Port Taranaki’s ability to respond to an emergency and continue to operate during and after such an incident has been recognised at the 2019 TSB Taranaki Chamber of Commerce Business Excellence Awards.

Port Taranaki won the Business Continuity Excellence Award, sponsored by the Taranaki Emergency Management Office, at the awards’ 25^th anniversary event.

Port Taranaki was judged on its staff incident training, the planning and procedures it has in place for responding to emergency events and continuing to operate throughout, and its interaction and communication with other stakeholders, including emergency services, contractors, customers and the public.

“Business continuity is a combination of the efforts of all of our people – everyone has a part to play and knows their part to play. So this award is recognition of 110 people and the efforts that go in every day to ensure that the port will be ready to effectively respond to an event, and then continue to operate,” Port Taranaki head of culture, safety and technology Delys Tansley said.

“There are a lot of people in the Taranaki region who rely on the port, so it’s a real acknowledgement of the important role we play in the community and Taranaki economy.”

The judges’ report noted that the Business Continuity Excellence Award category was “strongly contested with excellent examples of businesses considering and mitigating risk”.

It said Port Taranaki had “robust contingency planning in place”.

“Staff members with key skills sets understand their unique function and have suitable arrangements in place to provide this critical service.

“The applicant identified the separation between incident/emergency response and business continuity … This split shows maturity in understanding at an executive level, and appropriate trust and depth of capability in response staff.”

Port Taranaki operates a CIMS (Co-ordinated Incident Management System) model for emergencies and incidents, which guides the company’s response to a range of circumstances. It involves communicating and working alongside agencies such as Fire and Emergency, the New Zealand Police, New Zealand Customs, Civil Defence, Maritime New Zealand and the Taranaki District Health Board.

Port Taranaki carries out regular company-wide simulated emergency procedure exercises. Its emergency response and business continuity plans have also been put to the test in live situations..

“I’m very proud of our people. This award recognises we’ve got the ability to respond to unforeseen and unknown circumstances and are able to work with customers and others to ensure we continue to provide necessary services for the region during and after such an event,” Port Taranaki chief executive Guy Roper said..

PHOTOGRAPH: Port Taranaki head of culture, safety and technology Delys Tansley, left, Port Taranaki chief executive Guy Roper, and Port Taranaki risk and business improvement manager Carlie Cossill, with Craig Campbell-Smart, from the Taranaki Emergency Management Office, which sponsored the Business Continuity Excellence Award.