Cavalier Bremworth

Winner of the 2005 EMA Excellence in Manufacturing & Services Award
Finalist, Brookfields Lawyers Employer of Choice Award

As a large business that has historically maintained a relatively low profile despite significant achievements, Cavalier Bremworth executives felt that the local awards program was an opportunity to recognise and reward its 800-strong workforce, which has a particular strength at combining traditional craftsmanship with the latest technology in the manufacturing process.

"We were motivated to take part in the Westpac Manukau Business Excellence Awards because we sought to lift the organisation's profile within our home city," says spokesperson Colin McKenzie.

"We wanted our own employees to appreciate and take pride in the fact that they are part of a truly international company that compares very favourably with businesses on a local and international scale, and the Awards were a way of doing that."

Colin McKenzie
Cavalier Bremworth
www.cavalierbremworth.co.nz

Clevedon Coast Oysters Ltd.

Winners of the 2004 Excellence in Exporting Award

Here at Clevedon Coast Oysters we all work together as a team, sometimes under extreme pressure. Callum McCallum started this company in 1984 with a vision on growing and supplying one of New Zealand's finest oysters and he succeeded, and has expanded over the years to dominate the local market and also break into the export market and succeed.

To win the Westpac Manukau Business Excellence Award in Exporting was one of the most prestigious and uplifting experiences of our business career. We display our trophies and framed awards in our shop in Clevedon with pride. Thank you to Enterprising Manukau and all the organisers and sponsors who have made these awards the success they are."

Jill Kerr
Factory Manager
Clevedon Coast Oysters
914 Clevedon-Kawakawa Road
RD 5, Manukau
www.clevedonoysters.co.nz

Climate Coating Ltd.

Winners of the 2004 Best Emerging Business Award

Winning the Westpac award was a milestone and a time of celebration for Climate. The external recognition lifted our profile and interest both in the industry and community and most importantly was a pat on the back for the Climate team who have worked so hard. We have so much more to achieve and will certainly be back in the future with the supreme award in our sights.

Guy Wills
Chief Executive
Climate
DDI 09 256 7877
Email: guy.wills@climate.chh.com
www.climate.chh.com

Excell Corporation

Winners of the 2004 ACC ThinkSafe Workplace Safety Award

Winning the Westpac Manukau Business Excellence Award in the ACC ThinkSafe Workplace Safety Award category last year was an outstanding achievement for Excell and really set the Company apart as leaders in the infrastructure maintenance industry. We have won significant numbers of new contracts since the receiving the award and internally have considerably strengthened our culture of excellence in Health & Safety. Our employees have gained a real sense of pride in being part of the best and safest team in the country. More >

Earl Gasparich
Chief Financial Officer
Excell Corporation Limited
Direct Telephone +64 9 272 8954
Direct Facsimile +64 9 2728939
Mobile 021 399 276
www.excellcorp.co.nz

Goldlink Warehousing & Distribution Ltd

Winners of the 2004 Excellence in Transport, Warehousing & Distribution Award and Brookfields Employer of Choice Award

At Goldlink we strive daily to be better than we were the day before, we are a very busy group and find that weeks roll into months and months roll in to years. Sometimes it is difficult to find the time to analyse and view your progress throughout the year. Entering the Westpac Manukau Business Excellence Awards 2004 in the first instance seemed a little overwhelming, a task we considered not undertaking. However we were encouraged and supported by the team at Enterprising Manukau and completed the entry criteria.

We discovered that in order to complete the sections we needed to look at the processes in every area of our company, from management, environment, customer relationships and obviously our profitability. As we completed each section the information we were gathering became invaluable, it highlighted areas that we considered our weaknesses and provided us the opportunity to build on those areas.

To actually win an award is an honour and the ultimate reward for the hard work and dedication every member or our company has contributed. Winning Two Awards, The Excellence in Transport, Warehousing & Distribution Award and The Brookfields Employer of Choice Award, filled our team with pride and motivated us all. The Awards have provided us with a credibility that is recognised by both our existing clients as well as prospective clients, because we are one of the smaller companies in our industry and our name is not as recognizable as some of the larger companies this benchmark of credibility is priceless.

Our foyer is now a place of pride, where our Trophies and Framed awards greet us daily with a reminder of ‘We Are Winners'. Thankyou to all the organizers and sponsors who make these awards the success they are.

Christine Aitchison
GoldLink Warehousing & Distribution Ltd
P.O. Box 107 110, Airport Oaks
9 Freight Place, Airport Oaks, Auckland
Ph 64 9 2752400
Fax 64 9 2752401
Email: christine@goldlink.co.nz
www.goldlink.co.nz

Kiwi Discovery

Winners of the 2004 Westpac Supreme Award "Best Business of the Year 2004" and also the Customer Service Award and Excellence in Tourism Award

Kiwi Discovery has been involved in the Westpac Manukau Business Excellence Awards since 1998. In our first year, we were Highly Commended in two categories. In our second year, we won those same two categories, and in our third year, 2000, we were Finalists.

