The Boating Industry Association Ltd (BIA) is the voice of the recreational, light commercial and tourism marine industry, promoting safe boating as a positive and rewarding lifestyle for Australians.
The Association strives to ensure that our members’ voices are heard in all relevant government, community and industry forums, to ensure any decisions that impact this lifestyle truly consider the needs of the boating community. The principal objective of the BIA is to support and improve the sustainability and prosperity of the industry.
The BIA represents an industry that generates an annual turnover of $8 billion, exporting $1 billion in products and services.
The Boating Industry Association is governed by a voluntary National Board chaired by Alan Blake and supported by a professional staff.
Running alongside member forums are the regular state council meetings, one of the key elements of BIA governance where member-elected representatives gather to provide oversight of state-specific issues and projects and provide local guidance and input to the national board and executive. The state councils meet every six to eight weeks, just ahead of the national board convening. A chairman of each state council is supported by up to 10 councillors, drawn from the varied cross-section of BIA membership: from this number, three councillors are then nominated to serve on the BIA national board. As purely volunteer positions, state councillors put in a great deal of effort to represent their peers and thanks are due to them for their dedication in looking after local affairs.
Director
Alan Blake Blakes Marine President NSW
Rob Cuming
Christies Beach Marine Vice President SA
Allen Buckley Riverdance Houseboat Director SA
Simon Cook Cook Family Enterprises
Chairman of FARC NSW
Craig Evans Cruising Yacht Club of SA Director SA
Matthew Hodson John Crawford Marine Director QLD
Michael Jarvin Advanced Marina Management Director NSW
Nathan Nichols Cruise Craft Boats Director QLD
Paul Phelan Telwater Director QLD
Darren Vaux Empire Marina Bobbin Head Director NSW
New South Wales State Council 2017
Councillor Member Company Position
Alan Blake Blakes Marine Chairman
Adam Brown Nautilus Marine Insurance Agency Councillor
Paul Burgess Bluewater Marine Surveyors Councillor
Simon Cook Cook Family Enterprises Councillor
Ian Ford (July 2017) Bass & Flinders Councillor
Jon Hunt Hunts Marine Councillor
Michael Jarvin Advanced Marina Management Councillor
David Randall Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club Councillor
Alan Steber Stebercraft Councillor
Shannon Stocks Shannon Outboard Service Councillor
Terry Wise Pacific Sailing School Councillor
Queensland State Council 2017
Councillor Member Company Position
Andrew Fielding Anchorline Yacht Brokers Chairman
Norm Ambrose Ausail Marine Group Councillor
Ross Geurts Brisbane Sea-Doo & Can-Am Councillor
Aaron Goodchild Brisbane Yamaha Councillor
Johan Hasser Mulpha Sanctuary Cove Boat Show Councillor
Matthew Hodson John Crawford Marine Councillor
Nicholas Kitchen Yamaha Motor Australia Councillor
Nathan Nichols Cruise Craft Boats Councillor
Paul Phelan Telwater Councillor
Peter Ruhle Boating & RV Councillor
Steve Sammes Gold Coast City Marina Councillor
South Australian State Council 2017
Councillor Member Company Position
Rob Cuming Christies Beach Marine Chairman
David Binks Binks Marine Councillor
Allen Buckley Riverdance Houseboat Councillor
Tim Cook Club Marine Councillor
Andrew Craddock Marina Adelaide Councillor
Craig Evans Cruising Yacht Club of SA Councillor
Trish Flaherty Nautilus Marine Insurance Agency Councillor
Dean Forster Stress Free Marine Pty Ltd Councillor
Stuart Myles Elite Ski Boats Councillor
Boating Industry Association Ltd
Staff 2017
Howard Glenn
Chief Executive Officer and Company Secretary
Nik Parker
General Manager, Member Services
Domenic Genua
Manager, Events & Marketing
Simon Hazelbrook
Financial Controller
James Thompson
Operations Manager
Robyn Wingrove
Marketing & Events Coordinator
Megan Robson
Marketing & Communication Coordinator
Phil McDermott
Marketing, Events & Special Projects
Peter Tucker
General Manager, Houseboat Hirers
George Bolton
General Manager, South Australia
Aaron McKenna
Queensland Manager
Shane Wilson
NSW Member Services
Jenny Bellaver
Membership Support Officer
Corrina McMillan
Education & Training Coordinator
Linda English
Office Administration and Reception
Julie Harris
Executive Assistant to CEO/Office Coordinator
2017 proved to be a year of mixed fortunes for the Association. The event calendar meant that resources were spread to achieve several milestones, and the advocacy and members services programs were adapted to achieve the matters at hand.
