Jul 22, 2008
GETBA August Breakfast Invitation for all East Tamaki Businesses

Jul 8, 2008
Manukau City Council Fitness Centre Activities - GET MOVING STAY HEALTHY

• Access to  any  of the 7  Fitness centres
• Free use of Spa and Sauna Facilities
• Free use of most group exercise classes including Aqua Aerobics where available
• A Face2Face 6 week starter plan which includes 5 personalised consultations
• Half price joining fee

Jun 18, 2008
Fully funded business training, cost effective entry into Australian market, Ports of AK offer

• Contract Logistics Ltd: www.contractlogistics.com.au
• GO! Logistics Ltd: www.gologistics.co.nz
• Staples Rodway: www.staplesrodway.com
  

1. Check your alarms - test them. This includes making sure there is a battery backup. Offenders have disabled whole systems by turning the building power off thereby disarming systems without battery backups. Your systems must have a battery backup.
2. Safes and CCTV control systems should NOT be openly visible. Hide them and lock them away. Safes can be breached and CCTV recorders and hard drives stolen. Ensure they are secured.
3. CCTV Cameras, if fitted, should be protected or shielded in some way to prevent them being torn from the rook. If this is not possible then put them as far out of reach as possible.
4. Police urge business owners not to keep significant sums of money in their safes - they are a short term semi-secure storage. Use your bank to hold large amounts of cash. One victim has lost over $400,000 in foreign currency from a safe.
5. Challenge people and record details if people come into your business looking at cameras and behind your counters. If they aren't looking at your stock, they may very well be checking out your security measures.

• Importers advise in advance of their incoming containers and they are shuttled at night from the seaport.  The inland ports are security fenced and MAF and Customs bonded. Containers remain in the control of the port, and can be released when the statutory and shipping line clearances are in place.

• Exporters pre-advise the details of export containers and deliver to the inland port as soon as they are ready and they are shuttled into the seaport at night in time for the vessel cut-off.

•  Transparency of information – status and position of containers available via our web site
•  Reliability – container moves can be planned to unpack requirements and with shorter lead times
•  Capital investment in land to store containers can be minimised/deferred
•  Demurrage is out of the equation
•  Carbon emissions are minimised by running efficient truck journeys in low traffic time zones
•  Close in proximity to South Auckland import and export businesses
•  The sites is security fenced and patrolled
•  Customs bonded and MAF Approved Transitional Facility
•  24 x 7 access available

• a fully integrated service providing transport to door, either from the seaport and/or from the Inland Port
• EDI information exchange. A direct interface with customers’ IT systems reporting on all events and status changes pertaining to a container, as they happen
• Empty returns can be dehired or staged for dehire at seaport (Line operator dependent)

Jun 12, 2008
Spraycans will no longer to be sold to under 18s

• that, following royal assent, the Manukau City Council (Control of Graffiti) Act 2008 (the Act) came into force on 23 April 2008 except for section 6 of the Act;
  
  
• that section 6 of the Act (spraycans in shops to be secured) will come into force three months later on 23 July 2008.
  

• requires spraycans in shops to be secured
• prohibits the sale of spraycans to people under 18
• requires the display of a notice in a prominent position and containing the following words:

Jun 12, 2008
Copy of press release sent when new pricing regimen announced

May 1, 2008
Annual Plan Submission

Apr 24, 2008
Minutes for the Eastern Courier GETBA Members’ Breakfast 16th April 2008

• effective price stability mechanisms (one economy)
• Monetary policy yes, OCR no.
• balanced taxation
• Capital –income –profits
• support for activity not assets (back up the curve)
• research and development tax credit (implemented April 2008)
• product investment first year write down
• skills and training
• deductible early stage investments

•   Mould/lichen removal and protection
•   All domestic chemical softwash procedures
•   Gutter/spouting cleaning
•   High pressure work, i.e. concrete, roofs, brick walls
•   Commercial cleaning of factory and industrial units
•    Pre-paint cleaning of domestic dwellings
•    Cleaning of decks, driveways, paths, fences, buildings.

1. Thanks to Eastern Courier
2. Thanks to the Manufacturing and Exporters Association
3. Anyone interested in sponsorship and or members’ moments, please see Coralee or me.
4. Update on submission to draft annual plan etc
5. Please complete and send a submission on waste water tariffs.

Apr 3, 2008
Submission to MCC Draft Annual Plan process on Manukau Water Waste Water tariff structure:

• Promote conservation and sustainability (by introducing a part-volumetric charge i.e. user pays)

• Be equitable and affordable across all customers (by removing cross-subsidies between categories of user)
• Correctly recover costs of operation
• Preserve the company’s cashflow
• Be easy to implement and collect (by being transparent and accountable so that customers understand that the tariff equates to usage and actual costs of provision)

• Dirk Hudig:  Howick Water Users Group hudigfam@xtra.co.nz,
• Elspeth Mount: GETBA  elspeth.mount@gmail.com  or phone 021 537 114
• Coralee Carr Coralee@GETBA.org.nz for form to email your submission

Feb 14, 2008
GETBA February Breakfast Minutes

Nov 16, 2007
Members Breakfast Minutes from 14th November 2007

Oct 25, 2007
October Newsletter

Sep 28, 2007
Recent GETBA / MIT CBD Breakfast

Members Breakfast meeting Sept 19^th 2007 held at Headin Home Bar and Grill

Apologies:    Phil Clark, Linden Johnson Henry Jansen

Guests:         Sergeant Mike Wharepouri
                     Dirk Hudig, Howick Businesses Waste Water Users Group
                     Marlon Bridge and Mark Reynolds

Sponsor:      Manukau Institute of Technology, Centre for Business Development,
                     (MIT CBD) cnr Highbrook Drive & Business Parade South, Highbrook.

