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May 2015 Kingston Business Bulletin 1 An important study on the economic effects of the lack of access to the NBN was recently launched by the Minister for Regional Development, the Hon. Jaala Pulford and Kingston Mayor, Cr Geoff Gledhill at Nulab Professional Imaging in Braeside. The report, commissioned by the Southern Melbourne Regional Development Australia (RDA) Committee in partnership with the Cities of Kingston, Greater Dandenong and Frankston, was based on a survey of 322 local businesses that employ more than 6500 people. The report found the lack of high-speed broadband in Melbourne’s south-eastern region was holding back jobs and a massive $8.4 million in annual economic growth. It estimates that it had so far cost the south- eastern region more than 1000 jobs. Michael Warshall, business owner at Nulab, said it oſten takes hours to download a single job. “This is making us less competitive, it’s holding us back.” He added that some of the most technologically advanced businesses located in the area were reliant on the internet to survive. The study found that Melbourne’s south-east region had a workforce of 180,000, many of whom were in Victoria’s $35 billion advanced manufacturing sector which plays a crucial role in Victoria’s economy. These companies were at the forefront of innovation but were constrained by the slow speed of their broadband connection. The survey found most enterprises relied on the internet for teleconferencing, large file exchanges and cloud computing. More than two thirds of survey participants were constrained by the speed, reliability and poor capacity of the telecommunications infrastructure. Results of a survey showed that more than 25 per cent of businesses would seriously consider relocating to get high-speed broadband access, with the figure much higher for international export companies. More than 70 per cent of businesses said their productivity would improve by up to 20 per cent if they were connected to high-speed broadband. It is clear that high-quality, affordable broadband infrastructure is needed to support Kingston’s competitiveness, productivity, business investment and jobs growth. Based on the findings of this report, Kingston Council will be advocating for a review of priorities in terms of the NBN roll-out to consider more carefully the impact that current policy is having on the future of industry in Melbourne’s south-east. For a copy of the report contact [email protected] Business Bulletin taking care of business in Kingston For high-tech manufacturing, fast speed Broadband will lead to cost savings throughout the supply chain network, greater efficiencies and profitability. 9581 4735 kingston.vic.gov.au/business The Need for High-Speed Broadband Volume 2 • 2015 in this edition 7 Kingston businesses come together over a shared resource Dingley Bypass underway 2 6 New rights for food and grocery suppliers Economic benefits – headline indicators 586 SURVEY RESPONDENTS Additional FTEs 1024 ALL ENTERPRISES Additional FTEs $110m SURVEY RESPONDENTS Additional productivity $186.1m ALL ENTERPRISES Additional productivity $73.9m SURVEY RESPONDENTS Additional GRP $127.0m ALL ENTERPRISES Additional GRP Note: these figures show results from survey respondents and are extrapolated to all businesses in the three precincts

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May 2015 Kingston Business Bulletin 1

An important study on the economic effects of the lack of access to the NBN was recently launched by the Minister for Regional Development, the Hon. Jaala Pulford and Kingston Mayor, Cr Geoff Gledhill at Nulab Professional Imaging in Braeside.

The report, commissioned by the Southern Melbourne Regional Development Australia (RDA) Committee in partnership with the Cities of Kingston, Greater Dandenong and Frankston, was based on a survey of 322 local businesses that employ more than 6500 people.

The report found the lack of high-speed broadband in Melbourne’s south-eastern region was holding back jobs and a massive $8.4 million in annual economic growth. It estimates that it had so far cost the south-eastern region more than 1000 jobs.

Michael Warshall, business owner at Nulab, said it often takes hours to download a single job. “This is making us less competitive, it’s holding us back.” He added that some of the most technologically advanced businesses located in the area were reliant on the internet to survive.

The study found that Melbourne’s south-east region had a workforce of 180,000, many of whom were in Victoria’s $35 billion advanced manufacturing sector which plays a crucial role in Victoria’s economy. These companies were at the forefront of innovation but were constrained by the slow speed of their broadband connection.

The survey found most enterprises relied on the internet for teleconferencing, large file exchanges and cloud computing. More than two thirds of survey participants were constrained by the speed, reliability and poor capacity of the telecommunications infrastructure.

Results of a survey showed that more than 25 per cent of businesses would seriously consider relocating to get high-speed broadband access, with the figure much higher for international export companies. More than 70 per cent of businesses said their productivity would improve by up to 20 per cent if they were connected to high-speed broadband.