As the member-elected board, our focus remained on member prosperity. Whilst geographically our member territory covers New South Wales, Queensland and South Australia, the reality is that our industry members cross borders and our membership base, that includes businesses across all states, were the focus of our attention.
The board was driven to deliver our key responsibilities of:
• Financial management
• Organisation development
• The advancement of the boating lifestyle
• A program of Boat Shows
• Member support and programs
• Advocacy across local and national issues
The year delivered numerous highlights, each that we are delighted with. These highlights included the delivery of the 50th Sydney International Boat Show at the new International Convention Centre Sydney, the growth of the Brisbane Boat Show, the stabilisation and development of the Adelaide Boat show, the delivery of the joint ICOMIA/IFBSO International Congress, the support and delivery of the Marine17 Conference, the strengthening of our member services and connect program, the addressing and conclusion of a number of key industry advocacy issues, the delivery of a good financial position for our industry members, and the culmination of the identification that it was time to re-boot the Association’s activities for the future.
It would be remiss of me not to make a special mention for Roy Privett who was awarded a Life Membership during the year. This was unprecedented, being the first time in the Associations history that recognition was bestowed on a past staff member.
I take this opportunity to thank the staff of the organisation for their work in 2017. I also thank the many members who volunteer their time on our three State Councils, and my fellow Board of Directors.
2017 was a success, however 2018 is shaping to be a milestone year with Association preparing to reinvigorate all aspects of its services to members with the ultimate objectives of growth and industry prosperity.
Alan Blake PresidentMembership numbers at the end of 2017 had reached 823, consisting of a make-up of 796 full financial members and 27 life members.
The annual membership renewal for 2017 was a great success with 642 members renewing from the membership list covering principally NSW, SA and Qld. In addition, 92 new members joined during the year, almost double those leaving: this is good for the future of the boating industry and Association itself, showing confidence in the industry and the value of being a member. Adding further to this, 62 new members were registered following the merger of NSW Commercial Vessel Association in July 2017.
The turnover-based membership subscription system provides BIA with a good insight to the make-up of the industry, with members’ election of one of five tiers of turnover giving a benchmark value of the industry for future years. The profile of members’ business also helps shape the creation of new value-adding services and benefits, as BIA is better able to identify what works best for different sizes of businesses.
Across the national membership, 45% of companies reported a turnover of less than $500,000, in line with previous national surveys of the value of the sector. Of this number, around a quarter are sole-traders, the remainder employing two or three people. The highest proportion of these tier one members is in South Australia, with around 75% being considered micro-businesses. Queensland members showed the lowest percentage of tier one memberships at 38% and the highest level of tier five memberships at 3%.
In late January 2017, BIA launched its new membership database and CRM. The member facing side of the CRM is known as the myBIAMemberCentre , providing members with an easy to use and secure portal for access to a wide range of membership entitlements, benefits and information.
With the bringing together of multiple state and divisional membership databases, it was imperative that BIA upgraded its in-house membership record management processes: the roll-out of myBIA saw over 700 members connected with the system with a level of automation not enjoyed previously within the BIA. Standard messages went out to members to advise of the access to myBIA and within days more than 50% of the membership had logged on and explored the Member Centre.
As a web-based system, the myBIA system can be accessed by the BIA team wherever they are, and, with the ability to readily record communications with members following planned or chance meetings it has delivered a rich new resource of member feedback, accessible by all the team. To date, over 1,800 communications with individual members have been logged.
Members have access to a range of resources at the myBIA Member Centre, including standard contract documentation, industry statistics, insurance programs, specialist technical advice, jobs board and map-based member search and listing portal.
During the year, the BIA Member Services team has met members in locations up and down the East Coast and across South Australia, with eight member forums being the setting for over 200 members to meet with BIA staff and board members to air their views, hear what’s being done about them and to be kept up to date on the range of programs and issues BIA is always working on behalf of members. A well-received program of events in Adelaide, Sydney, Newcastle, Gold Coast, Brisbane and Airlie Beach set the scene for this to become a regular feature of the member engagement program.
