Smart Choices – Hiring Guidelines for Beginners

It’s your first ever project and you have your budget set as well as your timeline. Now all that’s left is to start looking for companies or tradies to do specific work. So you start placing ads and asking around, you get several calls and proposals, more than you can handle.   Now, you start looking at prices and trimming down your choices. You decide to throw out the ones offering higher rates. Now that is not a smart move. Your choices should not be driven by profit or savings alone, people put a premium on good work, integrity and honesty. Verify before you hire - consider the following :

·         Verify phone numbers and addresses – make calls and visit the address given.  It’s a good idea to hire local businesses so a visit should not be a problem. The office or workplace also tells you what kind of people you will be working with.  And if they have been there for quite some time, it would mean that they have been doing a good job.

·         Ask for their ABN – Legitimate businesses are issued an Australian Business Number ABN) when they register, they use this number to transact with government agencies which means they are legitimate and in good standing.  The ABN is also used for the ABN Look Up website. An ABN with a current status means the business is active, a cancelled status means the business is no longer in operation.

·         Make sure you are dealing with licensed traders.  Licenses are issued per State so make sure that the trader has a license to work in your specific State.

·         Inquire about their Public Liability and Workers Compensation insurance – this protects you as their client from liabilities while the project is ongoing.

·         Follow your instincts, if the trader or business is in a hurry to get you to part with your money, chances are, they not the real deal.  Legitimate businesses let you take your time to study contracts and proposals. Making sure everything is amenable to you also ensures them you understand the scope of their work.

·         If you still are not sure how to verify insurances, licenses and business registrations, consider getting these properly checked by Business Checker, an independent entity that verifies the legitimacy of businesses. 

·         Ask for samples of their work and client recommendations. Take the time to ask around about the trader or business.

Once you have trimmed down your list, now is the time to consider rates and negotiate.  Understand that it is well within your rights to inquire, negotiate and to take your time to make smart choices.

Raising Cattle for Sale in the Domestic and Export Market

 

Any business related to food does not need too much marketing as sustenance is a fundamental commodity necessary to survive.   Sustainability of the business is also not a question because food consumable product that needs to be replenished on a daily basis. The question really is where you’d want to position yourself in terms of its market and at which point of the supply chain.

Making your Choice

In Australia, the biggest industry is in agriculture in terms of production and revenue and employment generation.  You can either go into plant farming or raising cattle for sale domestically or export.  Vegetable and Fruit farming is more challenging because it could go wrong in so many ways such as invasion of pests, inadequate  rainfall,  choice of fertilizers and the like. Raising cattle for sale on the other hand requires less maintenance although bovines are susceptible several kinds of diseases and are also affected by the amount of rainfall – less rain, less grass. Nonetheless, these challenges are relatively simple to deal with.

Raising cattle for sale in the food industry or for livestock proliferation requires an ample amount of grass land.  A regular cow consumes about 100 kilograms of plant matter each day.  Wide open spaces are a requirement as these domesticated animals love the peace and quiet. Their growth is also affected by their state of mind.  A stressed cow is unable to sleep and a contented cow sleeps well for a total of two hours of about 10 minutes each in wide intervals.

Breed Choices from North to South

The choice of breed depends on the location of the farm and the kind of meat you’d want to sell.  Beef quality is determines by the size of cuts and the marbling of the beef. When choosing a breed, look for available cattle for sale in farms adjacent to yours.  Cattle farms are divided into two farming systems - Northern and Southern farms.  Northern farms raise Bos Indicus cattle because of its hardiness, tick resistance and its ability to cope with heat.  However, beef from the Bos Indicus (Brahman and Santa Gertrudis) produces lower quality beef and are package to make hamburger, hotdogs and beef jerky among others. Or they are shipped live to destinations like India or sent to Southern farms for fattening.  Cattle for sale in the Southern end of the Australian continent are usually of the Bos Taurus breed (British Angus and Hereford and French Charolais).

There thousands of cattle breeding farms all over Australia which are open to make business ties domestically and globally.  Visit the OZ Suppliers website and start a productive business connection.

What is Synthetic Rubber?

