australasiaissue 11 | www.AusTRALAsiAouTLook.coM

Ruralco bids to topple rival farming services giant Landmark

also this issue

aaci

Greyhound australia

security & technoloGy

services

100 years of better vision

Where noW

for Elders?

zeiss

Connecting you with the ideal candidate.

FIND OUT MORE: (08) 9481 8111

www.sense-it.com.au

We're so confident that we’ll find the right person, that if they leave within the initial 3 months,

it’s your money back.

We are offering an unprecedented

100% MONEY BACK GUARANTEE

*

*Terms & conditions apply

Ruralco proposes Elders rural merger

We’ve got a real scoop for you this issue – hot off an approach to buy Elders, we talk to Ruralco’s CEO John Maher.

John is a likable chap with a superb track record. He was the COO of the then Wesfarmers-owned Landmark and helped turn the old Dalgety Company into a market leader - his success also played a huge role in enabling Wesfarmers to eventually sell the business to AWB (AWB later sold Landmark to Canadian giant Agrium).

His latest move, which he sees as “an opportunity to achieve cost savings and greater critical mass… that would allow the combined group to better compete with Agrium’s Landmark”, will create a $A500 million rural services group.

The proposal is to separate Elders’ automotive interiors and remaining forestry assets and merge Elders’ rural services business with Ruralco.

You can read more about the deal on page 24.Away from agriculture, we go head-to-head with AC/

DC-loving great white sharks in Port Lincoln, have a look at the strikes crippling South Africa’s mining industry and take a ride on Greyhound Australia’s new daily Canberra-Sydney ‘Platinum Business Class’ bus.

Of course we continue to bring you all the other things you have come to expect from one of the region’s leading business lifestyle titles.

Enjoy the magazine

Welcome

Ian ArmitageEditor

EdItoRIAl Editor Ian Armitage

Editorial AssistantClare durrant

Writers Susan Miller Roderick Eime Alex Harmon

BuSInESSAdvertising Salestom Wheeler

Editorial ResearchersSean o’Riordan

Production assistantdaniel George

ACCountSFinancial controller Suzanne Welsh

PRoduCtIon & dESIGnMagazine design optic Juice Production manager Jon Cooke Images: Gettynews: nZPA, AAP, SAPA

dIGItAl & ItHead of digital marketing & development Syed Ahmad

tnt PuBlISHInG CEo Kevin Ellis

Chairman Ken Hurst Publisher tnt Multimedia limited

tnt Multimedia limited,unit 209, 16 Brune Street, london E1 7nJ

EnquIRIES & SuBSCRIPtIonStelephone: 0061 (0)2 8332 7514sean@tntdownunder.com

www.australasiaoutlook.com

18

44

14

06

14

18

20

N e w s

Cage diving with sharks in Port Lincoln Going head-to-head with the local AC/DC-loving great white sharks

Interview: Andrew LevinsSydney DJ and owner of GoodGod Club’s diner, The Dip

south Africa’s mining strikesEarth shifts under the Tripartite Alliance

Contents

Focu

s tra

vel

Focu

s Wor

ldFo

cus F

ood

& d

rink

5

coNTeNTs

40

30

46

R u R A L C o P R o P o s e s e L d e R s R u R A L m e R g e RAustralasia Outlook talks to Ruralco’s CEO John Maher

R e v e A L e d : T h e s e C u R I T y m A R k e T ’ s b e s T k e P T s e C R e TThe 2012 Telstra Northern Territory Business of the Year

1 0 0 y e A R s o f b e T T e R v I s I o NZEISS celebrates ‘100 years of better vision’

b u s I N e s s T R I P ? h A v e y o u C o N s I d e R e d T A k I N g T h e b u s ?Greyhound Australia can take you anywhere

I N v e s T I N g I N T u R b u L e N T T I m e s Cynthia Dearin on why the MENA region needs private investment

s o u T h A u s T R A L I A ‘ L e A d I N g T h e w A y ’ I N f o o dThe focus for Food SA is to’ feed connections to help industry grow’

24

24

30

36

40

44

46

Cover

Focu

s tec

hnol

ogy

Focu

s M

anuf

actu

ring

Focu

s Agr

icul

ture

Focu

s tra

vel

Focu

s AA

CI

Focu

s Foo

d SA

6

newsb u s I N e s s

Billabong, tPG talks ongoing

Beleaguered surfwear retailer Billabong remains in takeover talks with TPG, despite speculation that the private equity firm is considering withdrawing its $A694.5 million bid.

Reports suggesting TPG was considering pulling the plug on caused the Billabong’s shares to plunge by as much as 22 percent on October 4, before it requested a mid-afternoon trading halt.

Billabong confirmed that TPG had not withdrawn from the sale process but admitted the private equity group does have some concerns.

“As part of its due diligence investigations, TPG and its advisers have expressed concerns in relation to some issues, however, discussions in relation to those matters are continuing,” Billabong said in a statement. “Billabong has stressed in each of its previous announcements in relation to the sale process that there is no guarantee that any transaction will eventuate out of the process or that the board will recommend any proposal, and that continues to be the case.”

The retailer said it would update the market of any changes.

f o o d

Woooah black burger... bam-a-lam

How has fast-food giant Burger King marked its fifth anniversary in Japan? With a black bamboo and squid ink burger no less.

The chain’s Japanese franchises began offering the ‘kuro’, which costs 790 yen with fries and a drink, on September 28.

Burger King Japan said it wants to “overturn the preconceptions of what constitutes a fast food burger” with a product that is intended to “punch you in the mouth with taste”.

The firm is the latest to join the ranks of alternative-colour

buns, a trend that is huge in China.

Burger King Japan’s 2012 summer menu famously included an ice cream sundae flavoured with vanilla, fudge, caramel and bacon.

f o o d

Ruralco proposes Elders rural merger

Ruralco Holdings has written to Elders to discuss a possible merger between the two agribusinesses.

“Ruralco confirms that on September 10, 2012 it provided a letter to Elders Ltd proposing that the two companies engage in discussions to explore a merger proposal,” Ruralco said on October 4.

No formal proposal has been put on the table.Tasmania-based Ruralco holds a stake of just over 12 percent

in Elders, which said it had not received a formal proposal from Ruralco or any other party.

“Elders confirms that it received a short confidential letter from Ruralco regarding the potential for a transaction opportunity between Elders and Ruralco,” Elders said.

“The letter was conceptual in nature and lacked sufficient detail to enable it to be evaluated.

“Elders advised Ruralco that if it provided a sufficiently detailed proposal, the board would evaluate it and Elders has heard nothing from Ruralco since that time.”

Elders said the approach showed it was making progress in its strategy of divesting non-core assets to become a “pure play” rural services business.

Ruralco is proposing to merge Elders’ rural services business with Ruralco and separate Elders’ automotive interiors and remaining forestry assets. Read more on page 24.

7

L I f e s T y L e

Half of Great Barrier Reef coral lost in last 27 years

Australia’s Great Barrier Reef has lost more than half its coral cover in the past 27 years, research by scientists from the Australian Institute of Marine Science and the University of Wollongong shows.

Researchers analysed data on the condition of 217 individual reefs and the results show that coral cover

declined from 28.0 percent to 13.8 percent between 1985 and 2012.

The study findings were drawn from the world’s largest ever reef monitoring project involving 2,258 surveys over 27 years and it attributes the decline to storms, a coral-feeding starfish and bleaching linked to climate change.

It said coral cover on the World Heritage Site could halve again by 2022 if trends continued.

The research is published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences journal.

The Australian government admitted more should be done with Environment Minister Tony Burke saying the research should be setting off alarm bells.

“I reckon the report would have sent shockwaves through a whole lot of households,” he told ABC television.

“We’ve all heard about damage to the reef over the years, but that 50 percent figure, I think, rang a warning bell loud and clear for many people.”

b u s I N e s s

Boart longyear sacks CEo

Boart Longyear has sacked its chief executive in an attempt to tackle its plunging share price.

American Craig Kipp has been in charge of the Utah-based, Australian-listed company for four years.

Boart Longyear is the world’s largest drilling company and the announcement is something of a surprise as Mr Kipp delivered a record half-year net profit in August to follow a record full year profit in February.

However Boart’s share price plunged 37 percent on August 30, the same day as it announced a half-year net profit, with Mr Kip cutting profit guidance and warning miners were taking fewer risks, which then meant less expenditure for the exploration work Boart did.

The stock hit new lows in September and has yet to properly recover.

Boart’s director of corporate communications Monika Portman said the board’s decision to let

Mr Kipp go was mostly related to the share price.“It is unusual and everyone at the organisation is clearly shocked by it after delivering a record performance in 2011 and the first half,” she told AAP.

“Unfortunately we just haven’t seen the share price reflect that and at the end of the day when you are a public company you have got to deliver to the shareholders and the board just felt like that wasn’t getting done.”