Over the past three or four years, the ANZSBEG group – the state boating safety agencies and associated groups, including the BIA – has delivered programs to increase lifejacket wear rates among recreational boaters, with the clear objective of a reduction in fatalities associated with boating. The initiative, started in NSW to provide boaters with new, modern lifejackets in exchange for old, less-effective jackets, has now seen over 18,000 new jackets issued under the Old4New program and accompanying wear rates close to 50%. Similar programs have been run in all states, many operated by the BIA and BIAs in other states, with considerable success.
Following on from this improvement in wear rates has been an education campaign to ensure boaters look after and maintain their lifejackets properly. With many lifejacket manufacturers now providing for self-servicing of inflatable lifejackets, there has been a growing incidence of lifejackets not operating properly when deployed, due to a variety of factors. This is mostly down to owners not undertaking the service, or not completing it properly: admittedly this is no different to owners not returning lifejackets for service with an authorised agent, but there is evidence that people believe they have done the right thing and that their lifejacket is good to go. The safety agencies and lifejacket standards committee have been working to address this with more guidance on self-service requirements and education to boaters and lifejacket owners.
However, another trend is now appearing with people simply choosing to discard an out-of-service lifejacket and purchase a new one: often this can be almost the same price where consumers look for such safety equipment at online stores. This has then raised the concern that many of these new lifejackets
may not be all that they purport to be: the safety agencies have evidence of misleading or false declarations on some lifejackets and action is now being taken to address this.
The outcome of all this is that there is now a move among the safety agencies to focus their boater education efforts on pushing boaters and consumers toward recognised and accredited safety equipment suppliers and retailers in Australia. Programs to support this are underway in Tasmania, WA and soon in Queensland, with other states expected to follow. BIA is working closely with the state safety agencies to ensure BIA members are seen as the recommended first port of call when looking for new safety equipment, knowing that boaters will benefit from industry knowledge and experience of making the correct selection of equipment. More on these projects is expected in 2018.
One of the key tenets of the National Law for Domestic Commercial Vessels (DCV) is that operators of DCVs will be suitably qualified. Across the wide range of vessel types, sizes and type and area of operation, there is an equally varying level of qualification that is suitable for the role of master, skipper, crew, engineer etc. In almost all cases, operators of DCVs have long-established training and qualification requirements and protocols, with crew undertaking and retaining formal, professional qualifications. However, in some sectors which are ‘new’ to the DCV world or were perhaps treated differently under the previous state-based regulatory system, there is a misunderstanding of the need for a recognised commercial vessel qualification to be able to operate a DCV within the scope of the National Law.
Operators of low-risk vessel/low-risk operations (generally vessels under 12m, not carrying passengers and operating on sheltered waters) were supported by efforts to define qualification suited to their needs which did not require extensive off-the-job training. Working with the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, an amendment was made to Ex38 Marine Safety (low complexity duties) Exemption, to provide for the BIA Marine Card to be part of the qualification for such operators.
By combining a Marine Card with a recreational boat licence, low-risk commercial vessel operators are able to meet the requirements of the National Law to have a recognised commercial vessel qualification and to thereby operate legally, in terms of crew competency at least.
To conclude one of the most drawn-out debates in the marine industry, about when, or not, emissions standards for marine engines might be introduced in Australia, in September 2017 the Commonwealth Government implemented legislation in the form of the Product Emissions Standards Act 2017, finally confirming regulation for Non-Road Spark Ignition Engines Emissions would be in place.
A transition period is provided for, which essentially means that from 1 July 2018, all imported product (SI (petrol and gas) engines) must comply with the standards: non-compliant will no longer be permitted to be imported. From the same day 12 months later, the sale of non-compliant SI engines will no longer be permitted. As with all legislation there are some exceptions to this, however in terms of the majority of units being sold, this will mean post 1 July 2019, only emission standard-compliant engines will be available on the market. Importantly, the action is not retrospective…
The standards will apply to new non-road spark ignition engines used in a wide range of equipment. They will not apply to engines and equipment people already own, or to second-hand engines and equipment.
