Ultimate Windows

Business Name

Ultimate Windows

Location of Business

231 McKoy Street Wodonga

Your name

Tye Spierings

Your position in the business

Director

Tell us about your business

Ultimate Windows are industry leaders in manufacturing and installing uPVC windows and doors in Australian homes.

We manufacture all our windows and doors right here in Wodonga and our factory is equipped with the latest CNC technology.

We’re a family run business that started manufacturing windows in a tiny 100sqm shed in Wodonga, way back in 2005. At the time we were a team of just two! Our quest to find a more affordable, energy efficient window system and improvements in manufacturing techniques have seen Ultimate Windows grow to specialise in double glazed uPVC windows and employ over 40 staff.

We run a solar powered manufacturing facility in Wodonga and have showrooms, sales and installation teams in both Canberra and Melbourne, with more to come!

How did you start? Why did you start?

Window supply in 2005 was slow and drawn out.

To keep our own construction projects running on schedule and budget we began making commercial aluminum windows ourselves.

After researching other more efficient products we signed up to become fabricators of a thermally broken aluminum system and the rest is history!

Why/how is your business different to other similar businesses?

We are adaptive.

Having spent years fabricating thermally broken aluminum windows in a very competitive market we started investigating the building trends of other countries that are tackling climate change.

We looked at the building evolution of Europe (in the 1980’s) and North America (in the 1990’s) and noticed the trends in windows all lead to energy efficient uPVC in these areas; to the point where in both markets uPVC accounts for over 70% of sales.

Our drive for sustainable building practices and reducing our carbon footprint saw us go all in and invest heavily in transforming our business to begin manufacturing uPVC windows and doors.

The word innovation can be interpreted in many ways. Many of us think innovation is technology driven, when is doesn't have to be. What is your idea of innovation and how does it apply to your business?

We see it as constant improvement over time. That can be with technological improvements like our custom software system that feeds into our CNC machinery. Or it could simply be re-configuring the way your factory is structured so manual handling and wastage is reduced.

How important would you rate innovation as a key driver of your current and future operations? Why?

It’s imperative. Every month we have a what we call a FFFs – Fixing (Error)ups Fridays, where for half the day staff don’t work in their jobs, they “on” their jobs and how to make them more efficient and easier.

If you were guaranteed to reach the targets you set, using future planning and innovative thinking, what would your business look like in 5 years time?

The growth of Ultimate Windows the past 5 years has already been huge, and we have even bigger plans for the future. We would like to see more local manufacturing of our supply chain and see this as a huge growth opportunity for us within the next 5 years.

We are currently living in a very fast changing world, thinking about the last 3 -4 months…

Makes me shudder – and be very grateful.

What have you and your business learnt?

Again, we are adaptive. We take it all as it comes and continue to offer the best products and service we can.

What has changed and how have you been able to adapt to that change?

Staffing issues with lockdowns and border closures have been difficult, but you just have to push through it and do the best you possibly can.

Looking back over your "journey", if you were to start your business from scratch today, what is the one bit of advice you would give yourself?

Keep making mistakes. My wife Erin and I have taken a lot of risks over the years that have left family and friends scratching their heads at the time. But, in hindsight, we probably could have taken more.

If readers of this post wanted to get in touch with you, what are the best ways to reach out.

Email: Tye Spierings or Erin Spierings

Website: Ultimate Windows


Subscribe to our mailing list

Get the latest on the Wodonga Innovation Project.