What CONTROLWORX LTD does

ControlWorx Ltd is a privately held, New Zealand-owned industrial automation company founded in 2019 by Rob Elstone and headquartered in Hastings, Hawke's Bay. The company designs, manufactures, and integrates custom automation solutions and a small catalogue of ready-to-install equipment primarily for the horticultural post-harvest sector, including the Robotic Bin Filler (RBF100), Bulk Bin Fillers (BBF100 and BBF200), Robotic Water Dump (RWD100), and Rotary Tables (RTT100/120). Underlying technology combines electrical and mechanical engineering with PLCs, sensors, automated control panels, and robotics, drawing on component supply from tier-1 industrial vendors such as SICK, Allen-Bradley/Rockwell, Omron, Danfoss, and ifm.

The company monetises through two streams: bespoke automation projects (professional services covering design, manufacturing, installation, commissioning, and ongoing support) and direct sales of standardised horticultural equipment, both priced via quote-based, multi-year contracts in what it positions as the mid-cost range. Go-to-market is sales-led and consultative, using a website, LinkedIn presence, and direct phone outreach to engage mid-market and enterprise customers. The customer base extends beyond horticulture into timber processing, cardboard handling, aviation, marine, construction, and logistics, with geographic reach across New Zealand, Australia, and worldwide.

Leadership is dominated by veterans of Compac Sorting and Fruit Handling Systems, including CEO Rob Elstone (ex-Compac Automation Team Lead, ex-RNZAF avionics) and General Manager Jordan Puke (ex-Navy, ex-Fruit Handling Systems, ex-Compac), supported by a mechatronics engineer from Bosch and a 30-year apple packing operations specialist. The company remains founder-owned with no institutional investors, parent company, acquisitions, or external funding rounds disclosed.

Name

CONTROLWORX LTD

Legal name

ControlWorx

Website

https://controlworx.co.nz

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Short description

ControlWorx is a New Zealand-based industrial automation company founded in 2019 that designs custom automation solutions and ready-to-install horticultural equipment (robotic bin fillers, bulk bin fillers, water dumps, rotary tables) for post-harvest packhouses and adjacent industrial verticals across New Zealand, Australia, and worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Automation Equipment

NAICS

Other General Purpose Machinery Manufacturing (3339), Food Product Machinery Manufacturing (333241)

SIC

General Industrial Machinery & Equipment (3560), Farm Machinery & Equipment (3523), Electrical Industrial Apparatus (3620)

akta.pro primary industry

Factory Automation Cells & Integrated Systems (Assembly, Welding, Painting Lines) (IMAHAHAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

End-of-Line Integration & Packaging Line Systems (IMAHAOAN), Conveying, Feeding & Accumulation Systems (Packaging Lines) (IMAHAOAK), Agricultural Robotics Integration, Retrofit & Automation Services (Kit installs, integration, maintenance) (AFAAAGAJ)

Keywords

• Industrial automation equipment
• Horticultural automation systems
• Custom automation solutions
• Materials handling machinery
• Robotic bin filling

Headquarters

HQ city

Hastings

HQ country

New Zealand

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Custom Automation Solutions: Design, development, and integration of bespoke automation solutions tailored to specific customer needs, covering material handling, machinery, and production lines. Includes project management, installation, commissioning, and ongoing support.
2. Industrial Automation Equipment Sales: Sale of ready-to-install automation machines including Robotic Bin Fillers, Bulk Bin Fillers, and Robotic Water Dumps for horticultural industry. Products are New Zealand-made with cutting-edge technology.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

ControlWorx designs, manufactures, and integrates custom industrial automation solutions and ready-to-install horticultural automation equipment for businesses across New Zealand, Australia, and worldwide. Its portfolio includes Robotic Bin Fillers (RBF100), Bulk Bin Fillers (BBF100/200), Robotic Water Dumps (RWD100), and Rotary Tables (RTT100/120), combined with end-to-end engineering services spanning electrical and mechanical design, programming, installation, commissioning, and ongoing maintenance.