It is clear that high-quality, affordable broadband infrastructure is needed to support Kingston’s competitiveness, productivity, business investment and jobs growth.

Based on the findings of this report, Kingston Council will be advocating for a review of priorities in terms of the NBN roll-out to consider more carefully the impact that current policy is having on the future of industry in Melbourne’s south-east.

For a copy of the report contact [email protected]

Business Bulletintaking care of business in Kingston

For high-tech manufacturing, fast speed Broadband will lead to cost savings throughout the supply chain network, greater efficiencies and profitability.

9581 4735 kingston.vic.gov.au/business

The Need for High-Speed Broadband Volume 2 • 2015

in this edition

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Kingston businesses come together over a shared resource

Dingley Bypass underway 2

6New rights for food and grocery suppliers

Economic benefits – headline indicators

586SURVEY RESPONDENTS

Additional FTEs1024ALL ENTERPRISES

Additional FTEs

$110mSURVEY RESPONDENTS

Additional productivity$186.1mALL ENTERPRISES

Additional productivity

$73.9mSURVEY RESPONDENTS

Additional GRP$127.0mALL ENTERPRISES

Additional GRP

Note: these figures show results from survey respondents and are extrapolated to all businesses in the three precincts

May 2015 Kingston Business Bulletin 3 2 Kingston Business Bulletin May 2015

Whether you’re a small business or a large organisation, Council wants to work with you!

In all purchasing decisions, Kingston Council is committed to achieving best value – to improve services and outcomes for the community.

Kingston Council is hosting a workshop for local business suppliers to get an overview of Government purchasing practices for goods and services.

The workshop will be held in the evening of Thursday 23 July at the Kingston Council offices and will cover tips on quoting, increasing your future competitiveness, accessing government tender information and how to submit a successful tender.

The purchasing procedures and policies for Kingston Council will be explained and resource material will be available.

The Industry Capability Network (ICN) also assists buyers, both government and private, to source their requirements from competitive

local businesses. The workshop will have a local focus and include information on the ICN portal to demonstrate how companies can find projects across the south-east Melbourne region.

Don’t miss this opportunity to understand all aspects of the local government procurement process, how to market your business offer to government and the rationale behind tender and quotation evaluation. The Winning Government Business workshop will maximise your chances of producing a successful bid.

Enquiries, call Council’s Economic Development team on 9581 4735

When Thursday 23 July 6pm – 8pm

Where Kingston Council Offices 1230 Nepean Hwy, Cheltenham

Cost $30

Bookings kingston.vic.gov.au/business

Glass screens now permitted in KingstonIn response to the growth in outdoor dining, an amended Footpath Activities Policy allowing for glass screens was approved at the 27 April Ordinary Council Meeting. Café and restaurant operators will now be able to better protect their patrons from the vagaries of Melbourne’s weather.

Glass screens may be installed in some locations provided pedestrian access and safety is not compromised.

The amended policy and supporting standards can be found at kingston.vic.gov.au/business

Local Government is responsible for directly delivering a diverse range of services to the community. Kingston Council strives to do this as efficiently and effectively as possible. However, there are many areas where responsibility sits with either the State or Federal Governments. This is particularly the case with major infrastructure investment. In these situations, Council’s role is one of advocacy.

It is very pleasing to see that, after many years of advocacy, the Dingley Bypass is well and truly underway. This important road project will deliver significant efficiencies for Kingston businesses.

Since the election of the current State Government, I have been meeting with relevant Ministers to ensure that they are aware of the important areas of interest for the Kingston community. In particular, I have been keen to ensure that Kingston’s worst level crossings

are part of the Government’s grade separation program.

In the Federal arena, Kingston’s advocacy is focused on trying to get our major industrial precincts prioritised in the roll-out of fast broadband. I recently participated in the launch of a study on the economic effects of a lack of access to high-speed broadband in south-east Melbourne’s industrial precincts. This study clearly demonstrated that there would be millions of dollars of productivity gains if local companies had access to this vital infrastructure. I will therefore continue to vigorously pursue this issue in Canberra.

The success of every business in Kingston is important to our local economy. We are committed to continuing to advocate on behalf of local businesses to make a more prosperous Kingston.

