The right equipment in a timely manner Winner of Category 2 “Provision of a product to Defence less than $15 million” at the 2019 Minister of Defence Awards of Excellence for Industry and Employer Support, EPE shines as a trusted Defence partner. Australian company EPE Trusted to Protect Ltd has boosted its New Zealand presence to supply and support counter-explosive hazard equipment and training to Defence, partnering with the NZDF on its counterexplosive hazards and chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear disposal teams. “CEH Project is to enable an expeditionary bomb disposal capability for both Army and Navy, explained LTCOL Adam Modd from NZDF Capability Branch. “Our personnel are required to go into harm’s way to protect people and property, and in doing so we’re trying to give them the best protection we can for them to achieve their mission. “We’re talking about explosive chemical detectors bomb disposal suits… robots, drones and a myriad of mitigation and neutralisation systems,” he said. “Working with a Prime Vendor such as EPE has allowed us to buy the right equipment in a timely manner and get it into service to meet the project timelines.” Ministry of Defence, CEH Project Manager Paula Brasovan commented that EPE was nominated because of their professionalism, “they’ve gone the extra mile to be able to provide us with the information that we required at a time when we weren’t sure who would be awarded the contracts.” According to EPE New Zealand Business Development Manager Andy Cross, the MoD Project Team working with EPE as prime vendor, “was able to deliver a capability that is scalable, Line of Defence
interoperable, compatible with inservice equipment, with contemporary cutting edge technology, while heading off obsolescence all within a Rapid Procurement.” Having supported the NZDF for over ten years from across the Tasman, this Project gave EPE the opportunity to establish infrastructure in New Zealand with an office with a through-life support workshop close to Trentham Military Base. EPE New Zealand now employs four people with depth in the EPE facility in Brisbane and its global network of channel partners. According to Andy Cross, EPE’s New Zealand Business Development
Manager, the key was developing a trusted partner relationship with Defence. “It was really getting ourselves into a position with the customer where we could be trusted and show our integrity and the fact that we did have a good portfolio to offer to get us into a position of prime vendor which is where we are operating from today,” he said. “Some of the challenges are finding the right equipment. We do pride ourselves in trying to find the best equipment around the world. The NZDF understand that. They know what other ‘five eyes’ countries are using.” 9