Guest Speaker Address
Dr Stuart Middleton, Jane Tongatule, Graeme McLennan, Ruth Peterson, Brian Benison and Jackie Read, from the Manukau Institute of Technology Centre for Business Development addressed the group explaining MIT CBD is now making its way to you in their new location at the CBD offices at The Crossing (corner of Highbrook Drive and Business Parade South) in the new Highbrook Business Park.

MIT is one of Manukau’s larger employers with over 1,000 staff. They are foundation members of GETBA and while they have always had a strong industry focus, the additional development of a Highbrook Business Centre and a Greenmount Drive Mechatronics Centre has made them even more accessible to our members.

Manukau Institute of Technology is “New Zealand’s largest Polytechnic that wants to be a Polytechnic “ and in addition to its three Otara campuses and East Tamaki facilities, has a motor sport facility at Pukekohe and nine class rooms around the Manukau region for teaching computer skills. In conjunction with AUT and Manukau City Council, MIT is developing a new tertiary campus at MCC centre.  Click here for details on what they offer in their new CBD offices in Highbrook.

Members Moments:         
Royal Wolf Containers are offered to businesses to either buy or leaseThey can be used as chillers, freezers, archive storage, temporary storage for extra stock up till Christmas. Special offer to GETBA members that includes a lock box and heavy duty padlock with every container. Contact Lionel Flashman on 966 0362 to discuss your needs

Launchpad Heather Trought – develops, trains, and supplies young people between 16 and 19 years of age to work in the businesses administration area of commercial companies. Advantage to businesses is that these young people may be trained at MIT through a business scholarship for one year at Level 3. We encourage you to visit their website for more information www.launchpad.org.nz

DAW Ltd – Dave Wylie Business Consultancy and mentoring – talked about “Experience on tap”. Dave has a wealth of experience and tremendous success in helping businesses to move up a gear. Contact him on…534 4844

Neighbourhood Support and Security Update – Coralee Carr presented an overview on crime statistics comparing the past 5 years to the year to date. Good news and bad news but coming up to Xmas we need to be really vigilant in revisiting our security systems and planning over the period up to Christmas. We invite you to check out the security section of our website for information and advice on security issues. Password CRS123. We welcome feedback from you on the usefulness of the information already there and any ideas on more information you would find useful.

We are continuing with the Crime Reduction Strategy project over the next 4 or 5 months. It is our aim to ensure our members are fully informed purchasers, understanding the risks involved with their own business, in order to ensure the services they purchase will fully cover their requirements.

It is our intention to provide our members with guidelines on this with the ability to include measurable performance indicators. We will also put effort into producing guidelines that will assist with decision making and performance monitoring.

·         Thanks to Matrix security for providing security in the car park during our meeting.

• A big welcome to new members
• Information on tables from Highbrook Office Supplies at Astill Hawke Business Centre on Allens Road. Good selection of 2008 diaries now available
  
  
• Business network golf on Thursday mornings – contact Coralee if interested
  
  
• Vacant unit for immediate lease in Newark Place. If interested call Theo on 021 58 8886
  
  
• The Manukau City Council call centre welcomes your queries about lighting problems, broken footpaths, graffiti etc by email on contactus@manukau.govt.nz. They will acknowledge your email with a case number. If you find that you are not getting the action required, please don’t hesitate to forward their acknowledgement with your original request to Coralee@getba.org.nz and we will follow it up on your behalf. 

Manukau Water Waste water charges address – Marlon Bridge and Mark Reynolds

Questions asked included:

1.    Can you guarantee that your consultation program will be treated separately from the LCCTP?
Answer – There will be a special consultation

2.    How are you addressing the fact that most councillors spoken to by business owners about the waste water charges do not appear to be fully informed of the situation as it is.
Answer – Councillors were offered training in July and the new Councillors elected in October will be given up to date training

3.    Wouldn’t it be of greater advantage to consumers to only have one body looking over all the Auckland’s water requirements?
Answer – not really because Manukau is one of the lower charging bodies and is run more efficiently than their counterparts and Manukau, as the newest body with the youngest assets, may well subsidise the rest of Auckland

4.    How can you justify charging approx $1,000 per year for units that are 1 -2 person operations. This is not any encouragement to small businesses in Manukau. 
Answer – Manukau Water acknowledges that some smaller business owners are up to $350 per year worse off than they were under the previous regime, but many are now much better off .

5.    What is the ration for incoming water against waste water in a business
Answer – I cubic meter water to .6 cu metre waste water

6.    How much water is utilised compared to the amount charged for waste water?
Answer – It is a ratio of 4 :1 but the costs are much higher to collect and treat waste water. Incoming water is gravity fed but wastewater is heavier and therefore needs to be pumped along.

7.    Would metering the waste water be more cost effective for all?
Answer – initially there would be added cost to set up the meters, but it is one of the options being considered at present.

8.    Do schools pay for their water
Answer – they receive rebates on their water

9.   Who paid for the CEO’s trip to the Cook Islands
Answer – Cook Islands Government.

Marlon and Mark offered to answer any further questions given to them through GETBA by email and would stay around to answer one to one after the breakfast. If you have questions about waste water charges, please forward them to Coralee@GETBA.org.nz.

Sep 5, 2007
Emirates Projects and Tenders Notification Service

• Complete access to our detailed real time database on all projects, tenders and enquiries in the United Arab Emirates which are updated on a daily basis.
  (Details provided are: Project Number, Project Name, Territory, Client, Client Address, Description, Invitation Date, Post Date, Closing Date, Tender Cost, Budget, Contractors, Consultants, Tender Categories, Status, Remarks) where applicable.

• A powerful search engine designed to facilitate easy retrieval of information in accordance with yourspecific requirement(s). (New keyword search tool introduced.)

• Contact details for Clients, Consultants, Contractors, MEP’s, Architects, etc available for ongoing projects.

