AusBiz.
NEWS+VIEWS | MINING | AGRIBUSINESS | INFRASTRUCTURE
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05 P.5 mining: renewable energy P.10 property: The rise of telecommuting P.16 agribusiness: the booming business of bees P.30 Business: HelloFresh australia. P.34 family business: Thomas cook boots & clothing co. P.40 EDUCATION
Business News+Views
Business News+Views Bringing you the latest insights and analyses. WORDS: Sarah Hinder Mining X-rays map new paths to hidden gold Revolutionary new X-ray technology that provides critical data to miners on gold grades in near-real time is changing the landscape of Australian mining. Developed by the CSIRO and brought to market by Chrysos Corporation, the fully automated photon analysis system drastically reduces the turnaround time on assays from days to minutes. Adopted by Aussie mining services company Ausdrill, the groundbreaking technology is currently being used in a world-first at their MinAnalytical Perth facility, with two
more photon assay systems to soon be established in the Kalgoorlie goldfields. At a similar cost to the conventional fire assay technique for gold analyses used for 500 years, this new X-ray system analyses more than 50,000 gold samples a month and can be applied to other minerals, including silver and copper. A faster, safer and more environmentally friendly alternative, photon assay technology is expected to give Australia’s mining industry a competitive edge on the global stage.
Chef in the house? Meet Andrew — in his mid-thirties, always up for a challenge, with a sense of adventure that has led to living in towns from Western Australia's Pilbara region and also in the Central Highlands area of Queensland. Much of Andrew’s travels around regional and remote Australia has been for free, including his accommodation and meals, because Andrew is a qualified chef. Some years ago, Andrew approached Atlas People after a recommendation from another chef. Atlas People recruit chefs, sending them to venues in regional and remote towns throughout Australia. Venue owners and managers also benefit, knowing they can relax when an existing chef decided to move on, because they will secure a chef who has worked for Atlas People before, or who has been referred to them with the necessary, recognised qualifications. If long term appointments are required, Atlas People offer a try before you hire service. "Let’s face it, anyone can find a chef in the city because of the sheer number of
AusBiz. Promotion people who live there,” says Managing Director of Atlas People, Doug Fletcher. “Away from the city, as any owner or manager of any business will tell you, it is harder to find qualified people. We've been active in building a large pool of talent, that as well as being qualified chefs, are after a lifestyle that enables them to travel Australia and play a vital role in these communities", Fletcher said. With a repeat business rate of 75 per cent plus, the advantages Atlas People offer regional and remote venues are appealing. "Our try first offer and available talent pool means we can have a chef in place within 24-72 hours, regardless of your location. We also manage the payroll headaches and our rate includes wages, superannuation, PAYG tax, Workcover and Public Liability Insurances,” said Fletcher. Contact Atlas People at admin@ atlaspeople.com.au or phone 07 3088 3700 (east coast) and 08 9468 7500 (west coast).
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Business News+Views
Australia’s fish populations in peril Numbers of large fish species in Australia are rapidly on the decline, with populations of fish measuring more than 20 centimetres — such as bream and snapper — down by 30 per cent in the past 10 years. Since the introduction of marine parks in the 1980s, as well as national regulations that outlined fishing zones, catch sizes and mesh size of nets, Australian fisheries have enjoyed a reputation for being some of the world’s most sustainable. However, the latest statistics have marine ecologists calling for a review of Australian fisheries and
fishing practices. Research from the University of Technology Sydney and the University of Tasmania suggests that, in addition to climate change and overfishing, the ineffectual managment of marine reserves is largely to blame for the steep decline. Undersized and under-resourced, most Australian marine reserves are largely unable to aid in the recovery of important ecosystem functions. If Australia wants to manage its commercial fish stocks for sustainability reasons, attention must be paid to the protection of marine habitats.
Fast Facts
50,000
Photon assay technology analyses more than 50,000 gold samples a month.
In the past century, seagrass cover has declined by 30 per cent, while 20 per cent of the world’s mangrove cover was lost between 1980 and 2005.
33%
In waters open to fishing, exploited populations fell by an average of 33 per cent between 2005 and 2015.
Mining
Renewables start to shine for Australian miners RUNNING A MINING OPERATION USES A LOT OF ENERGY. AS RENEWABLE ENERGY COMES DOWN THE COST CURVE, IT’S BECOMING AN INCREASINGLY VIABLE ALTERNATIVE TO DIESEL AND NATURAL GAS. Darren Baguley An agriculture, tech, mining, energy and business specialist writer.
Mines use a lot of energy, whether it is to run draglines and haul trucks, conveyors and crushers or for on-site beneficiation. According to Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA)’s white paper Renewable Energy in the Australian Mining Sector, on average one tonne of coal takes 50.5kWh (kilowatt/ hour) to produce, minerals average 10.7kWh/tonne and metals come in at 54.5kWh/tonne. With coal and minerals, diesel equipment and comminution operations comprise much of the energy consumed, but with metals on-site beneficiation operations cause disparity. The beneficiation processes for bauxite consume on average 13kWh/tonne while gold averages 210kWh/ tonne. This is because the energy consumed by metals with low on-site beneficiation, such as bauxite and iron ore, is predominantly consumed as diesel for plant involved in extraction and transport. Metals with a high level of on-site site beneficiation, such as copper and gold, consume energy as electricity. The energy for beneficiation is mainly supplied by diesel (41 per cent), natural gas (33 per cent) and grid electricity (21 per cent), and the industry’s energy intensity is only going to increase as miners chase
Fast Facts
58million Australia has the best solar energy resource in the world, receiving on average 58 million Petajoules of solar radiation per year, approximately 10,000 times its total energy consumption.
30,000
South Australia’s 100MW/129MWh battery is the biggest lithium ion device in the world and is capable of powering about 30,000 homes for a little over an hour.
K E E P I N G D E G R U S S A’ S S O L A R / D I E S E L / B AT T E R Y H Y B R I D P O W E R P L A N T O P E R AT I N G AT P E A K P E R F O R M A N C E I S A T E A M E F F O R T. O N S I T E M A N A G E M E N T T E A M : ( L- R ) TA D G H O ’ S C A N N A I L – SANDFIRE, PETER COOK – OTOC, NORBERT BORCHERT – JUWI, LAURENT LAFFORGUE – NEOEN.
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Mining
M E TA L S W I T H A H I G H L E V E L O F O N - S I T E S I T E B E N E F I C I AT I O N , S U C H A S C O P P E R , C O N S U M E E N E R G Y A S E L E C T R I C I T Y. T H E D E G R U S S A COPPER MINE IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA SOURCES AROUND 20 PER C E N T O F I T S T O TA L E N E R G Y N E E D S F R O M 3 4 , 0 8 0 S O L A R P V PA N E L S C O N N E C T E D T O A 6 M W L I T H I U M - I O N B AT T E R Y S T O R A G E FA C I L I T Y.
