Great Southern Gazette
From the MD’s Desk From page 4 Robert Reynolds won the Champion Pelargonium title and he also had best exhibit in the specimen section. Some of the students are now being trained to judge at the show. Capital works The construction of the new Health Science building at the Albany campus is progressing on schedule and with the main underground services now relocated, staff should see some major building activity occurring over the next few months. Major service upgrades to the Albany campus are also progressing nicely with tenders for electrical, sewer and gas upgrades to be released in the near future, with intention for work to be completed early to mid-next year. The Albany campus will be undergoing a number of infrastructure remediation projects over the next nine months, focusing on the upgrade of services deemed essential to operational activities. This is required as the campus is approaching 40 years of age and a number of existing services are nearing the end of their expected life cycle. All projects are to be funded via the Department of Training and Workforce Development and include the following: • Mains gas service upgrades • Power supply upgrades • Sewer system upgrades • Asbestos replacement program • Roof and gutter replacement program
5 • Air conditioning system upgrades • Security camera system upgrade • Welding extraction system installation • A new covered walkway • Various minor works projects. The Albany campus also requires the replacement of its existing fire services consisting of fire water mains, hydrants and fire hose reels. This forms part of the new Health Science and Community Services building project. As with all other jobs, is expected to be completed by June 2014, so we have a very busy period ahead of us. Funding will also be available to assist with minor occupational health and safetyrelated projects such as the installation of a new alarm system at the Katanning campus, purchase of a new hydraulic hoist in the auto workshop and replacement of the child care centre fence. The majority of major infrastructure projects are scheduled to start after the Christmas shut-down. New website The new institute website is expected to go live on 16 December 2013. The developers visited the campus on 14 November to train our key personnel in this new system. My sincere thanks to Justin and his team of willing workers and everyone who contributed to this project, we saved many thousands of dollars by doing most of this in-house. Christmas Lunch Finally, I would like to invite you all to our annual Christmas Lunch on Wednesday 11 December at 12 noon at the institute café. Please RSVP to Reception by 4 December. I wish you all the best as you work towards a busy end to the year. Until next month, happy reading, Lidia
Bright sparks – here’s your chance to shine You may have noticed the yellow suggestions box on the intranet – it’s below your favourite pages. If you have any bright ideas for improving our services to our customers or colleagues, click on the box to send an email. Your idea might be about streamlining a process, reporting faults, or saving
resources. Your email will be forwarded to the appropriate section for the necessary research and consideration. Not all suggestions will be appropriate for action, but you will receive acknowledgement and you will be advised if your idea is adopted.