• E-mail notification on preferred areas of business.

• Create your own Industry & Country project Report and export to Excel.

• Territory and Category-wise weekly downloadable & printablArchive of more then 17,500 projects and tenders from United Arab Emirates.

• In-depth coverage and information about projects and tenders are available from various countries in the following packages:    Country Website Annual Fees: United Arab Emirates www.EmiratesTenders.com  500 USD;  Entire Middle East (14 countries) www.MiddleeastTenders.com 1000 USD

Aug 24, 2007
August members' Newsletter

Welcome to our newsletter for August.  As we go to press, the Kiwi dollar has fallen somewhat, bringing relief to exporters and concern to importers and consumers.  

The long-serving Mayor of Manukau, Sir Barry Curtis, has announced he is not standing in the upcoming elections.  Sir Barry has a formidable grasp of local authority issues and has been a supporter of GETBA and  the  business community of East Tamaki.  We wish him well for the future (it’s hard to think it will be a retirement!)

Container Swapping: This is an ongoing issue for businesses in East Tamaki, both those who need to get containers in and out of their own premises and those whose safe use of the roads is impeded by on-street transfers.  Freight companies struggle daily with arranging the safe transfer of containers within the law.
The law is quite clear: transfers should take place on the premises of the company they are being transferred to or from.  When a consent is issued for a commercial or industrial building the consent process includes a requirement for such activities to be provided for on site.
For whatever reason, there are significant numbers of transfers taking place on the street, generally causing disruption and concern to businesses adjacent to the transfer site.  GETBA has been involved in trying to solve these situations over the past 18 months or so and the Police have been helpful in explaining the legal situation to all concerned.

Our latest recommendation from the Otara police is this:If you are a business which is inconvenienced by an illegal street transfer of a container outside your premises and
     -your driveway is blocked
     -traffic is impeded in using the road
     -you feel threatened in any way by the driver of a truck
THEN IMMEDIATELY PHONE 111 AND REPORT THE INCIDENT. Information required includes the address and time, the registration and company name of the truck, a photo of the transfer if possible.
While the police may not be able to respond immediately, they will log the call and will dispatch a car if one is available.
GETBA will continue to seek the provision of sites for the legal transfer of containers within East Tamaki.

Council charges - a letter from a member: We have received a copy of a letter to the CEO of MCC from a member, Malcolm Anderson. Malcolm identifies some of the more onerous and insupportable imposts on small business in Manukau.  He has given us permission to reprint his letter in full.  Feedback is welcome! (Note: the letter will be added to the website separately from this newsletter)

MCC Contact Centre: While the GETBA Office is happy to pursue matters on behalf of members, it is often more satisfactory and resolution is more immediate if members call the MCC Contact Centre and log their concern directly with them.  Street signs missing, potholes, road-cleaning requests, street light outages, abandoned cars, graffiti, stray dogs : these are all matters which the Call Centre deals with efficiently and promptly.  Call 262 5104 (24 hours)

Networking Golf Mornings: The first Thursday of every month at 8.30am you are welcome to join a growing group of enthusiastic amateurs at the Firmount Golf Club for a nine-hole round with a chat and tips from Jan Higgins, Club Professional to start and a cup of coffee to conclude.  Just turn up at 8.30: cost $20 and clubs are available for rent if you don’t have your own.

Rates: those of you who own your business premises will have received your rates demand for 2007/8.  If you have any concerns on this and/or feel it fails to reflect the removal of waste water charges from the general rates demand GETBA is keen to hear from you.  What we need in order to make representation on your behalf is: a photocopy of the rates demand for last year and this year so a comparison can be made.  If you don’t wish to do this as a separate communication, our subscription renewal form asks for you to note your rates bill on it so we can collate data on the level of rates in East Tamaki – just take a moment to complete that section as you renew your subscription!

Research project: *What employers are looking for….* You may receive in the mail over the next week a request to take part  in a survey of what employers are seeking in entry level employees. It  is an excellent down-to-earth project and GETBA supports it in terms  of the opportunity it offers for your views to be presented in a wider  forum. The researcher is Jim Barnes of Manukau Institute of Technology (jim.barnes@manukau.ac.nz ).

Recyclables in business areas: One of our members has contacted GETBA asking why MCC does not collect recyclables such as milk bottles from the commercial ratepayers of Manukau City.  On investigation, we find that Auckland City does collect from business ratepayers and that it is planned to combine recycling between ACC and MCC from next July.  We see no reason to expect business ratepayers to be any less responsible recyclers than residential ratepayers – after all we are most of us in both categories!  Any feedback?

September Meeting: Another of the new businesses in Highbrook, the Centre for Business Development at  Manukau Institute of Technology is sponsoring our September Breakfast.  Come and hear what they plan for this new venture.  All the usual extras: Members’ Moments, News – and of course a great breakfast and the opportunity to network with fellow members.

Survey: At our last breakfast you had the opportunity to prioritise the services of GETBA that you found most useful.  Briefly the Members’ Breakfasts, information via the Website, meetings and emails,  representing businesses at local and regional level, the website for general information and as a local directory, networking opportunities and security information, advice and support all rated very highly.

Voting in the Local Body Elections: please be aware that business ratepayers are entitled to a vote in the Local Body Elections in October.  To qualify for a vote you need to enrol as a “ratepayer elector”.  GETBA has forms and is happy to assist with this process.   The turnout for elections in Manukau are notoriously low and this means that even 600 ratepayer votes from East Tamaki could be significant in the overall results.  It’s your right – make it your responsibility!

Waste Water Review Working Party: Manukau  Water is convening a review panel to meet at the end of August  to review the waste water charges in Manukau.  GETBA is part of this as are other business groups which have been campaigning for the urgent downward review of base level charges for business accounts. We’ll keep you posted on results.

