Hamilton aviation business Flight Structures design, manufacture and certify specialist aviation parts so when they were looking for a team building workshop, Lego Serious Play seemed like the perfect fit!
“I’d heard about the Lego Serious Play workshop and with a lot of engineers on our team we thought it sounded like a good match for our organisation. In 2023 we relocated from three separate buildings into one building at Hamilton Airport so wanted to improve team communication and relationships,” says Sally Kerr, Flight Structures Quality & Safety Manager.
Rob and Kate Bull from Plexus Consulting delivered the half-day workshop, focusing on communication.
Flight Structures’ full team spent half a day working together, building Lego structures to demonstrate different work situations and solutions.
“Lego Serious Play is a methodology created by LEGO® to help solve business problems. It brings together the collective knowledge and wisdom within teams to solve problems and create clarity for everyone involved. What we love most about it is 100% inclusive. It really is team development on steroids!” says facilitator Rob Bull.
“Everyone was very engaged, much more so than if we’d just sat around tables. It meant we heard from different voices in our organisation and developed relationships with colleagues we wouldn’t usually work with,” explains Sally.
“One of our training goals was to strengthen inter team relationships and just one month later I’ve already noticed different combinations of staff members working together on projects.
“It’s really important to take the time to do staff training. Professional development can be really expensive, but the Regional Business Partner funding made it easier to justify the cost,” she says.
Unless you work in aviation, Flight Structures won’t be familiar, but the civil aviation certificated organisation has been in business for nearly 21 years and is the largest of its kind in New Zealand.
Founded by Jon Kerr, the business started with three staff and have grown to a team of 23 staff.
Flight Structures works with both fixed wing and rotary aircraft (helicopters) and is one of only three New Zealand businesses that offer the full range of design, manufacture and certification services.
Clients are mostly New Zealand based businesses who use planes and helicopters in a business capacity in sectors such as aeromedical, agricultural, aircraft development and emerging technologies.
They work with a number of rescue helicopter trusts, fitting out helicopters with specialist equipment. One project involved working out the safest way to fit an incubator inside a rescue helicopter before developing a solution. The Flight Structures team had to identify how the incubator would remain safe in flight, any impact on weight and balance of the helicopter, how it would safely operate in flight, if it was able to withstand turbulence and determine any ongoing maintenance requirements.
Flight Structures is currently working with a United States based company who is converting aircraft to advanced autopilot technology by assisting with certification pathways for the project as well as developing mechanical systems and structures to install the new technology.
It’s a very niche and highly regulated industry and projects range from quick maintenance work and certification such as repairs, right through to large scale design projects that can take up to three years to complete.
“My favourite part of being a business owner is seeing our staff develop and become experts in this field. It’s also very rewarding seeing something we’ve designed, tested, prototyped, built and certified in use,” says Sally.
Find out if your business is eligible for Regional Business Partner funding.