BIA has worked on the topic of NRISEE standards for many years, in partnership with engine manufacturer representative groups and the ICOMIA Marine Engine Committee. The end result is good news for the environment and thereby for boaters in Australia
Members with an interest in boat registration numbers have benefited throughout 2017 with an improving availability of registration data, now being released quarterly to provide monthby-month registration number reports for Queensland and NSW. BIA has worked with the registration agencies in each of Queensland and NSW (TMR and RMS respectively) to validate the data, noting that the raw data sets previously used in reporting to members were compromised by the quality of data being captured. A review of the data available has been completed and the new report presents an update on the top brands being registered in each state, based on a minimum of four registrations per year, or the brand being on display at the Brisbane Boat Show or Sydney International Boat Show.
The month-by-month reports can be accessed at the myBIA Member Centre, along with the accompanying report of brands on display at BBS16, BBS17 and SIBS17. Annual fleet reports are now being developed for each state and will be available in early 2018. At the same time, monthly reports for SA will join those of Queensland and NSW, with work to expand this to include Victoria and WA to continue.
The Marine17 conference saw a great deal of data presented on a range of topics, all of it being of value to delegates attending. This covered data from the Australian census, boating incident reports, financial and economic data, boating participation in the US and more. The BIA completed the reporting with an infographic summary of its initial review of the 2017 State of Industry survey, noting that the boating industry in Australia now reports a turnover of $8.28bn with over 25,000 people directly employed by boating industry businesses. The full report is available on the BIA website.
The International Council of Marine Industry Associations is the voice of the recreational marine industry worldwide. It was formed in 1967 and now brings together over 40 members, each being a national marine industry association or related body such as standards or service organisations, covering countries in all major boating regions including Europe, North & South Americas, Middle East, Asia, Australasia and South Africa. The BIA is part of this global family of marine industry associations and has played an important role in ICOMIA for many years, including hosting the annual Congress in 2002, providing the President in 2006-2008 in way of Graeme Avers and most recently the VicePresident in way of Simon Cook. BIA’s membership of ICOMIA is a partnership with the Marina Industries Association and the Australian Marine Export Group, AIMEX.
ICOMIA represents its members at an international level and provides a forum in which to consider issues of common concern, formulating agreed policy to tackle each as necessary. ICOMIA’s core aim is to develop and sustain the global recreational marine industry by: breaking down barriers to trade; seeking removal of unnecessary or unviable legislation; promoting awareness of the industry’s requirements and objectives; providing guidance on standards and regulations (and a forum in which to shape such); promoting the concept of recreational boating as being fun, a lifestyle and available to all; providing members with data, advice and support on all issues relevant to the sector, drawing on lessons learned and sharing the knowledge of its global membership.
Alongside ICOMIA is the International Federation of Boat Show Organisers, which represents the leading boat shows around the world. These shows are a mix of industry-owned and commercial boat shows, but all are of world-class and set the benchmark for boat shows everywhere. The Sydney International Boat Show is a senior member of IFBSO with BIA represented by Domenic Genua as a member of the IFBSO Executive Committee.
Every year, ICOMIA and IFBSO hold a combined Congress to receive reports on project work, international and local issues and to set the agenda for representation and promotion of the global industry, boat show program and promotion of the boating lifestyle. In2017,BIA wasvery proudtohosttheCongressfor a secondtime,aspartofInternationalBoatWeekontheGoldCoastinMay.
The 2017 Congress provided a great opportunity for the global boating industry to experience some of the very best that the Australian boating industry has to offer, including yard tours of the Coomera Marine Precinct, the Sanctuary Cove Boat Show, and boating on the Gold Coast Broadwater and beyond. With over 70 international marine industry leaders attending, the showcase provided good exposure to this influential group.
In among the networking and tours was four days of workshops, briefings and formal AGMs, discussing change and innovation within the industry. These meetings are arranged around a grouping of specialist committees within the ICOMIA and IFBSO structure, with a key focus for 2017 being the future of boating and what will the industry look like the next time BIA might host in 2035…
Activities relating to marketing and events throughout 2017 were structured to meet member needs and fulfil Association objectives.
The ultimate objective being to assist members of the Association grow and prosper.
The BIA recognises the diversity of the industry and when referring to the various events and activities as ‘boating’, it means all business sectors within the recreational marine industry. The BIA concerns itself with products and services across the broad recreational and light commercial marine industry.
