Feeding the industry in Morobe

NCS was IN ACTION serving up delicious BBQ fare of steaks, sausages, hamburgers and salads at a successful two day event at the end of March hosted by Morobe Mining Joint Venture (MMJV) at Lae Showground.

The event brought together mining and drilling company’s rescue units to showcase their talents and tactics. It was an interesting weekend full of excitement, fun and joy and a great opportunity to meet some industry colleauges and learn more about what happens out on site.

Challenges of delivering over land and sea

It’s an awesome responsibility for Purchasing Manager Collin Baim and his small team of assistants, drivers and crew of NCS’ Raibus Challenger to deliver and store at least a month’s worth of supplies on site at Kurumbukari and Basamuk project sites for client Ramu NiCo.

An indication of some of the volumes of basic ingredients required to provide 270,000 meals per month at these sites include:

• 25 tonnes of beef
• 20 tonnes of pork
• 20,000 chickens
• 2 tonnes of small goods
• 300,000 eggs
• 20 tonnes of rice

That’s quite a shopping list!

The added complexity is that 60% of our customers at these two sites are Chinese nationals requiring traditional Chinese meals. To provide this specialised service, NCS employs specialist Chefs from China to train National Chefs in techniques and Chinese cuisines. Certain ingredients must also be imported direct from China.

“It’s a very challenging job. We are a close team and with patience, organisation, good communication and above all, consistency, we work together to ensure that we keep track of containers at sea from Australia & Asia, and in turn, deliver goods to sites.” said Collin who is based at Madang in PNG’s Rai Coast.

“We try to have a month’s worth of stock on site at any given time as both locations are remote and have great challenges transportation wise. Also, communicating with suppliers from overseas and locally who don’t speak English well is another challenge.” he said.

Containers often arrive from Asia and Australia at either Basamuk or Madang, and then travel again by sea and/or road to site.

Overland to Kurumbukari: 75km inland in a verymountainous region only accessible by four wheel drive vehicles from both Lae and Madang. Last wet season the road was cut in many places but we met the challenge head on and kept supplies up to the site in all weather even involving dugout canoes to ford the flooded Ramu river. It was an NCS vehicle that got through first after flooding.

Across the sea to Basamuk: 56km from Madang across the often rough seas of Astrolobe Bay. There is no road access. The NCS Raibus Challenger (barge) is the key vessel with its capacity to transport cargo and passengers to and from site. It is able to cope in all seas and weather and is a vast improvement from using local vessels in the early days of the project.

Local growers supply produce daily

Another arm of our supply chain at NCS Raibus is the local purchasing team over on the Rai Coast at Basamuk. It’s quite a sight to see each morning as a steady stream of banana boats arrive at Nutlau Beach from various destinations along the coast bringing their fresh produce to the site. Some of the growers travel up to 8 hours by boat each way just to supply the site!

Ably led by Douglas Sibi from Ganglau, the team liaise with more than 50 – 80 clan groups, landowners and growers spread throughout the Rai Coast all the way to the border with Morobe Province to keep the kitchens stocked with fresh produce daily.

Each month the team receives and processes around 120 tonne of fresh fruit and vegetables which are meticulously checked for quality and weighed before being distributed to the projects. Locally grown crops include: banana, egg plant, kaukau, pokchoi, chinese cabbage, tomatoes and capsicum.

Well done to NCS purchasing and supply teams around PNG. The job that you do is so important to our operations – we do nothave a business without you doing your work
so well.

Australian High Commission takes on NCS

Being chosen by a diplomatic mission to provide the daily catering needs to their staff – is indeed an honour that NCS has embraced 110%. On 20 April, NCS commenced service at The Australian High Commission.

When Management at the High Commission were ready to renew their catering contract – they said NCS was the supplier of choice. They had already experienced quality of food and service at previous events catered over the years including the Anzac Day Gun Fire breakfast, BBQs and the occasional formal dinner.

“We have made the right choice with NCS” said a representative of the AHC “Overall, NCS food is of a high standard and the service is second to none! NCS staff are always friendly and eager to please.” said an AHC representative.

This contract is a little different to our usual canteen contract, as daily service expectations are at a 5 star standard. “This is the kind of opportunity we look forward to – to showcase our abilities to service Corporate Catering expectations because of the business level people we are serving, which is different to commercial catering on mining sites or other kinds of industrial level canteens” said General Manager of Operations, Brian Curran.