ore bodies of ever-decreasing grade. According to A.R. Bye (Case Studies Demonstrating Value from Geometallurgy Initiatives, 1st AusIMM International Geometallurgy Conference 2011), in the past 30 years the average grade has declined by half while the amount of overburden needing to be removed has doubled. As commodity price volatility is the new normal and competition from international players grows, our mining industry is under immense pressure to reduce operating costs. Mining operations with a high electricity demand and a long life can support the capital investment required to extend electrical or gas pipeline infrastructure and 65 per cent of Australian mine sites are connected to the grid. On remote mine sites diesel is generally reliable and quick to deploy, but it’s also expensive. According to the AECOM report Off-grid Solar in the Mining Sector, remote mines can be paying more than $300/MWh in fuel; and diesel costs are likely to rise over time. Natural gas, either CNG or LNG, can be cost competitive if close enough to infrastructure, but price volatility is one of the consequences of the Australian gas market’s recent interconnection with the global market. According to AECOM, “A 1.2 MW solar installation could reliably supply 5 per cent of the electricity for a 5MW mine, reducing diesel consumption by 600,000 litres per annum, saving around $6 million in diesel costs over 10 years.” It’s
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important to note, however, that even though diesel prices have been edging up recently there is little consensus among analysts about what oil or gas prices are likely to do over the next few years, let alone 10 years. The report noted several other benefits for mine operators deploying renewables, including “reduced exposure to the uncertainty of the carbon price [and] increased system redundancy, providing an increased level of reliability.” While it’s true there is currently no price on carbon in Australia, it is only a matter of time before a carbon price, an emissions trading scheme or an emissions intensity scheme is introduced. ARENA CEO Ivor Frischknecht says any new mining company that has a 10-year plus operating horizon is factoring some form of carbon price into its calculations. It is important to note that this report was written in 2012, and as well as factoring in a carbon price it priced solar photo-voltaic (PV) generation costs at approximately $226/ MWh. Since then solar PV has moved even further down the cost curve. According to International Renewable Energy Agency's report Renewable Power Generation Costs in 2017, utility scale solar photo-voltaic power has come down to US$10 per MWh. Australia’s leading solar researcher, 2018 Global Energy Prize-winner Professor Martin Green, was reported by ReNew Economy as predicting that the cost of solar PV will fall to about 1c/KWh before the mid-2020s. While mine sites aren’t quite utility scale and they also need battery storage to smooth out intermittency to work effectively, the cost of renewable energy is plummeting, and the business case is becoming ever more compelling. Companies are starting to look closely at renewable energy. Cost saving is the major driver for mining companies
Mining
but they’re also looking to smooth out volatility in fuel cost and hedge against the future introduction of some sort of carbon price. Frischknecht says there are other benefits from deploying renewables on mine sites. “The strongest driver is the cost of the alternative, so for mines that are off grid – and 65 per cent of Australian mines are grid-connected — they’re either using gas or diesel generators and it’s mainly the cost of fuel. “Solar with diesel and battery storage is predominantly the generation method that mines are looking at. Wind is a possibility in some instances but many of our mines are in cyclone areas and to make a wind turbine that can stand up to a cyclone needs a stronger frame that is more firmly anchored down, which costs more.” Connecting a battery in-line with solar serves several purposes. The most obvious is that it can store energy for when the sun is not shining. However, an advantage that is not widely recognised is that a battery provides better quality power. “It eliminates the voltage drop caused by clouds passing over the solar array, but a battery also provides more stable frequency and voltage by dampening down the sub-second oscillations that even grid connections experience,” says Frischknecht. In a way, even a relatively small battery can provide these benefits as it works in the same way that an uninterrupted power supply works for a data centre, i.e. providing power while the generator starts up. Both Frischknecht and the AECOM report argue that deploying renewable energy provides excellent opportunities for public relations and community engagement, and for improving the environmental credentials of the business. Sandfire Resources’ DeGrussa Copper-Gold Mine is a high-grade copper mine located 900km north east of Perth in Western Australia. The mine was completed in 2012 and in 2016 commissioned the largest integrated off-grid solar and battery storage facility of any mine in Australia, and quite possibly the world. The $40 million project funded by ARENA comprises 34,080 solar PV panels mounted on a single-axis tracking system that enables the panels to track the sun during the day. The panels are connected to a 6MW lithium-ion battery storage facility and the existing 19MW diesel power station. The solar panels supply around 20 per cent of the DeGrussa mine’s annual power requirements and cut its emissions by approximately 12,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year — this represents a reduction of about 15 per cent based on the mine’s FY2016 emissions. Just as importantly, Frischknecht says, there has been a boost in workforce engagement. “I was flying into the DeGrussa mine with some of the workers and without any prompting they started telling me how they love flying over the solar field as they’re coming into work. ‘It reminds us that
T H E D E G R U S S A C O P P E R M I N E ’ S 3 4 , 0 8 0 P V PA N E L S C O V E R J U S T O V E R 2 0 H E C TA R E S A N D C A N B E C L E A R LY S E E N F R O M T H E A I R .
the company cares about the planet, our kids, the future,’ one worker said.” Despite the advantages, many challenges remain before renewable energy is commonplace on remote mine sites, says Frischknecht. “One major challenge is the shortage of technical expertise. Once a hybrid system is tuned it will run itself but integrating all the different components — solar PV, batteries and the diesel power plant — is a different skillset from running a diesel genset.” Other inhibitors include the 10-15 year power provisioning contracts that mining companies take out with third parties that are very difficult to vary during the life of the contract. “There are challenges around the processes and operational principles that large companies operate under. For example, a genset is an accepted piece of technology and the acquisition of an additional unit may only take 48 - hours to sign off because it’s in the system. By contrast, getting something new and untried like a solar array component can take a year or two,” says Frischknecht. There is no doubt that projects such as DeGrussa and a similar ARENA-financed installation at Rio Tinto’s Weipa bauxite mine are igniting interest in renewables. In the past few months South32, Image Resources and OZ Minerals have all announced plans to integrate renewables with existing power plants. The South32 project at Cannington, Queensland, will be funded by ARENA and will incorporate a re-deployable 3MW solar farm from Energy Developments Ltd. If the re-deployable system proves successful, it will help solve the disconnect between mine life and ROI that is acting as a brake in investment in renewables. AUG/SEPT 2018
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Precision Solar Farm Technology
Drive more piles, more accurately
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AusBiz. Promotion
New semi-autonomous pile driving solution for Australian solar farms
A combination of Carlson machine guidance, the Vermeer PD10 pile driver machine and technical support promises increased productivity for the Australian solar industry. Intelligent positioning solutions provider Position Partners has teamed up with heavy machinery manufacturer Vermeer Australia, to streamline pile driving applications in the solar industry. With more than 200 people in offices Australia-wide, in South East Asia and New Zealand, Position Partners is the largest Australian-owned company focussing entirely on the distribution and support of positioning and geospatial solutions for surveying, civil works, mining and building projects. The amount of posts required for a solar farm varies greatly, from a few hundred to a few hundred thousand. Traditional methods are labour intensive with potential for human error, as they involve a surveyor manually staking out each pile location, along with continuous stringline installation to guide the machine operator. If any pile is a little off its desired location, the racking system that is used to house the solar panels may not fit.
By eliminating the need for manual stakeout and stringlines, the new semi-autonomous solution not only speeds up the process, it also guarantees greater accuracy and improved safety, by removing the need for people to work close to the pile driving machine. “Depending on the project, we estimate that contractors save between eight to ten dollars for every pile they drive,” said Andrew Granger, Position Partners Business Manager for Mining, Solar and Landfill. “On a small solar farm where every dollar counts that’s a good saving, and on a large-scale farm the savings are significant,” he added. Carlson machine guidance includes a variety of sensors fitted to the machine, along with a precision GPS unit and a control box that gives the operator real-time information about location, depth and angle of each pile. With all the information required on screen, the solution eliminates the need to manually stake out the piles altogether.
When combined with Vermeer’s PD10 piling system, the benefits of Carlson’s machine guidance are further increased. Vermeer opened up the machine’s CANBUS system to allow for greater communication between the machine and the guidance technology, creating a semiautonomous solution that reduces the risk of human error even more. “We’ve been working with Carlson’s Australian distributor, Position Partners, for some months on this solution, with great success,” said Jeff Lawson, National Construction Sales Manager at Vermeer Australia. “Vermeer’s most advanced pile driving machine, combined with Carlson’s machine guidance and our combined technical support capabilities enables us to offer a winning combination for Australian contractors.” For more information about the semi-autonomous pile driving solution contact Position Partners on 1300 867 266 or visit positionpartners.com.au AUG/SEPT 2018
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Telecommuting
Cutting the work commute WITH A GROWING NUMBER OF AUSTRALIANS NOW WORKING REMOTELY, TELECOMMUTING IS RESULTING IN A RISE IN REGIONAL PROPERTY PRICES. Kirsten Craze Kirsten Craze is a freelance journalist who has been writing about property in Australia and overseas for more than 15 years.