MEMBERS NOTICES
Company looking for space: Heirloom International Ltd is looking for 2000 to 3000 sq ft of long term storage space in the Ra Ora Drive area. The products to be stored will be full pallets up to 2 meters high.  For further information please contact John on 274 4443. 

Chinese language course for business people: Manukau Institute of Technology runs these courses locally. The next one starts September 5th and runs for 10 Wednesday evenings. Phone 0800 11 10 30

Pacific Migrants Quota programme from Department of Labour:  Name: John Hellesoe  Phone: 09 9703907
"Greetings, could you please bring to the attention of your members, who may be looking for hardworking suitable staff, about the Pacific Migrant quota whereby a NZ employer can recruit directly from Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu and Kiribati for workers. I will be more than happy to discuss this fully with interested employers."

Warehouse vacancy:This position is a full time role in a Warehouse situation.  Hours are 8 – 5.30pm.  Forklift licence desirable but not essential.  Previous warehouse experience preferred.  Free on and offsite parking is available.  Hourly rate may be negotiable for the ‘right’ person.  Friendly team environment and uniform provided.
For more information please contact Angela on 274 3340.

Aug 2, 2007
2007 Westpac Manukau Business Award Category Nominees

• Catch Restaurant/Guada Fiesta Bar
• DSS Animal Management
• Grange Lodge
• Ray White – Manurewa

• IBEX Group
• Jakaar Industries
• Metalman New Zealand
• Wiri Licensing Trust Best Emerging Business
• International Travel College of New Zealand
• Liquid Health

• Grange Lodge
• Ray White – Manurewa
• South Pacific Loans

• Fishpond.co.nz
• IBEX Group
• Jakaar Industries

• Catch Restaurant/Guada Fiesta Bar
• DSS Animal Management
• Fishpond.co.nz
• Works Infrastructure

• Grange Lodge
• International Travel College of New Zealand
• Prenzel of Whitford

• Catch Restaurant/Guada Fiesta Bar
• DSS Animal Management
• International Travel College of New Zealand
• Ray White – Manurewa
• Solomon Group
• Works Infrastructure Ltd
• ACC Workplace Safety Award
• Linfox Logistics (NZ)

• Tina Taylor – Digital & Printing Solutions
• Evan Wheeler – Rainbow’s End Theme Park
• Kimberly-Clark New Zealand
• Allan, Diane and Andrew Wallace – Firmount Golf Park

Jul 23, 2007
Some key points from Jack Hayes, Risk Assessment Manager

Some key points from Jack Hayes, Risk Assessment Manager

• Many purchasing decisions are being made emotively, not based on risk assessment.

• Risk based on likely frequency of your being burgled and the impact of this to your business should be determined by you, and then discussed with your insurance broker, to gain the best result.

• Appropriate measures can be installed over a period of years in a layered approach, making adjustments as appropriate.

• The higher the risk the more layers you will require to lengthen the amount of time it takes to remove property from your premises. Eg lightweight high value products should be made harder to access

• Burglar alarms would be most effective if integrated with lights and CCTV. They can be used for more things, such as monitoring cameras, refrigeration, air conditioning, hot processes, switchboards, smoke detection etc.

• There are equally good reasons for using either integrated or separate, installers and patrol companies. Consider carefully which one would suit you best.

• Consider carefully the real value of regular patrols. Good reasons for these are: if you need your property secured at end of night shift or particularly high value goods on your premises need protection; consider securing them out of sight.

• Check the expected response time and test it from time to time, then work out the amount of goods that could be removed from your premises in that time, then decide if that is acceptable.

• Consider carefully what benefit there is in giving a security company keys to your premises. In many instances if the alarm is sounded then the guard checking out then contacting you to attend could be the best and safest result.

• CCTV cameras will only ever be a record of past happenings; they will not halt a burglary. If visible, they may deter.

Performance management is key! (GETBA CRS is currently working on ways to support local business in the management performance area)

Jul 20, 2007
Relevant laws from Snr Sgt Andrew Berry

5.3(5)a of the LTNZ Guide to heavy vehicle management states:

Loading facilities:  Appropriately sized off-road facilities should be provided for loading and unloading heavy vehicles, particularly large trucks (and trailers).  Adequate loading/unloading docks or space for forklifts or cranes to operate should be installed clear of general highway or road traffic (including cyclists and pedestrians).  This is particularly important if the site is a generator of light vehicle, cyclist or pedestrian traffic.  Reference can be made to AS 2890.2–2002 Parking facilities part 2: Off-street commercial vehicle facilities.

It is an offence to park or stop where you obstruct or block traffic. This includes double parking where other vehicles have to cross the centre line to pass your vehicle.

It is also an offence to stop or park your vehicle where it blocks a driveway, or where it's placement is considered 'dangerous' or 'inconsiderate' to any other road users.

Offences range from double parking ($60) or inconsiderate parking ($150) through to inconsiderate use of a motor vehicle which carries a Court appearance and a maximum $3000 fine - the Court can also order a disqualification should it deem the issue. There is also avenue for Police to prosecute for dangerous driving which carries a mandatory disqualification if repeat offending by drivers was observed.

Section 66 of the Crimes Act 1961 makes it an offence for:

• anyone to aid/abet/incite or be a party to an offence, so
• if one was to container swap - then both would be considered committing the offence and would be ticketable.

Jun 27, 2007
June 2007 GETBA Newsletter

Next Breakfast Meeting: do make a note in your diary that our next breakfast meeting is Wednesday 18th July at 7.30 am at Headin’ Home Bar and Grill. Our guest speaker is Jack Hayes, Risk Management Consultant and ex-SAS man. Jack is speaking on the topic: What are you buying and how do you know it works – an evaluation of external security services.
Thanks to Icon Security for providing the carpark security for this meeting.

