Clean Energy Council pushes for CEFC establishment
29 May, 2012The Clean Energy Council has called on the Australian Parliament to establish the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) “as soon as possible”. The peak body for Australia’s renewable energy industry urged the government to pass laws establishing the $10 billion CEFC so new clean energy technologies can access support.
Master Electricians shocked by ACTU’s Better Bargaining policy
24 May, 2012 by Malcolm Richards CEO, Master Electricians Australia | Supplied by: Master Electricians AustraliaAs an employer group, Master Electricians Australia is extremely concerned with the Australian Council of Trade Union’s (ACTU) recently proposed Better Bargaining policy which will see a return to the unproductive central wage fixation practices of the past. The ACTU’s proposal demonstrates the Labor Party want to control business in every aspect of management including social and corporate responsibility. In our view, the policy exposes Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Workplace Relations Minister Bill Shorten’s stance on bargaining, at the enterprise level, as rhetoric compared to the faceless men’s real objectives. Can you imagine employers being subject to lawful industrial action just because a company may not support the union’s own social issue?
Preparing for the carbon tax
23 May, 2012 by Greg Mills*, CEO, Cincom Systems of Australia | Supplied by: Cincom Systems of Australia Pty LtdWe have all been told that the carbon tax has been designed to help restructure the economy with the aim of using less energy and lowering the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) generated. However, as the July 2012 deadline looms, recent surveys show that less than 50% of Australian companies are actually prepared for its introduction and this percentage is even lower if we only look at small to medium enterprises.
Schneider and Krohne collaborate on automation and instrumentation solution
22 May, 2012 | Supplied by: Schneider ElectricSchneider Electric has announced a partnership with Krohne that the companies say will provide customers with a complete automation and instrumentation solution, which will include Schneider’s PlantStruxure process automation architecture and Krohne’s instrumentation offer.
Finepoint’s Circuit Breaker Test & Maintenance Training Conference
21 May, 2012Finepoint’s 19th Annual Circuit Breaker Test & Maintenance Training Conference will be held over 1-5 October in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Small and medium businesses receive $20m worth of energy-efficiency grants
18 May, 2012The federal government has pledged over $20 million in grants to help small and medium businesses and community groups improve energy efficiency.
Australia has a "skills opportunity", not skills shortage, claims Chris Evans
18 May, 2012In a speech at a Mainstream Maintenance and Reliability Networking Conference in Perth, Senator Chris Evans said that, rather than a skills shortage, Australia is facing a "skills opportunity".
CEDIA Award winners announced
18 May, 2012The winners of the CEDIA Electronic Lifestyles Awards were announced in Brisbane on Wednesday 9 May in front of 300 industry professionals. This year's awards had 77 project entries from 28 companies and from five countries: Australia, China, Japan, New Zealand and Taiwan. The winners of the CEDIA Electronic Lifestyles Awards were announced in Brisbane on Wednesday 9 May in front of 300 industry professionals. This year's awards had 77 project entries from 28 companies and from five countries: Australia, China, Japan, New Zealand and Taiwan.
Schneider Electric IT appoints State managers for ACT and WA
17 May, 2012Schneider Electric IT has announced the regional appointments of Olaf Moon as State Manager, ACT and Federal Government and Graeme Ridler as State Manager, WA.
Call to stop Building Service Authorities fining qualified contractors
17 May, 2012Master Electricians Australia was recently called on to intervene in a case of ‘government bureaucracy gone mad’ in Queensland, where licensed electrical contractors were being fined by a state agency for performing work they are qualified to do.
Industry welcomes Tasmanian government’s decision to reform electricity market
17 May, 2012The Tasmanian government’s decision to reform its electricity market has been welcomed by the Energy Retailers Association of Australia (ERAA) following an expert panel review of the market. The decision will see the government introduce changes such as selling Aurora Energy’s customer base and introducing full retail competition (FRC) for the state by February next year.
Malaysia outpaces Singapore, Australia and NZ in NBN deployment
16 May, 2012Malaysia is “comfortably outpacing” other countries in the Asia Pacific region with its High Speed Broadband (HSBB) network being built by Telekom Malaysia, according to recent figures released by Informa Telecoms & Media.
ABB Australia acquires Bob White Electrix and LE Jarvis
16 May, 2012 | Supplied by: ABB Australia Pty LtdABB Australia has acquired Bob White Electrix and LE Jarvis for an undisclosed amount as part of a strategy to broaden its motor and generator repair and service business in Australia. ABB anticipates the acquisition will close in July.
Eaton to exhibit ePDUs and solutions for virtualised data centres at CeBIT
15 May, 2012 | Supplied by: Eaton Electrical (Australia) Pty LtdEaton Corporation will exhibit its new set of enclosure power distribution units and showcase a range of solutions for virtualised data centres and IT infrastructure at CeBIT 2012.
Energy supply industry urges WA government to abandon re-merger
15 May, 2012The energy supply industry has continued to urge the WA government not to allow the re-merger of Verve Energy and Synergy, following an Economic Regulation Authority (ERA) report that said the re-merger would not address the real drivers of rising energy costs.
