When we turned 10 in November 2023, we wanted to celebrate the people who are part of our story and who also are working hard to make Tasmania the most liveable island in the world.
Over the last few weeks of the year, we ran a series called ‘Celebrate the extraordinary’, with posts featuring companies we have worked with over the years who are achieving extraordinary things for Tasmania and beyond. Here are the stories we celebrated in 2023.
SRT LogisticsSRT Logistics, Tasmania’s most recognised, family-owned, logistics company, has a 25-year track record of success at the forefront of the industry, providing transport and warehousing services for chilled and frozen goods in Australia. They have a large and modern fleet of refrigerated trucks and trailers, as well as state-of-the-art facilities for storage and distribution across Tasmania and Victoria.
SRT Logistics cemented their leading position in the national freight market when they were named the Woolworths Group ‘2023 Primary Connect Large Carrier of the Year’ for the second year in a row.
SRT Logistics has led several transformative initiatives, with a strong focus on digitisation and process improvement. By harnessing cutting-edge technologies, the company has revolutionised supply chain management, ensuring swift and seamless transportation across various sectors. Moreover, the company's unwavering dedication to sustainability has resulted in the adoption of eco-friendly practices, contributing to a greener approach to logistics and supply chain operations.
With a steadfast commitment to customer satisfaction, SRT Logistics has cemented its status as a trusted partner, recognised for delivering exceptional service and upholding the highest standards of reliability and professionalism.
UTAS
The University of Tasmania is shaping the future of education, seamlessly merging academic brilliance with environmental stewardship, ultimately striving for a more sustainable and equitable world.
From its humble beginnings 130 years ago, the University of Tasmania has grown into a pioneering institution. Over the years, researchers have made significant contributions to various fields, from marine conservation to sustainable urban development, cementing @UTAS's reputation as an institution that prioritises real-world outcomes over mere statistics.
As a global leader in Sustainable Development Goal 13 (SDG13): Climate Action, @UTAS has continuously spearheaded initiatives to address this pressing issue, garnering the distinguished #5 ranking in the 2023 Times Higher Education (THE) Impact Rankings.
By joining The Race to Zero initiative in 2021, @UTAS has positioned itself at the forefront of the global movement to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, reaffirming its dedication to creating a sustainable future for all.
Enginuity
In just two and a half years, Enginuity has delivered projects that have successfully reduced their clients’ carbon emissions by over 3.6 million kg per year, saved over $1.8 million in energy costs, and saved enough energy to run 800 residential properties for a year.
Projects have included reducing the carbon emissions of a 10-storey office building in Hobart’s CBD by 5.1 tonnes, reducing the annual energy costs of Hobart Aquatic Centre by $36,000 and most recently, saving United Plastics in Campbellfield Victoria $43,000 a year on energy costs and reduced their annual CO2 emissions by a whopping 120 tonnes.
We love working with innovative and resourceful companies who are using their skills and knowledge to have the biggest impact on Tasmanians, now and in the future.
Ignite Digi
Ignite Digi designs, manufactures and sells premium camera and gimbal accessories used on film/TV shoots around the world.
Their products are designed, manufactured and assembled in Tasmania and their products have been used by camera and drone teams on Disney's Mulan, Deadpool 2, Marvel's Venom, A Star Is Born, HBO's True Detective and many other film, television and Netflix programs.
Ignite Digi was established in 2013 by Aeronautical Engineer Chris Fox and Cinematographer Tom Waugh. Originally forming as an Aerial Cinematography duo, they built UAVs and modified gimbal and camera setups to enhance footage and productivity on set. Evolving from two co-founders working in a small home workshop the team now boasts five full-time employees and is based in an advanced manufacturing workshop in Glenorchy.
Earlier in the year, The Ignite Digi team travelled to Cine Gear 2023 in Los Angeles to exhibit new camera and gimbal accessories to an international audience of cinema and TV peers. Their highly successful products promote the ‘Made in Tasmania’ standard to new levels and they've embraced the Tasmanian brand with a line of animal operating equipment stickers that go out with orders around the world.
As part of their growth they are launching 'Made by Ignite' to open up their manufacturing capability and capacity to local companies needing high quality CNC machined parts.
GreenMed
GreenMed is a truly inspirational story. It began when one person started a conversation with another, seeking an opportunity to make a difference, then connecting the right people, and elevating that idea into a planet-saving initiative that is now being rolled out across Tasmania.
GreenMed was established in 2019 by Tasmanian friends Mat Usher and Brenton Lovering to tackle the growing hospital waste problem. Mat and Brenton are both health care professionals with 14 years of combined experience. They have witnessed firsthand the scale and volume of hospital waste.