           

Rubber is a material used in hundreds of modern products.  Around the world, approximately 15 billion kilograms of manufactured rubber is distributed every year and about 70 per cent is rubber. Rubber is basically an elastomer polymer derived from either natural or synthesized origins.  Elastomer is a material that can undergo elastic deformation under stress but can return to its original form.

Natural rubber and synthetic rubber

The difference between natural rubber and synthetic rubber is the raw material used to produce them.  Natural rubber originates from the latex of Havea Brasiliensis and is usually inferior to certain synthetic rubber and is not compatible with petroleum products.  Synthetic rubber on the other hand is produced through polymerization or polycondensation of unsaturated monomers.  Monomers are petroleum-based raw materials.

The development of synthetic rubbers was needed to meet certain material requirements which natural rubber cannot meet such as greater stability, malleability and lower cost. Synthetic rubbers come in compressed bales, square blocks, powder rubber, talcum coated chips, granules and in liquid form.

Types of Synthetic Rubber

            A variety of different synthetic rubbers have been developed, which caters to different applications and the chemical and mechanical properties they require. Co-polymerization of varied types of monomers allows the material properties to be wide-ranging.  There are about 30 kinds of synthetic rubbers being produced by rubber manufacturers in Australia for a wide variety of purposes and below are some of the most important ones:

·         Acrylonitrile Butadiene Rubber – Resistant to oil and fuel, abrasionresistant and has good heat distortion temperature properties

·         Butyl Rubber (IIR) – has good electric insulation and mechanical properties, low permeability to gases and is resistant to aging, ozone and chemicals, and abrasion

·         Chloroprene Rubber (CR) – Grease and oil proof, resistant to weathering, aging and abrasion.  It is also a flame retardant

·         Isoprene Rubber (IR)- has similar properties as natural rubber, is very uniform, transparent and cleaner

·         Polybutadiene Rubber (BR) – usually processed with SBR or NR, is abrasion resistant, has good elasticity and flexible at low temperature.

·         Styrene Butane Rubber (SBR) – used for general purpose, has good abrasion resistance, lower elasticity, poor low temperature behavior, has better heat and aging resistance with excellent electrical insulation

Complete List of Synthetic Rubber

·         Polyacrylate Rubber    (ACM)

·         Ethylene-acrylate Rubber       (AEM)

·         Polyester Urethane                  (AU)

·         Bromo Isoutylene Isoprene     (BIIR)

·         Polybutadiene                         (BR)

·         Chloro Isobutylene Isoprene   (CIIR)

·         Polychloroprene                      (CR)

·         Chlorosulphonated Polyethylene (CSM)

·         Epichlorohydrin                                  (ECO)

·         Ethylene Propylene                 (EP)

·         Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer (ERDM)

·         Polyether Urethane                 (EU)

·         Perfluorocarbon Rubber                      (FFKM)

·         Flouronated Hydrocarbon      (FKM)

·         Flouro Silicone                                    (FQ)

·         Fluorocarbon Rubber              (FPM)

·         Hydrogenated Nitrile Butadiene        (HNBR)

·         Polyisoprene                            (IR)

·         Isobutylene Isoprene Butyl     (IIR)

·         Acrylonitrile Butadiene                      (NBR)

·         Polyurethane                           (PU)

·         Styrene Butadiene                  (SBR)

·         Styrene Ethylene Butylene Styrene Copolymer (SEBS)

·         Polysiloxane                            (SI)

·         Vinyl Methyl Silicone             (VMQ)

·         Acrylonitrile Butadiene Carboxy Monomer (XNBR)

·         Styrene Butadiene Carboxy Monomer (XSBR)

·         Thermoplastic Polyether-ester (YBPO)

·         Styrene Butadiene Block Copolymer (YSBR)

·         Styrene Butadiene Carboxy Block Copolymer (YXSBR)

Visit the Oz Suppliers if you are looking for a reliable supplier, distributor or manufacturer of all kinds of synthetic rubber products from Australia.

Australian Medical Supplies

The medical community is a complex network of scientists, medical doctors and surgeons, medical engineers and technicians, and other health care specialists.  And just as complex are the medical supplies, instruments and devices associated with each specialization.  

