Haulage specialist scoops top award

Transport company Smith & Davies last night won the highest honour at the WestpacTrust North Shore Business Excellence Awards.

The transport, civil engineering and logging company won the Supreme Business Excellence Award after also collecting the ACC ThinkSafe Workplace Safety Award.

Smith & Davies was established in 1927 as a general carrier and has grown to specialise in bulk materials handling and transport, heavy haulage, civil contracting and forestry.

The company, which now employs 140 people, has a proud family history with third and fourth generation members at the helm and long-standing staff members who, while embracing cutting-edge technology, still maintain the values Smith & Davies established back in 1927.

The WestpacTrust excellence awards are in their fifth year and are the premier business awards for North Shore City. Ten category awards, including the ACC safety award, were also announced last night. The other category winners were:



* TalkTactics NZ won the A.C. Blackmore Excellence in Service Delivery Award. The six-year-old firm is becoming recognised for the quality of its business development services for call centres worldwide. Many of New Zealand's top 100 companies are clients.

* Envision Presentations received the Ancare NZ Excellence in Innovation Award. Envision Presentations supplies state-of-the-art visual communication and presentation technology products. Established in 1997 by Murray Thoms, Envision Presentation is now a mainstream supplier of videoconferencing and audio-visual equipment with major clients throughout New Zealand and the South Pacific.

* The Massey University Excellence in Technology Award was won by Orcon Internet. Orcon is the wholesaler to more than one third of all the internet service providers in New Zealand. Orcon has been North Shore-based since its inception in 1995 and offers internet-based products and services ranging from standard dial-up accounts to internet billing software for ISPs.

* The Telecom Local Directories Best Emerging Business Award went to Hillside Building Supplies. As a relatively new entrant in the building supplies market, Hillside Building Supplies has already established a reputation for knowledgeable staff, excellent customer service and quality products. It provides a comprehensive range of quality building materials which are aimed primarily at meeting the needs of the residential builder.

* Heletranz won the Actionmail & Alliance Construction Excellence in Marketing Award. Heletranz started in 1988 and became the market leader in two principal areas of operation: corporate and leisure adventure trips and filming services.

* The Mairangi Arts Centre Trust won the North Shore Times Advertiser Community Contribution Award. For the past 10 years the Mairangi Arts Centre Trust has been developing as a community arts centre. It has 175 volunteers and in the past year hosted 25,000 visitors and more than 1000 artists. It is a non-profit community visual art centre which aims to run a continual programme of arts-related activities and events such as exhibitions, classes, workshops, holiday programmes, demonstration days and lectures.

* 3M New Zealand won the TMP Worldwide Employer of Choice Award. 3M New Zealand strongly advocates balancing work and life. It has about 70 employees who have been with the company for 15 years. It attributes its low staff turnover to its innovative culture and flexible work environment. The company has a work and life programme designed to encourage employees to pursue a healthy balance between work and social activities.

* Giltrap Motors won the Skill New Zealand Excellence in Workplace Training Award. During the past two years, Giltrap Motors has succeeded in setting and achieving training goals. The company is now the largest motor vehicle dealership in North Shore City and operates under the brands Giltrap Holden and Giltrap Subaru.

* The Smales Farm Excellence in Environmental Management Award went to Forest Roading Services. Forest Roading Services began in 1988 with a staff of three. The company is now a rapidly emerging business with 34 staff focused on using environmentally friendly techniques to deliver roading services. It has discovered that environmentally friendly techniques are not only more profitable but more user friendly than traditional methods.

Enterprise North Shore