Northport is calling for further discussions on "unbundling" alternatives to the growth issues facing Ports of Auckland although any decisions on more detailed studies into port relocation have been shelved for the incoming Auckland Council.
The council’s Auckland Development Committee this week voted to simply refer the findings of the Port Future Study released last week to the new council elected in October.
The study found that a new location was likely to be needed for the port which is facing growth constraints but in the interim there was a need to allow it to build extra berth space despite public opposition to further extensions into the Waitemata Harbour.
It also said that Northport and Port of Tauranga were unable to handle the extra trade from Ports of Auckland and that divvying up parts of its business to other ports would mean a loss of revenue to the council and the scale necessary to stack up a new location.
Northport said the study took an overly narrow focus and contains miscalculations about the potential for it and the Port of Tauranga to be viable solutions to the Auckland port’s infrastructure challenges.
It wants more work done prior to the election on possibly “unbundling” the port’s total freight task to other ports ahead of investigating billion-dollar relocation sites.
“Auckland will, in all likelihood, always require a port facility,” Northport chairman John Goulter said in a statement. “But there are opportunities for the load to be shared across the upper North Island and these have not yet been explored fully.”
The report overlooked expanding capacity in the next decade at Northport where log exports are expected to decrease significantly as key Northland forests are harvested and its container handling ability is being developed with consented plans more than doubling berth length.
Goulter said the greater Marsden Point area was particularly suited to port expansion with 180 hectares of undeveloped commercial-zoned land adjacent to the port boundary.
While much of the discussion about the Ports of Auckland’s future is about how its neighbours and stakeholders don’t want it to grow any further, the people of Northland would welcome more cargo coming to their region, Goulter said.
He said that fact wasn’t lost on the port study group chairman Rick Boven, who recently said “no-one wants a port in their backyard, except possibly Northport”.
Auckland mayoral candidates Phil Goff and Victoria Crone have said they want the port gone from the waterfront. Goff suggested last month that one way to address Auckland's impending capacity constraints on bulk cargo in the short term would be to move the imported used cars sitting on the wharves to Northport.
Northport commissioned an investigation two years ago that found shipping cars into Northland first, and then on to Auckland, would be cost neutral despite traffic congestion on the city’s roads although industry publication Auto Talk this week quoted John Davies, the head of major vehicle logistics provider Autohub, saying most of the claimed benefits from such a shift didn't exist. He said cars on average only spend 1.5 days in the port, one of the fastest turnarounds in the country, but relocating the point of entry to Northport would mean the trucks having to deliver into Auckland's congested roads.
Port media spokesman Peter Heath said the port had also launched investigations into what other cargo may also be commercially and economically viable to shift from Auckland further north.
Earlier this week Port of Tauranga chairman David Pilkington said its shareholders would take some convincing that building a new “super-port” at the Firth of Thames or Manukau Harbour to serve the upper North Island would be a good move.
The port future study said a super-port was another larger scale consideration because Port of Tauranga’s growth appears to be constrained in the long-term and that the wider transport, land use and upper North Island port strategy implications should be examined when deciding which of the Auckland port locations to develop.
But Pilkington said the report doesn’t take into consideration that the Port of Tauranga’s existing container site at Sulphur Point still has extra capacity and once that is constrained could look to extend operations to its Mt Manganui site. He also questioned the numbers used to assess predicted growth in container volumes.
Source: Scoop
Austria, July 8 2016 - Austrian engineering company Doppelmayr/Garaventa—better known for rigging gondola systems for ski areas in the Swiss Alps—has now completed a record-breaking tramway across Vietnam’s Ha Long Bay.
The Ha Long Queen Cable Car is suspended by a pair massive concrete towers—two of the tallest in the world—with the larger tower rising to 620 feet. But the tram cars themselves are the largest ever constructed. Each double-decker car is larger than some New York apartments—carrying 230 people on each 15-minute trip across the bay.
Ha Long Bay is an Unesco world heritage site renowned the world over for its beautiful 1,600+ limestone islands. The area welcomes roughly 7 million tourists a year.
The more than $282 million tramway was built to connect the Bai Chay district of Ha Long City to one of the world’s largest ferris wheels.
EINNewsDesk, Friday 8 July, 2016 - Earlier in the day it was reported that Tata Steel may “pause” its plans to sell off most of troubled UK units, including the mammoth Port Talbot steelworks in Wales, as Britain’s business minister is set to hold talks with the senior management of the Indian steel giant in Mumbai to achieve a long-term solution.