Whilst Boat shows are the most visible of the activities conducted, the Association continued to build and develop programs in order to:
• Create awareness around the benefits of dealing with a BIA member.
• Promote recreational boating as a safe, environmentally sound and responsible pastime for Australians.
A solid foundation of existing products, assisted with continuity of industry messaging, promotion of the boating lifestyle to consumers, and the running of our established portfolio of events. Other additional products and activities had to be designed and modified to meet demand.
Activations
Communication – Industry and Consumer highlights
• E-News remained an important medium to deliver industry information to members fortnightly.
• Logbook delivered our Association activity report card of activities and industry information.
• A consumer campaign to encourage dealing with a BIA member as a priority continued throughout the year.
• The benefits of the boating lifestyle were promoted through Channel 7’s Sydney Weekender, with this subsequently opening discussion for similar exposure through another related medium in Queensland and South Australia.
• The BIA team featured weekly on Radio promoting recreational boating and good safe boating practices.
• MyBoatingLife.com.au continued as the portal assisting new and old boaties to get onto, or improve their time on the water
• The BIA’s portfolio of web and social media pages were kept current and active
• Deliver a consistent package of safety messages as part of the Association charter to promote Safe Recreational Boating.
• Develop and maintain a social media program for, MyBoatingLife, Sydney International Boat Show, Brisbane Boat Show, Adelaide Boat Show, BoatAustralia and other projects.
In 2017 the Boating Industry Association Ltd commenced using the wax seal to identify shows and events organised by the Marketing and Events Team for the Association. The BIA wax seal appeared against the Adelaide Boat Show, the Sydney International Boat Show and the Brisbane Boat Show.
The Sydney Trailer Boat show did not run in 2017. Whilst this event has operated every year since the early 1960’s, its recent outings have not seen the desired results. It was determined that the event would be rested in 2017 to allow for a review. The year allowed for feedback and debate that shaped the event in 2018.
The Adelaide Boat Show remains the only show dedicated to recreational boating in the region. Given the nature of the market and venue, trailer boats were dominant at the event and the marketing was positioned accordingly. The event’s development and growth remain a priority to the Association. The Show was delivered under the guidance of Kym Jones Exhibitions and Events (KJEX) This agreement ended in 2017 and the Association passes on its thanks to the team at KJEX for its years of service.
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2017 saw the return of the event to its spiritual home in Darling Harbour. It occupied 100% of the available exhibition space within ICC Sydney as well as hosting over 200 large vessels on the specially built marina in the adjoining Cockle Bay. To coincide with its return, the Association and Industry celebrated its 50th running. The show was a tremendous success hosting over 63,000 visitors.
The Brisbane Boat Show expanded to 20,000m2 off the back of its return to the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre under the management of the BIA team. In its second year under the new structure, visitor numbers jumped considerably confirming the back-to-basics approach was appealing to both industry and visitors alike.
Whilst the show did not run in 2017, industry feedback showed that an interest remains in the region for the revival of the show. Venue, industry and supplier visits laid the foundation for a 2018 plan. Further work will continue with the view of finalising the event’s feasibility and attempt to re-launch the event in October 2018.
Whilst the desire existed to run this event, unfortunately the critical mass of exhibitors was not reached for it to run in 2017. The event remains on the BIA calendar and another overview will be conducted in 2018 with the view to revive the show.
During 2017, the BIA team also:
- supported Gold Coast Expo organising committee in delivering the event
- helped deliver Marine17 International Conference & Exhibition
- the International Council of Marine Industry Associations (ICOMIA) & International Federation of Boat Show Organisers (IFBSO) Congress on the Gold Coast
2017 was the second full year of the Queensland chapter of the BIA operating as part of the national association. The strength and support this gives to our members has been further demonstrated throughout the year.
We have achieved a number of excellent outcomes for our members during 2017, not least the presentation of the very successful Brisbane Boat Show, alongside a range of advocacy issues to local and state government agencies.
During the year we had a very strong retention in membership numbers in Queensland, as well as an encouraging level of growth, adding over 25 new or returning members. This was all down to the good work on the part of the membership team getting out and about to see members and to work with new members to explain the benefits of being part of the association.