Chairman David McLemore will serve as acting chief executive and executive chairman while a search for a replacement gets underway.

8

newsb u s I N e s s

Fonterra closes Vic plant, jobs at risk

Up to 130 jobs are at risk after Fonterra Co-Operative Group announced plans to close a major regional processing plant.

The New Zealand dairy giant will start a phased closing of its plant at Cororooke, in southwest Victoria over the next year.

Fonterra will close the 100-year-old plant and will spend $A20 million over three years to upgrade its Cobden and Dennington factories.

“We have explored all alternative options to keep the site open but they were not commercially viable,” Simon Bromell, managing director of Fonterra Ingredients Australia, said in a statement. “It is unlikely that we will be able to relocate all employees and there may be a number of redundancies.”

The National Union of Workers (NWU) says many workers at the Cororooke plant, near Colac, will struggle to relocate to another township for work.

“Redeployment is not a realistic option for most workers,” Victorian secretary Tim Kennedy said in a statement.

“We are going to see significant ramifications for rural Victoria.”

Fonterra’s Cororooke site manufactures soft cheeses and cream products.

The dairy products supplier has nine manufacturing sites and 2000 employees across Australia, with 16,000 employees worldwide.

b A N k I N g

national Bank merged into AnZ

ANZ National Bank has confirmed its two bank brands, which have had common ownership for nearly 10 years, will merge to become ANZ Bank New Zealand.

The National Bank will cease as a brand in New Zealand as a result.

Chief executive David Hisco said the National Bank brand will be phased out in the next two years.

“ANZ bought The National Bank in 2003 and after almost 10 years of reducing duplication, the next logical step is to combine them into one,” Mr Hisco said.

It means the National Bank’s famed black horse will disappear from New Zealand’s banking scene - ANZ Bank New Zealand will hand back the National Bank’s black horse and green colour brand to British bank Lloyds TSB when the licence expires in 2014.

“The black horse and green colour branding of The National Bank are licensed from British bank Lloyds TSB, and that licence expires in 2014. So it makes sense to change to ANZ, the brand used in 32 markets around the world,” Mr Hisco said.

Dumping the National Bank brand will see the group’s total branches reduce to 280 from 300 in New Zealand.

Mr Hisco said there would be no “frontline” job losses, though some technology contractors will have their jobs end as part of the merger.

He said the changes mean the ANZ brand will now stretch into 90 percent of places where New Zealanders live, and $NZ100 million will be spent on renovating National Bank branches into ANZ branches.

I N f R A s T R u C T u R e

Port of Melbourne redevelopment bids open

Bids are now open for the $A1.6 billion redevelopment of the Port of Melbourne.

Expressions of interest (EOI) opened on October 3 to manage the new Webb Dock container port, automotive terminal and pre-delivery inspection hub.

Ports Minister Denis Napthine said the two automotive EOIs will be open until November 14 and

the container component to December 5.

The applicants will be shortlisted early next year and the successful bids were expected to be announced late next year.

By 2035 it was expected trade through Victorian ports would be eight million 20 foot equivalent units, Dr Napthine said.

“Clearly decisions were needed to make sure that

Melbourne and Victoria have the capacity to deal with that container trade for our exporters and for our importers,” he said.

“The last thing we needed in this state was for ships to be delayed because of lack of berthing space or even worse, ships to be diverted to Sydney or Brisbane because we didn’t have the capacity here.”

9

s P o R T

Bombers’ Watson run-away Brownlow winner

Essendon captain Jobe Watson has won the AFL’s Brownlow Medal.

Watson took a big lead early in the count and had it wrapped up with two rounds to spare.

He finished on 30 votes, four clear of Hawthorn veteran Sam Mitchell and Richmond young gun Trent Cotchin.

Watson said a frank conversation with his dad at the end of 2005 had helped spark him to become the player he now is.

“I had a bit of a heart-to-heart as all fathers do with their sons and dad said `You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to,’” he said. “’But at the moment you’re not doing much. If you do want to do it, you have to pull your finger out.’”

The Bombers’ won 11 of their first 15 games this season and by the end of round 13 Watson was already on 23 votes, eight clear of nearest rivals.

By round 16 he was up to 26 votes, enough to win the award in five of the past 10 years.

Essendon faltered late in their season, losing their last seven games to miss the finals, but Watson was able to hold on, picking up another three votes in Essendon’s round 19 loss to Adelaide then one more in the following round.

m I N I N g

Mining boom has years to run: RBA

In a paper presented on September 19 to the Structural Change and the Rise of Asia conference in Canberra, Reserve Bank of Australia assistant governor Christopher Kent said Australia’s resources boom had years to run.

He explained that while falling commodity prices hinted that one phase of the boom was over, there was still more to come.

“The second phase of investment in the resource sector has been in progress for some years and still has some way to run,” he said.

“Resource investment is expected to peak as a share of GDP sometime over the course of the next year or so.

“The third phase of increased production and export of resources has also commenced but has much further to run, especially in the case of LNG, for which investment takes place over a number of years before production comes on stream.”

He added that the mining boom has been generally advantageous for Australia.

“While not all parts of the economy have benefited equally, the process of structural adjustment has occurred relatively smoothly overall,” he said.

“Output has grown at close to trend rates, unemployment has remained relatively low and inflation has been close to target.

“One critical element to the adjustment this time around has been the timely appreciation of the exchange rate as the terms of trade consistently exceeded earlier expectations.”

b u s I N e s s

Aussie bosses need to work harder says union

Shareholders aren’t getting value for money from Australia’s corporate leaders, according to one of the country’s leading unions.

The Construction, Forestry, Energy and Mining Union (CFMEU) highlighted a new report by investment broker CLSA that shows Australian CEOs are paid a greater percentage of net profit than their Asia-Pacific colleagues.

The union says it is evidence that local executives need to

work harder.“This research shows that

Australians tend to get very poor value from their CEOs and company directors,” CFMEU national secretary Michael O’Connor said.

“While the Australian business lobby is forever trying to draw a false link between the Fair Work Act and productivity, it turns out that the main productivity challenge is to be found among our senior executives.”

10

newse x e C u T I v e P A y

BHP pay freeze hits Kloppers but he remains Australia’s top earner

BHP Billiton chief executive Marius Kloppers’ full year pay has fallen because of his decision not to accept a cash bonus, due to the company’s big writedown on the value of its newly bought American shale gas assets.

Kloppers however remains Australia’s highest paid business leader, receiving $A9.41 million in the year to June 30.

His base pay was $A2.11 million in 2011/12, and will remain frozen in the current financial year along with the base pay of all BHP’s senior management.

“In recognition of the prevailing business climate, a decision has been taken to freeze the base salaries of GMC (group management committee) members for FY2013,” BHP said in its annual report, released on September 18.

Falling commodity prices and higher costs have created uncertainty around major resources projects, with BHP recently shelving its $A19.2 billion-plus Olympic Dam mine expansion.

g o v e R N m e N T

545 jobs to go at qR

A total of 545 jobs will be slashed from Queensland Rail (QR) by the end of the current financial year.

500 jobs will go from QR’s corporate and support division, while executive and general manager positions will be reduced from 77 to 32.

Transport Minister Scott Emerson said the reduction of QR’s corporate and support areas was designed to put the focus on delivering better rail services by reducing the massive corporate overheads which had grown under the previous government.

“Under Labor and Annastacia Palaszczuk, staffing in the corporate, communication, marketing and finance areas of Queensland Rail grew between 60 and 120 percent,” Mr Emerson said.

“The Newman government has made it clear to Queensland Rail that we want to improve the reliability, frequency and affordability of public transport and this proposal is vital to those efforts.”

The job cuts came on the same day as the Newman government’s first budget.

f o o d

Clean Seas tuna workers get the chop

Port Lincoln-based fishing company Clean Seas Tuna is reducing its workforce by about half and selling surplus boats as it grapples with sick Yellowtail Kingfish, chief executive Craig Foster has said.

Mr Foster said staff numbers at the firm will drop to about 50 once all the redundancies have taken place.

“It is never easy and it is not something that we like doing,” he explained on September 12.

“But the job is to restructure the company so that it will go on and at least some people can have continuing employment.”

Foster said a fairly high percentage of those made redundant have managed to find jobs elsewhere.

As part of a turnaround plan, Clean Seas has offloaded a number of boats because of reduced fish stocks.

“Clean Seas Tuna at its peak was farming about 4,000

tonnes of kingfish a year,” Mr Foster said.

“We are currently at about 1,000 tonnes per annum and that just meant we had more boats and more gear than we needed.”

Clean Seas Tuna booked a full year loss for the second year in a row in 2011/12, which included a $A17.7 million writedown after its Yellowtail Kingfish stocks were struck by illness.

The health of its yellowtail stocks is now improving following a change to its feed composition.

“The mortality rate has been rapidly coming down over the last two months,” Mr Foster said.