GreenMed’s ‘Keep me in the loop®’ program offers a fully transparent model for healthcare waste, diverting clean plastics away from landfill and redesigning it into new products to replace common single use plastics already in use in our hospitals. In doing so, creating a loop for that plastic and revisioning it as a reusable resource.
The basis of GreenMed’s philosophy is ‘preserving value by redesigning waste’. Starting at Hobart’s Calvary Lenah Valley Hospital in May 2023, the program is now proudly established in all Calvary Healthcare sites in Tasmania, most recently expanding into the Royal Hobart Hospital. In the first 6 months, GreenMed have diverted over four tonnes of clean waste from landfill. With a successful model now established, they are looking to increase the volume and diversity of plastic items they can bring into the process.
Here at The Project Lab, we are impressed with the innovation and energy GreenMed are putting into not only avoiding waste, but turning what would be waste into a reusable product. With one of our values being ‘Waste not’, we’re cheering them on to grow and expand their services as they work to make healthcare a more sustainable sector.
Baptcare
We are thrilled to celebrate the story of Baptcare, which may not be one that began in Tasmania, but their work on the island for the last 14 years is truly inspiring. Their work can be traced back to 1945 when a group of Baptist women joined together to raise £4,000 in wartime to open Australia’s first Baptist home for older people.
Still a faith-based, not-for-profit organisation, Baptcare continues to provide residential and community care for older people and has grown its services to also include support to children, families and people living with a disability, people living with mental ill-health and people seeking asylum.
We are proud to work with the Baptcare team and are endlessly impressed by their unrelenting dedication to continuous improvement, which of course in other words is their pursuit of the extraordinary. Through their commitment to research in their field, Baptcare is developing a new model of care for people with dementia which will be implemented across all their Residential Aged Care communities. In partnership with Monash University’s Health and Social Care Unit, residents of their Aged Care communities, their families, staff and volunteers, Baptcare’s Living Well Together project will be rolled out over the next three years. This project will culminate in an independent evaluation of the model’s implementation and effectiveness.
Another important initiative is Mindset Tasmania, a suite of state-wide, community-based mental health psychosocial programs that was first designed and implemented in 2013, in response to a service gap identified by Tasmanian Mental Health Services – a gap that left some of the state’s most vulnerable people without adequate support. Mindset has now grown to include the Foundations, Choices and Horizons programs, each tailored to meet a specific need in the community.
Thank you to all the team at Baptcare who make such a difference in the lives of hundreds of Tasmanians, as we step into our second decade and they approach their eighth, we look forward to many more years of partnership.
City Mission
One of the many services City Mission in Launceston offers is Safe Space, which offers a temporary, safe place to sleep for people facing crisis who need care and support to help the consider their next step. It is staffed 24 hours a day, 365 days of the year. City Mission’s Safe Space has recently reported that more than 50 clients (guests) have secured housing this year, whether its shared accommodation, a private rental or moving into rehab.
Erin is a Key Development Coach at Safe Space. A highlight of her role is gaining someone’s trust, “It’s an absolute honour seeing people succeed and witness the courage to change their lives”. Erin supports them and encourages them until they can support themselves, helping them to feel safe, so they can do things on their own.
Over the Christmas season, the City Mission will be visited by hundreds of families who are experiencing financial hardship and won’t be able to give their children presents or enjoy a Christmas lunch together. Through their Give the Gift of Hope appeal, they are able to give families in need food, gifts and financial support to make this time just a little bit easier. We are so grateful to them for their dedication to the North and North West communities.
Solstice
Tas Gas has rebranded as Solstice Energy and intends to retail electricity in Tasmania early next year. This means that Tasmanian homes and businesses will have access to a greater choice of electricity providers. Through this new diversified energy business, customers will be able to access all their energy needs through one local customer-centric retailer, whether that’s electricity, natural gas or future opportunities in biofuels and renewable gases.
For the past two decades, Tas Gas made a difference in the lives of Tasmanians, providing reliable and safe energy to homes and businesses. Whether that’s enjoying a morning coffee made with gas roasted beans, keeping homes cosy and warm, or providing the necessary energy required to make and provide essential products and services that we often take for granted, natural gas has underpinned these, and many other parts of day-to-day life on our island. As a Tasmanian-operated business, the impact of Tas Gas extended far beyond convenience, generating over 8,550 jobs and contributing nearly $1 billion to the Tasmanian economy. Tas Gas has certainly played a pivotal role in fostering growth and sustaining our communities.
Now, through the launch of Solstice Energy, the business is well positioned to support the future energy needs of Tasmanians, while helping making Tasmania the most liveable island in the world.
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