The Brisbane Boat Show, held for the second year back at the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre at the end of August, was an outstanding success. We presented a considerably larger show than in 2016 and are now close to returning the show to the pre-GFC heydays. Over 15,000 keen boaters visited the show, delivering great business to all our exhibiting members, and demonstrating confidence in our decision to return the show to the premier event space in Queensland. As a showcase for the industry, the Brisbane Boat Show is a very important part of the wider boating lifestyle program the BIA runs so successfully.
We were pleased to have Patrick Quirk, head of Maritime Safety Queensland, open the boat show for us in 2017 and to deliver a very supportive message from the state government on their ongoing commitment to the boating industry and the boating community more generally.
The role of the BIA in representing the membership on a wide range of regulatory matters is vital to the ongoing success of the industry. We have a clear program of advocacy issues which underpins the business plan, in outline this being: Growth; Access; Destinations; Safety; Environment; and Regulatory Reform. To give a focus on other issues, in September we developed a policy paper for Queensland, detailing over 25 key issues that the BIA advocacy team will be working on throughout the year ahead. All of these will support our members, in local areas and state-wide, and will provide a great basis for demonstrating further the value of BIA membership.
We have had some good successes in many of these areas over the last year, including issues that impact members collectively – such as marina rateable values and rents – as well as individually – such as commercial vessel crewing requirements. Much of this work carried out by the BIA is ‘behind the scenes’ with members often unaware of what is being done to assist their businesses.
During the year the NSW Council addressed several key issues of importance to members in NSW. Of particular note was the ongoing matter of planning restrictions in Sydney Harbour; the proper management of what we call mooring minders in some of the more popular spots; solutions to the problem of on-road parking of boat trailers; responding to perceived threats to the marine estate; working with various agencies to promote a better program for management of coastal infrastructure; responding to Fair Trading’s second-hand dealer licencing compliance blitz and supporting members in their obligations to report on transactions. In all, a wide range of advocacy matters with a focus on improving and sustaining access to waterways and supporting members in their everyday business activities.
The Council also provided support on a number of key national projects including promotion of the Advanced Skipper program and advice on the design of a national register of recreational vessels, with a number of individual Councillors having particular interest in each of these projects. This extended to ongoing issues faced by members in all states, such as education and training; finding and retaining apprentices; and promotion of the boat lifestyle.
Members in NSW were well supported by the appointment of a new Member Services Officer for NSW who joined BIA with a wealth of marine industry experience and a good understanding of the day-to-day issues faced by small businesses. With over 400 members in NSW at the start of the year, the need for a dedicated member of the team was clear and it’s very pleasing that we have been able to retain and grow current membership numbers via this important resource. In addition, NSW membership numbers were further swelled by the successful merger into BIA of the NSW Commercial Vessel Association, bringing more than 60 businesses operating commercial vessels, predominantly in Sydney Harbour, into the industry association.
2017 proved to be a very good year for the industry and members. We are looking forward to continued good trading in 2018, whilst also moving forward to press our case on key advocacy matters to government and stakeholders.
The SA Boating Facilities Strategic Plan was launched by Minister Mullighan at the Adelaide Boat Show Industry Breakfast. This document outlined the strategy including the broad strategic priorities without any detail and gave the historic information about what the SABFAC fund has contributed towards over the past 20 plus years, since it was established in 1996. It provides the roadmap for future boating infrastructure and BIA is pleased to have played an important role in the development of the plan
The One River Authority project is looking to apply a “whole of Murray” solution that would see a single authority in charge of the river to address issues that traditionally get moved between various departments and never resolved. The solution would involve amongst others DPTI, DEWNR, EPA, SA Water, local government and industry.
Compared to NSW and Vic regulations, SA is a long way behind and we need common cross-border regulation and have one consistent approach such as in NSW, where Roads & Maritime control all regulations on the River Murray. With the RDA championing the project currently, it is important that we do not lose focus on the original main objective, being the revision of river regulations to address illegal moorings and non-compliant vessels and not be consumed in the RDA’s push for the broader economic benefit to the entire Murraylands and Riverlands economy.
The Marina and Environmental Division met several times in 2017 and was well attended with good representation from DPTI, DENWR and the EPA, making for worthwhile discussions and feedback and providing a conduit between government and industry. In November a combined meeting of both the BIA Marina Division and the MIA members was held at the Cruising Yacht Club, again with good attendance.