11

b u s I N e s s

Hastie companies sold to management

Three companies that were part of the collapsed engineering group Hastie have been sold in a management buy-out for an undisclosed sum.

The three companies - Hastie Services Pty Ltd and Spectrum Fire & Security in Australia, and Cowley Services in New Zealand - formed the Hastie Services group, which provided technical maintenance services; commercial and industrial heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems; refrigeration; fire detection and fire suppressant equipment.

The three businesses are now part of TSC Group Holdings.

The MBO was led by current Hastie Services chief executive Roger Jowett and supported by Sydney-

based specialist funds manager Allegro Funds.About 850 jobs have been saved.Hastie Group called in administrators in May

after talks with banks and new investors to extend its loans broke down when the company discovered an employee had been falsifying accounts.

Hastie operated throughout Australia, New Zealand, the UK, Ireland and the Middle East.

T R A v e L

Chinese airline to fly direct to Melbourne

Sichuan Airlines has joined the growing list of Chinese airlines flying direct from Asia to Melbourne.

Majority-owned by the Sichuan provincial government, Sichuan Airlines will fly directly from Chengdu three times a week and establish its Australian headquarters in Melbourne.

Chengdu is one of the largest cities in western China with a population of 14.7 million and has presented itself as a key driver of China’s economic growth in recent decades.

Announcing the deal during a trade mission to China, Victorian Premier Ted Baillieu said it was a significant step in positioning the state as Australia’s gateway to China.

“Direct air services between Melbourne and Chengdu will increase business, education and tourism ties between Victoria and China,” he said.

China Eastern, China Southern and Air China all fly directly from China to Melbourne.

m o N e y

RBA delivers rate cut

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has delivered homeowners another interest rate cut.

On October 2 it cut the cash rate by a quarter of a percent to 3.25 percent in response to a weakening global economy.

If retail banks pass on the cut in full, mortgage-holders with a $A300,000 home loan will save around $A48 a month.

It was the fifth time the central bank has cut interest rates in the past 12 months.

RBA governor Glenn Stevens said a modest outlook for inflation gave the central bank room to cut in response to weaker global economic growth.

“The board judged that, on the back of international developments, the growth outlook for next year looked a little weaker, while inflation was expected to be consistent with the target,” he said.

He said weakness in China and Europe had weighed on global growth expectations.

12

newsw o R L d N e w s

uK regulator outlines lIBoR overhaul

Britain’s financial regulator, the Financial Services Authority (FSA), has laid out a 10-point plan to overhaul the handling of the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR), which has been the subject of a scandal involving major banks across several countries.

In June Barclays Bank admitted it had submitted false information for the LIBOR, which is used to price trillions of dollars in financial contracts including mortgages, bonds and consumer loans.

In the fallout, Barclays CEO Bob Diamond resigned.

The FSA, which launched a review of the LIBOR process soon after, announced on September 28 that the rate-fixing scandal was an industry-wide problem which tore “the very fabric that our financial system is built on”.

FSA managing director Martin Wheatley called for wholesale reforms of the process, including a new oversight authority and the prospect of criminal prosecution for bankers who break the law.

Wheatley recommended that the LIBOR process be regulated by the FSA and that those submitting rates be subject to formal approval.

Wheatley added LIBOR’s oversight would be stripped from the British Bankers’ Association (BBA), which had “clearly failed” in administering the rate.

He accused the BBA of being careless in policing LIBOR, putting too much trust in a system lacking “the right level of checks and balances”.

Wheatley said that he was setting up an independent panel to lead the appointment process for a new group to run LIBOR.

s P o R T

Europe clinch Ryder cup following dramatic comeback

Europe produced the greatest comeback in Ryder Cup history to reel in the United States and retain the trophy at the Medinah Country Club in Chicago.

Trailing by 10-6 going into the closing 12 singles, with the USA needing just 4 ½ points to win the cup for just the second time in the last decade, Jose Maria Olazabal’s men thrillingly won the first five matches out and went on to make sure of victory when German Martin Kaymer defeated Steve Stricker in the penultimate match.

Kaymer clinched it with a six-foot putt at the last and then Tiger Woods missed a four-footer at 18 to hand overall victory to Europe 14 ½ to 13 ½.

No European side had ever managed to comeback from 6-10 down in the Ryder Cup and no US team had ever lost more than a two-point advantage on the final day since the competition began in 1927.

lewis Hamilton to join Mercedes

Lewis Hamilton is to leave Formula One team McLaren and join Mercedes in a three-year deal worth a reported $US100 million.

McLaren have signed Mexican Sergio Perez as a replacement.

Hamilton’s move spells the end of the Formula One career of seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher, who is out of contract at Mercedes at the end of the year, and has decided to retire.

Hamilton’s decision is a huge blow to McLaren, who will now have to do without the speed and talent of a man they have nurtured since he was 13 years old.

13

b u s I N e s s

Xstrata says yes to Glencore merger

The board of Swiss mining group Xstrata has recommended that shareholders back the merger terms offered by commodities trader Glencore.

The deal will create one of the world’s largest resources companies.

“The strategic rationale for combining Xstrata and Glencore remains highly compelling,” said Xstrata’s chief executive Mick Davis. “A merger will fuse the respective strengths of the two companies into a unique natural resources company. It will also resolve Xstrata’s ownership structure in a way that I believe will create a superior shareholder value as part of a larger, more diverse company with an enhanced ability to grow and create value for its owners.”

Glencore boss Ivan Glasenberg said he was “pleased” Xstrata directors had recommended the deal, “which offers Xstrata shareholders a significant premium [on the current share price]”.

Xstrata is the world’s largest thermal coal producer and the merged entity is seen as having greater vertical integration and advantage in marketing over miners such as BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto.

b u s I N e s s

Google worth more than Microsoft

Internet giant Google has surpassed the market capitalisation of Microsoft for the first time, underlining the transition to a web-centric technology world from one dominated by personal computers.

On October 1, Google was valued at $US249.5 billion, while PC software maker Microsoft is worth $US247.8 billion.

Both companies still trail behind Apple, which has built a value of over $US630 billion, largely based on the success of its iPhone and iPad mobile devices.

Google was founded in 1998 after graduate computer science students Larry Page and Sergey Brin developed a new way of searching the Internet.

Microsoft was founded by Bill Gates and Paul Allen in 1975 just as personal computers were starting to become widespread and became the world’s largest software maker after developing the dominant operating system for PCs.

b u s I N e s s

Hewlett-Packard shares plunge on turnaround fears

Hewlett-Packard shares plunged on October 3 on concerns about the company’s turnaround strategy.

Shares hit a 10-year low after its boss Meg Whitman said it will take time to turn around the company that built its success on printers and computers.

She said revenue for 2013 would decline during a “fix-and-build year.”

Shares closed down 13.0 percent at $14.90.Hewlett-Packard is struggling to offset

faltering PC sales with other revenue.Ms Whitman replaced her predecessor,

Leo Apotheker, who was ousted after just 11 months on the job.

14

Cage diving with

in Port Lincoln sharks

15

Going head-to-head with the local AC/DC-loving

great white sharks.

By Roderick Eime

in Port Lincoln

The enormous chunk of tuna flesh bobbed on the end of the line supported by a small foam ball. Matt ladled great gobs of minced gills and guts onto the surface

creating a lumpy, letterbox red slick just behind the boat. Then he struck.

We’d seen his ominous black shadow patrolling beneath us like a menacing midget submarine probing for a weakness, but nothing prepared us for what happened next. In a heart-stopping explosion of gaping crimson jaws filled with rows of razor sharp teeth, the five metre, 1,000kg monster breached its full torso out of the water in a triumphant display of total dominance.

Underwater, the view is even more terrifying. The seemingly flimsy aluminium cage appears barely strong enough to withstand the fury of this consummate killing machine. Those who remember the Jaws trilogy will recall the complete inadequacy of the metal sanctuary and in no coincidence, many of the scenes that employed live sharks as stunt doubles to the mechanical star were filmed in these very waters. Rodney Fox, the famous diver who displays gruesome body décor courtesy of the great white, is moored alongside with his own clients.

The cage is tethered to the stern with tough mooring lines and divers enter via a manhole in the top. Air is surface fed via a compressor and up to four ‘clients’ squeeze together in a tantalising clump that draws hungry and inquisitive gazes from the circling creatures. Our feet are hooked under a rail in the floor and we cling nervously to handles arranged around the sides while surveying the waters for sharks through viewing holes which strike me as overgenerous. Suddenly there’s a tug on my shoulder and a rubberised finger jabs frantically into the gloom. That famous theme tune plays in my mind as a dark shadow slowly morphs into a full size predator with a very determined purpose.