Container swapping: We continue to have members notify us of dangerous and illegal on-street container swapping operations. While we can speak to the drivers and the companies they are delivering to or picking up from, this doesn’t seem to deter the hardcore offenders. If you observe a container swapping operation on the street your best bet is to call the Otara Police 272 0901 and ask for Constable Andrew Readings who is the Traffic Constable for East Tamaki. As it is primarily a traffic offence rather than an offence against Council By-laws, this is your best move.

Waste Water charges: this is an issue which is being scrutinized at national, regional and local level. Clearly the furore over Metrowater waste water charges in Auckland City has attracted the attention of a Select Committee of Parliament and the notification by the regional Watercare Services of serious hikes in charges is also of grave concern. In Manukau, the City Council has voted to raise the already iniquitous basic charge of $950 per business unit to $1040 per business unit despite Manukau Water having presented a range of alternative pricing regimes which align charges much more closely to usage and have a starting point of between $268 and $475 for business customers. Council have agreed to a working party bringing down a recommendation by December on the overall structure of charges for waste water in Manukau. GETBA have been notified that we are to be part of this working party.

KiwiSaver: www.sorted.org.nz has a section of its website for employers where you are given good, unbiased advice.

AMETI: The Auckland Manukau Eastern Transport Initiative is the proposed outcome of years of discussion on transport in the area. It specifically addresses the Glen Innes to Botany and beyond to the Manukau CBD areas. There are a number of quite major measures to improve traffic flows in the Ti Rakau Drive, South Eastern Highway, Pakuranga Highway areas. Visit www.ameti.co.nz or phone 0800 4 AMETI if you have a question about the project or the consultation process.

Building Warrants of Fitness: Manukau City Council continue to rack up the charges for these. GETBA is concerned that the Council charges effectively duplicate those paid by individual businesses for the actual inspection undertaken by professional IQPs. While there may have been justification for a higher charge in year one to set up the system to record the data, there is no justification to charge the same high rate (currently proposed as $26 base fee plus $37 for each item checked) in subsequent years. Contact Elspeth at GETBA (phone 021 537 114 or email chair@getba.org.nz ) if you have concerns about this.

Opportunity for sponsorship???: just testing the water here – if you would be interested in sponsoring the bi-monthly newsletter or if you hold strong views either way on the issue of sponsorship, please contact Elspeth chair@getba.org.nz

Casual on-call staff available: with winter ills you may be interested in an offer from a local office administrator who is available on Mondays or Tuesdays. Phone Charmaine Cole 09 534 2504

All the best from the GETBA team – and GO Team NZ!!!!

May 16, 2007
May Breakfast Minutes

MINUTES OF GETBA MEMBERS BREAKFAST 9th May 2007

Chairman Elspeth Mount welcomed around 90 attendees and guests and thanked Matrix security for their carpark security during the breakfast and Headin’ Home Bar and Grill for the venue and breakfast.

GETBA Breakfast meetings are a two-monthly opportunity for members to meet and network: to meet other manufacturers and commercial colleagues in the East Tamaki Industrial area and to keep abreast of issues of interest to the manufacturing community. The association seeks to present speakers on a range of issues: local, regional and national issues are canvassed over the year and each breakfast we report on the activities of the Infrastructure and Crime Reduction committees and projects as well as reporting on the monthly Committee meetings.

Apologies: Robyn McCulloch Director Organisational Performance MCC

Guests: Rick Walden (Director Economic Development for MCC)
Please note that the MCC Directors have expressed interest in attending our breakfast meetings and are keen to develop a close relationship with GETBA. Ian Maxwell, Director Community, will attend our July meeting.

Programme:

Bruce Harland: Manager Design and Development Flatbush Town Centre developmentFlatbush is a bold greenfields development which is planned to add 40000 new people to the population of Manukau by 2015.
Bruce has been involved in the whole concept pretty much from the beginning. With the development so visible now it seemed appropriate to ask Bruce to speak to us about where it is all going and when….

The concept began in 1997 and incorporated best practice elements of town planning and city design. The integrated development of commercial centre, arts and leisure focus, schools as a community focus and resource, leisure (both passive and active) as available to all: all these elements are combined with a housing plan that emphasizes both high and medium density areas, proximity of regional centres within five minutes walking distance from home, cycleways and walking paths along with transport and vehicle systems that are people-friendly.

Green space and revegetation are critical to the development with a great focus on Barry Curtis Park, currently in year three of a ten year development plan which integrates options for safe outdoor activities with high density living and proximity to the commercial centre of town.

Entry to Flatbush is from Ormiston Road via a major four lane bridge which brings a sense of place and pride to the development. This is scheduled for completion in March 2008.

Member’s Moment: Smart Office Solutions Ltd. 169/7B Harris Road: This local company provides a total service and support package for your office equipment. Johnny Babajan offers a really keen price on new printers and excellent after-sales service on all equipment. Email jbabajan@smartoffice.co.nz or phone 273 4001.

Bill Sole, Head of Manufacturing Department of Manukau Institute of Technology : Upcoming Managers’ Breakfast sponsored by Maintenance and Reliability Centre, MITTraining is often seen as a cost rather than an investment, rarely more so than when it involves training frontline staff in a manufacturing environment. The transformation of industry over the past twenty years has left most companies with a significant skills deficit in their staff: few have a dedicated maintenance section, few have formal apprenticeship and tradesperson programmes in place and in many cases management is at a significant remove from the production facility (either geographically or in terms of shared expertise and understanding of the operation.) Most industries require operational staff to monitor quality systems and notify management of potential problems in the production process. Yet those same staff members have rarely been trained to recognize problems or troubleshoot production issues. They are rarely au fait with quality systems or preventative maintenance techniques. Despite this, such staff are generally keen to do a good job and are eager to take on responsibility for the first-line management of the production process. There are excellent ground level training and development programmes in maintenance and reliability – an opportunity to check these out and hear how your business can run better is being offered at MIT on Friday 1st June at CHATS Restaurant on campus at Gate 13 or 14 Alexandra Crescent Otara. To see the invite please click here. Members are most welcome to attend (contact: sarah.santry@manukau.ac.nz or phone.Sarah on 968 8652 to register.) The aim of the breakfast is to encourage managers who may not specifically be engineers to check out the programmes available to make their production more efficient and effective. See also www.manukau.ac.nz/shortcourses

Member’s moment: Icon Signs Icon Signs from Neil Park Drive have recently won two significant awards for their work. They can design a company look and produce every element of company signage for you. Contact them on sales@icon.co.nz or phone 274 6100 and ask for Michael Jackson-Potter.