The BIA has continued the implementation of the Marine Card programme to assist marinas, boatyards and slipways etc to meet compliance standards required by State and Federal Workplace Health and Safety laws.
Following the success of the River Murray Boating & Recreational Advisory Group (RMBRAG) River Murray “Code of Conduct” and series of 9 short educational videos on river user behaviour, RMBRAG worked with DPTI and the riverine Councils, to install signage displaying the Code of Conduct at boat ramps and reserves where appropriate, throughout the Murraylands and Riverland. Further funding was sought from the Minister for producing additional content. At the ABS Industry Breakfast, the Minister announced that a further $30K had been approved as a community grant. This is great news and will build on the RMBRAG campaign to promote boating etiquette and safety on the river.
Having had no new shipwrights’ commencing apprenticeships for over 5 years, since TAFE ceased to deliver this course in SA, we have been facing a severe skills shortage. To address this, we approached GOTAFE in
Victoria who recognised the same issue in Victoria 3 years ago and now have over 50 apprentices in the program. The delivery of the training is very much on the job with web-based training, with their trainers on the road to conduct a need and gap analysis for further classroom training.
They have nearly completed their assessment as to the logistics of the best way the course can be delivered in SA, along with the necessary approvals in place. Hopefully we can finally have some young apprentices employed in this vocation, who are desperately needed if we are to progress as an industry, to address the current skills shortage.
New lifejacket regulations came into effect from 1 December, following extensive consultation between DPTI and stakeholders, including BIA. The new laws make the wearing of lifejackets mandatory on vessels and in water activities more often than is currently required. The State Government is also conducting an Old4New lifejacket upgrade program, offering $20 vouchers in exchange for old, unsuitable, obsolete or damaged lifejackets, with a limit of two vouchers per person. The vouchers can be redeemed when purchasing a new lifejacket at participating retailers.
The BIA has supported these changes to lifejacket wear as necessary in the interest of safety as there have been too many drownings as a result of boating incidents.
Thanks to a concerted effort, membership numbers increased by a net 11 in 2017 which is heartening because we have much more opportunity to succeed as a united body than as a group of individuals.
The Association, with great support from Committee Member Ken Bampton, Peter Tucker and Nik Parker from BIA, continues to work effectively with AMSA on several issues affecting the Houseboat Industry.
Following significant negative feedback from industry, AMSA announced late last year that the introduction of a cost recovery model for regulatory compliance services delivered under the National System has been deferred until July 2018. Had it proceeded that model would have cost the owner of a 20-metre houseboat an increasing annual fee of $1,456, in addition, of course, to fee for services charges associated with survey.
The announcement by the Transport and Infrastructure Council to provide more than $100M in funding over 10 years is great news and follows strong BIA/HHA representation on cost recovery measures during the last year.
The great news for members is that the annual cost of the levy for a Commercial Houseboat has been set at only $300, even better this will not be applied until 2019 and then in stages starting at $45 progressively rising to $300 in 2029
Safety equipment carried aboard domestic commercial vessels will be required to be upgraded to contemporary safety equipment standards, as outlined in the National Standard for Commercial Vessels (NSCV). To minimise costs for operators, most safety equipment can meet the NSCV requirements ‘on replacement’ or over a period of 1 to 5 years. This applies to existing vessels of class 1, 2, 3 and 4, plus nonsurvey vessels: new vessels are required to carry safety equipment to the current NSCV at time of first survey.
The www.houseboatbookings.com website continues to be the Association’s main marketing platform. Feedback from the public, industry representatives and members, continues to be been very positive. Throughout the year, we continued to fine tune the site and improve search engine optimisation to ensure the site maintained its high ranking on Google and other browsers. The social media branding campaign carried out in November through Google AdWords, Facebook and Instagram was a success with a significant increase in enquiries, bookings and traffic to the website. We will continue to drive customers to the site using this format in 2018.
Although still very much in the planning phase, the Association believes the long-term benefits of the possible Carp Kill event will be good for the environment and the houseboat experience, however there are serious concerns on the likely implications to houseboating and tourism in general should the kill proceed.