T H E E N T R A N C E , C E N T R A L C O A S T. C R E D I T: D E S T I N AT I O N N S W I
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M A N W O R K I N G AT 1 0 0 M I L E TA B L E I N B Y R O N B AY. C R E D I T: D E S T I N AT I O N N S W
Telecommuting
H O O K I N G A L I N E AT F L I N D E R S P I E R , MORNINGTON PENINSULA.
Fast Facts
2020
By 2020, after the completion of the National Broadband Network, the Federal Government aims to give 12 per cent of all public servants the opportunity to regularly telecommute.
8%
According to the latest ABS Census data, telecommuting increased from 8 per cent of the workforce in 2001 to 30 per cent in 2016.
Escaping tedious commutes and high-density living is a dream for many city dwellers, but there is a real fear of missing out on big city salaries. However, a growing number of Australians are managing to make their ideal lifestyle change while maintaining metro wages. Telecommuting, also known as teleworking and e-working, is an emerging lifestyle phenomenon not only changing the way Australians are living, but also driving up regional property prices. “Now it seems prices could be peaking in capital cities, so people are looking outside of these areas. As a result, prices are starting to grow in the regions as people move out to them,” says Mathew Tiller, Head of Research at LJ Hooker. “Obviously, most of our regional towns have property prices well below capital-city medians. But, for many, the hardest part about moving to a regional centre is income and employment prospects. So if you can take your city income with you and transfer it to an area where life is more affordable, then obviously you’re far ahead of the pack.” The mass exodus, Tiller adds, mostly includes Baby Boomers who might still be a few years off retirement, and young families seeking a lifestyle change. While these city defectors are at different life stages, they share the same goal: they want to ditch the commute, cash in on big city property prices and get more bang for their buck in regional towns. “We’re definitely seeing it on the East Coast, AUG/SEPT 2018
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Telecommuting
particularly for Sydney and Melbourne due to the population growth and affordability issues those two cities have. But the other capitals are experiencing it as well,” says Tiller. “All our capitals have very scenic coastal towns or attractive regional centres just outside them. Near Sydney you have the Hunter Valley, the Southern Highlands and the beaches of the South and Central Coasts. Close to Melbourne you have the same thing with Mornington Peninsula and the Surf Coast, while in Queensland it’s the Gold and Sunshine Coasts. Outside of Adelaide you have the Adelaide Hills and the Barossa Valley, and with Perth there is the Margaret River region.” While many regional towns suffered property price slumps post-GFC, the tides have recently turned. Although there are a number of reasons behind rising regional real-estate values, Tiller attributes flexible working arrangements and technology as key drivers. According to recent statistics from property data firm CoreLogic, the median house price in the Central Coast in New South Wales has jumped 74.2 per cent in the past five years to $748,178, while in the greater Wollongong area they have skyrocketed by 76.2 per cent to $831,774.
L I F E O N T H E G O L D C O A S T. C R E D I T: T O U R I S M Q U E E N S L A N D .
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In Victoria the regional hotspots are Mornington Peninsula, where the median house price increased by 50.5 per cent in five years to $808,036, and the Greater Geelong area, where prices rose 33 per cent to $518,613. Queensland’s Gold Coast saw the median house price increase by 34.7 per cent in five years to $640,000, and even units, which endured significant losses post-GFC, have increased in price by 22.2 per cent in that time. Another region of note in the Sunshine State is the greater Toowoomba area, where the median house price now sits at a modest $388,236, up 20.9 per cent. A recent McCrindle Research survey showed that Australians are eager to make significant changes to their working styles and embrace the freedom to work from home or remotely. Of those surveyed, 80 per cent (82 per cent of women and 78 per cent of men) said they’d be more likely to stay longer with an existing employer if they provide flexible working conditions. “Most employees are prepared to forego a percentage of their pay in exchange for greater flexibility,” says social demographer Mark McCrindle, founder of McCrindle Research. While 28 per cent of Australians would be willing to earn five per cent less for significant flexibility, an incredible one in 16 Australians would compromise 20 per cent (or one day’s pay) in exchange for the opportunity to work remotely. A poll of more than 8,000 people by recruitment firm Hays found that 55 per cent of workers were happy to drop their salary if it meant they could work from home.
Telecommuting
“If you have a long commute, working from home or at another location closer to home will allow you to cut the travel time of your routine, which should improve your physical wellbeing,” says Susan Drew, Senior Regional Director at Hays. Despite the overwhelming desire of Australian workers to plug into telecommuting, Drew says it is still not the norm for many companies. “There is a worry among both employers and employees that telecommuting will hinder performance. However, it is down to the individual and the employer to ensure that they remain on track,” she says, adding that companies seeking five-star staff should consider the practice. “If people cannot access telecommuting from their existing employer they may look elsewhere, which will lead to competitiveness in the market. To compete in retaining and attracting staff, companies will have to
“It's no longer a commuting class. It's no longer people living in the region and suburbs but travelling to work in the nearest city."
T H E G O L D C O A S T. I M A G E C R E D I T: B R O B E S . C O M . B E L O W : M O R N I N G T O N P E N I N S U L A B AT H I N G B O X E S .
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introduce working-from-home options.” Mark McCrindle says that, with this growing desire for flexible work conditions and more affordable lifestyles, it is no wonder population rates and property prices in regional areas are on the rise. “Some regional cities are actually growing faster than the capitals — it’s phenomenal. People can now work from these areas; we don’t just have to work in the CBD of big capitals. Technology solutions have really been an enabler,” McCrindle says. “It’s no longer a commuting class. It’s no longer people living in the region and suburbs but travelling to work in the nearest city.” In many ways, McCrindle adds, the NBN and the ever-changing digital landscape has given regional towns a leg up on capital cities, where house prices are becoming prohibitive. “People can see the affordability, the lifestyle and now the ability to work from these places. They’re not just holiday destinations now; people live and work there while holding down well-paid CBD jobs,” he says. “That’s the new way of life that Australians have responded to: they want to live, work and play close to where they are rather than just commute.”
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Agribusiness
A HIVE OF INDUSTRY CRUCIAL POLLINATING MACHINES AND CHAMPIONS OF THE FOOD CHAIN, BEES BRING MORE TO OUR TABLES THAN HONEY.
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Agribusiness
Darren Baguley An agriculture, tech, mining, energy and business specialist.
Fast Facts
25km/hr Bees fly at about 25 kilometres per hour and beat their wings 200 times per second.
10 kilos
It takes 10 kilos of honey to produce one kilo of beeswax — pretty amazing considering each bee only produces 112 of a teaspoon of honey in its entire lifetime.
60,000
A bee colony or hive contains 20,000–60,000 worker bees and one queen. Worker bees are female and live between six weeks and nine months depending on the season.