For 30 minutes we watch totally awestruck as three adult great whites glide effortlessly past in search of the tuna bait dangling rather too close for my liking. That lifeless, inexpressive eye is a porthole to a tiny brain pre-programmed for one task only.

cAge diviNg wiTh shARks iN PoRT LiNcoLN

Focus travel

16

A ladle of guts excites them and they’re now intent on the juicy prize. Mouth agape and on target, Matt jerks the bait away at the last minute but the shark lunges again taking the chunk whole, thrashing heavily against the cage’s already dented structure. The water around us is full of bubbles and froth both from the shark’s turbulent antics and our combined hyperventilation.

“Mmmerrh!” I scream incomprehensibly into my mouthpiece.

Meeting JawsMoose, a five metre male great white shark, is a regular visitor off Neptune Island at the very end of South Australia’s Gulf St Vincent and is identified by the red tag applied by Andrew as well as the multitude of battle scars. The nearby Australian Sea Lion colony keeps the carnivorous monsters hanging around, preying on some of the 4,000 pups born here each year. Andrew and Matt operate Calypso Star Charters, currently one of three licensed operations, from nearby Port Lincoln and are regularly booked out months in advance.

Cages in the pagesShark cage diving is not without its critics. There is one school of thought that advocates a total ban on the practice, particularly that which involves ‘chumming’. The West Australian Government is not having a bar of it and has moved to pre-emptively outlaw shark cage diving in light of a recent rash of attacks on surfers and swimmers in that state.

Research done by the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) at shark cage diving sites in South Australia found that chumming kept sharks in an area for longer, but could not prove a link between chumming and attacks on humans. This year, the licensing of SA shark cage diving operators came under close scrutiny and at one point the whole ‘sport’ was in jeopardy.

Matt Waller, a fourth generation fisherman and founder of the tuna swimming phenomenon, has won awards for what he calls “Australia’s first advanced eco certified shark cage diving experience” where, instead of splashing blood and guts

17

into the water, he plays AC/DC through an underwater speaker. The curious sharks gather and appear less aggressive and less prone to attack.

“We put a speaker in the water and play AC/DC and they come around. They like Back in Black, You Shook Me All Night Long, and Spiderbait’s Black Betty works really well,” said Matt in an interview with The Australian, “Talking Heads’ song Sax and Violins makes them jump out of the water.”

After the jaw-dropping exploits of the great marine marauders, those not totally spooked don wetsuits for a serene swim with the sharks’ preferred foodstuff. The playful pups and young adults are almost jumping out of their skin in anticipation and are quick to engage in exuberant interaction when the swimmers enter the water.

The mammals swirl and twirl in an aquatic ballet around their hopelessly inept and oversize playmates, yet display a generous tolerance that keeps us entertained for over an hour. It’s tragic to recall this delightful naivety was repaid with lethal consequences when both British and American sealers plundered the happy herds to near extinction in the 19th century. Even today the species are still listed as rare and endangered.

tuna sandwichesBack in Port Lincoln, there’s a visit to Matt Waller’s tuna farm and again we’re in the water, this time hand-feeding his baby (20kg) Southern Blue Fin. The tuna swimming idea came about some five years ago when Matt thought it would be cool to take a dip in one of the massive pens used to corral the fish and fatten them to market weight.

During the short ride on Matt’s launch out into the bay, he’ll enlighten you on this modern form of fish farming where schools of wild tuna captured in giant circular nets and towed – very slowly – back to port. Now you can dive in and tempt the massive, lightning-fast demons with a tiny bait fish which they will whip out of your hand before you have time to flinch.

So whatever your aquatic thrill, Port Lincoln at the tip of South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula can deliver the serene or the scary, you choose – or just do it all!

“For 30 minutes we watch totally awestruck as three adult great whites glide effortlessly past in search of the tuna bait dangling rather too close for my liking. that lifeless, inexpressive eye is a porthole to a tiny brain pre-programmed for one task only”

The six-day ‘Secrets of Eyre Peninsula is with Nullarbor Traveller. ’ The tour includes Flinders Ranges, Coodlie Park Farm Retreat, a surf lesson and tuna swim. the-traveller.com.au. Calypso Star Charters shark cage dive is from A$495. sharkcagediving.com.au. A double room at the Port Lincoln Hotel from A$150/n. Beds at the Port Lincoln YHA start from A$35/night. yha.com.au. For more action-packed ideas in South Australia, head to southaustralia.com and click on the ‘adventure’ tab.

cAge diviNg wiTh shARks iN PoRT LiNcoLN

Focus travel

18

Australasia Outlook talks to Sydney DJ and

owner of GoodGod Club’s diner, The Dip,

Andrew Levins.

By Alex Harmon

Interview:

Andrew Levins, the Sydney DJ and owner of GoodGod Club’s diner, The Dip,

has written his first cookbook. He tells us how it came about, how to fry Coke, and what to cook when you’re really broke…

So, Diner, your first cookbook is out now. what made you write a book?Well I was DJing, which is what I used to do before, and I had just finished my set and I was sweaty and gross and about to head home when I was tapped on the shoulder by a lady. She said ‘I really like your restaurant, I’d like you to write a cook book for me’. I was like okay and gave her

my card. Surprisingly enough she got in contact with me later that week. I signed a contract in November and finished the book in January, which isn’t very long.

who are you writing this book for?Well it’s an entertaining book and the majority of the recipes are pretty simple and there’s a fun story behind every one. Be it the time I ate something when I was hungover, or hot dogs named after rappers and DJs. Really cool, fun sh*t.

Are you still a dJ? Yes, I am four nights in the kitchen and then I DJ on Friday and Saturday nights. And I also run a children’s music charity,

Heaps Decent, which brings music to underprivileged kids.

what’s more satisfying? Cooking or music? I think the combination of the two. I think they go hand in hand – you can do one while doing the other.

what is your signature dish?In the book my favourite dish, and it’s always been my favourite, is the pulled pork sandwich. I was in Memphis with my family when I was 12 and at that point it was the greatest thing I had ever eaten in my entire life. It’s an unbelievably soft, beautiful, smoky pork roll with slaw and BBQ sauce.

AndREW lEVInS

19

what do you cook when you’re trying to impress a girl?The thing is, my girlfriend brought out the foodie in me. When we first started dating I remember making things like a pasta dish with all of the weird things I had in the fridge. And she was really impressed by that, so then she would try and impress me and we’d one-up each other.

you’ve got some wacky dishes in your book like a watermelon and bacon burger – where do you get your inspiration from?I go out for dinner and have a lot of chef friends and they’re always trying crazy

iNTeRview: ANdRew LeviNs

things. My restaurant is a take on fast-food and my idea is that if you can have all these crazy, experimental things in fine dining, then why can’t I try and do my take on it with fast food? When we grill watermelon for a salsa, we cut these big strips of watermelon and I used to think it looked like a piece of steak or salmon. So I started marinating it and putting it on a sandwich with bacon. Now it’s one of our most popular menu items. The sweet and the saltiness is a great combination.

what’s the weirdest thing you’ve eaten?The best weird thing I ever had was in Japan, which was raw chicken and that is something that I would never try and recreate. Think of the best raw fish you’ve ever had and this raw chicken is even better than that.

What are your tips for backpackers who can’t afford to eat properly?When I was a DJ I used to travel a lot and stay at motels. What we used to do was make sure the motel room had an iron in it and then we’d go to the corner shop and buy a loaf of bread, some cheese slices and butter. You make the sandwich and wrap it up in foil, put some water in the iron and iron the sandwich. It’s amazing. To impress nobody, iron your own cheese sandwich.

In your book you talk about deep-frying Coke. how does one deep fry cola?It’s a carnival treat in the States, so you’re not just tipping a bottle of Coke into a fryer, you actually make a batter and instead of using milk, you use Coke. It’s a really sweet, Cokey flavour and the batter bubbles up. It’s a hot, syrupy, crunchy dish. It’s really good.

would you call your food ‘dude food’? I guess I call it party food. Or I just call it food.

Are you good at matching food with drinks?Pretty much everything in the book goes with beer. It’s definitely the drink of choice. You’re meant to cook outside, well I think it’s the best way to cook and the best thing to drink when you’re outside is beer.

Andrew Levin’s cookbook, Diner, is out now through New holland. yolevins.com

“In the book my favourite dish, and it’s always been my favourite, is the pulled pork sandwich. I was in Memphis with my family when I was 12 and at that point it was the greatest thing I had ever eaten in my entire life”

Focus Food & d

rink

20

South Africa’s

Earth shifts under the Tripartite Alliance

21

The lines between government and business in South Africa have been blurred says Gareth Newham, Head of the Crime and Justice Programme at the Institute of Security Studies (ISS).

By Susan Miller

South Africa’s Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies attended a series of investor meetings in the UK recently in an attempt to quell nerves after the fatal shooting of 34

miners by South African police on August 16 at Lonmin’s Marikana mine.

Another ten people – including two police officers – died in the week leading up to the shooting.

“We have not seen an impact on foreign direct investment,” Davies asserted. “The impact has largely been felt in the shares of the companies concerned.”