General Manager, Peter Tucker has continued to make significant contributions in many areas of HHA interests which is greatly appreciated. Peter will be retiring on Friday, 31 August and, whilst more recently reducing working hours to 3 days a week, has continued to "attack his role with Passion and Enthusiasm whilst putting in many more hours than is his formal commitment to the HHA / BIA". Peter will be much missed in our day-to-day processes.
Following a review of where the CVA of NSW was headed in regard to representation of its members and advocacy on key issues such as the Blackwattle Bay redevelopment; access to wharves in the new Barangaroo development; and the need to respond to a growing call for a liquor licensing accord for commercial vessel operators on Sydney Harbour, a decision was taken by the CVA committee to pursue a merger with the BIA. Over the course of 2016 and into early 2017, the CVA committee developed a relationship with BIA and defined a set of terms and conditions for a merger, which was put to CVA’s membership at its May AGM. With a resounding ‘yes’ vote, CVA formally merged with BIA in July 2017, bringing 62 members into the NSW membership.
Since then, the CVA has rearranged to become the CV Division within BIA, working alongside the Houseboat Hirers Association to seek opportunities to develop a national tourism division. With common interests in both promotion of boating tourism, but also the regulatory management of commercial vessels in this sector, the partnership with BIA and HHA has proved to be very successful for CVA in representing its members interests.
The audited Financial Report for the year ended 31 December 2017 reveals a deficit from activities before income tax of $142,218 (2016 deficit $423,811). This was a significant turnaround, and the success of the Sydney International Boat Show was the primary driver in affording such a good result.
Gains on the net present value of available-for-sale financial assets (equity investments managed by BT through St George Bank) and a modest capital return resulted in a Total Comprehensive Deficit for the year of $41,495. Members funds are more than $5,198,900, and the Association is in a sound financial position.
The Sydney International Boat Show had a spectacular return to Darling Harbour in 2017. We achieved a 37% increase of visitation on 2016, achieved full occupancy of the exhibition halls of the new International Convention Centre Sydney at 32,600m2, and increased the number of vessels on the purpose-built marina in Cockle Bay. Income was $808,760 above budget, direct costs up $428,730, a net increase in contribution to overheads of $380,030. A great result for the BIA and an outstanding result for the boating industry.
We had a busy year and the Association continues to invest funds to promote, develop and grow the industry for our future well-being. A selection of our investments includes:
• Promoting boating lifestyle through sponsorship of television series and other marketing promotions, $56,100.
• Direct advertising and promotion of BIA shows and events, $942,100.
• Promoting the benefits of BIA membership through strategically placed advertisements.
• Continuing development of education and training as an important product for the boating industry.
• Affiliation with NSW Business Chamber to provide Members Advice Line to all financial members of the Association.
• Donation to support the activities of Sailability NSW.
• Continuance of the travel insurance package for all corporate members, BIA staff and Directors.
The full Financial Report of BIA Ltd is available at www.bia.org.au and a link has been emailed to all members. The Financial Report has been prepared and presented in accordance with Australian Accounting Standards (including the Australian Accounting Interpretations) and the Corporation Act 2001. We are required to report related party transactions between directors and the businesses they are related to. This disclosure is reported as note number 15 in Notes to the Financial Report (page 22). These transactions with director related companies were on an arm’s length basis as are all business-to-business transactions. Income and expenses derived from the related parties would have been the same had they not been related.
The related party transactions predominantly relate to: hire of exhibition space at BIA shows and events; membership subscription fees; BIA purchase of insurance products; and licence fees to BIA. Your directors offer their time and support to improve and develop the industry and no remuneration is received.
I am pleased to report that the aims and objectives of the Association continue to be achieved and due to our financial strength, the benefits and services to members will continue to improve.
Simon Cook TreasurerBOATING INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION LTD
FINANCIAL OVERVIEW - 2017
Education and training, $70,438
Licence fees, $50,140
Shows and events, $6,981,359
Rent and office services, $71,737
Interest and Fund Distributions, $148,024
Other income, $196,721
Membership subscriptions, $492,240
Subscriptions, $31,632
Education and training, $27,050
Advertising and promotion, $56,079
Depreciation, $123,574
Consultants and projects, $151,898
South Australia, $166,382
Queensland, $195,447
Other expenditure, $750,159
Staff costs, $1,379,033
Shows and events, $5,271,624