Product overview

ControlWorx offers a portfolio of five ready-to-install industrial automation machines for the horticultural industry: the Robotic Bin Filler (RBF100) for advanced post-harvest robotic filling; the Bulk Bin Filler (BBF100) for high-volume robust produce; the Bulk Bin Filler High Flow (BBF200) for larger produce with check weighing; the Robotic Water Dump (RWD100) for controlled bin handling at 40 bins/hour; and the Rotary Tables (RTT100 & 120) for produce sorting. The company also provides custom automation solutions and engineering services including design, manufacturing, installation, commissioning, and ongoing support across industries including horticulture, timber processing, and logistics.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Robotic Bin Filler (RBF100) State-of-the-art robotic machine designed to streamline post-harvest production in the horticultural industry, with an intuitive user interface and streamlined construction for easy maintenance and minimized downtime.
• Bulk Bin Filler (BBF100) High-volume bin filler designed to handle robust produce such as onions, potatoes, and oranges with continuous flow and seamless bin changes for uninterrupted production and versatility across produce types.
• Bulk Bin Filler High Flow (BBF200) Enhanced bulk bin filler engineered for larger produce like squash, including check weighing and shake-down options to optimize bin filling and improve overall production efficiency.
• Robotic Water Dump (RWD100) Maintains steady production flow by accumulating and controlling incoming bins; unstacks full bins, gently lowers and floats fruit into the flume, then restacks empty bins at a rate of 40 bins per hour.
• Rotary Tables (RTT100 & 120) Designed to enhance production line efficiency with reliable sorting and organizing of produce, serving as essential components of horticultural automation setups.
• Custom Automation Solutions Bespoke design, development, and integration of custom automation solutions covering material handling, machinery, and production lines, with project management, installation, commissioning, and ongoing support for clients across horticulture, timber processing, manufacturing, aviation, marine, construction, and logistics.

Quantifiable outcome

• RWD100 processes at 40 bins per hour rate

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Maf Roda: Global supplier of turnkey postharvest handling, grading, and packing lines for fruit and vegetables. Overlaps with ControlWorx in bin filling and water dumping, but operates at significantly larger scale with global dealer coverage.
• TOMRA Food (formerly Compac): Global leader in fresh produce sorting, grading, and packing solutions, formed by the acquisition of Compac Sorting Equipment — ControlWorx's founder and several team members' former employer. Directly comparable product overlap in post-harvest packhouse automation and shared end customers in NZ and Australian horticulture.
• Scott Technology: NZ-based automation and robotics company serving meat processing, mining, and logistics with custom industrial automation. Comparable in custom automation engineering capability across multiple NZ industries, though at significantly larger scale and public-company funding.

Direct peers

• GP Graders: Australian manufacturer of electronic grading and packing machinery for apples, citrus, stone fruit, and tomatoes. Direct competitor in the same horticulture automation niche, serving similar packhouse customers across Australasia.
• Wyma Solutions: NZ-based designer and manufacturer of post-harvest vegetable and salad handling equipment, including bulk bin handling, conveyors, and washing systems. Closely comparable in size, geography, and product overlap with ControlWorx's horticultural equipment line.
• Elifab Solutions: Specialises in fruit packing and sorting automation, including bin handling and end-of-line systems, competing directly with ControlWorx's Robotic Bin Filler and Bulk Bin Filler lines for the same packhouse customers.

Regional players

• BBC Technologies: NZ-based supplier of sorting, grading, and packing solutions for blueberries and small fruits, now part of TOMRA. Comparable in that it provides integrated post-harvest automation to NZ and Australasian growers, but focuses on a narrower fruit category.
• Elliot Industries: NZ-based industrial engineering and automation firm serving horticulture, manufacturing, and processing sectors with custom machinery and equipment integration. Closely comparable size, geography, and business model to ControlWorx.
• Jornik Manufacturing: NZ-based manufacturer of specialised industrial equipment including bin handling, conveyors, and washing systems for the produce industry. Comparable product overlap with ControlWorx's horticultural automation equipment in the same geography.
• Astron Industries: NZ manufacturer of bulk materials handling and weighing equipment for horticulture and agriculture, including bin tippers and bulk fillers. Directly competes with the BBF100/BBF200 product category in the Australasian market.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about CONTROLWORX LTD