Notices:
1. Draft Annual Plan submissions were made on a range of topics (see website for details)

2. Waste Water charges: volumetric tariffs have been proposed which may provide a significantly fairer tariff regime for business and residential users alike. Discussions continue.
3. Infrastructure: Smales Road: Work should commence this winter on the realignment of the Firths Corner.
4. AMETI information day: The development of the Auckland Manukau Eastern Transport Initiative (AMETI) Has an excellent solution to the Trugood Cryers intersection: only problem is that it is currently scheduled for late in the development. See www.ameti.co.nz for details
5. Manukau Matters: MCC is now using this newsletter as its primary vehicle for informing ratepayers of council decisions, activities, projects and events. If you are not getting a copy of this twice a month either in your PO Box or at home if you are a resident as well as an industrial ratepayer, then you are missing out on vital information. Please check that whoever clears your PO Box brings Manukau Matters back to your desk. MCC has been alerted to issues of non-receipt and is seeking to improve the situation. In the meantime, GETBA has arranged to be emailed a copy and will place a link on the website whenever we receive it.

Member’s moment – Sovrano (Touch of Italy). Phil and Anne Clarke have been importing great Mediterranean fare at very keen prices for many years. Now they have opened a dedicated retail Supermercato at 239A Burswood Avenue where you can not only buy their full range of groceries and wine but also dine at their delightful Café. Ten percent discount on all purchases (except shop specials and café) till the end of May. Email: phil@touchofitaly.co.nz or phone271 5969

Coralee: Security UpdateCoralee broadly outlined the project to date and the direction for the rest of the year. Fundamentally, Coralee’s role has been redefined as Executive Officer Business Crime Support. She will continue to be the first line of contact for any information/queries about security issues, suspicious behaviours, burglaries etc.
She will work closely with the Police to follow up any criminal activity in the East Tamaki industrial area, specifically visiting businesses who have been victims of crime and evaluating elements of security preparedness which may assist them to be less vulnerable. She is also building a confidential database of criminal activity which will assist us to pinpoint vulnerabilities in terms of timing and type of criminal activity in the area.

This may be the best place to clarify the role of the Executive Chair, Elspeth Mount. She will be working 2.5 days per week and will focus on infrastructure issues and general council liaison. Contact details are: chair@getba.org.nz or phone 021 537 114.

Next Meeting: Wednesday 18th July at Headin’ Home Bar and Grill 7.30 am Remember, all members are welcome and the breakfast is still free to financial members. Just respond to the email closer to the date. Visitors welcome, cost $10.00 each.

Feb 26, 2007
February Members' Meeting Minutes

Check out the new GETBA Website - MEMBERS ZONE. 

It contains a security checklist, designed to assist our members to ensure they consider all aspects of their security and is supported by practical information which we aim to develop further to help businesses take a cohesive approach to their security solutions.

This will be a continual work in progress and we welcome feedback and suggestions.

Login with the password (from your member email) and let us know if there is anything further you would find useful.

GETBA MEMBERS BREAKFAST 21st February 2007

Minutes
Chairman Elspeth Mount welcomed 65 attendees and guests and thanked committee members and all members for taking such great care of the organization in her recent absence.

Linton King:  Entrepreneur, Encourager, Businessman
The death of Linton King on 20th January was noted with deep regret and sympathy to his wife and family.  Linton was a foundation member and Committee Member, businessman, encourager and friend to very many in our area, showed a constant interest in and deep knowledge of infrastructure and transport issues in our area and was a vigilant and knowledgeable watchdog on local authority activities.  The meeting stood in silence to acknowledge Linton’s death and recall with deep appreciation his life.

Apologies and Guests:
There were approximately 18 formal apologies. 
Guests included:
• New Zealand Police
Senior Sergeant Karyn Malphus Tactical Coordinator Eastern Area; 

• Sergeant Mike Stopforth Youth and Community Services Otara;

• O/C Intell. Howick Karl McCabe 

Cr. Dick Quax

Guest Speaker: Doug Scott Knowledge Management Consultant

Notices:1. Waste Water charges: an indicative response was sought from membership as to any concerns:
a. Those whose charges have:
i. Increased (15 out of 65)
ii. Remained the same (4 out of 65)
iii. Decreased (2 out of 65)

b. Those who have contacted Manukau Water to discuss any concerns: two members

c. Those who are keen to use GETBA assistance in this matter: seven members

2. A Security Perception Survey, previously emailed, was circulated in hard copy to be completed and returned to MCC.

3. Vonney Johnston JP, GETBA Member is available for JP duties. Her contact details are: Superior Personnel Ltd, phone 274 1094

Administrative changes at GETBA:Coralee’s Role:  (funded to early 2007 from CRS budget) is now Executive Officer Business Crime Education and Support.  This will acknowledge the tremendous job Coralee is doing in the neighbourhood support, security co-ordination and business education area.  Coralee’s contact details remain the same.
Elspeth Mount’s role: Elspeth will resume duties as Chairman, and over the next few months spend time on Infrastructure and Development as she is retiring from MIT and will take up a part time role with GETBA.  Immediate issues include Waste Water charges, traffic and roading issues.  Her details are on the website – please feel free to contact her to discuss concerns.  Phone  021 537 114 (mobile), 537 8558 (home); email: chair@getba.org.nz

Website Portal Launch:   MEMBERS ZONE.  Alex Garden, GETBA webmaster demonstrated the new member zone on the website.  It is security orientated and contains:  a security checklist, important security information for all businesses, links to websites for further information, up-to-date security alerts … and much more.
To access this part of the website, login with the password from your Member email.Our thanks to Coralee, Alex and Netinsites for this great addition to our already comprehensive website.