In Australia, the health and medical industry is globally recognized.  The country’s medical community is regarded as leaders in terms of technology, innovation, skills, research and development.  It follows that Australia’s biomedical manufacturers produce medical devices and medical supplies that are of the highest quality which the country’s robust health system requires. 

Medical supplies and medical devices are regulated by the Therapeutic Goods Administration under the Department of Health and Ageing.  All medical supplies and devices are produced with adherence to the Good Manufacturing Practice or GMP as required by and specified in the Therapeutic Goods Act 1989.  GMP is a term used internationally to describe a set of principles and procedures that help ensure that the products manufactured will have the required quality.

            Also included in the Therapeutic Goods Act is a compliance of medical supplies manufacturers to have key employees acquire a Fit and Proper Persons Certification and that their operations should have Conformity Assessment Certificates.

            All of these measures are done to ensure that the medical community is supplied with the medical supplies and medical devices that are of the highest quality, environmentally safe and most effective.

            The most basic medical supplies and devices manufactured in Australia for the domestic and export market include a wide range of products such as medical gloves, syringes, contact lenses, condoms, bandages, band aids, disinfectants, and pharmaceuticals.  More specialized medical supplies and devices are also manufactured in Australia such as in vitro diagnostic medical devices, X-Ray equipment, imaging devices, surgical lasers, pacemakers, dialysis equipment, baby incubators, and heart valves among others.

            The medical supplies and devices industry in Australia is comprised of a small number of multinational companies and a large number of small and medium sized enterprises.  Many of them are considered world leaders.  The two largest medical device companies in terms of market capitalisation are internationally renowned, these are ResMed and Cochlear. 

            The industry is estimated to be worth about US$286.51 billion and has an annual growth of 10 per cent.  Australia’s share of the market is pegged at 3.88 per cent.  Products in the industry are showcased in international events such as Medica-Germany, HIMSS USA and HIMSS Asia-Pacific, Arab Health and a few others.

            For a list of Australian companies in the Medical Supplies and Devices manufacturing, please visit http://www.ozsuppliers.com.au/product-directory/20-health-a-medical.  

Trade and Export of Electricity and its Energy Sources

Electricity, an icon of the industrial age is a commodity whose demand rises as more and more electronic devices are developed and invented.  It has also made nations more dependent on one another as countries continually export electricity or sources of electricity to other countries. This happens because some countries have more sources of energy than others, sources such as oil, coal and gas. 

What a country contributes to the worldwide trade and export of electricity depends on the available resources with or without regard to the country’s surplus production.  The trade and export of electricity starts from its capacity for production.  Power plants are built to generate electric power from specific sources or energy.  Sources are either from fossil fuels (gas, petroleum or oil and coal), nuclear power, hydroelectric power, geothermal power, wind power or solar power.

Some countries export consumer electricity usually to their neighboring countries such as being done between the US, Canada and Mexico.  Power plants, power stations and power lines are involved in the distribution.  Other countries are involved in the export of power or energy sources most of which are fossil fuels.  Among the fossil fuel sources being traded worldwide, coal and petroleum are widely exported.  Uranium also is being produced and exported under strict policies.

The trade and export of electricity is also dependent on the political climate and trade policies of both the providing country and the recipient country.  A country such as Australia is an attractive and viable country to trade with because of its stable political environment and substantial power source reserves. 

Australia’s contribution to the electricity exports is its coal and uranium production.  Coal is Australia’s biggest commodity export which earned about $55 billion in 2008-2009.  It supplies 18 per cent of the world’s total coal trade and export. Most is destined for power plants in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan for electricity generation.

Australia’s uranium exports also play an important role in the global trade and export of electricity.  The country has a precautionary policy to trade only with countries who follows a nuclear cooperation agreement.  This agreement means that the country is committed to the peaceful uses of nuclear energy.  That country must also have agreements with the International Atomic energy Agency or (IAEA) including an additional protocol.