Cr Geoff Gledhill Mayor CITY OF KINGSTON

Message from the Mayor

Dingley Bypass underway

Work has finally commenced on the 6.4 km section of the Dingley Bypass between Warrigal Road, Moorabbin and Westall Road, Dingley Village.

When completed in late 2016, this $156 million project will reduce congestion, lessen travel times and provide safer access for all road users.

Thiess has been contracted to build the new road with three lanes in each direction, plus a new off-road shared path that will link with existing cycle and pedestrian facilities.

Regular updates on the stages of the road build can be found on the VicRoads website www.vicroads.vic.gov.au/planning-and-projects

Training support for small to medium enterprisesThe Australian Government’s Industry Skills Fund will provide training places and support services for Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs).

To apply for a training grant an employer must be aware of:• a business growth opportunity

• a related skills need

• the training solution to meet that need.

An employer may be referred to an expert Skills Adviser to assist in identifying company specific skills their business requires to realise a growth opportunity and will provide recommendations to develop workforce skills. Skills Advice is a free service.

Employers may then apply for a Training Grant, on a co-contribution basis, to help with the cost of training. The amount that a successful

applicant will need to co-contribute will depend on how many full time equivalent (FTE) employees they have. Co-contributions must be in cash. In-kind contributions will not be accepted.

Business Growth Opportunities The Industry Skills Fund targets SMEs that plan to up-skill and re-skill their workforces to take advantage of business growth opportunities such as:

• diversifying into new or emerging markets

• adopting new or emerging technologies

• entering export markets for the first time

• responding to significant new domestic market opportunities

• repositioning because of market driven structural adjustment.

For further information, visit www.business.gov.au/ grants-and-assistance/ Industry-Skills-Fund

Winning Government Business Workshop An opportunity for local suppliers to do business with Council

Family business conversations across generations

The strength and success of the family business sector is vital to the future of Australia’s economy, community and culture. Family businesses account for around 70% of all Australian businesses, employing 50% of the workforce.

Within family businesses the first succession is usually the hardest because the founder never wants to let go, but thousands of baby boomers are at the stage where the conversation about transition is needed if the business is to continue.

Find out the steps involved in transitioning your family business to the next generation, ensuring your legacy endures. Hear from successful family businesses that have made the transition.

When Wednesday 27 May 7.30am – 9.30am

Where Woodlands Golf Club White St, Mordialloc

Cost $30 (includes hot breakfast)

Bookings www.kingston.vic.gov.au/ business/home

May 2015 Kingston Business Bulletin 5 4 Kingston Business Bulletin May 2015

Bookings at www.kingston.vic.gov.au/business/ Events-Workshops/Networking-Events/Women-in-Business-Luncheon

When Wednesday 17 June 2015 12pm – 2pm

Cost $55

Where Woodlands Golf Club 109 White Street, Mordialloc

Date Event Location | Time Cost

MAY 25 Small Business Bus Visit to Chelsea

10am – 4pm Cnr Nepean Hwy and The Strand

Free

MAY 27 Conversations Across Generations

7.30am – 9.30am Woodlands Golf Club 109 White Street, Mordialloc

$30

JUN 2 AIG – Building a High Performing Team

9am – 12pm Woodlands Golf Club 109 White Street, Mordialloc

FREE

JUN 3 Exiting Your Business Successfully Seminar

6pm – 8pm Kingston City Council 1230 Nepean Hwy, Cheltenham

$20

JUN 4 Meet Your Mates Networking Event

5.30pm – 7pm 2 Brothers Brewery 4 Joyner Street, Moorabbin

$25

JUN 10 VECCI – Social Media Workshop

6pm – 8pm Kingston City Council 1230 Nepean Hwy, Cheltenham

FREE

JUN 17 Women in Business Luncheon

12pm – 2pm Woodlands Golf Club 109 White Street, Mordialloc

$55

JUL 16 Sustainable Business Network Breakfast

7.30am – 9.30am Woodlands Golf Club 109 White Street, Mordialloc

$25

JUL 23 Winning Government Business Workshop

6pm – 8pm Kingston City Council 1230 Nepean Hwy, Cheltenham

$30

JUL 30 Meet Your Mates Networking Event

5.30pm – 7.30pm Venue to be confirmed

$25

AUG 5 SBV Festival – Mastering Email Overload

9.30am – 11am Kingston City Council 1230 Nepean Hwy, Cheltenham

$25

AUG 11 SBV Festival – Social Media – Facebook 101

6pm – 8pm Kingston City Council 1230 Nepean Hwy, Cheltenham

$55

AUG 19 SBV Festival – Bringing Your Business Idea to Life Expo

10am – 6pm Kingston Arts Centre 985 Nepean Hwy, Moorabbin

$55 (early bird)

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2015 Workshops and EventsMeet Your Mates Networking Event 4 June & 30 July 2015

Kingston City Council invites business owners to get together after work at a local venue situated in the industrial precincts of Kingston on a quarterly rotational basis. These business networking events are attended by business owners for the purposes of getting to know “who’s who on the block” and to potentially establish new business relationships with neighbouring businesses.