The honey and beeswax they produce and the pollination services they provide are worth billions to Australian agriculture. But more importantly, life as we know it would be impossible without honey bees. As humans have spread out across the globe to populate every continent except Antarctica, they have brought their animals, large and small. Of these species’ introductions, none have been more successful than the western (or European) honey bee (Apis mellifera). First brought into Australia in 1822 to aid in the pollination of the colonists’ European crops and pastures, beekeeping is an important rural industry and the pollination services it provides are even more vital than they were nearly 200 years ago. Amateur and commercial beekeepers in every state and Territory, except Tasmania, are required by law to register their hives. According to Australian Honey Bee Industry Council (AHBIC) executive director Trevor Weatherhead AM, there are 24,000 beekeepers in Australia and more than 647,000 hives, which produce around 20,000 tonnes of honey annually. The ABARES Australian honey bee industry 2014–15 survey results estimated the gross value of production at $101 million. The report found that, “on average, Australian beekeepers sold around 53 per cent of their honey to major processors in 2014–15. Around 17 per cent was sold to other processors, while the remainder was sold direct to retail (12 per cent), local markets (10 per cent) and door sales (6 per cent). Average sales of honey directly to export were minimal (0.5 per cent). “This pattern was similar for all states except Tasmania, where a larger proportion of beekeepers sold honey to other processers and directly to retail (34 per cent and 33 per cent, respectively), and 8 per cent sold honey direct to export.” Around 14 per cent, or 4,600 tonnes, of honey gets exported, according to the ABARES report. Weatherhead, however, says it is exported as a packaged, finished product by processors rather than in bulk. “There is demand for our honey overseas, but price is a big factor — our honey is expensive compared to the world price,” he says. “Ironically, we import honey from China, but there is a big demand in China for food produced outside the country because of our clean, green image and our more stringent quality assurance procedures.” While honey is the most important bee product by far, beekeepers also sell beeswax, royal jelly, pollen and propolis — a resinous substance used by bees to repair AUG/SEPT 2018
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80 YEARS OF THE VERY BEST In 1938, Charles Warman came up with an idea that would totally revolutionise the mining industry. As soon as Warman’s pumps came on to the scene, they became the very best you could buy. If it wasn’t Warman, you were wasting your time. Over the course of 80 years, Warman pumps spread across the globe driven by the ethos to always innovate. Soon, Warman became a global brand with a bigger influence than even the forward-thinking Charles Warman could ever have imagined. All over the world, Warman is known as the very best. It’s always been Warman, and it always will be. To find out more visit www.alwayswarman.weir
www.minerals.weir Copyright © 2018, Weir Minerals Australia Ltd. All rights reserved. WARMAN is a trade mark and/or registered trade mark of Weir Minerals Australia Ltd and Weir Group African IP Ltd. WEIR and the WEIR logo are trade marks and/or registered trade marks of Weir Engineering Services Ltd.
Agribusiness
and varnish honeycombs. Live queen bees and packaged bees are also sold to Canada, the Middle East, Pakistan and Japan. “There’s a good market in the Northern Hemisphere as we can supply bees at the start of their season. They’re able to use imported Australian queens to split hives, and packaged bees to make good any losses they may have suffered over winter,” says Weatherhead. While it ranks behind honey, pollination services and live bee sales in terms of income for beekeepers, Australian beeswax has surged in popularity and price in recent years, according to Weatherhead and beeswax candle-maker and owner of Queen B, Cate Burton. “There has been a 300 per cent increase in the price of Australian beeswax in recent years,” says Burton. “Australia doesn’t have Varroa mite (Varroa destructor), so our beeswax is free of the chemical miticides that beeswax everywhere else in the world has. This makes it very popular with pharmaceutical companies making hormone replacement therapy products, and cosmetic companies who use it in hand cream, lipstick, lip balm etc.” While honey is the main product of bees, in recent years more and more attention has been focused on the role bees play in pollinating the plants that are so vital to our planet, known as ‘pollination services’ in economic-speak. Modern industrial agriculture is increasingly dependent on beekeepers trucking thousands of hives around the country every year. Due to land clearing and the resulting loss of biodiversity, cherries, apples and pears, almonds and macadamias all need additional bees to pollinate the crops at the appropriate time of the year. According to Weatherhead, 200,000 beehives were needed to pollinate last year’s almond crops in Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia. And it’s not just tree crops that need bees for pollination. Strawberries, cucurbits, carrots and onions all need bees to pollinate the next crops, as do canola and sunflowers. A study by Curtin University’s John M Karasinski found that 53 crops rely on honey bees for pollination to some extent, while the economic value of Australian-managed and wild honey bee pollinators is estimated to range between $8.35 billion and $19.97 billion, depending on fluctuations in the AUG/SEPT 2018
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Agribusiness
farmgate value of the crops they pollinated. Whatever the actual value of pollination services, what we can be certain of is that a world without bees would be a very bleak one. Activists painted this unsettling picture several years ago when a phenomenon known as Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) occurred in the United States that saw entire beehives die off. According to Weatherhead, CCD is caused by multiple factors, with Varroa mite being the major culprit, along with starvation. Environmentalists point the finger at a group of insecticides known as neonicotinoids, which are extremely persistent in the environment. So harmful, the European Union is convinced enough of their impact on bees and other pollinators to ban their use, despite legal challenges by chemical companies such as Bayer and Syngenta. Knowledge of CCD and neonicotinoids teamed with the spectre of a world without bees has led to a massive upsurge in amateur beekeeping in both urban and rural environments. According to NSW Amateur Beekeeping Association (ABA) president Bruce White OAM, “the ABA in 1968 had six branches, in 1988 seven branches, in 1991 eight branches, in 2018, 21 branches; and membership has grown from 706 in 2014 to 1680 in 2018.” This interest has been driven by the media and popular TV programs such as the ABC’s Gardening Australia, which have publicised the world decline in bee populations and the
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Agribusiness
magnitude of the threat to world food security. “Up to 65 per cent of all the food we eat depends on pollination, with honey bees the main pollinators,” says White. The invention of the Flow Hive, a new type of easy-to-use beehive, has also played a part. Weatherhead welcomes the growth in amateur beekeeping, but also cautions that making sure Australia continues to be Varroa mite-free is the best way of ensuring our bee population remains healthy. This will be a big ask as the eastern (or Asian) honey bee (Apis cerana) is the natural host for Varroa mite, but it’s a threat government and the community are taking seriously so far. “It’s absolutely crucial that we keep Varroa out of Australia,” says Weatherhead. “We’ve been running education programs, including education of wharfies, and there’s the National Bee Pest Surveillance Program which is being run by Plant Health Australia (PHA).” Perhaps, ultimately, the best thing Australian bees have going for them is our beekeepers. Burton has been making beeswax candles for more than 20 years and has travelled all over the world visiting beekeepers. “No Australian beekeeper — even those doing pollination services and trucking their hives around the country — will shut their bees up for more than 24 hours,” she says. “They refer to the bees as ‘their girls’, and they just have much higher standards of animal husbandry than in other countries.” AUG/SEPT 2018
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Infrastructure
Picture of Health
Jo Stewart Jo is a Melbournebased author and features writer.
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INNOVATION CONTINUES TO CHANGE THE WAY HEALTHCARE IS PROVIDED ACROSS AUSTRALIA, BUT THE DELIVERY OF NEW INFRASTRUCTURE IS NOT WITHOUT ITS CHALLENGES.
Infrastructure
The funding of healthcare is one of the best investments governments can make. A universal need that benefits the entire population regardless of age, gender or income, healthcare funding is always a hot topic come election time. According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) more than $155 billion was spent on healthcare in Australia in 2012-2013, with the federal government contributing $63.5 billion and state and territory governments contributing $41 billion. Despite this seemingly significant investment, the
Australian Medical Association’s (AMA) Public Hospital Report Card indicates that performance of Australia’s public hospitals remains less than adequate. Contending that public hospitals are facing a funding crisis, the report highlights that emergency room waiting times continue to increase and bed number ratios remain static. Innovation within the healthcare sector has delivered mixed results in Australia, with the nation’s hospitals and healthcare services using new technology and fresh approaches to meet the evolving needs of the population, but not without failures and setbacks.
AUG/SEPT 2018
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Infrastructure
High-tech hospitals
Technological advances have transformed many industries and the healthcare sector is no exception. Two landmark hospital developments recently constructed in Australia show the changing face of hospitals and the impact that technological advances have on how healthcare infrastructure is planned, designed and built. As Australia’s most expensive building and South Australia’s largest capital investment project, the new Royal Adelaide Hospital (nRAH) was heralded as a game-changing facility that would use an innovative approach to deliver optimal outcomes for the community. Costing $2.3 billion, the public-private partnership suffered many setbacks over
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AusBiz.