However, the impact has been felt elsewhere – horror at the police action has been expressed worldwide.

In South Africa civil leaders like Desmond Tutu spoke out and Financial Mail editor Barney Mthombothi wrote ‘we cannot, as has been our won’t, apportion blame, or hide behind the tattered skirts of apartheid and its legacy…is this what we struggled for?’

And it’s at the very heart of government that many fingers have been pointed. Mthombothi pointed to the governance of the Tripartite Alliance - the ANC, SACP and the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) - as ‘a temple of nothing but greed, self-serving avarice’.

As worker relations sour, Cosatu’s role in the Tripartite Alliance is coming increasingly under the spotlight.

After all as Gareth Newham, Head of the Crime and Justice Programme at the Institute of Security Studies (ISS) in Pretoria says, the lines between government and business have been blurred by the ANC’s investment arm Chancellor House, hugely active in the mining and construction industries.

“Ideally government should be a kind of mediator between labour and business but in South Africa it gets conflated because of the conflation of big business and the ANC,” he said.

Newham said increasingly the ANC’s interests were thought “to be too closely aligned to management and business – and Cosatu and its affiliates (like the National Union of Mineworkers) are seen in the same light.”

NUM’s waning influence was illustrated when only 6.3 percent of shift workers

souTh AfRicA’s MiNiNg sTRikes

Focus World

22

reported for work at Lonmin on deadline-day Monday September 10.

And this after Lonmin management, the NUM, Solidarity and Uasa signed a peace accord, which the newly active Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) refused to sign, saying it had not been part of the process leading to it.

The strike impacted on business – Lonmin’s London listed shares plunged 6.8 percent on August 16 and another eight percent the next week.

Importantly the gold industry has also been affected. A third of the workforce at Gold Fields, the world’s fourth-largest bullion producer, downed tools in an illegal strike on September 10.

This was only days after its management resolved an earlier illegal strike by 12,000 of its workers at its KDC East mine over worker discontent with the local branch of NUM.

Gold Fields share price shed more than 2.5 percent as news of the latest wildcat strike spread.

Reuters reported that this discontent with NUM has allowed AMCU to recruit on

Lonmin, Impala Platinum and Aquarius Platinum.

They are also active at Anglo American Platinum.

And it’s not just the miners but poor communities around South Africa who have been protesting – often violently – about service delivery, including the provision of electricity and water, and the slow rate of change.

The ANC has improved living standards since coming to power 18 years ago but 60 percent, or about 23 million, still live in poverty and 28 percent are jobless, according to government data.

“The dividends of development weren’t spread across the population as a whole,” Dirk Kotze, a politics professor at the University of South Africa, told Bloomberg. “There is a high explosive potential. It is just not a labour dispute anymore, it is much more emotional.”

Township residents staged 113 protests against a lack of housing, sanitation and other services in the first seven months

“Certain groups don’t think that Cosatu are representing them”

23

Focus World

of this year, more than in any other year since monitoring began in 2004, according to Municipal IQ, an independent local government research group.

At the heart of these protests is a lack of skilled and engaged leadership, says Newham.

“Protests usually only break out or become violent after people have tried numerous times to speak to a local councillor or to get to the mayor to address their concerns. So at the heart of a lot of the stuff is that lack of response and we also saw that with Marikana.”

Newham suggests that recent events illustrate “that certain groups don’t think that Cosatu are representing them”.

“Marikana is an expression of that – AMCU and many other unions are just completely opting out of the labour system with their grievances. They don’t even bother using the labour legislation to try and strike – they have wildcat strikes –like Nactu, the breakaway group from Sactu. The pressure within the alliance is now building.”

The shooting of the miners – and alleged torture of miners in custody – shocked South Africans who thought they had seen the back of state violence after 1994.

However, Newham says that it “all starts on top. The people in charge of the police know virtually nothing about

policing”. It’s the reason why “the police don’t go to a crime scene, the reason why they have such a low conviction rate if cases get to court, there’s police corruption and other abuses.”

While economic analysts did not immediately predict a drop in investor confidence in South Africa, Peter Attard Montalto, Nomura’s London-based emerging-market economist, told the Wall Street Journal that if strikes spread and the Lonim situation wasn’t resolved, it could lead to a downgrade of South Africa’s sovereign credit ratings.

Newham believes the consequences of Marikana will be felt for some time. “Would you really want to start up mining in a situation where there is a possibility that your entire workforce will go on a wildcat strike and start killing people or that they will get shot dead by the police?”

And what about brand South Africa? “With the police, the only way they knew was to shoot people dead and then charge them with murder! It sounds internationally that there is something seriously wrong in this country,” says Newham.

on sept 19 workers accepted Lonmin’s 22 percent final wage offer. The strikes at its marikana platinum mine resulted in the deaths of 45 people.

souTh AfRicA’s MiNiNg sTRikes

24

Ruralco Elders rural mergerP R o P o S E S

25

Following Ruralco’s approach to rival Elders over a

potential merger, Australasia Outlook talks to Ruralco’s

CEO John Maher.

By Ian Armitage

Ruralco’s John Maher has an ambitious plan: he wants to create a business

that can rival farming services giant Landmark.

To do that he has approached rival Elders about a potential merger that would result in a $A500 million rural services group.

The proposal is to separate Elders’ automotive interiors and remaining forestry assets and merge Elders’ rural services business with Ruralco.

The merged business would undertake a substantial equity raising to reduce debt to sustainable levels, Maher says.

“From the information that is available publically, it appears to us that Elders is in a fairly unsustainable capital position,” he tells Australasia Outlook. “Against that we proposed our merger to create a pure-play agribusiness. We are up against Landmark, who are owned by the Canadian multi-national, Agrium, and we believe it is the way to make us more competitive – we see an opportunity to achieve cost savings and greater critical mass through the merger that would allow the combined group to better compete with Landmark.”

Elders is the sector’s third-largest company behind Landmark and Ruralco, and has been struggling since 2009 when it came on the brink of collapse following a failed conglomerate strategy.

Ruralco holds a stake of just over 12 percent in the firm.

“We believe that the combined company will need to raise between $A100 million and $A140 million in new

RuRALco hoLdiNgs LiMiTed

Focus Agriculture

26

equity to reduce bank debt,” Maher says, adding it would be difficult for Elders to “raise this themselves”.

Maher has a superb track record and will likely get investor support. For a decade he was the COO of the then Wesfarmers-owned Landmark and he helped turn the old Dalgety Company into a market leader. His success played a big role in enabling Wesfarmers to sell the business to AWB and he managed that entity for two years before resigning and then becoming CEO of Ruralco, which merged with Roberts in Hobart. AWB later sold Landmark to the Canadian giant Agrium.

“I certainly believe that Ruralco can lift Elders’ margins,” Maher says.

Ruralco’s corporate model is very different to that of Elders. Elders operates its branches like banks, while Ruralco uses the Metcash model and has 320 owner operator distributors and there are another 200 where Ruralco has equity.

Some of those 200 are owned by Ruralco outright, but in most cases local managers have what renowned investor Warren Buffett calls ‘skin in the game’.

Many of these operators combine a second business.

“At the end of the day merging with Elders will strengthen both companies and can make sense to both sets of shareholders,” Maher explains. “We are confident in the strategy we have implemented up to now and we are confident should the Elders transaction not come off that our current strategy will remain relevant.”

RuRALco hoLdiNgs LiMiTed

“We see an opportunity to achieve cost savings and greater critical mass through the merger that would allow the combined group to better compete with landmark”

John maher, Ceo, Ruralco holdings Limited

27

Maher has helped transform Ruralco, which expanded rapidly upon his appointment as CEO, opening new businesses in South Australia and NSW, and entering grain marketing, irrigation, and finance broking sectors.

He expects a “solid full-year financial results” this year despite “challenging conditions”.

“We’re very pleased with the progress of Ruralco over the last five years. It has been a patchy year in Australia, but I expect a reasonable result. I wouldn’t say it’ll be a world-beater, but we expect a solid reasonable result.

“We have a have a great team here at Ruralco. They share where we are trying to go, share the vision. I think we have got a solid strategy, which we focus on executing to the best of our abilities. We keep it simple, but simple is often hardest thing. We try not to run a bureaucracy; we try to run a common sense

business that allows rural managers to run their own businesses, which has been key to our success.”

Ruralco operates through a national footprint of businesses that specialise in providing rural customers with products and services in merchandise, fertiliser, seed, wool, livestock, real estate, risk management, water, grain, finance and insurance. Each business operates under its own brand, have their own cultures, their own service models and their own unique value propositions - all designed to meet the demands of local or regional markets.

“From small beginnings we have created a significant Australian rural services company,” says Maher, one of his most satisfying achievements being the integration of two completely different businesses in Ruralco’s CRT and the Roberts businesses.

