standards discussions across countries.
37:52 – Alignment across countries on intellectual property.
39:18 – A question from the floor on shifting liability to a supplier, and why a well-drafted indemnity provision is definitely enforceable.
42:40 – A question from the floor about tools to check on suppliers’ certification credentials.
44:50 – A question from the floor on the economic conditions in China and how they’re playing out for importers.
47:50 – The collapse of the Chinese domestic construction market. Timber and other products have flooded the market as a result.