Fast Fact
4 Star
With a 1.6-hectare footprint of green space, high-efficiency water fittings and an on-site heat generation system that uses waste heat, the new Royal Adelaide Hospital has been awarded a 4 Star Green Star rating from the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA).
the course of its construction. From budget blowouts to costly legal challenges, planning bungles and design flaws, the ambitious project has captured headlines for all the wrong reasons. Finally completed in September 2017, the 800-bed facility was described as “a hospital for the future” by the hospital’s Director Commissioning, Elke Kropf. Despite the challenges it has experienced in its short life, the nRAH remains an example of how modern healthcare facilities are more patient-focused than those of previous generations. Gone are the dour colour schemes found in hospitals of years gone by. Instead, natural light and green space are incorporated throughout the space, with 70 courtyards, terraces and sky gardens scattered across the site. Moving away from shared wards towards private suites, 100 per cent single overnight patient rooms offer greater levels of privacy to promote healing. Mirroring the move to automation evident in other industries, the hospital harnesses new technology to automate many of its key functions. An automated pharmacy distribution system (one of the largest in Australia) supports fast, precise distribution of medicines. Diagnosis and treatment of infectious diseases is supported by the largest automated microbiology system in the Southern Hemisphere, while a digital instrument tracking system efficiently manages equipment. In Western Australia, the state-of-the-art $1.2 billion Perth Children’s Hospital designed by JCY Architects and Urban Designers, Cox Architecture and Billard Leece Partnership with HKS Inc also experienced extensive delays and budget blowouts. Opening in May 2018 (almost three years late) the hospital design prioritises the patient experience by affording more privacy than hospitals of the past. Three-quarters of the 298 beds are housed in single rooms, while family lounges and parent accommodation facilities are designed to provide comfort and ease stress for loved ones. As with other contemporary hospital developments, green space, natural light and views of nature take precedence in the design with outdoor spaces and private courtyards,
Infrastructure
Fast Fact
88,000
More than 88,000 people across Australia took part in a Royal Flying Doctor Service telehealth or telephone consultation in 2016/2017.
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AusBiz.
Infrastructure
changing the perception of hospitals as closed-in, overtly clinical spaces. While both hospitals were plagued by planning, design and construction issues, the completed projects demonstrate how hospitals have evolved from artificially lit, concrete slabs filled with shared wards to well-lit, flowing spaces that make use of the latest technology to streamline service delivery.
Innovation driving healthcare delivery in regional communities While hospitals remain a priority for healthcare funding, what about people who don’t live within cooee of one? Australia’s vast land mass and significant number of regional, rural and remote communities make delivery of essential health services to people living far from metropolitan hospitals an ongoing challenge. The birth of key technologies such as the internet has led to the emergence of telehealth services that can overcome some of the barriers that prevent rural-dwellers from accessing healthcare. The Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) Victoria has provided telehealth specialist services to rural Australians since 2013, enabling rural communities to access health services without leaving the community. The free service started in Mildura and has now grown to service many more communities in need. Offering endocrinology, cardiology, psychology, psychiatry and respiratory services, the telehealth program operates in a number of rural regions, including Swan Hill, Mildura, Kerang, Edenhope, Nhill and Warracknabeal. A purpose-built platform that operates from a single portal, the RFDS telehealth service not only allows patient and clinician communication but also enables appointment viewing and scheduling, and document storage and sharing. A share-screen feature also allows clinicians to show patients diagrams and pictures. “Back in the day hospitals bought these large, complex systems with double screens for telehealth, but with our system all you need is a laptop or iPad with a camera and access to the internet,” explains Margaret Kuhne, General Manager, Primary Health Care at RFDS Victoria.
Helping people to stay within their community to access specialist medical advice, the telehealth program reduces the huge distances that rural-dwellers travel to attend specialist medical appointments. Many patients are unable to drive or take time away from work to attend appointments in the city, so the telehealth service has improved the lives of many Australians living with chronic disease. Kerang resident Ron Hick used to undertake a 600km round trip to see a diabetes specialist but now uses the RFDS telehealth service instead. “The greatest impact for me has been the fact that instead of having to travel four hours each way to see my specialist, I now travel four minutes. I have great respect and admiration for the service,” says Hick. In the past regional communities may have been overlooked for government funding, yet Kuhne contends that this has changed in recent years. “More and more, governments are supporting innovative models in rural communities. Telehealth is being used more frequently to address the issues that rural and remote communities have with accessing specialist healthcare.” The ability to operate off low bandwidths means areas without NBN access are still served well. “While it’s not suitable for every type of consultation, it’s gradually becoming the option of choice where appropriate, as patients are saving time and money,” says Kuhne. Because it is a cost- and time-effective way for service providers to reach rural communities, the expansion of telehealth services to other communities is a priority. “It takes time to physically transport a clinician from the city to a remote community, whereas clinicians could spend that time seeing patients via telehealth appointments and therefore see a greater number of people across a range of locations,” Kuhne explains. “It’s a much better use of everyone’s time. We’re constantly trying to innovate. Innovation and technology is certainly the key to providing better service and access to services.” Plato may have coined the phrase “necessity is the mother of invention” centuries ago, yet for healthcare providers delivering essential services in Australia’s many remote communities, necessity still drives innovation. AUG/SEPT 2018
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Start-ups
Start-ups
Birthing a business FRUSTRATED WITH THE LACK OF CHOICE FOR REGIONAL PARENTSTO-BE AROUND THEIR BIRTHING OPTIONS AND PRENATAL EDUCATION, TAMWORTH MIDWIFE EDWINA SHARROCK CREATED BIRTH BEAT, OFFERING ONLINE COURSES ACROSS AUSTRALIA. The conception of her company was a classic story, says Edwina Sharrock, founder of Birth Beat — working out of friends’ living rooms and on dining tables in the New South Wales town of Tamworth. Sharrock, who grew up in Tamworth, studied nursing at the University of Sydney and began working at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital. She had planned to study midwifery there when her father became ill and she returned home. With her plans changed, Sharrock enrolled in studies in Tamworth. “It was the best way to study midwifery, because I was able to go to Armidale, Inverell and Moree and spend time in those hospitals. When you’re learning in country hospitals it’s often a very small team, so the student gets to do so much more,” says Sharrock. Settling down in Tamworth and starting her own family, Sharrock, who has daughter Polly (aged six) and son Theo (aged three), was disappointed when the local maternity unit closed down at the private hospital. “Just because we live in the bush doesn’t mean we shouldn’t have access to and choice around our healthcare,” says Sharrock. “Our choices were taken away and that made me cranky. I was complaining about it one afternoon and my husband said to me, ‘Well, why don’t you do something about it?’ I couldn’t build a maternity wing, but what I could do was provide the very best antenatal classes — and that’s how we started Birth Beat.” Initially offering courses in Tamworth only, Sharrock had customers travel great distances to attend. One pair came from Cobar, travelling 500 kilometres each way. Sharrock began researching maternity and healthcare options in regional and remote parts of Australia. “I found out that 41 per cent of maternity units have closed in the last 15 years in Australia, mainly in rural, regional and remote areas. So we’ve taken away this access for women in the country to get educated, and it’s so important to be educated for birth because then you’re not fearful. It’s all
Katrina Holden Editor of True Blue, Katrina has been an editor of business and lifestyle titles for more than 20 years.