Highlights* Tata Steel says will now begin process for potential sale of South Yorkshire based speciality steels business and the Hartlepool pipe mills in the UK
* Tata Steel to explore feasability of strategic collaborations through potential joint venture
* Based speciality steels business and the Hartlepool pipe mills in the UK
* Tata Steel says entered into discussions with strategic players in the steel industry including Thyssenkrupp AG
* Tata Steel says received interest from several bidders for speciality steels and pipe mills in each case, formal process will be commencing shortly
Source: Financial Express
Air New Zealand has partnered with the Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori (Maori Language Commission) to develop a tohu (emblem) that recognises fluency in the Māori language.
Today, as the country celebrates Māori Language Week, Air New Zealand is launching the tohu which will be worn as a lapel pin by Air New Zealand employees who are fluent in te reo Māori and choose to wear it.
More than 30 languages are spoken by employees in the airline’s global network and these Air New Zealanders can choose to wear a pin representing the language they speak. Going forward customers will also be able to identify Air New Zealand employees who speak te reo fluently.
The tohu, designed by expert carver Clive Fugill at the globally renowned New Zealand Māori Arts and Crafts Institute in Te Puia, is inspired by te reo ō Aotearoa and its distinct form references the waha or the mouth piece in traditional Māori carvings.
The tohu will be rolled out to Air New Zealand cabin crew in the coming months before being introduced to other areas of the business. It is hoped the move will also inspire more employees to learn the language and help preserve Māori culture while showcasing it to visitors onboard.
Air New Zealand Cultural Development Manager Andrew Baker says the tohu is a reminder to all New Zealanders that we must work together to preserve te reo Māori for future generations.
“We’re very proud to see our people wearing the tohu while speaking the Māori language and supporting the culture onboard. As the national carrier we understand we have a significant role to play in protecting Māori heritage and ensuring the future of te reo Māori is a big part of that.”
Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori Chief Executive Ngahiwi Apanui says the intention is for the tohu to be embraced by the wider community over time.
“We are focused on preserving and ensuring a bright future for te reo Māori for all New Zealanders. We would love to see other organisations and community groups embrace the tohu so it becomes synonymous with te reo Māori speakers throughout the country.”
Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori will be the guardian of the tohu which will be awarded to eligible te reo Māori speakers who meet the organisation’s criteria for fluency established by their Whakamātauria Tō Reo Māori (Level Finder Examinations).
Innovative New Zealand based Software as a Service (SaaS) developer, Unleashed Software, has just announced a renewed focus on its integration to enable QuickBooks Online inventory, fresh off the back of a successful $3 million capital raising round.
Recently listed in the prestigious Tech Pioneers Top 50, which lists the most exciting and pioneering startups from Australia and New Zealand, Unleashed Software has announced a new level of cloud based service delivery designed to boost its growth in the US and international markets.
“By being able to add our inventory management capabilities to their QuickBooks Online account, clients can enjoy enterprise-level functionality previously only available with larger ERP systems” Unleashed Software CEO, Gareth Berry stated. The integration enables clients using Unleashed to share customer, supplier, inventory and delivery information with QuickBooks Online to gain real-time insights into their businesses.
To small and medium businesses within the US, the latest offering from the rapidly growing developer will enable them to enjoy cross-platform integration, driven towards achieving enhanced efficiency and accuracy within their operations - from procurement and production to inventory management and sales.
With the most recent capital raising round having brought the total amount raised to $18 million, Unleashed Software is confident that it will meet its expansion goals both here in the US as well as internationally where it enjoys a growing presence in established markets like Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.
Reflecting on the company’s expansion into offshore markets over the last 12 months, Berry said, “We have been fueling our expansion while growing our product and this latest capital investment will enable us to accelerate those efforts substantially. With increasingly global capabilities, we can now support our customers on an international scale, whether they are in wholesale, manufacturing or distribution.”
Unleashed Software with QuickBooks integration is well positioned to grow its US market presence by helping businesses better leverage the power of cloud based SaaS solutions.
Now in its second year, the nationwide tour run by the Building and Construction Industry Training Organisation, introduces students to the ever-increasing opportunities available in the building and construction industry.
Right now, individual tours are hitting the road in more than 14 New Zealand cities and towns allowing students from 127 schools to visit worksites and premises, showcasing some of the country’s biggest construction sites and highlighting why a career in construction is a fantastic option.
The Tour is a wonderful opportunity to introduce future apprentices to those doing exciting and innovative work in the industry today, says BCITO Chief Executive Warwick Quinn.It also has a wider significance as the Tour is a key part of BCITO’s strategy to support the Government’s goal of meeting the growing demand for apprentices, which was highlighted in the 2016 Budget, he says.
“Our country needs more young people to learn the skills and attributes that are in such high demand. School leavers who decide they want to start an apprenticeship can be confident they won’t struggle to get work, there are so many great opportunities,” he says.