They also provide an opportunity for those attending to hear what business services and support Council offers, and to discuss any issues or challenges they are facing in their business. This two-way exchange of information enables Council’s business development team to be an effective voice for the local business community.

05Winning Government Business Workshop 23 July 2015

(Refer to article on page 3)

09Small Business Bus Visit to Chelsea 25 May 2015

The Small Business Bus offers free mentoring throughout the day with an experienced business professional who can assist you in taking your small business to the next level. On board the Small Business Bus you will find information on Small Business Victoria’s programs and services as well as tools and tips to help you start or grow your business.

The Small Business Bus will be located at the corner of Nepean Highway and the Strand, 406 Nepean Highway between 10am and 4pm.

Bookings are essential for the mentoring sessions, so reserve your place now at business.vic.gov.au/sbb or call 13 22 15.

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02Conversations Across Generations 27 May 2015

Strong, inspirational leadership is crucial to the success of a family business. It’s how you get people to buy-in to your dream, become part of your ‘tribe’ and drive your business.

Join us for breakfast and an intimate conversation with Quin and Michael Scalzo of Scalzo Foods and Peter and Jonny Levi of Colorific who will generously share their leadership journey with us. Two successful family businesses – one embarking on the leadership transition process, the other has completed their transition successfully.

AIG – Building a High Performing Team 2 June 2015

If you’re bent on fulfilling your business’s productivity potential, you need to understand the levels of ‘engagement’ at the heart of the employer-employee relationship.

High-performing organisations use the practice of participatory decision-making to constantly develop the skills and knowledge of workers – and provide diversified, challenging and exciting work to keep them engaged.

This free hands-on half-day workshop explores detailed case studies and provides you with essential strategies to utilise participatory decision-making and other core practices of high performing organisations.

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Exiting Your Business Successfully Seminar 3 June 2015 Registration ID: 13399

Have you thought about putting a business exit strategy in place? Do you know what potential buyers look for in a business? From succession planning to selling or closing your business, this Small Business Victoria seminar takes you through the stages involved in planning your business exit strategy successfully.

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06VECCI – Social Media Workshop 10 June 2015

The Digital Enterprise Program is an Australian Government funded program that offers free training for local businesses and not-for-profit organisations.

This workshop will cover:

• benefits and options

• how ready is your business?

• social media campaign strategies

• measurement tools.

07Women in Business Luncheon 17 June 2015

Join us to hear from Table of Plenty’s founder and 2014 Telstra Business Women’s Business Owner Award winner Kate Weiss about her inspirational journey of starting and growing her business after the birth of her daughter.

08Sustainable Business Network Breakfast 16 July 2015

You are invited to be part of a growing network of businesses that are aware of the competitive advantage of sharing sustainable knowledge and business innovation.

Join with other local business owners over a hot breakfast, to hear participating business profiles, their interest in sustainability and new initiatives to reduce operating costs.

SBV Festival – Mastering Email Overload 5 August 2015

Email is probably the biggest time waster and source of frustration in modern business life. It is central to many of the functions of modern business and a surprisingly high proportion of communications and workload-sharing rely on this technology.

This fast-paced, information-rich 60 minute presentation will demonstrate a proven approach for better managing this critical aspect of your daily work.

Discover the 3 key strategies to get control of your inbox and master your email:WHEN to check email and when to NOT look at it (#1 of the 164 known solutions to email overload).

WHAT to do with each email so that it is handled only once (using the powerful 4D method).

WHERE to file, store and archive email so that it is away from the inbox and easy to retrieve.

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SBV Festival – Bringing Your Business Idea to Life Expo 19 August 2015

Featuring specialist workshops in areas such as Branding, Online Marketing, Sales and Packaging, as well as business owners sharing their own journeys and showcasing their products, this Expo promises to provide all the motivation and information you need to get started.