Prepared and served daily is a selection of fresh, healthy food including, sandwiches, wraps and salads as well as a variety of hot dishes like roasts, curries and vegetarian dishes. Of course, there is an espresso machine for cappuccinos, lattés and short blacks!

Getting the best team together

When we were presented with this opportunity, we were excited about being able to find our star performers and also provide them with an environment to hone different aspects of their skills. They are already receiving a lot of recognition from AHC customers and doing NCS very proud.” he said.

NCS ALSO PROVIDES CATERING AND CANTEEN SERVICES IN PORT MORESBY AND LAE FOR COCA COLA AMATIL, KK KINGSTON, EAST WEST TRANSPORT, NESTLE, XTRADA AND TRUKAI.

A high-tech solution for vehicle and staff security

Electronic trackers are now installed in all NCS Vehicles monitoring activities on land and sea 24/7.

As we all know, safety and security in PNG is one of the most critical issues facing everyone – not just businesses. Wherever NCS operates, we have an obligation to provide the safest environment possible and this includes on the road and at sea

NCS have installed electronic trackers in all NCS vehicles. This will enable us to see where our vehicles are – day or night as they transport staff and produce to and from sites.

The trackers relay signals back up to a satelliteand all vehicles are monitored 24/7 by an external company in Port Moresby. This hightech solution will also enable NCS Operation teams all over PNG to pin point a vehicle in our fleet at any time of the day via the web.

“With over 60 cars in our fleet throughout the country, it is a must have to ensure the safety of our employees as well as the maintenance and care of our vehicles” said NCS Operations Manager, Mick Pye.

The trackers provide real-time data “This system is a very effective tool as it allows us to track and monitor the vehicles ourselves in real time and it provides real time data on locations, speed, mileage and most of all fuel usage. This will also allow us to monitor how responsibly our drivers are managing our vehicles, obeying speed, road rules and track any irregular occurrences.” continued Mick.

Increased safety measures for staff is also a benefit of the system with each vehicle fitted with a panic alarm. “If there is an accident or an incident with our staff in a vehicle, we will be able to confirm their whereabouts and send assistance. The security company can despatch an armed team within seconds of receiving a panic signal.” said Mick.

“The security and safety aspects of this device will add value to our vehicle fleet management. There is even a tracker installed on our barge, the NCS Raibus Challenger!” he said.

Automated vending machines to site

NCS representatives have been working closely with Coca Cola Amatil (CCA) since March 2010 on the installation and operation of automated vending machines at NCS project sites. Presently, NCS is the only caterer in PNG to deliver this kind of service to its clients.

NCS and CCA developed a very practical and  safe system of operations. Coupons rather than money are used in the vending machines, preventing coins from becoming jammed in the mechanisms and offering a more secure system than handling cash.

It also improves convenience as customers can access cold drinks when they need rather than wait for restricted opening times of canteens.

Four machines have been installed in the messes at the Ramu NiCo sites Basamuk and Kurumbukari – they are the first vending machines in Madang Province.

Assistant Project Manager, Andrew Clinkaberry said that the arrival of the machines have been  well received by the client, customers and employees. “It has also been a bit of a morale boost to the Ramu Nico community.” he said.

NCS and The Alliance Group combined will be managing over half of the units available  currently in PNG. They will only be installed on sites that are deemed very safe.

New kitchens and dining room at Basamuk

There was a buzz of excitement at the commencement of lunch service on Saturday 28th of May as it was prepared and served in the new dining facility at the Ramu NiCo’s Basamuk site.

The new facilities replace the original kitchens and dining rooms which were built and equipped at the beginning of the project to service very different requirements to what the site has grown to today.

Under construction for the past 18 months, NCS staff and developer MCC’s employees have been very patient with the process and now have reason to celebrate the opening for different reasons.

NCS Chefs and catering attendants prepare both Western and traditional Chinese dishes three times a day for more than 400 diners.

IN THE KITCHEN: Assistant Project Manager, Andrew Clinkaberry explained that the most noticeable improvement is the layout of the kitchen which is departmentalised within the various food categories. This allows concise planning of menus and daily activities and clearly maps out for them the varying styles of preparation and cooking.