“At the end of the day merging with Elders will strengthen both companies and can make sense to both sets of shareholders. We are confident in the strategy we have implemented up to now”

RuRALco hoLdiNgs LiMiTed

Sunraysia Ag-Centre in Mildura is one of Ruralco’s more recently appointed businesses

Focus Agriculture

28

Regardless of the proposed Elders merger, Ruralco’s geographical footprint continues to grow, with the firm opening 100 new locations on a retail basis in the last few years. It continues to diversify sector platforms.

“Ruralco has established a strong business platform that caters to the diverse needs of rural and regional Australia. Our focus is on ensuring our clients achieve their goals and we provide expertise to help them realise these.

“We have over 500 outlets across Australia and each of our businesses operates under its own brand with its own culture, service model and unique value proposition. Our businesses are established local market leaders and it’s their shared passion for supporting their clients and communities that underscores what it means to belong to the Ruralco Group.”

Experienced and dedicated staff operate Ruralco’s businesses and their access to the agribusiness and real estate group’s extensive resources significantly extends the scope of the core service offering.

“We will continue to work closely with our business network to ensure

“We have a have a great team here at Ruralco. they share where we are trying to go, share the vision. I think we have got a solid strategy, which we focus on executing to the best of our abilities”

RuRALco hoLdiNgs LiMiTed

Based in Tasmania, Roberts is one of Ruralco’s largest rural merchandising businesses

29

our products and services accurately meet our clients’ needs and support our rural communities,” Maher concludes.

Ruralco’s biggest shareholder, Washington H Soul Pattinson, has thrown its support behind the company’s push for a merger with Elders. Chairman Robert Millner described Elders as a “shocking business” but said there was merit in carving off its rural services arm and merging it with Ruralco’s 500-strong branch network.

“We have been supportive of them [Ruralco] pushing ahead,” he told The Australian Financial Review. “It is a way for them to grow themselves. They have shown they can run themselves more successfully [than Elders].”

To learn more visit www.ruralco.com.au.

RuRALco hoLdiNgs LiMiTed

gloucester Rural supplies (Nsw) is one of more than 300 CRT outlets operating across Australia

Ruralco is the major sponsor of International dairy Week, the largest annual dairy cattle show and sale in the

southern hemisphere

Focus Agriculture

30

The security market’sRevealed:

best kept secret

31

Australasia Outlook talks to Greg Ireland, managing

director and founder of Security & Technology

Services, a fast-growing provider of security and fire

detection equipment.

By Ian Armitage

Revealed: Security & Technology Services, a Winnellie-based fast-growing provider of security and fire detection equipment, was recently named the 2012 Telstra Northern

Territory Business of the Year. It also won the Commonwealth Bank

Medium Business Award.Remarkably, the firm was only formed

in 2004 and it started with one employee: managing director Greg Ireland.

He formed the business to “meet growing demand” for specialist security advice and technical capabilities.

Business is booming. It now employs more than 60 staff in Darwin and has offices in Alice Springs, Broome, Katherine and Adelaide. Clients include NT Police, Darwin Port Corporation and the Department of Immigration.

“We supply, install and maintain security and fire detection equipment like CCTV, intercoms, intruder alarms and access control systems,” Mr Ireland says.

He tells me more about his astonishing story…

Greg, you’ve built quite the business. Is everything going to plan?The business is performing very well under the high levels of pressure we have placed on it in the last year or two. It is finally finding the time it needs to consolidate internally and settle staff into their roles and responsibilities without the need to be travelling constantly to remote locations. Our Darwin office has relocated into custom-built premises, which has been a great lift for our team having a fresh look and feel to their work environment as well as state of the art facilities.

It has been a great year for you. What are the highlights?The most successful area for Security & Technology Services over the last year has been the development and implementation of multiple platform integration on a number of high security sites. These installations have been spread over numerous onshore and offshore facilities and have encompassed technical and logistical challenges that were effectively managed and controlled. The business has performed at above its capacity

secuRiTy & TechNoLogy seRvices

Focus technology

best kept secret

32

secuRiTy & TechNoLogy seRvices

Saab Security is the supplier of the OneViewTM Security Management System. OneViewTM is an open architecture integration platform that enables the integration of security system equipment, databases and other control systems. It provides an intuitive, easy to learn and configurable user interface that enables full monitoring and control of all underlying equipment. The OneViewTM Security Management System is capable of being used for correctional facilities, detention centres, utilities, mining, hospitals and other critical infrastructure where the integration of disparate systems is required.

Saab Security and Security & Technology Services have worked together over the past 18 months to deploy the OneViewTM SMS into a range of detention facilities throughout Australia. Together Saab and STS have partnered to provide a solution with a common look and feel to operators across a range of sites with different technologies installed. The partnership has enabled the rapid creation of new facilities and the upgrade of existing facilities to meet the demanding timelines required by the customer.

Saab Security

for the last 12 months and has made the effort to introduce effective process and also to improve our marketing profile and brand awareness. We are still a secret amongst some of the leading clients in our sphere of operation and the company now needs to firmly entrench itself in the marketplace.

Congratulations on being named 2012 Telstra Northern Territory business of the year. will this help raise your profile?This recognition will go a long way to driving awareness of the capability of Security & Technology Services to the broader market and will provide us with the catalyst to maximise opportunities in our own back yard. It will help build credibility to our brand, assist us with our goal to improve our visibility and instil confidence in our prospective clients that will encourage them to build a lasting relationship with our organisation. I highly recommend the Telstra Awards process; this has been invaluable to us. Our goal has never been to win these awards

but to simply participate and learn from the experience. This process forces you to look at your business from an outsider’s perspective and quickly highlights areas that need attention. We won the Territory awards for the second time and the experience at the National level, and the people that you meet and network with, are simply amazing. We were in outstanding company there, and whilst we did not take out any of the National awards, we learnt so much more about what we need to do next. It has dictated our development plans for the next 12 months.

what’s your secret? Our silver bullet is ‘Simplicity within Complexity’ and we have built our reputation on the following factors:

} Our capacity to innovate within complex and dynamic sectors;

} By committing the right people to the right roles;

} Our ability to understand customer needs and tailor solutions; and

} By delivering real and measurable results.

WHEN ABSOLUTE SECURITY IS THE ONLY OPTIONA prison needs state-of-the-art security which is innovative, robust and reliable. Saab’s proven ability to deliver this for large and small correctional facilities has been verified by extensive customer testing to meet all requirements on time and within budget.

The OneViewTM Security Management System combines a powerful monitoring and control system with an advanced integration platform to keep control of any situation.

ANTICIPATE TOMORROW

Saab OneViewTM is a next-generation SecurityManagement System for correctional and othercritical infrastructure security related environmentssuch as airports, power plants and precincts.

It is a mature and robust IP based open architectureintegration platform, built to provide real timeperformance, with high reliability and a highlyintuitive operator interface.

www.saabgroup.com/au

SecuritySolutions2012_210x276.indd 1 10/2/2012 9:44:44 AM

34

did you ever imagine you’d achieve what you have?The short answer is No. The company was started with a desire to provide the local market with a technically competent, high quality service that we initially expected to be quite niche but has turned out to be a much broader requirement and not limited to our region. There is no rocket science with that and old-fashioned hard work, commitment to the outcomes, consistency in delivery, and building strong relationships has been the key to achieving our goals. These goals in a broader sense are also pretty basic and are simply to create the best team possible around us, create opportunity for our staff to grow and develop, have fun and celebrate our successes.

do you see a lot of potential for the business going forward? There are a number of opportunities that fit perfectly within the skillset that has been developed by Security & Technology Services and that we are best positioned to deliver successfully. Some of these exist in Darwin as well as around other areas within Australia where we have capability. The industry has been going through dramatic change over the last few years with more and more suppliers embracing IP based technology and with the convergence of the Security and IT industries. This has meant upskilling our existing team and also sourcing employees with non-traditional security skills. This change has been embraced by us and is one of the reasons for our recent success and why we can separate ourselves from a number of our competitors.

Are you mindful of a potential slowdown? This industry has always been robust with respect to activity during slower economic times, however we always need to be aware of potential downturns and the dangers of over committing the business. Balancing that fine line between chasing every opportunity we can find and ensuring we stick to our core mantra of consistent delivery can be a difficult one at times. We feel we are well placed to hunt down the best opportunities that suit us strategically and give the business the balance it needs going forward.

how will you stay ahead of the pack? The security industry is changing at a technical level and the core competencies of our staff need to be modified to stay ahead of the pack. We are addressing this with training and recruiting techniques as previously stated. Also, with a strong focus on critical infrastructure security, the market is keen to find non-proprietary solutions to integrating the myriad of subsystems needed to effectively manage a facility in these modern times. Our biggest challenge is to create more national awareness of our capability and to ensure that we position ourselves for potential future growth. We need to maintain the dynamic and flexible nature of a small/medium sized business while embracing a level of corporatisation and improved process. The future for us in the short term is about consolidation and consistency, we have struggled with these aspects when our teams have been placed under huge pressure due to sheer volume of work and the time to deal with all the detail has been hard to find. We are better resourced than ever and look forward to catching up and ensuring we meet our own and our client’s expectations. We are seeking to grow ourselves into markets where we are not active or not represented; this will be driven by the same things that have driven our growth to date - relationships and demand. These are both internal and external drivers, we need the best people and we need clients that want us to commit to them. If both of these criteria are met then we will continue to invest in new locations.