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SBV Festival – Social Media – Facebook 101 11 August 2015

Learn about social media and why it is important for small businesses to utilise the different platforms available.

This session will go through:

• how you can set up a company Facebook profile

• how to set up and utilise Facebook advertising

• Facebook insights

• Q&A and feedback for individual ideas.

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Women in Business LuncheonHear from Keynote speaker: Kate Weiss, Founder of ‘Table of Plenty’ and Winner of the 2014 Business Owner Award at the Telstra Business Women’s Awards, about her inspirational journey of starting and growing her business.

Kate Weiss founded Table of Plenty during a difficult period in her life after the birth of her daughter, Amy, who has a disability. It was a turning point that started her on a journey from surviving to thriving.

She rediscovered a passion for life, and her subsequent research into food, nutrition and wellbeing led to the creation of her company.

Seven years on, her products are stocked in major supermarkets in Australia and internationally. The business started on the premise that she would only create food she would feed to her own family. ‘Food you can trust from one mother to another’ is its mantra and trademark.

Kate’s vision is to lead the revolution towards healthy eating in Australia. Her business has also provided tens of thousands of hours of work for people with a disability, which is a key part of the business mission and motivation.

Read more about Kate’s story www.tableofplenty.com.au/kates-story.asp

Don’t miss out on attending this event and listening to Kate’s inspirational journey on starting and growing her business.

Update on Kingston Business EventsA review of the Kingston Business Women’s Network has been conducted in 2014 and we can now share with you the exciting new 2015 program of events!

The offer to business is now more inclusive and provides a full suite of options for all those interested in the latest business information and emerging trends.

This includes: • a series of bi-monthly networking events

that are offered to all business people

• providing opportunities to make connections

• promote your own business to others

• learn new skills and information from specialised industry fields

In addition, a broad range of business education workshops are delivered through Small Business Victoria, hosted by Kingston Council on a regular basis throughout the year.

A business expo will be held in partnership with ‘My Other Kitchen’ in Moorabbin during the August Small Business Victoria Festival. There will also be some specialised social media workshops in August.

Kingston Council will continue hosting specific ‘Women in Business Luncheons’ with themes based on popular demand. Partnerships with organisations that focus on women’s issues in business will be sought to provide opportunities to network and share business experience with like-minded participants.

To attend any of the listed events go to the Kingston Business website www.kingston.vic.gov.au/ business/Home

May 2015 Kingston Business Bulletin 7 6 Kingston Business Bulletin May 2015

Factory of the Future

Swinburne’s new Factory of the Future provides industry and organisations with state-of-the-art facilities to explore conceptual ideas for manufacturing next-generation products.

More than just a design, research, manufacturing or teaching space, the Factory of the Future is a hub for engaging undergraduate and secondary students, alumni and the wider community.

Located on the ground floor of Swinburne’s $100 million Advanced Manufacturing and Design Centre (AMDC), this ground-breaking facility is made up of a cluster of specialist studios with highly adaptive capacity. Equipped with advanced visualisation and design tools, designers have the resources to develop prototypes rapidly, create innovative products and research potential manufacturing methods.

The facility offers an immersive virtual reality environment and is a place where designers work in partnership with leading engineers and research staff. It takes the product development construct to the next level by adding in design, business innovation, ICT and rapid prototyping. Designers and engineers can test sustainability and ‘cradle-to-cradle’ potential as well as produce hard copy prototypes – all within the same space.

Five in one

The factory houses a series of co-located studios, each with a specific function:

• 3-D Visualisation and Design Studio: Featuring advanced visualisation tools that allow for intuitive real-time interaction with realistic 3-D imagery.

• Rapid Manufacturing Studio: Equipped with advanced additive manufacturing tools that facilitates conversion from digital concepts to metal, plastic or ceramic prototypes.

• Advanced Inspection and Machining Studio: Advanced machining capability combined with state-of-the-art inspection equipment for developing high quality components.

• Biodevice Innovation Studio: Combines electronics, optics, chemistry and biomaterials-handling with rapid prototyping to produce innovative new medical devices.

• Design for Resource Efficiency Studio: For the design, development and assessment of recycling and manufacturing processes to maximise resource efficiency.

For further information contact Jane Ward, Director, Collaboration and Partnerships on 9214 8626

New rights for food and grocery suppliers

The Federal Government has released the Food and Grocery Code of Conduct, which addresses unfair practices in the grocery sector, including by supermarkets towards suppliers. The ACCC will be responsible for enforcing the Code.