“The impact on NCS staff has been a renewed purpose and attitude towards their work and the service. There is excitement and a thirst for knowledge with a pride in their work which is evident from presentation and preparation of meals to the care put into the maintenance of the dining room.”

“You can feel a real sense of achievement in the attitude of the staff after what has been a long and sometimes difficult path to where they are now. All staff have a real sense of belonging and are excited by every challenge a new day brings. Staff are now more focused on setting and achieving goals and developing their skills in the kitchen.” said Andrew.

IN THE DINING ROOM: “It is evident from the happy chatter amongst the diners that they are very happy at last to have a ‘gathering’ place where they can relax, socialise and enjoy a meal at the same time.” observed Andrew.

The great efforts of NCS are acknowledged by MCC Management who praised the delicious food prepared and served by our staff in their new spacious and  light-filled dining room.

Menucast Innovation

NCS Lihir has recently started using a new way of communicating daily menus and messages to clients and staff in the dining rooms. The Menucast system displays information via four state of the art LCD monitors located in the main dining room area.

It is a fully customised system that enables us to design and pre-program information that is of interest to our site including:

• Menus and dining cycles
• Health and safety updates and bulletins
• Flight schedules
• Site alerts and warnings
• News updates

Catering Manager Alan Bloxwich said“Menucast is proving to be a fantastic tool for us to display not only our menus but information and news to our clients and staff. It is easily updated and very eye catching.” “Safety messages are especially effective when displayed this way. For example we used Menucast to keep residents updated during the tsunami warning after the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, when all the camp residents in the low lying areas were evacuated to the Main mess area until the warning was lifted.” he said.

Menucast has the capability of also playing video and sound, and can be extended to multiple locations across the site.

In use, since March, the reaction from our customers has been positive!

Building good community relations

NCS has sponsored a local football team who funnily enough, has a food name!

The NCS Hamburger Hills touch football team is one of the top teams in the competition, and are currently in second spot playing for the Lord Mayor’s Cup in the Boundary Road off season touch rugby league competition.

Team President Mr Joe Silas and team Captain Mathew Moses were very happy and pleased with the timely sponsorship by NCS. “Sport is one of the few activities that keeps youths occupied and distracts them from doing other silly things” said Mr Silas “ We are very happy that NCS could helps us out in this way” he said

Golden Kina Award Winner – Cairns International Airfreight

The Quiet Achievers

Cairns International Airfreight has been a service provider to NCS for a number of years and are an important link in our supply chain. Based in Cairns (Australia), this small freight forwarding company always go that extra mile to take care of inventory and transportation of our precious cargo.

We take this opportunity to acknowledge their service to us by awarding them the NCS Golden Kina Award.

The crew, Chris Mummery and Kim Glover, are quiet achievers who understand the importance of great customer service. Sometimes that means doing things that are not strictly “part of the job” – in order to get things done properly!

When goods arrived to them for transport that was incorrectly packaged by the supplier, the team immediately repacked the shipment to our requirements and had them on the next flight to Port Moresby, as we needed them urgently. This is the spirit of “Meeting the Challenge – Every Day”.

The company was nominated by Supply Chain Manger,Corey Polume who presented Chris and Kim with the award, and also some traditional PNG gifts chosen by members of NCS’ supply chain team.

“The crew at Cairns international Airfreight are true professionals, who are not just suppliers but business partners for us. We appreciate what they do for us and thank them for their service, which in turn helps us in meeting our client’s needs’ said Corey.

On receiving their award and gifts, Chris and Kim said that NCS is one of their easiest clients. “They always keep in communication with us, tell us what’s coming and provide detailed paperwork. This is important as it reduces the chasing around and means that we CAN ship the goods as soon as we receive them.” said Kim.

Once again, we would just like to say thanks to the team for their ongoing service and professionalism.

NCS Properties staff dance in honour

It was a very special day for NCS Properties on Sunday 12 June when the cultural groups from the provinces of New Ireland (Namatanai, Kavieng, Lihir – Pangoh, Mali & Zuen), East New Britain (Duke of York, Kokopo & Rabaul), andMomase (Morobe, Madang,Sepik) joined together in a unique celebration to farewell their ‘leader’, Matthew Paget.