about removing the fear,” says Sharrock. It was then, in 2017, that she decided to take her courses online, signalling the beginning of her start-up journey. Birth Beat was soon recognised by Commonwealth Bank with an Innovation Award, then as a Google Regional Online Hero. From here, Sharrock heard about the HCF Catalyst program, in which HCF helps businesses that are taking innovations in healthcare which align with the company’s values. “I was really lucky to get a place on that program,” says Sharrock, although hard work and grit clearly played major roles in ensuring Birth Beat became one of just 10 companies selected from 300 applicants to take part. “I literally had to pull an all-nighter and build a pitch deck — I had no idea what a pitch deck was — and then get it to them within 48 hours. The presentation was like Shark Tank — it was the most nerve-wracking thing, and I’d got up at 4.30 in the morning and driven from Tamworth to Sydney.” The 12-week accelerator course has an assigned expert in residence for each business. Sharrock feels privileged to be “hanging out with some pretty smart people doing incredible things in business and the health industry.” Though the pace has been gruelling, the mum-of-two acknowledges the support of her community. “All my friends and family have rallied around me,” says Sharrock, who advises anyone considering a start-up to just do something. “That’s the thing in start-ups — people worry that they don’t have it perfect or that the website isn’t 100 per cent. Just get it out there, because you’re never going to have it perfect,” says Sharrock. “Also: talk to your market.” Looking to the future, Sharrock says she has a greater understanding of her potential customers and is now looking at B2B opportunities with big companies to provide antenatal education to its staff members, many of whom are scattered all over the country. She has also registered birthbeat.com. “So we’re ready to go global — but I’m not in any mad rush to do that!” AUG/SEPT 2018
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Business
A fresh start FOUNDED IN 2012, HELLOFRESH AUSTRALIA NOW DELIVERS MORE THAN TWO MILLION MEALS AND RECIPES EACH MONTH AROUND THE COUNTRY. WE CHAT TO FOUNDER AND CEO TOM RUTLEDGE ABOUT THE COMPANY’S GROWTH. Growing up on a rural property in the Southern Tablelands of New South Wales, Tom Rutledge says the kitchen was the “nerve centre” of his family’s farm. “From a very early age, I was aware of the seasons and the provenance of ingredients. The blokes that worked on the farm would come into the kitchen every morning — it was where we’d always congregate as a family. It was a place that had very happy associations for me and still does,” says Rutledge. After graduating from the University of Sydney with a Bachelor of Economics, Rutledge worked for a number of start-ups, including a human resources company and a wine business, before finding his way onto Network Ten’s MasterChef series as a finalist in 2011. “Coming from a farm which is a small business, I’d always had the desire to do something entrepreneurial and to be able to tie that in with food, which is a subject matter I was keen on because of MasterChef but have always loved. It was an obvious place to turn my attention to for opportunities,” says Rutledge, who then founded gourmet food home delivery service Mr Perkins & Co., after taking inspiration from several overseas models. It was the first meal-kit concept to hit Australia, and it wasn’t long before HelloFresh came knocking. Established in Berlin in 2011, its founders were on the hunt for prime global markets where they could launch concurrently. Australia was on the list of launch markets (along with Germany, the UK, the Netherlands and France) and
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Rutledge was approached to oversee its launch. “The blokes behind HelloFresh are very smart guys. We were put in touch by someone who was aware of their plans and what I was doing — and it was a pretty easy decision for me,” says Rutledge. At the start of 2012, Rutledge set up HelloFresh Australia, initially doing everything on his own and then building a small team, meeting challenges as they arose. Today they’re leaders in the meal-kit market, and their revenue grew by more than 50 per cent year-on-year for the first quarter of 2018, with a current revenue run rate (at May 2018) in excess of A$200 million.
Katrina Holden Editor of True Blue, Katrina has been an editor of business and lifestyle titles for more than 20 years.
HelloFresh Australia is now shipping 600,000 meals a week, and more than 2 million a month.
Business
AUG/SEPT 2018 C H I L L I P R AW N L I N G U I N E
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Business L E F T, T O P R O W : M A C A D A M I A CRUSTED SALMON. BOTTOM R O W F R O M L E F T: PA N S E A R E D BARRAMUNDI; SIRLOIN STEAK. PICTURED: CEO TOM RUTLEDGE.
“The biggest challenge to begin with was finding customers. It was a new service and people weren’t waking up thinking, ‘I need a meal kit’. We were having to get out there and explain the benefits of a meal kit as opposed to traditional grocery shopping,” says Rutledge. HelloFresh Australia creates recipes based on trends, customer insights and seasonal ingredient availability. The company then transports those recipes and the required ingredients to its customers, with the aim of taking the stress out of weeknight cooking. Rutledge explains the company has a range of customers, from professionals with no kids to families and empty nesters. “Our value proposition, which is to solve the decision dilemma around deciding what’s for dinner, appeals to a lot of people. The whole conundrum
of what’s for dinner holds for everyone and not only ‘What do I want to cook and what do I need to buy for that’, but also the constant refreshing of inspiration,” says Rutledge, adding that the company has a very short supply chain and ingredients are packed and dispatched within a 24-hour window. Rutledge works with a range of suppliers and has a preference for independently run businesses. “But more than anything, we want to make sure we have suppliers who have a quality product and, on top of that, are able to deliver things to us on time and in full. Getting things a day later may not be super-critical for a supermarket, but with a product like ours, it’s imperative for us it's on time or it won’t make it into the box,” says Rutledge. HelloFresh Australia is now shipping 600,000 meals a week, and more than two million a month. Globally,
HelloFresh has an active customer base of 1.88 million. Rutledge is most proud of the company’s growth and what that means for its customers. “What we’re doing is eliminating thousands of decisions every week, and we’re giving our customers and their families the opportunity to still have the fun of cooking without all of the process, decision-making and logistics,” he says. Committed to further growth, the company plans to add to their product portfolio by expanding the variety they offer customers. “We also want to continue our expansion into the regions,” says Rutledge. “Last year was a great year for New South Wales and Queensland, and this year we’ve had some good additions in Victoria and Western Australia, with more to come.” AUG/SEPT 2018
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Family business
T H R E E G E N E R AT I O N S . L- R : M U R R AY C O O K , THOMAS COOK SENIOR, THOMAS COOK II.
Following in the family footsteps
Katrina Holden
WE CHAT TO THIRD-GENERATION FAMILY MEMBER MURRAY COOK, MANAGING DIRECTOR OF ONE OF AUSTRALIA’S MOST SUCCESSFUL BOOTMAKING AND COUNTRY CLOTHING COMPANIES.
Editor of True Blue, Katrina has been an editor of business and lifestyle titles for more than 20 years.
Bootmaking was in the blood from an early age says Murray Thomas Cook, Managing Director of Thomas Cook Boot & Clothing Company. At eight years old, Murray spent his Saturday mornings sweeping the factory floor of his grandfather’s boot business to earn 50 cents pocket money from his father, second generation Thomas Cook. Murray’s grandfather, Thomas Cook Senior, established the business in 1924. His story is a classic rags-to-riches tale, involving hard work, strong business AY CC OO OO KK .. SS UU EE AA NN DD MM UU RR RR AY ethics and great vision. Born in Fremantle in 1908, Thomas, the youngest of seven children, was just four years old when his mother died. Unable to cope, his father placed the youngest four kids in a Salvation Army home. Thomas’s father would remarry and take the children out of the Salvos home for a number of years, but the youngest of the kids, including Thomas, were returned when their father then passed away.