The Code:• requires retailers and wholesalers

to act in good faith

• sets out the requirements of agreements between retailers or wholesalers and suppliers, including that they be in writing

• limits when retailers or wholesalers can unilaterally or retrospectively vary an agreement with a supplier, and requires any variation and the reason for it to be in writing

• sets out a dispute resolution process

The Code complements existing protections for suppliers under the Competition and Consumer Act 2010, including the unconscionable conduct provisions. It was developed in parallel with the

ACCC’s investigations into alleged conduct of grocery retailers, including proceedings against Coles in which the court found that Coles had engaged in unconscionable conduct towards some suppliers.

The ACCC has developed guidance material on the Code, which is available on the ACCC website. The ACCC website will contain a list of the retailers and wholesalers who choose to be bound by the Code.

For more information, visit accc.gov.au

Kingston businesses come together over a shared resourceViridian in Clayton South, a specialised glass manufacturer and Olympic Polymers in Moorabbin, specialising in cleaning, sorting and recycling post-industrial plastic waste, are currently working together to solve a common problem – how to reduce plastic waste going to landfill.

The solution is to sort, recycle and save money along the way!

Plastic waste management at Viridian used three 30m³ bins on site. These bins filled quickly with loose plastic films, plastic pipe and other waste items, at a high monthly disposal cost, and disposal was into landfill.

Viridian also used smaller metal bins throughout the plant to collect plastic waste and then empty them into the three larger bins, filling them quickly. Given the volume of waste collected a compactor was purchased to consolidate the loose plastic waste films. The compactor saved space and is currently baling three to four bales of unsorted plastic waste film (weighing in total, around 600 to 800kg) per week.

These bales were then emptied into one of the 30M³ bins. Through consolidation into bales, Viridian was filling only one or two 30M³ bins per week, thus reducing the waste collection bill by

at least 30% – a significant cost saving except the bales were still going to landfill.

Olympic Polymers has helped Viridian to identify and segregate the various grades of usable plastic collected for sorting into metal bins prior to baling. The bales are then collected in bulk by Olympic Polymers with the majority being converted into high quality plastic resin pallets for reuse in industry.

Olympic Polymer’s plastic resin pallets are sold to other businesses as a feedstock to make a variety of new plastic products, including industrial film and non-critical piping for various applications.

Viridian’s waste collection bill and landfill costs have been reduced by at least 30% as a result of sorting, baling and then recycling plastic film waste and plastic pipes to Olympic Polymers. Based on Viridian’s earlier practice of sending the plastic film to landfill, this successful exchange has also diverted between 600-800kg/week of plastic film from landfill. Viridian separate and clean this plastic waste before delivery, rendering most of it suitable for the manufacture of recycled plastic pallets by Olympic Polymers.

Both companies are part of the ASPIRE* project which is a ‘proof of concept’ project developed in response to manufacturing companies’ concerns about waste disposal costs, particularly those associated with increasing landfill levies. This collaborative project focuses on the development and deployment of an ICT system that will assist the efforts of businesses and councils to reduce

their operating costs, and improve the economic development outcomes of a region.

Not only is this exchange an example of great collaboration through the ASPIRE project, it demonstrates that Viridian’s commitment to segregating and compacting material on-site has had significant economic and environmental benefits.

*Advisory System for Processing, Innovation & Resource Exchange

Read more at www.kingston.vic.gov.au/ business/Business-Support/ Sustainable-Business/ASPIRE

Local business owners: create clarity and confidence – with the help of a business mentor Applications closing soon for the Mentor Partners Program April/May 2015 intake

The Kingston and Glen Eira City Council Mentor Partners Program is a free, confidential service that matches up eligible local businesses with volunteer business mentors. Mentors are experienced business people who give their time freely to support business owners over a 6 month period, to assess their goals and take new actions to help their businesses develop and grow.

The Program has assisted over 400 local businesses from a diverse range of industries and sizes from sole traders all the way through to businesses with a turnover of $2M+.

Program Coordinator Sandy Brouvalis says “Being ready to ask for help is a big step for many business owners, particularly those who are feeling isolated and overwhelmed with the daily demands of their business.”

“A mentor can help business owners develop new habits of viewing their business in an objective way and making time to work on their business rather than just in it.”

