Sustainable development

Bis Industries is pro-active in engaging communities and individuals to develop small businesses that support Bis Industries and are aligned with its operations.

We have partnered with industries and communities to identify industrial opportunities. With MOUs, we work with key community members to identify community interest, develop communication links, build relationships with all stakeholders and establish the types of support to develop an appropriate corporate structure. We assist in setting up the business so that the company can operate as an Indigenous company with its own activities.

Pilbara case study: Pilbara Waste and Pilbara Logistics

Bis Industries has a long history of working with Aboriginal people in the area of small business development. In 1995, as a division of Brambles Industrial Services, we built a partnership with a Port Hedland local identity, Geoff Stocker. Geoff, an Aboriginal man from Bullfinch, had a passion and vision for the training and employment of the people in the local communities and he saw the crane industry as a viable opportunity. In 1995, he started his own training with Bis Industries, gained accreditation and subsequently became a subcontractor to Bis Industries after purchasing one of their 30 tonne cranes. Geoff operated his crane in the Perth metropolitan region and on the Kwinana industrial strip where he gained valuable insight into the crane industry, while learning about corporate governance from the partnership with Bis Industries at the same time.

In early 2000 Geoff moved his entire operation to the Pilbara region of Western Australia, having built his fleet to five cranes and two crane trucks. We engaged all of Geoff’s equipment on the LNG IV expansion programme on the Burrup Peninsula for the construction contract.

Today, Geoff heads up an Aboriginal business empire, Pilbara Waste and Pilbara Logistics, that work in the areas of logistics and waste management throughout the Pilbara region. In 2009, his companies were awarded the Chamber of Commerce and Industry “Small Business of the Year Award” for the second occasion. This award recognises business excellence coupled with Geoff’s focus on training and employment for his people.

Bis Industries appreciates and acknowledges the valuable learning experience it has gained in the area of partnerships with Aboriginal businesses through its associations with Geoff.

And the partnership continues. Currently, the Bis Industries Indigenous Development Team and Geoff are investigating the opportunities for future industrial partnerships in the north-west region of Western Australia. A core value of any future partnership will be a joint training and employment programme for local Aboriginal people.