Transcript

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The audio features Dave Payne of Diab Engineering.

We started off in a partnership agreement, that's how the name Diab arrived, I'm the D in it, my partner was Ian, my wife is Anne, his wife was Betty. We saw there was a big opportunity for qualified experienced people in the mining sector. I've been operating something like 34 years, over the years we've just grown, where we probably had a turnover roundabout $300,000 I think we are up to about $12 million this year.

A lot of my employees have been with me 14 or 15 years, so they are part of the business.

With the mining companies they've got very very large equipment. When we talk about some of the motors there would be 750 kilowatts, that's about a 1000 horse power. We try to get ourselves setup to service them, so that means we need to put in some fairly large cranage in our workshops and have equipment to overhaul their stuff when they're broken down fairly quickly.

There's not enough apprentices are being trained. There's a big shortage of tradesmen, and that's really starting to be highlighted in the last couple of years. We've got nine apprentices here at the moment, we assist the high schools, the tech schools with work release programs. It gives us a chance to view and assess some of the kids that will eventually apply for apprenticeships.

The main hole for us is transport. There is a big opportunity for someone designing the right way of going about it.
Supporting local sport is good for business, pony jumping, football, netball. Being in a regional area, we know that our employees are involved in those types of sports and it's good for them to see that we are putting something back into something they enjoy.

Sept 4, 2003.