The benefits of being mentored are many. Here is what some participants had to say about what their mentor meant for them.

Linda Lewin Elle Belle Recruitment

Because of Danny I have been able to take a more strategic and analytical view of my business. He has enabled me to clearly view and understand the positives, negatives, threats and weaknesses of my business. After each session I have walked away driven, determined and motivated to succeed. He has provided clarity and more importantly someone to discuss my business with and question me and my decisions.

Jeremy Goldman Watch and Grow Pet Food Company

Because of Leon I am able to understand what the big picture looks like. Leon continues to inspire me to work smarter. I am continuing to experience fantastic results under Leon’s guidance.

Businesses based in the Kingston or Glen Eira municipality, who have been trading for at least 12 months and do not operate under a franchise or license agreement, are eligible to apply.

For more information on the Program or to download the application form, visit www.mentorpartners.com.au or contact the Program Coordinator on 0438 507 010 or [email protected]

Moorabbin Airport Preliminary Draft 2015 Master PlanPublic comment is invited for the Moorabbin Airport Preliminary Draft 2015 Master Plan, which sets out the strategic vision for the airport over the next 20 years.

An airport master plan is the principal blueprint for the future coordinated development of the airport and establishes the strategic vision for the economic and efficient use of the airport over the 20 year planning period, which is revised every five years.

The closing time for receipt of submissions is 5pm on Wednesday 17 June 2015.

The Preliminary Draft 2015 Master Plan is available to view and download free of charge on the airport’s website at www.moorabbinairport.com.au/corporate/master-plan

Members of the public are invited to make written comments on the Preliminary Draft 2015 Master Plan via email to [email protected] or mail to Moorabbin Airport Corporation Pty Limited, Airport Management Centre, 66 Bundora Parade, Moorabbin Airport, Victoria 3194.

View website www.moorabbinairport.com.au

For information regarding any of the articles included in this newsletter, please contact us.

Suzanne Ferguson Manager Economic Development

9581 4712 PO Box 1000 Mentone 3194 [email protected]

The information in this publication is given in good faith and has been derived from sources believed to be reliable and accurate. However, the City of Kingston does not accept any liability whatsoever for its contents or the use of the information.

• Small Business Bus Visit to Chelsea 25 May

• Conversation Across Generations 27 May

• AIG – Building a High Performing Team Seminar 2 June

• Exiting Your Business Successfully 3 June

• Meet Your Mates Networking Event 4 June

• Kingston Farmers’ Market 6 June

• VECCI – Social Media Workshop 10 June

• Women in Business Luncheon 17 June

• Kingston Farmers’ Market 4 July

• Sustainable Business Network Breakfast 16 July

• Melbourne Business Awards Breakfast 17 July

• Winning Government Business Seminar 23 July

• Meet Your Mates Networking Event 30 July

• Kingston Farmers’ Market 1 August

• SBV Festival – Mastering Email Overload 5 August

• SBV Festival – Social Media – Facebook 101 11 August

• SBV Festival – Bringing Your Business Idea to Life Expo 19 August

What’s OnRewarding Excellence

Attendees at the Melbourne Business Awards breakfasts have heard from four very diverse businesses that will be vying to become the Business of the Year in 2015.

Tempo Foods, a privately owned Australian Dairy company located in Mordialloc, makes a large range of premium dairy products from fresh hormone-free milk and are certified Kosher, Halal and vegetarian. Tempo makes food with food and never uses any milk powders, gelatines or GM products. Their products include cheeses, milk and cream, yoghurts and dairy desserts.

Moose Enterprise is a global toy company with offices in the US, UK, HK and the head office based in Mentone. This award-winning company is known for designing, developing and distributing toy and lifestyle products across the globe for children of all ages and the young at heart.

Composites Constructions is a leading boat building, boat maintenance and custom composite components manufacturer based in Braeside. Composites Constructions employs a small team of dedicated tradesmen,

whose expertise includes building hi-tech boats, maintaining and refitting boats, and manufacturing composite components.

Nulab Group provides photographic digital printing services for the consummate professional photographer, specialising in digital printing, workflow and business solutions for the professional photographic industry, throughout Oceania and the world. Nulab is a one stop visual communication print specialist.

The next Melbourne Business Awards Breakfast will be on Friday 17 July when two more great companies will present their stories.

For bookings, visit www.melbournebusinessawards.com.au

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