Owned by Australians with products made in Australia, the Moduplay Group has proved remarkably successful over the years – designing, making and installing playgrounds for schools, councils and property developers across Australia, and expanding year on year.
Thousands of Moduplay playgrounds have been built across the nation, ranging in size from pocket-park installations to large and complex structures designed to cater for hundreds of children at the same time.
Manufactured using advanced technology, from materials such as high-density polyethylene plastic, aluminium and powder-coated steel, the Moduplay equipment is produced in four factories near Wollongong, NSW, and made to last. Plastic components are made on flatbed routers, with three or four running full-time in one of the factories. Metal components are welded and powder-coated in-house. Every stage of manufacturing is conducted on-site in the Moduplay facilities. Design, engineering, computer-aided design and visualisation, logistics, installation and ongoing support come together to provide top-quality Australian-made play equipment.
Richly coloured with smooth finishes, the playgrounds offer various levels of difficulty so children can test themselves, perfect their balance and climbing ability, and learn how to face challenges.
One of Australia’s largest manufacturers of commercial playground equipment, the company has won multiple trade awards and employs more than 100 people, including designers, engineers, welders, CNC (computer numerical control) machinists, carpenters, installers and project teams who work together to make enduringly popular playgrounds that keep children happy and engaged.
Designed to reflect a site’s particular space limitations and the users’ age profile, the playgrounds usually include a central climbing structure which is complemented by several freestanding play elements and landscaping.
Installed by Moduplay installation teams, the playgrounds are each worth tens of thousands of dollars and provide countless hours of play for neighbourhood children.
All originally tradesmen, Athol Quinsey and his two brothers began manufacturing residential play products in the mid-1980s. Their company was reasonably successful, but subject to seasonal variations in demand.
Changing gear, in 1989 they moved to making school and community playgrounds and, more recently, outdoor fitness equipment.
The Moduplay Group now consists of Moduplay – manufacturer of commercial playground equipment; Kaebel Leisure – specialising in rope play structures in playgrounds; Urbanfit – for outdoor adult gym equipment; and Precinct Street & Park – commercial outdoor furniture for recreation areas and public spaces.
All along this journey with Moduplay, the company owners have resisted the idea of buying products abroad and importing them for use in Australia. They have faith in Australian manufacturing.
“It has a circular effect, doesn’t it?” says Athol Quinsey. “If we can make things in Australia it provides opportunities for people, young and old, to obtain and retain skillsets in this country. The whole of the wallet, if you like, goes to Australia, not just some of the profit. But if you’re pulling equipment in from overseas, the only wallet-share that Australia gets is a small slice of the profit margin. How can that be good for Australia?”
Companies are, of course, in the manufacturing business to make a profit. Shouldering the many burdens of commercial enterprise and the substantial risks involved is not for the faint-hearted. Some commercial operators, Quinsey says, think it’s easier to simply buy products overseas and bring them to Australia: “Just go offshore, find a product to import, and don’t worry about the consequences for Australia” seems to be the attitude of many companies that could have maintained Australian manufacturing if they had been smarter.
Australian companies can still manufacture products profitably and sustainably by ensuring efficiency and sufficient labour output. “We have to minimise labour because labour is so expensive,” he adds. “But with advanced manufacturing techniques there is a way to make high-quality manufacturing sustainable in Australia.”
A flexible and nimble approach is essential, along with a keen sense for detecting changes in consumer and client sentiment. Feelings about children’s playgrounds, for instance, have had marked shifts in recent decades.
In the 1990s, the focus was on ultra-safety in the playground industry. Australia followed the US down the road into producing extremely safety-conscious playground equipment, restricted in the challenges it offered.
“It was so safe it was removing the element of risk for children, good risks that they need to take to learn about movement and what they are capable of,” Quinsey says.
Both Australia and the US have changed course since then, influenced by a growing recognition that children need to be able to physically challenge themselves. If children can’t find the risk and reward they want in playgrounds, they will find it somewhere, potentially in unsafe situations. In 2004, a new set of Australian standards for playgrounds was released which substantially relaxed the restrictive rules which had long chafed the industry.
The changes made an important difference to children’s interactions with playground equipment, Quinsey says. “Not in a careless way, but in an intelligent way which allowed for kids to take more measured risks, so they can understand cause and effect. They need to challenge themselves and build resilience.”
Modern playground equipment comes with gradations of difficulty, he adds. Children can begin with a low-level challenge in the playground, such as standing on the moving bridge, and, the next time they visit the park, take on the next-level challenge of walking across the bridge while it’s moving, building their skills and earning a sense of achievement. “These seem like trivial factors to most people, but this is literally building resilience and confidence into the child in real time.”
This resilience development happens in the world of children’s play spaces every day, Quinsey says, but it’s often poorly recognised by parents and supervisors. The importance of allowing children to challenge themselves and learn to assess risk and overcome fear is now central to playground development.
Moduplay brings together the full capability needed to take an idea from early concept through to design, manufacture, installation and long-term support.
With Australian-made products, in-house manufacturing, experienced designers and project teams, and decades of understanding how children actually play, the company is able to tailor each play space to the people, purpose and setting it serves.
“At the end of the day, we’re not just making playground equipment,” says Quinsey.
“We’re helping to create places where children can challenge themselves, families can gather for good times together, and communities can come to life.”