It was a rare and spectacular display of unity, ceremony,song and dance, in an honour rarely afforded to a non PNG person.

At the beginning of the day, Matt was led to the traditional East New Britain men’s house known as Palnapidik. The Palnapidik is sacred and his initiation ceremony will remain private in respect to cultural traditions. When he emerged from the Palnapidik he was recognised as a traditional leader and the celebrations began with East New Britain’s Whip dance. This was followed by the Pangoh Cultural group who lined up and individually paid respect to him.

Following this, all the cultural groups moved into position to commence the PNG Unity Dance to recognise the congregation and camaraderie of all provinces within NCS Properties team.

Celebrations, performances & speeches continued late into the afternoon. Most of the dancers were NCS Properties employees.

This was a very special day, a very emotional day for the NCS Properties team and one that may not be repeated – yet will be remembered for many years to come.

“I have had the pleasure of working with absolutely magnificent people. We have had a very productive yet fun experience and I am truly grateful to have met such wonderful people.”

Said Matt. It has been some of the most satisfying aspects of working with NCS in PNG – achieving projects in a very challenging environment, training PNG personnel to undertake and deliver complex works, and above all learning about PNG cultural traditions, values and beliefs that are PNG.” he continued.

Marcus Gosling, Managing Director of NCS said that Matt had bought great leadership and team building skills to NCS Properties which has been based on a respect for the local cultures and traditions. This is a great example of delivering true sustainable development that will have benefits for the local communities for many years to come.

Matthew has been at the helm of NCS Properties for almost 5 years, and now leaves the company to further his career in Australia.

Celebrating the successes of the NCS Properties crew

For the last 5 ½ years, NCS Properties has grown steadily as a company and today, employs 241 tradesmen – carpenters,plumbers, electricians, tilers, welders, refrigeration mechanics,plant & equipment operators, mechanics, as well as administration,purchasing, accountants, storemen and cleaners.

Based on Lihir Island in New Ireland Province, the company’s goals are to: Deliver our projects on time, on budget at the highest quality maintaining the highest level of safety.

They have achieved the construction of a number of challenging projects on the island including:

• 200 and 400 man standard / basic accommodation camp
• resort style 500 man camp
• residential houses, duplexes, guest wings
• commercial industrial warehousing, office complexes
• infrastructure works for schools, villages and the community.

The current project, Lakunbut, which has been reported in previous issues of Gadona, is going well. Stage 1 is nearing completion and the development will ultimately deliver 432 up-market accommodation rooms for Newcrest Limited.

COMMITTED PEOPLE MATTER

Developing people is integral to any business and Manager Matt Paget believes that his team are fantastic and committed for all the right reasons. “I can confidently say that our people are 100% committed to getting the job done and all are great achievers.”he said.

They are responding to a culture that has been developed within NCS Properties based on the following principles:

• firm yet fair
• treat one another with respect
• always commit yourself to the task to ensure you are
• contributing to the team
• have fun when we come to work, that is a real winner for everybody.

NCS Properties have a diverse mix of employees who are predominantly from Lihir, yet many others come from Rabaul, East New Britain, Port Moresby, Lae, Manus and various areas in the highlands.

“To help build cohesiveness and team spirit we regularly hold training which enables personal growth within our employees. We award certificates of recognition for achievements and participation in our projects, hold regular BBQs and sporting events to really highlight our appreciation of our employees by the company.”continued Matt.

“We continuously train our personnel and promote from within the ranks ensuring continued growth within our people.” he said.

“I am most proud of the team, the spirit & camaraderie that we share, and also the evolution from simple small contracted projects to large scale diverse complex projects which has led to sustained growth of the company.”

MATT’S TOP 3 REMINDERS ON ACHIEVING GOALS

1. Reflection: Take time to reflect on your past whether it is personal or work related, and the lessons learnt from your past. Ensure you take the correct step forward which will lead to personal growth and greater understanding.

2. Simple steps complete difficult tasks: Step your objective out into achievable steps. If you do this no matter how complicated the task / job / project is, you will achieve it.

3. Success is only what you are willing to settle for. Only you personally can decide whether or not you are successful.

Take pride in your work & be the best you can be, be a good person & treat people as you wish to be treated. If you do that and go back to phrase 1 “reflection” you will soon measure your success.