Last year, we were delighted to not only win two categories, but to receive the overall Supreme Award. This was a pinnacle of achievement for us, and one of our proudest moments. The Westpac Manukau Business Excellence Awards are a remarkable learning process. The entry preparation is intensive, and through it I have learned a lot about my business because it is an opportunity to evaluate every aspect of the company and to look for opportunities to improve it.

Winning provides our staff with recognition they need, and it confirms that we are driving a truly leading edge business. If you are contemplating entering in this year's Awards programme I can only encourage you to go for it. You will be repaid many times over for the time that you invest.

Yong Chan Lee
Founder
Kiwi Discovery
Winner, Westpac Manukau Business of the Year 2004
www.kiwidiscovery.net

Nautech Electronics Ltd

Winners of the 2004 Excellence in Innovation Award and Excellence in Manufacturing Award

While we are continually looking hard at our business and implementing plans and procedures to ensure that we are professional and competitive, entering the 2004 Westpac Manukau Business Excellence Awards gave us an opportunity to examine every aspect of our business from an outside perspective and enabled us to identify areas of opportunity for further improvement. Winning both the Manufacturing and Innovation categories was wonderful recognition, not only for Alison and myself, but for the whole team at Nautech. It gave us the satisfaction of knowing that indeed we were "on track" and being seen by others as professional and innovative. It has given us a higher profile in New Zealand business circles resulting in an increase in business. The whole experience has had a positive effect on the business and has been great for the morale of the staff.

Andrew Turner
Managing Director
Alison Turner
HR / Admin Manager
Nautech Electronics Ltd, 120 Cryers Road, Manukau
P O Box 259-007, AUCKLAND
Telephone: (09) 273-2001
Mobile: (021) 444-604
Email: alison@nautech.com
www.nautech.com

Villa Maria Estate Limited

2005 Westpac Manukau Supreme Business of the Year
Winner of the 2005 Express International Logistics Excellence in Exporting Award (exporting more than 5 years)
Winner of the 2005 Realize Innovation Limited Excellence in Innovation & Strategy Award

Winemaker Villa Maria Estate was named the Westpac Manukau Business of the Year in 2005. The company's Managing Director, George Fistonich, is a believer in the benefits of being involved in business award programmes.

"The process of entering the awards makes you look hard at what you are doing right and wrong in your business, and sharpen up your act. It gets everybody involved, and draws a line in the sand," he says.

As a winner Mr Fistonich says the company received valuable publicity, a major benefit of which is giving customers the confidence of doing business with you.

George Fistonich
Villa Maria Estate Limited
www.villamaria.co.nz/

Styrobeck Plastics Limited

2006 Westpac Manukau Supreme Business of the Year

John Beck, owner of last year's supreme winning business at the Westpac Manukau Business Excellence Awards, says that the hours of effort invested into entering, and winning, a business award pays for itself many times over. The successful business has reaped rewards in the form of recognition from existing and new customers, and has not spent a cent on advertising since being named Westpac Manukau Business of the Year in 2006.

John Beck submitted his company, Styrobeck Plastics Limited, to the scrutiny of Westpac Manukau Business Excellence Awards judges twice before securing victory. Motivated by the media exposure that he had seen others gain from a win, he was looking for a way to make more people aware of the services provided by his innovative manufacturing company. "It was very simple - we were trying to raise our profile without spending massive dollars on advertising," he says.

The first year Styrobeck entered, it came away empty handed, although they were a finalist in one category. John Beck and his team were disappointed, but took the judges' feedback on board and spent time improving the presentation of their entry.

The second year, Styrobeck not only won two categories, including the EMA Excellence in Manufacturing & Services Award, and the Excellence in Innovation and Strategy Award, it also took away the overall prize as Manukau's best business for 2006.

What resulted was an influx of publicity. The company's name was on billboards and event advertising, and it also received editorial in national and local newspapers and magazines, and a great increase in recognition by other businesses in the region.

"It has certainly given us a lot more respect," says Beck. "Our existing customers are proud to deal with us, and have confidence that we know what we are doing."

The result was both improved and more confident business relationships, and significant savings in advertising spend. "We haven't advertised since we won the award, we haven't needed to," says Beck, and it is only now, nearly a year later, that the company is launching a new advertising campaign.

Beck also says that for Styrobeck, the process of entering the awards, and spending time assessing all aspects of the business' methodologies and processes also made a difference to his perception of the company.

"It has helped us to measure performance, to see what strategies were right and wrong, and to analyse what we were doing," he says of the process which requires entrants to answer a series of written questions about their company, and also includes a visit from judges for those that become finalists.

John Beck
Styrobeck Plastics Limited
www.styrobeck.co.nz