Guest speaker:  Doug Scott on Knowledge Management:
 
What you know is very likely the most important asset you have in business.  While 20% of knowledge in a business is often protected through trademarks, patents and other formal means, there is likely to be 80% of each business that is not protected nor kept in any formal and replicable way.  It is critical to establish just what is unique to your way of doing business, identify the key personnel (who), where the information is kept and is to be applied, when it is to be used to best effect and why this is critical to your business.  Doug has strong practical and theoretical background in business in our region. In depth article on Doug's Website.

Next Meeting:  Wednesday 28th March at Headin Home Bar and Grill 7.30 am

Feb 22, 2007
WHAT YOU KNOW, CONTROLS YOUR BUSINESSES DESTINY – would you like to know how to manage it?

February Guest Speaker Doug Scott from Knowledge Brokers.

…………. although the art and science of Knowledge Management Planning (KMP) is not well known, it is a fundamental strategic planning process, using what we know, to differentiate our businesses.  With it we can accelerate our businesses profits to far greater heights than our contemporaries, and put our business beyond the reach of any competitor in the marketplace.

It is most often thought of as just explicit Knowledge like registered designs, patents, franchises, licenses, copyrights, trademarks, service marks and brands that can allow you clear space in the marketplace.

KMP improves service and operations; these are inextricably linked to Knowledge Management Planning.

Service and operations cannot be separated from ‘how’ they are performed and it is the acts of doing that KMP covers.

To find out more about KMP click here to read the full article. 

Dec 6, 2006
Leigh Autons speech and questions delivered to him prior

At the GETBA AGM Breakfast held on November 15th 2006, our guest speaker was the Chief Executive Officer of Manukau City Council, Leigh Auton. 

The committee prepared some questions for him to answer in his address and they are as follows:

Wastewater Charges
Council has undergone significant restructuring recently under your stewardship and it appears that consultation with business has not been a high priority. A good example is the Manukau Wastewater charging changes that have been imposed.

Can you advise how you intend to rectify this in the future?
Why, if it is necessary to have a contract with Manukau Water, have they not mailed out new contracts to all business users? In the case of other utility providers where there is not a monopoly situation, you can choose to take a contract which will only incur a penalty if you change providers but will keep a cap on the private provider portion of the charges.  EG: electricity, if you choose Mercury you may sign a min 24month contract to ensure the Mercury part of your charges is capped, but they have no control over Vector’s charges.

Building Warrant of Fitness
How are Manukau’s fees determined and why are they so much higher than other Councils across New Zealand?

Our understanding of the current situation is that Manukau City Council charges more for the administration of their BWOF fees than the Independent Qualified Providers (IQP), who visit each site and physically check all compliances, then submit the form to the specific council for their comparing and recording. 

Our own findings indicate that the costs applied by nine local bodies across the main cities in New Zealand are wide and varied and Manukau City charge the highest administration fee (minimum $210).   The next highest charge is in Hamilton at $155, but this includes an annual audit onsite visit. ($65 is applied to admin).  The next in this group is Wellington City which charges $115.  The remaining six of the nine councils charge either nothing or less than $100.

Cost Plus ApproachMany business owners have shown concern about the bureaucracy and the resultant costs  involved in many council processes.  On one hand they feel that businesses are increasingly being targeted with a cost differential in every way possible.   On the other they feel that it is difficult to get information from Council to plan their approach to either upgrading their buildings or building new ones.

How is this giving the message to both new and existing businesses that they are welcome in and to Manukau City as often publicised by Sir Barry Curtis.

Questions from the floor
The following questions were put to Leigh Auton after his address to members at the AGM. 

Question Not clear on direction of Council , appear to involved with property development, shareholdings, and appear to be more involved in becoming a corporate than what has been considered as Councils core business, therefore not sure on the direction council is going.

Answer 
The Council has been involved in property, and the ownership of Auckland International Airport shares for a long time.  The challenge is how to arrange the management of these portfolios in the most efficient and effective means.  The Council has determined that corporate style structures such as Council Controlled Organisations (CCOs) are appropriate vehicles.  It is Council’s view that such corporate approaches are appropriate for certain activities of Council such as airport shares.

Question  Frustrations were voiced by small unit holders at the lack of response from Manukau Water when he tried to get some explanation of why he should be charged $950 for both of his units when one was used mainly for storage.  Although he was previously charged $600 – 700 and now $950, his usage is only about $30 for incoming water.

Answer Some issues have been pointed out to Council, however while nothing will change for this year, there is the opportunity for Council and the community to consider them further in the forthcoming Annual Plan consultation.

Question  Businessman has the belief that Mr Auton is misinformed regarding the administration process for BWOF and therefore his explanation of the reason for charging the amount stipulated is flawed.  Mr Auton stated that each item on Form 12 has to be checked against the Building Act.  This is not the understanding of the business owner concerned.  This has been done previously by the IQP and the admin side is only comparing existing council records with each form 12 submitted.  Unless building changes have been carried out, this would only be a very short process.  If building changes have been carried out, a different process would be adopted.

Answer 
The Council has applied a cost recovery approach to fees.  Our fees reflect our cost of doing business, balanced against our responsibility to protect the wider interests of the community.  Leigh Auton notes that Manukau City Council has a low exposure to ‘leaky homes’ because of its precautionary approach to its legal responsibilities.
 