“We want to offer students a real experience of the construction industry and encourage them to consider the wide range of opportunities a career in the trades could offer them.”
Individual tours are happening in Auckland, Hamilton, Cambridge, Tauranga, Rotorua, Gisborne, Hastings, New Plymouth, Palmerston North, Wellington, Nelson, Christchurch, Dunedin and Invercargill.
The Big Construction Tour will take students through a number of key sites in their respective locations to showcase the innovation taking place in the construction industry and to introduce them to some of the 15 trades that BCITO offers, says Quinn.
“They will be able to hear what a ‘day in the life of a tradie’ is like, first-hand, from apprentices working on site. It will also provide an opportunity for students to connect with industry leaders who may be their future employers.”
You can check out all of the day’s action here or on any of BCITO’s channels.
It was always a dream of Simon Ganley's to get his hands on a Daimler E20
Massey Ventures Limited has been awarded close to one million dollars to kick-start the development of commercial projects and companies.
Massey Ventures will receive $927,692 over three years from the government’s PreSeed Accelerator Fund. Massey Ventures will match the funding and allocate more than $1.8 million to Massey staff or student projects that have the potential to attract investor interest in research from the technology fields, such as veterinary technology, food technology, fundamental science and engineering.
Chief executive of Massey Ventures Limited Mark Cleaver will lead the management of PreSeed funding.
“The fund will be allocated to projects and technologies that have the potential for commercialisation and acts as a helping hand until a start-up company is established or a license deal is negotiated. Over the past three years the University has grown its commercialisation activity and this funding will encourage higher levels of activity and in time, greater benefits,” he says.
Massey will fund a minimum of 21 projects from initiation to commercialisation. PreSeed funded projects require 50 per cent co-funding from other sources, which will be drawn from Massey Ventures’ reserves and from industry partners.
Stage one projects will receive up to $30,000 for proof-of-concept development, market validation, intellectual property novelty and patentability searches. Stage two projects will receive between $30,000 and $60,000 for technology development, including prototyping and data collection, market engagement, and intellectual property protection, and strategy advice. Stage three projects will receive over $60,000 for technology refinement, intellectual property protection and deal negotiation.
Massey University has previously received $634,250 from the fund between 2010 and 2015. These funds supported commercialisation of 13 projects, with six projects resulting in intellectual property licenses to external parties, including four going to spin-out companies.
The four spin-out companies remain based in New Zealand and have raised a total of $4.2m from private investors and employ 16 highly trained staff.
Lifeonics Smart Measuring Optical Device.Spin-out comapnies
The four spin-out companies remain based in New Zealand and have raised a total of $4.2m from private investors and employ 16 highly trained staff.
One of the spin-out companies is Lifeonics limited, who works internationally developing smart sensors to monitor analytical challenges, such as the development of the Smart Measuring Optical Device (SMOD). The device takes away the need for researchers to spend long hours of manual monitoring and sampling of cultures and allows real time monitoring of the progress of a culture’s growth, monitoring of anaerobic cultures and early culture failure diagnosis.
Staff and students who have an idea that may have commercial potential may be eligible to receive the PreSeed Accelerator Funding. A total of $250,000 per project is available. Contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for more details.
The Pre-Seed Accelerator fund is managed by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.
Direct Couriers are pleased to announce the purchase of AutoSmart Couriers in Adelaide on the 1st July, 2016. AutoSmart are a leading courier provider to the automotive industry in South Australia and we are very please to welcome all staff, drivers and customers to the Direct Couriers family.
We hope this merger will provide all of AutoSmarts customers with an enhanced service offering, greater technology solutions and continued great customer service that they have known to expect.
The new acquisition re-enforces Direct Couriers commitment to the Adelaide market as we continue to grow and expand the business in Adelaide and all other states around the country.
Direct Couriers operates in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth and Auckland New Zealand. We employ more than 130 office staff with a fleet of over 650 vehicles. Operating 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, Direct Couriers has the services and technology solutions for all your urgent transport needs. Call us on 131610 for more information.
Palace of the Alhambra, Spain
By: Charles Nathaniel Worsley (1862-1923)
From the collection of Sir Heaton Rhodes
Oil on canvas - 118cm x 162cm
Valued $12,000 - $18,000
Offers invited over $9,000
Contact: Henry Newrick – (+64 ) 27 471 2242
Mount Egmont with Lake
By: John Philemon Backhouse (1845-1908)
Oil on Sea Shell - 13cm x 14cm
Valued $2,000-$3,000
Offers invited over $1,500
Contact: Henry Newrick – (+64 ) 27 471 2242