By supporting the generation of electricity through nuclear power plants, Australia also supports global efforts to address climate change. Nuclear power significantly minimizes the emission of greenhouse gas.  If you are looking to trade with Australia’s best suppliers please visit this site http://www.ozsuppliers.com.au/product-directory/18-energy

Sourcing Out Chemical Suppliers - a Crucial Need in Manufacturing

 

A good partnership between a manufacturing company and its chemical suppliers is essential. One important element in companies or factories involved in production is its raw materials.  The quality of the end product is largely affected by the materials used in the beginning of the assembly line.  Alongside these raw materials are the chemicals needed to process them and their quality is subsequently just as crucial to the quality of the final product.

Chemical Suppliers, just like any manufacture,  pay careful attention to the production process in order to develop the best representation of the product they have in mind.  And it makes sense that all elements within the process are up to par.  This of course includes the chemicals being used.  To ensure that the right chemical or raw material is being used in the manufacturing process, you should have the right chemical supplier.  Suitable chemical suppliers would mean the delivery of suitable products.

A myriad of commercial chemicals are needed by most industries and a large percentage of them are available in the country.  There are over a hundred chemical suppliers representing a wide range of chemicals for different sectors some of which are as follows:

-       Food

-       Aerospace

-       Pharmaceuticals

-       Furniture

-       Textiles

-       Pulp and Paper

-       Agriculture

-       Medical Ware

-       Public Health and Water Treatment

-       Packaging

-       Cosmetics, Soaps and Cleaners

-       Adhesives, Glues and Sealants

-       Mining and Resources

-       Paints and Surface Coating

-       Automotive

-       Consumer Appliances

-       Building Construction and Infrastructure

-       Pipes and Sheeting

-       Environmental Conservation

Given the range of the list above, browsing through a hundred possible chemical suppliers (who may or may not be suitable) the conventional way is time consuming, not to mention the fact that there is the added cost of factory visits and phone calls.

 If your business is looking into sourcing chemical suppliers or chemicalmanufacturers who have the capacity to meet your production or operational needs, a comprehensive database of possible chemical suppliers is a good place to start.  Such a database is found here (OZ Suppliers).   Using an online database helps you efficiently select your possible choices.  A wide-ranging database lets you compare and evaluate all available chemical suppliers and bring your choices down to a minimum in within a small amount of time.  Basic and relevant information is provided to help you with your choices and priorities.  Whether your priorities are based on price, geography, output volume or the supplier’s level of environmental awareness, a good database will make your decision making easier and faster.

Food Manufacturers -The Business of Feeding the World

There are only a few basic things that the human body needs in order to survive and these are food, water, shelter and clothing.  It makes no difference where you are in the world, the needs are fundamentally the same.  Does it make sense then that since there is a steady demand for commodities that fulfill those needs, is it a profitable industry to be a part of? The capacity to sustain life will not ensure success for a food manufacturer.  The food supply system is much more complicated than that. It involves science, technology, logistics and management disciplines and marketing strategies.  So anyone who is not passionate enough to be involved in the food industry is likely to have a business that is short lived.

The food manufacturer faces complexities in the science alone, from the source, to the processing, packaging and ultimately the disposal of each component of the end product.  The food and beverage industry includes everyone and everything involved in growing, processing, manufacturing and distribution of food including farmers, stores and restaurants, the greatest responsibility fall on the food manufacturer.  These are the companies that have producing clearly identified food products, are usually branded and packaged.

The connection between available resource, distribution channels and target market are the first things to be considered when thinking of profitability.  Simultaneously, product safety, nutrition, quality and value are considered for product marketability.

Fortunately, the food manufacturer is not alone in its all-important endeavor.  He works together with government branches, agencies or departments that has the capacity to monitor and provide useful information and has the duty to create policies beneficial to the industry and its consumers. There are also teams of food scientists, researchers, food engineers and health professionals who work alongside the food manufacturer to guarantee that only the best, healthiest and safest products are produced. 

Like all manufacturing enterprises, profitability is a factor in order to call it a success, but in the food industry, profits are factored in merely to fuel production and as an indication that the product has attained consumer satisfaction – a more definite measure of success.  Consumer satisfaction means that the company’s products have met over all costumer expectations which would then translate to continuous purchase of the same.

In Australia, where you can find the most diverse and most abundant resources is also home to most of the food industry’s well-known brands and suppliers.