Clint van Marrewijk, CEO of ThunderMaps fills us in on what they do. [By the way, did you know ThunderMaps recently won the Award for Export at the Geospatial Awards?! Congrats!]
What does being a local NZ company mean to you?
Being from New Zealand naturally orientates us towards the rest of the world – we’re so small, it’s hard not to eye the international target as the ultimate goal.
How has technology changed our relationships in your everyday world?
Such a broad question. It’s hard to know where to begin. I do like how technology constantly re-frames what I think is possible. It’s probably best I steal a wise person’s quote on this one – here’s Arthur C Clark: “When a distinguished but elderly scientist states that something is possible, he is almost certainly right. When he states that something is impossible, he is very probably wrong.”
What’s the biggest business lesson you’ve learnt?
Action is inherently valuable. That, and I guess also that seeking out really exception people is truly worthwhile. Find them and spend time with them, and it will really make a difference for your business.
Why did you get involved with NZRise?
Mostly because I didn’t know too much about the state of IT procurement in New Zealand. I thought I’d spend time around people that know a lot about it, in the hope that it would rub off.
What problem does your company solve and for whom?
ThunderMaps warns you when you’re about to experience danger.
But let’s take some time to explain why, and a little bit about how.
Firstly the problem we have set out to tackle is very real. 6,130 people die at work, from avoidable accidents every day. Not every week, every day.
That’s 2.3 million deaths per year. In addition, nearly 1 million workplace accidents and injuries happen worldwide, every day, with a worldwide economic burden of at least 4% of world GDP per year.
The way we think about it, is that if we give people accurate risk information we can help people make safer decisions.
It’s not our job to make people be safe. All we can do is make sure people (and their machines) have easy access to the right information about the risks they face.
So far so good – we’re on the way to 10 million dangerous locations mapped and shared. That may not sound like much, but by next year we are on target to have 100 million dangerous locations mapped, photographed, categorised and shared.
Here’s a map of the dangerous locations that we’ve mapped so far:
This time-lapse map contains all sorts of things – real time fires, dangerous dogs (yes that’s a thing in some people’s jobs), sinkholes, bluffs and cliffs, overhead wire locations, extreme weather warnings, fall risks, natural disaster warnings, heavy machinery operating areas…
How do we make money?
The value we provide each business, is in making it really easy to record and manage the risks, near-misses, hazards, incidents and accidents that they are legally required to – taking the pain out of health and safety, and turning it into something that’s easy and engaging for staff.
This saves each business significant time and money (calculate your business savings here).
The value we get back from every business, is by being able to share non-confidential hazard information, from one business to another, from one person to another, when people are at risk. Sharing risks is something we encourage, but don’t force, all our customers to do.
If your organisation wants to be a leader in keeping people safe, we can deliver your organisation apps, branded and configured for your company, inside 20 days
If someone wants to know more about what you do, how can they contact you?
Just make contact with our team.