“We won the territory awards for the second time and the experience at the national level, and the people that you meet and network with, are simply amazing”

secuRiTy & TechNoLogy seRvices

on a more personal level, what advice would you give to start-ups? Being in business is a logical progression of being good at what you do. If you believe in yourself and can build a team around you to replicate this then you are creating a multiplying effect that does not have to have any real limitations. I would also recommend in investing in great systems very early in a business life cycle as this creates discipline and can be difficult to implement later. However in our business model the single focus needs to be on relationships. Both internally and externally you must have strong relationships, staff, suppliers and clients are your lifeblood and you must trust in each other at all times. Lastly, the old favourite ‘Cash is King’ can never be forgotten. Most of us do not have a bottomless pit of money and many good businesses have failed through lack of funding. Manage your cash and focus strongly on timing of invoicing, collections and payments.

To learn more about Security & Technology services visit www.sts.net.au.

Focus technology

High Security Fence Range includes;

· 358 Anti Climb Mesh Fencing· Chainwire Fencing· Electric deterrent and detection barriers· Heavy Duty Tubular Fencing (Pressed Spear Tops)· Sliding Gates - Tracked and Cantilevered

Totem Fencing are leaders in the Northern Territory Fencing Industry. Fantastic service and advice, coupled with being the main suppliers to the building industry, you know your asset is in great hands.

Tel: (08) 8947-6922Fax: (08) 8947-6955

www.totemfencing.com.

22 Pruen RoadBerrimahNT 0828

36

oF BEttER VISIon100 years

37

As ZEISS celebrates ‘100 years of better vision’ Australasia Outlook

catches up with Carl Zeiss Australasia’s Cameron

Hawke, Vision Care Division Manager.

By Ian Armitage

This is an important year for eye care specialist Carl Zeiss – exactly a century ago the company revolutionised the industry with its innovative

Punktal prescription lenses. ZEISS has since introduced numerous

innovations that have “driven” the optical market, says ZEISS’s Cameron Hawke.

“We’re devoted to the goal of delivering ‘better vision’ through innovation,” he explains. “This year we’ve introduced new innovations that point to the future of our goal which strengthen the company’s aim of always being at the forefront of technological innovation. We’re a trusted leader in eye care and our aim is to maintain that by delivering innovative products that enhance quality of life by helping people to see better.”

So what’s the latest in eye care?“There’s a lot going on,” says Hawke,

who is responsible for sales management and future direction of our Carl Zeiss Australasia’s Vision Care business, serving all optometry in Australia and New Zealand. “For me, I just love to make a difference to people’s vision. Every eye is different. It is not just about putting a pair of glasses on someone’s face; there’s so much more to it. What’s the best fit? What’s the best for vision? I love making sure that we’re getting it right for all our customers.”

The recent release of it’s new lens portfolio delivers the latest in lens innovation to Australian customers and patients. i.Scription®, a unique solution exclusively to ZEISS, which optimises a lens prescription to deliver improved vision in low light and night conditions is one such innovation in this respect.

“We’ve done a huge amount of work on our new portfolio. We recently launched the i.Profiler Plus which is generating significant interest because of its ability to precisely measure higher order aberrations and support more precise, higher value vision solutions for patients. The result is a patented prescription called i.Scription® included on our Individual range of lenses delivering a tailored vision solution for your eyes and frame selection.”

Zeiss

Focus Manufacturing

38

In 2000 Carl Zeiss invented and was first to introduce the Individual concept with Gradal Individual®, a progressive lens that could be designed according to each individual wearer’s needs. This was achieved via patented freeform technology. Freeform technology made possible what was previously considered to be impossible: the implementation of a truly individualised design, and it signalled a step away from traditional, mass-produced progressive lenses. No matter how sophisticated in design, traditional progressive lenses cannot account for the visual requirements of individual wearers. “We can now custom manufacture lenses “on demand” for a specific wearer. It is about the individual and we’re able to fully customise a product for the wearer’s exact fitting parameters, which ensures clear vision through the central viewing zones. ZEISS is also developing and licensing patents to partners around the world that want to utilise our technology in their own laboratories,” says Hawke.

“When you buy glasses, it is hard to know what lenses you’ll need, which frame is best, etc. Safe

to say with our new portfolio Carl Zeiss has every aspect covered from a pair of reading glasses to tailored solutions for any individual. The new portfolio includes a completely new collection of progressive lenses, brand new Office lenses and the introduction of PhotoFusion® (Carl Zeiss’ own photochromic solution) lenses across all product lines. We are pleased to release our new portfolio to deliver the latest in lens innovation to the Australian market so everyone can benefit from better vision delivered by a Carl Zeiss lens.”

Today, around 200 million people worldwide wear lenses from Carl Zeiss. Hawke’s aim is to expand this number locally via brand recognition in the region.

“Most people have an awareness of ZEISS, but might not know exactly what we do. That’s something we want to improve and we’re working on it so that, first of all, people understand what we do and, secondly, aspire to wear our products and technology. Once people know who we are and the innovative solutions we deliver I am very confident they will choose a ZEISS lens to deliver better vision every day. The great news is they

Zeiss

Film directors use ZEISS cine lenses for major film productions as The Lord of the Rings Trilogy

Sheldon Commercial Interiors is an independent company specialising in commercial office consultancy including;

· Property Identification and Evaluation· Workplace Needs Analysis· Schematic Design, Development & Documentation· Tendering and Construction Management· Project Procurement·· Construction· Commissioning and Client Handover

Sheldon are certified with ISO 9001 Quality Management System and accepts responsibility for the complete satisfaction of our customers.

Tel: +61 2 8908 7689 www.sheldon.com.au

are quite affordable too enabling everyone to attain better vision through ZEISS innovation, 100 years in the making.”

In 2010, Carl Zeiss AG increased its ownership of Carl Zeiss Vision from 50 percent to 100 percent, great news for Australia and particularly Adelaide where the ZEISS plant leads the company’s global vision research effort and now manufactures over three-quarters of this country’s ZEISS lenses. Australia was the first country to integrate Carl Zeiss Vision into a Carl Zeiss AG subsidiary, part of the Carl Zeiss Group. Owned by the Carl Zeiss Foundation, the Carl Zeiss Group invests 10 percent of its annual revenues back into research and development and last year invested approximately 360 million euros into R&D, registering 300 new patents.

Hawke says, “Carl Zeiss has a 100 year history of innovation in the optical industry. We’re very proud of this tradition and believe this as well as our continued focus on innovation locally will be key to our ongoing success.”

Carl Zeiss offers some of the most advanced glasses available today.

To learn more visit www.zeiss.com.au.

Zeiss

NASA astronauts trusted ZEISS quality optics to capture man’s first steps on the moon

Focus Manufacturing

40

Greyhound Australia can take you anywhere.

By Ian Armitage

Business trip? the bus? HAVE you ConSIdEREd tAKInG

41

Today’s Greyhound Australia is the result of several buy-outs and mergers of various bus/coach companies. Its been operating for over 100 years

and is Australia’s leading coach company. From servicing just one town, Greyhound’s network now covers the entire country, employs around 500 people, and services more than 1.3 million passengers every year.

“We’re the only national bus service, travelling to over 1,100 destinations daily,” the firm’s general marketing manager, Gagan Singh, told an Australasia Outlook researcher adding, “it is a great way to get off the beaten track and truly experience the beauty of Australia”.

Our researcher talked with Mr Singh shortly after Greyhound launched its new daily Canberra-Sydney ‘Platinum Business Class’ bus.

It caught our eye.Greyhound is betting that it catches the

eye of business travellers too; who it hopes will embrace the service.

And why not? You get free Wi-Fi Internet, USB and

AC power points for each seat, which is a reclining leather seat with a bigger legroom and footrest.

The price tag? As little as $A36 one-way.Right away you’ve got a huge cost saving

over what Qantas or Virgin Australia would ask on Sydney-Canberra airfares.

But you’re thinking… bus? I haven’t got time to take the bus!

Well consider this, the service runs from city centre to city centre, removing the need for airport cabs, check ins or pilot strikes/handler walk-outs – that’s time efficiency.

Speaking of time, the journey takes just over three hours, which when you factor in check-ins, taxis etc., isn’t too far off what it takes on a plane.

But the big benefit for us has to be the Wi-Fi, which means you can remain 100 percent connected and productive while on the move. You don’t get that on a flight.