Question The suggestion was that a business representative be placed on Council to ensure that Council reflected the needs of businesses as is the process with the Maori standing committee.

Answer 
The Council has a number of political representatives who are business people.  As well, corporate entities are being established where appropriate in order to utilise commercial and business skills to run some activities of Council.

LEIGH AUTON"S ADDRESS

Regional GovernanceAs a region, Auckland is at a crossroads.

• You will be aware of the regional governance debate which has been going on over the last couple of months. All of the councils in the region are currently working together to identify the best ways to make local government more effective and efficient.

• Three models for change have been presented to councils for their feedback, which will in turn be used to develop a proposal for subsequent consideration by the councils. 

• Councils will need to formally resolve their position on a proposal by the end of November. A proposal needs to be with the government in December, to enable any necessary legislation to be drafted, consulted on and passed prior to the October 2007 local body elections.

• All the councils have committed to exploring options to deliver better decision making and more efficient delivery of services. This could include looking at transport and other infrastructure issues.

Economic Development• In Manukau we’ve had between four and five hundred businesses set up in the city or expand, in each of the past three years.

• To attract businesses to Manukau, the council has developed the Economic Development Strategy, Employment Strategy, Education Strategy, SmartManukau Strategy, The Foreign Direct Investment Action Plan, and have engaged Enterprising Manukau as Councils Service Delivery agency.

• We also have the Town Centre Strategy and the Business Improvement District Policy which assists business in Manukau. And an Investor Champion assists businesses, investors and developers in the city.

• We also work very closely with government agencies such as the New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, Investment New Zealand, and other bodies such as Auckland Chamber of Commerce, E&MA, ASEAN NZ Business Council, AMCHAM, New Zealand Pacific Business Council, to attract businesses into the city.

• Council also facilitates the growing of the current manufacturing base by assisting businesses in exporting, as is evident in the 3 recent trade delegation to the Cook Islands, Samoa and latterly into French Polynesia

• Council has over the years been fully supportive of what GETBA is doing in East Tamaki and have been supported financially by both Community and Economic as follows:

• $7500 towards getting the Web site up and running

• $20,000 for the development of a Strategic Plan

• $30,000 for a pilot security control

• $10,000 for a crime prevention action plan

• $19,000 for the employment of a Coordinator

• $150,000 in asset development for signage around the area has been allocated. This is not going to GETBA but it will improve the area by way of better street signage.

• And through Community Development a GETBA crime reduction action plan of $30,000 was approved, for payments in the 2005/06 year of $15,000 and the same for the 2006/07 year.

• Also this unit was able to obtain from the Crime Prevention Unit of the Ministry of Justice a further $168,200 for this two year project.   GETBA received a total of  $198,200  by way of direct funding between MCC and the CPU; and  Police and GETBA provided the project an additional amount of $36,020 by way of 'in kind' (services offered) funding, making a total of $225,700.

Transport
The council is committed to providing the infrastructure needed to ensure the city prospers. But we recognise there are serious weaknesses in the regional transport links, especially the roading system.

The region’s now in catch-up mode but progress is being made.

• Planning for the western ring route’s underway, to provide a motorway connection all the way from Albany via state highway 20 to the southern motorway at Manukau City Centre.

• A major element is the second Manukau Harbour Crossing, due for completion by 2011.

• We’re also improving access via Papatoetoe, by re-engineering Cavendish Drive, to give better flow, and cut the journey time to the east, and the southern motorway.

Highbrook
Next April, the new road from the southern motorway to Highbrook Business Park in East Tamaki will be completed, and opened.

You’ll be able to drive straight off the motorway beside the Otara power station, and across to the East Tamaki business area which, as you know, is already the largest business zone in the region, and set to get even bigger.

Highbrook Drive will provide access to Highbrook Business Park  - the most advanced business park of its kind in Australasia, and a billion dollar investment in the city’s future.

It’ll attract the kinds of businesses we’ve never seen in Manukau. And with them, a workforce of knowledge workers.

The ideal place for them to live will be in Flat Bush, the first cyber community in New Zealand which, within five years, will house an extra forty thousand people at least.

GrowthManukau is the fastest growing city in the country, and a magnet for businesses, for many reasons. One being the availability of land, especially large parcels of land.

But not for much longer. We’re fast running out of land zoned for business. So we’re seeking to have more land freed up for development.

We want areas currently zoned rural land to be re-zoned for business. To do that we need to extend the MUL, or metropolitan urban limits.

If the limits are not altered, we will see more development heading south to where there is available land – in the North Waikato.

I don’t believe that’s in the best interests of Manukau or the Auckland region.

BWOFPrior to coming today I was asked about Building Warrant of Fitness costs.

On 31 March 2005 a new Building Act (2004) came into force, replacing the Building Act 1991. This new Act sets higher standards than the previous law in order to ensure the safety of building and people. As a consequence, the functions and services that territorial authorities are required to perform have changed and they may now impose fees or charges for performing those functions and services.

• The cost is a reflection of the true costs to council for doing the WOF checks
• Now the person getting the Building WOF pays, rather than the ratepayer
• Each item has to be checked against the Building Act which takes a lot of time
• There can be between 3 and 30 checks required per WOF so it is fairer to charge per item because it reflects the cost of doing the work
• A flat fee would see smaller businesses paying more and subsidising those WOFs which require more checks

Council-controlled organisations (CCOs)• Council has approved the formation of Manukau Leisure as a Council-controlled organisation from 1 July. 
o Provides Leisure with more opportunities to extend the services it provides to the community – quicker response to customer requirements, more reactive to trends in a dynamic industry

• Manukau Building Consultants becoming a CCTO from 1 July
o Extremely important asset to Council
o CCTO structure will help MBC be more responsive to its customers – more flexible,