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“It was a very tough upbringing for Pop and he learned to fight in those Salvation Army homes,” explains Murray. At 14 Thomas landed a job at a dairy farm, and come weekends, he’d box and play football. He soon developed his boxing skills and thought he could have a shot at being a professional. His older brother George was based in Melbourne working at a boot factory, and paid the 10 pounds to put Thomas on a ship to Melbourne, where he took up boxing and started working in the boot industry. Thomas got his first knockout after winning 20 matches and decided a career in boxing was not for him. “But an opportunity came out of that with fellow boxers making boxing boots for them. So that’s where he started, working out of a shed,” says Murray. In his early twenties he opened a shop on High Street in Preston, and before long, as the business flourished, he expanded to buy four shops in a row, which he then knocked down to build a small factory that later made way for a
Family business
bigger one. Thomas II ran the company from 1968 until his retirement in 1990. Murray loved spending his school holidays working at the factory, painting boot soles and fixing eyelets. After high school he worked at Melbourne Sports Depot before joining the family THOMAS COOK SENIOR. business. Today the company produces footwear; men’s, women’s and children’s clothing and accessories; and homewares. The business employs 45 staff in its Melbourne office and 10 sales staff throughout Australia and New Zealand. It has four distinct brands: Thomas Cook, the company’s signature line; Wrangler and American boot label Twisted X, both sold under licence; and the company’s Pure Western label. “One of Pop’s sayings was: ‘Just remember, it’s my name on the line — you’ve got to make a good, honest product and, once you do, you’ll get a good following,’ recalls Murray. “I certainly carry that through to this day.” As the National Sales Manager, Murray’s wife Sue loves meeting her customers in their own towns and hearing about what conditions they’re dealing with — be it a closing mine, cattle prices or how drought is affecting them. “We get to work together, but we also get to see some really beautiful parts of Australia and our fantastic customers and towns that they live in — it’s great,” says Murray, who acknowledges you can’t run a clothing business from behind a desk in the back blocks of Melbourne. Where other companies have pulled their sales teams from the road due to expense, Murray believes it’s vital to have first-hand contact with customers, and for account managers and product designers to be talking to retailers as much as possible. With a shared commitment to their company, both Murray and Sue relish working together and “wouldn’t have it any other way”. “We are very lucky,” says Murray. “You talk to some couples and they don’t even holiday together!” And when it comes to carrying on founder Thomas’s sense of innovation, the company certainly hasn’t hung up its boots, with Murray confirming his beloved business is “forever evolving”. AUG/SEP 2018
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Man & Machine
The Wonder of Wood LONG AFTER THEIR CONSTRUCTION, CLASSIC TIMBER HALVORSENS STILL HAVE THE GLAMOUR FACTOR TO TURN HEADS.
Briar Jensen Briar Jensen is a freelance travel writer with a penchant for soft adventure. She especially loves exploring Australia in search of inspiring travel experiences to share with her readers.
Glasses clink in salute as water laps the wooden hull. A breeze shimmies through the gum trees, and the setting sun ups the saturation on honeyed sandstone cliffs. It’s cocktail hour aboard MV Kalinda, anchored in Sydney’s Cowan Creek; time to relax, absorb the serenity and admire the varnish. There’s something romantic about vintage timber craft — their classic lines, distinguished heritage and superb craftsmanship. They exude the refined grandeur of yesteryear, and none more so than Sydney Classic Boat Charters’ MV Kalinda, a 1950 Halvorsen Bridgedecker motor cruiser. The Halvorsen name is synonymous with timber boats in Australia. Second generation Norwegian boat-builder Lars Halvorsen arrived in Sydney in 1924, and through determination and hard work established a family boat-building dynasty that now spans five generations.
As Mary-Louise Williams, then director of the Australian National Maritime Museum, says in the foreword to Wooden Boats, Iron Men: The Halvorsen Story, “The name Halvorsen is central to the achievements of 20th century boatbuilding in Australia.” Many Sydneysiders fondly remember holidaying on a Halvorsen, and tall stories about on-board shenanigans. Less well known is Lars Halvorsen Sons’ involvement in World War II, having built more than 250 vessels for the Australian, US and Dutch forces. The family also built yachts, including Freya, three-time Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race winner, and Gretel, Australia’s first America’s Cup challenger. The quality, workmanship and timeless style of Halvorsens have made them highly sought after by wooden-boat enthusiasts, like skipper of MV Kalinda, John Spry. “Old timber boats, like old timber houses, have their own individual ‘souls’ — the AUG/SEP 2018
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L- R : K I T T Y S P R Y, JOHN SPRY AND JEN REDSTON.
Fast Facts Three requisitioned Halvorsen cruisers snared the Japanese midget submarine No.21 in Sydney’s Taylors Bay in May 1942.
MV Kalinda has featured in episodes of The Bachelor and Married at First Sight.
legacy of those who designed them, built them, sailed them, worked on them or lived on them,” he says. “It stems initially from the timber, itself a living thing.” John started mucking about in wooden boats when he was 12, and MV Kalinda is his fifth wooden craft and third Halvorsen. “I love the style and functionality of Halvorsen designs,” he says. “They were the pinnacle of excellence of their time.” In 2004 John was contemplating a lifestyle change, so he sold his electronics engineering business and, at 54, became a mature-age boatbuilding and shipwright apprentice, to the amusement of his mates. At the time he and his wife Debbie owned a 26 foot Halvo, as they are affectionately known, but together with daughter Kitty, an accounts and marketing executive, decided to purchase a larger family boat. “We wanted a classic Halvorsen with the charm and elegance of 1950s luxury, but large enough with plenty of outdoor seating for comfortable day charters,” says John.
In 2007 they found their perfect match — online, in Seattle, USA. The 47 foot Bridgedecker was built in Sydney in 1950 and taken to America by Carl Halvorsen, chasing the Hollywood market. She sold immediately and changed hands many times over the years, by swapping, repossession and the winnings from a game of craps — the dice from that game rumoured to be in the bilge. Following an arduous ordeal arranging transportation from Seattle, Hardway as she was then named, began to sink when unloaded from the ship in Newcastle. Despite knowing she would take on water due to plank shrinkage in transit, the volume was far greater than the on-board fire pump could handle, and only prompt assistance from the local water police averted disaster. Told “you’ll never get an old boat like her into commercial charter,” her owners took on the challenge of restoration, removing live-aboard conveniences of furnace, laundry, trash compactor, dishwasher, cat flap and hot tub. The entire internal space AUG/SEP 2018
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Man & Machine
was gutted, revealing the dice from the winning craps game. The following years were a labour of love for the Sprys, returning the vessel to its original layout. Tragically, in 2010, Debbie lost her long fight with cancer, but the family continued the backbreaking work knowing she was with them in spirit. In 2015 MV Kalinda, an Aboriginal name meaning 'the sea' or 'a lookout', was licensed for commercial operations, and now hosts guests for vintage high teas and cocktail parties on the sheltered waters of Cowan Creek, surrounded by Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park. Her retro glamour attracts proposals, intimate weddings, anniversary celebrations and photo shoots. Shipwright skills aren’t a prerequisite for wooden-boat ownership, but time certainly is. “You need to be handy and retired or have bucketloads of money to pay for maintenance,” quips Halvorsen owner Cathy Astridge (who works full-time and maintains her boat herself). But John and Cathy agree
paying someone to do general maintenance misses the point of owning a classic timber boat. “The more you put into it, the more you get out of it,” says John. “It’s an emotional investment.” All that gleaming woodwork involves at least 10 coats of varnish, though, not something that can be knocked over in a weekend, especially by the inexperienced; which is why the Halvorsen Club was formed in 1991. Commodore Bob Allen says the club adds prestige, provides camaraderie and offers technical support. Pride comes with preserving a piece of history, and Halvorsen owners see themselves as custodians of their heritage craft which, like vintage cars, are living museum pieces. They willingly share their vessels at wooden-boat festivals around the country, and in the case of MV Kalinda, out on the water, where you too can luxuriate in her vintage charm over a sunset drink. sydneyclassicboatcharters.com.au halvorsenclub.com.au