“You can stay in touch with the world for the whole journey,” Singh said.

Leaving Canberra at 06.00, the BC903 service is scheduled to reach Sydney’s Central Station at 09.15. It then continues on

gReyhouNd AusTRALiA

Focus travel

42

to Sydney international airport (09.35) and domestic airport (09.45). The 17.00 departure from Sydney on BC904 gets you into Canberra at 20.30.

“The service is designed to allow business people from Canberra to spend a whole day in Sydney,” Singh said.

Okay, it isn’t without downsides – potential traffic delays the big one.

“We think it is a compelling offering,” Singh stressed.

This has been a year of innovation at Greyhound and indeed it has also announced what it described as a “new age of cooperation” in teaming up with Virgin Australia to form an “air-land partnership”.

“The focus is on promoting more tourism into Far North Queensland,” said Singh.

The deal will help “accelerate a sluggish tourism” recovery around the regional centre.

“The closest many tourists get to Cairns is flying over it on the way to Brisbane, Sydney or Melbourne,” Greyhound Australia CEO Neil Taylor said shortly after confirming the first-time partnership. “They miss out on experiencing Far North Queensland’s

“the closest many tourists get to Cairns is flying over it on the way to Brisbane, Sydney or Melbourne”

Extra features of the Platinum service include Wi-Fi, USB and power points, reclining leather seats and extra leg room

A D

aim

ler

Bran

d

Build a better fleet with Mercedes-Benz buses.At Mercedes-Benz, we’ve been building quality buses with Australians since the early 1900s. When it comes to improving your fleet, your journey starts here at www.mercedes-benz.com.au/buscontacts

gReyhouNd AusTRALiA

rainforests or the Great Barrier Reef. So we’ve teamed up with Virgin Australia to offer exclusive flight deals to Cairns for any Greyhound customer. Greyhound travellers are guaranteed attractive Virgin Australia fares to Cairns on any day so they can enjoy a taste of the tropics or outback adventure before taking a coach to the southern sights.

“By the time visitors get to Cairns, they can be ‘travel weary’ and out of spending money. Greyhound and Virgin Australia are going to turn this tradition on its head by enticing travellers into Cairns to start their adventure.”

Greyhound’s confidence in the Far North Queensland market has inspired the company to open a new travel centre in Cairns.

“This is just the start of our drive to build new markets. We have great faith and forward bookings for 2013 are very promising,” Singh said.

Whether you’re a business traveller, tourist or if you just fancy a ride, give Greyhound a look.

To learn more visit www.greyhound.com.au.

The greyhound Platinum service hopes to appeal to business class travellers

gReyhouNd AusTRALiA

Focus travel

44

The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region

needs private investment, both domestic and foreign, to provide new engines of

growth and dynamism.

By Cynthia Dearin, CEO, AACCI

Investing for

the Future in Turbulent Times

The Middle East and North African (MENA) region provides some of the most profitable and rewarding opportunities for Australian businesses. Australian firms have established a presence with many of the booming regional

players such as the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, and as a result, a multitude of diverse opportunities within other Middle Eastern countries, such as the re-emerging North African economies are presenting themselves at a rapid rate. Our trade relations within the region outside the traditional Australian strengths such as mining, construction and agriculture are in their infancy, which is a result of the scarce knowledge Australian businesses have concerning market penetration, business cultures and legal frameworks. However with 37 years experience in the field, our unparalleled knowledge and market intuition, strong relationships with other governments as well as our extensive network of Middle Eastern businesses, we - the Australia Arab Chamber of Commerce & Industry - are

45

the Future

uniquely placed in a position to educate and facilitate Australian businesses successfully to do business within the Middle East.

The Australia Arab Chamber of Commerce & Industry (AACCI) is the peak national association for two-way trade and investment between Australia and the Arab World. Our mission is to assist Australian companies exporting to or expanding into MENA markets as well as Arab companies looking to invest in Australia.

To achieve these goals, AACCI conducts monthly events and provides a range of services. Our flagship event is the Annual Australia Arab Business Forum and Expo, which was held in Sydney earlier this year. This event attracted over 50 Middle Eastern delegates from across the region and industry sectors as well as a multitude of Australian businesses and government officials who actively support Australia’s expansion into the Middle East. The Forum and Expo provided a great platform for members to network and build on their business connections within the region and enhance their knowledge through presentations from a number of high profile speakers, including senior figures such as Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi, United Arab Emirates Minister for Foreign Trade. Local businesses were also able to exhibit their products and services for foreign delegations, providing valuable trans-continental exposure.

In addition to the Forum and Expo the AACCI organises numerous country briefings in various major cities over the course of the year, with the next briefing focusing on Saudi Arabia. Held during

September in Sydney, and jointly organised with Austrade, it will feature a live videoconference with Australia’s Senior Trade Commissioner to Saudi Arabia, as well as specialists from Saudi companies who will be available to provide topical information regarding recent trends in the area and business opportunities.

On top of these events, AACCI facilitates monthly seminars in each state on a range of current topics surrounding Business in the Middle East and trade and exports. Some have included ‘Doing Business in the Middle-East’, ‘Export Documentation’ and ‘International Trade Payments and Cash Flow’, which aimed to inform members of useful strategies they can use to reduce

risk and lower costs associated with international trade, while unlocking cash flow and trading advantages over competitors.

AACCI also strives to facilitate key lines of communication between our members in order to assist businesses that are new to the MENA region. Part of this is our Individual Business Matching Program, where AACCI can procure interested MENA business contacts for Australian firms. We also conduct trade missions to the MENA region (the next occurring in February 2013) providing our delegates with the opportunity to meet potential contacts throughout the region. Facilitation of export documentation is also one of our core services, and our close relationship with MENA embassies in Australia allows us to manage this process with great efficiency.

Many of the events and services are available to both members and non-members alike. However becoming a member of the chamber gives business access to numerous advantages, including early notice of and access to incoming MENA delegations that appearing at AACCI events. We also offer our members discounted rates for events and services. Additionally, the Member section of our website provides frequent commercial intelligence updates, functions as a Business-to-Business platform and provides a unique advertising opportunity through our online business directory.

Membership is a quick, easy and worthwhile process that can be activated by simply visiting our website at www.austarab.com.au.

foRewoRd

“In addition to the Forum and Expo the AACCI organizes numerous country briefings in various major cities over the course of the year, with the next briefing focussing on Saudi Arabia”

Focus AA

CC

I

46

South Australia

in food leadingthe wayin foodthe wayin foodleadingthe wayleading

47

Food South Australia Inc, the peak body for the South Australian food industry has established a unique and innovative model that is leading the way in growing

opportunities and connecting with the local food industry and companies.

No one knows the industry like the people who work in it on a daily basis. The establishment of Food SA as an organisation run by the industry for the industry recognises the stage of maturity the food sector in South Australia has now reached – and it sets a new benchmark for the sector in Australia because Food SA is about food business, not just about business.

Food SA was established in 2010 to deliver government programs and services, which has made Food SA the single entry point for food in the State.

The streamlining of these functions has helped Food SA grow from 70 members to 190 in less than two years, with a diverse membership base of manufacturers and service providers including international exporters through to micro regional businesses.

The focus for Food SA is to feed connections to help industry grow, unite, lead and sustain South Australia’s food industry into the future by connecting businesses in the SA food industry with the services and expert advice they need to develop their businesses, grow their bottom line and connect with new markets.

The key delivery areas for Food SA programs and services include:

} Domestic and international market development through offices in Japan and China who provide inmarket representation for export level companies;

} Partnerships with leading retailers and distributors to increase market access opportunities;

} Capability and business development for all of industry through facilitation of workshops, events and programs to enhance growth, sustainability and skills;

} Communication and digital activities to enhance the awareness of the SA food industry to buyers, investors and consumers.

foRewoRd

Food SA is led by a board of 12 experienced food industry professionals who provide leadership and vision, and is chaired by Anthony Paech. While management is by Chief Executive Officer, Catherine Barnett along with a team of staff all with experience and expertise in market and business development, communications and events. Food SA also has staffed offices in China and Japan who provide in market representation for international members.

Food SA is an industry led and membership based and currently represents 190 members, representing all sizes of food businesses in the state. The aim is to have 250 members by 2014. Services are offered to members on a tiered structure, suitable to their needs and priorities, with many who are very experienced and successful in national and international markets, while others are just getting started. Some members are at that critical point when consumer demand calls for significant investment and some serious future planning.

The Food SA Adelaide office is strategically colocated with partners the South Australian Research and Development Institute (SARDI), and together also deliver food technology services to industry.

Visit www.foodsa.com.au to subscribe and find out more on the latest news and events.

Focus Food SA

ENGINEERING EXCELLENCE

if we could bottle it, we would.

As leading consulting engineers, we continue to turn our clients’ visions into award winning projects.

www.ndy.com