WHAT TO LOOK FOR WHEN BUYING A TIMBER BOAT: • Search for known designs, not one-off models; this helps the resale value. • Check state of varnish, chrome and paint, look for interior mould and dry rot in timber. • Check age of engine, as a modern diesel can add value, as can good electronics. • Research the vessel’s history; talk to other wooden-boat owners. • Invest in a pre-purchase marine survey by a specialist timber boat surveyor. AUG/SEP 2018
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“We knew that Nudgee College could provide so many more opportunities. Not just in normal everyday education, but in a way that would expose Tom to new challenges, that could help him to grow into a young man who will leave an indelible footprint on his surrounding world.�
Education Special Feature
All aboard for Junior Boarding Boarders at St Joseph’s Nudgee College share their thoughts on the many benefits and lifelong friendships formed whilst boarding at the school they call home. For boarders, St Joseph’s Nudgee College is not just their school, it is their home. The connection that many boarders past and present feel towards the College is obvious whenever they reminisce for days gone past or share anecdotes from within the Boarding Village. While some boarders only experience a year or two in Nudgee College Boarding, others start in Years 5, 6 or 7, and therefore most of their teenage years are shaped by their journey through Boarding. Head of Murphy Boarding House Ben Ralston spent years as the Head of O’Brien Boarding House, which is a dormitory for boys from Years 5 to 9. When boys begin their high school boarding experience in Year 7, Ben said it allowed them to form
friendships and develop good habits around study and daily routine under the guidance of experienced staff who provide a caring and nurturing environment. “I have been able to see the transformation of several boarders I looked after in O’Brien who are now flourishing in a Senior Boarding House,” he said. “I think that being here from Year 7 has helped these young men really feel as though Nudgee College is a second home to them and has allowed them to mature at their own pace, supported by many great role models.” College Vice Captain Lawson Saurels has been boarding since Year 7, and said this experience helped him settle in early so he didn’t have to worry about it in his Senior years. “That is truly where the friendships and bonds start to be created,” he said. “I felt I was helped and supported well as a younger boarder.” Year 11 student Izaac Fiorini was living in Dubai before he moved into Nudgee College Boarding when he was in Year 7. His father had also boarded at the College, and Izaac said he felt privileged to continue that tradition. “I loved watching the Nudgee spirit videos growing up, and I would watch
the 1st XV video over and over again before arriving at Nudgee College,” he said. From fast-making friendships to getting the hang of community living by the end of his first year of high school, Izaac said there were many benefits to his early start in Nudgee College Boarding. “Starting off in Year 7 has helped shape me, in good times and in bad, into a true Nudgee College man,” he said. “From an endless sleepover with your mates, to waking up five minutes before morning training, boarding is also just such a convenience for everyday life and study.” While going into Boarding can be daunting for some boys, Izaac and Lawson agree that the best way to adjust is to get involved. “From academics to sport, and even supporting others through their sports and extracurricular activities, it is imperative that you get involved,” Izaac said. “You meet new people and time goes a lot faster when you’re having fun.” “There’s always a calling to something, so don’t be afraid to put your hand up and give it a go.” nudgee.com. AUG/SEPT 2018
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A UNI THAT KNOWS CONVENIENCE COUNTS At CQUniversity Australia, we know you want options when it comes to accessing a quality education. With a huge range of courses, outstanding support and flexibility, plus the expertise of a uni ranked in the top two per cent worldwide*, CQUniversity can help you be what you want to be. Whether you’re interested in a certificate, diploma, undergraduate, postgraduate or research higher degree – full or part time – our courses have you covered. Choose to study on campus at one of our many locations across Australia, or online via our renowned distance education mode. Designed alongside industry with a focus on work integrated learning, our courses will prepare you with up-to-date, real-world knowledge and skills. What’s more, we’re recognised as Australia’s first and only Changemaker Campus by social innovation group Ashoka U and have been awarded five stars for full-time employment, starting salary and social equity^.
Apply now to study in 2019.
*Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2018. See cqu.edu.au/reputation. ^ The Good Universities Guide 2018.
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Finance
Tax time tips Tax time. Two words that bring a sense of dread to most people. If this includes you, read on. We’ve compiled our top tips to ensure smooth sailing this financial year.
Start early
If you’re after a stress-free tax return, the best thing you can do is stop procrastinating and lodge your return as early as possible. Get ahead of the ball this year by organising any statements for savings accounts or other investments in advance, as well as ensuring that you have your Pay As You Go (PAYG) Payment Summary or Group Certificate on hand. Having these prepared before you begin your tax return will save time and help you receive your tax refund sooner.
Become a boss at deductions
The thought of adding deductions when filing a tax return often seems like a hassle – but it doesn’t have to be. In fact, once you know what you can claim, the process becomes easy and it could end up saving you thousands. We’ve compiled a quick list of the top deductions that will help you dominate this financial year and put some of your hard-earned tax dollars back into your own pocket. • Mobile phones – Workers can claim the costs of their phone and internet expenses that are work-related. • Electricity – Many people take work home with them. If you don’t want to claim comprehensive home office expenses, you can still claim for electricity used when doing work at home. • Education – If you’re studying subjects related to your
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current paid employment, it’s tax-deductible after the first $250. You also can claim travel expenses for the cost of getting to and from your place of education. • Printer ink — There’s a pile of home office items that can be claimed including inks, stationery, printers, computers, chairs, desks, paper shredders and rubbish bins. • Bricks – The most lucrative potential tax deduction for property investors is not the carpets and curtains, but writing down the bricks and mortar. For most people it’s a 2.5 per cent annual tax deduction on the cost of the building – but not the land, which does not depreciate. For an investment property costing $300,000 to build, that’s a welcome $7,500 tax deduction every year. • Your income – If you pay income protection insurance premiums, make sure to claim them. It’s the only form of personal insurance that is tax-deductible.
Don’t be afraid to ask for help
An estimated 46 per cent of us spend three or more work hours per week thinking about our finances (PWC 2017 Employee Financial Wellness Survey), resulting in low financial wellness. Add on the stress of a tax return and it’s easy to see why so many of us become overwhelmed. Our financial wellness impacts all aspects of our lives — from our physical and mental health, right through to the relationships we have with our family and friends. So, if you need a little extra help filling out your return, don’t be afraid to ask for it. Accountants can take the hassle out of your tax return, leaving you to live your good life.
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Puzzles
CROSSWORD
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R E S M T G S D E I N N A
T B O E A K A A Q G A A B
I A M O N G L L A M I T W
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SOLUTIONS:
A I O N F H I I S G H A M
A N E B C A N O B U G N I R E S M T G S D E I N N A
J S A Z A U A S P M D I Z T B O E A K A A Q G A A B
I A M O N G L L A M I T W
R Y A O G O T K I Y E N E
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SOMALIA SUDAN TANZANIA TOGO TUNISIA ZAMBIA ZIMBABWE
Find all the words listed hidden in the grid of letters. They can be found in straight lines up, down, forwards, backwards or even diagonally. Theme: AFRICA
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GAMBIA GHANA GUINEA KENYA LIBYA MALI NAMIBIA NIGERIA SENEGAL
WORD SEARCH
J S A Z A U A S P M D I Z
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DOWN 1. Feminine 2. Attain 3. Anaesthetises 4. Actress, ... Monroe 5. Dancer’s costume 6. Unrelenting 12. Devour 15. Try 16. Wheel covers 17. Wound with claw 19. Illinois is there (1,1,1) 20. Surrendered 22. Short pasta tubes 23. Highest ranking peers
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ANGOLA BENIN BOTSWANA CAMEROON CHAD EGYPT ERITREA ETHIOPIA GABON
28. Cash machines (1,1,2) 29. Occurred afterwards
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ACROSS 1. Series of rabbit tunnels 5. Look before you ... 7. Consumption 8. Large 9. Australian gem 10. Erected 11. Recesses 13. Eve’s mate 14. Masted vessels 18. Nakedness 21. Pencil end 22. Canoe oar 24. Wear by rubbing 25. Global hostel chain (1,1,1,1) 26. Charitable 27. Dessert, ... pie