S A F E T Y
TRUSTED PARTNERSHIP AND SMART SHUTDOWN
SOLUTIONS COMBINE FOR PROJECT SUCCESS
MANAGING WORKSITE INVENTORY CAN BE A TIME CONSUMING AND COMPLEX JOB – AND WITHOUT THE RIGHT
SYSTEMS AND TECHNOLOGY IN PLACE, IT CAN BE A TASK PRONE TO ISSUES AND UNNECESSARY ADDED COST.
Case study from Ballance – Providing solutions for
success
Delivering a multi-million dollar maintenance
shutdown, together with more than 50 capital
investment projects in just 21 days at New
Zealand’s only ammonia-urea manufacturing plant
meant that Ballance Agri-Nutrients Kapuni needed
a business partner that it could trust to get things
right first time.
With a high level of technical expertise and
a dedication to meeting customers’ needs
with tailored solutions, the team at NZ Safety
Blackwoods stepped up to ensure that onsite productivity
was never compromised.
Identifying the challenge
The Ballance Kapuni Ammonia Urea complex
is a high-tech facility that operates to stringent
international standards, so keeping downtime to
a minimum was a primary customer requirement.
It was essential that all planned works were
completed on time and on budget to get the plant
up and running at full capacity as scheduled.
With a large workforce working on a 24/7
day/night shift pattern, Ballance needed a
consumables provider that could maintain onsite
productivity, source any off-list items quickly,
have the technical expertise to know what was
needed, and drive efficiencies in account systems
processes.
“The strong relationship we already hold with NZ
Safety Blackwoods, along with the impressive
solutions document they submitted in response
to our invitation to tender, meant they were the
obvious choice to provide the essential support
we needed to deliver the execution phase,” says
Clive Oates, Ballance Kapuni’s turnaround and
maintenance manager.
“NZ Safety Blackwoods’ promise that they could
provide what we needed, when we needed it, no
matter how specialised the request, sealed the
deal and we were pleased to have them as one of
the team.”
Providing solutions
The NZ Safety Blackwoods shutdown services
included;
• Onsite mobile warehouse and physical store
carrying a diversified product range, with
more than 350 product lines. Manned by
Steve Clayton, NZ Safety Blackwoods’ Onsite
Inventory Specialist, whose engineering
experience proved invaluable.
• Track and trace technology (utilising Ballance’s
own unique ID card system) to log products
to individuals, with a customised daily report
generated to suit Ballance’s accounting and
auditing needs. This enabled inventory to be
closely monitored and analysed, giving precise
budgetary information and product requirements
for future planning.
• Provision of preferential pricing across all
product lines, which was extended to all
contractors working on the Kapuni project. This
helped manage contractor spend on high-use
consumables at a competitive rate.
• Support from the NZ Safety Blackwoods trade
centre in New Plymouth, which ensured any
items not held on site, but in stock at the trade
centre could be provided within a few hours.
• Priority treatment from the NZ Safety
Blackwoods’ Auckland distribution centre,
ensuring any specialist items were delivered next
day, maintaining on-site productivity against tight
timelines.
• Support from NZ Safety Blackwoods’ IT
department to ensure any issues with on-site
systems were addressed immediately. On day
one of the execution phase, the strength of
the wi-fi internet connection was compromised
and a solution was implemented within hours
to ensure the tracking functionality was fully
operational.
“The brief for TA Kapuni 2019 was concise - do
what was needed to get the job done,” says
Nick Saunders, NZ Safety Blackwoods national
business development manager - manufacturing.
“NZ Safety Blackwoods was very much part of the
team, working with the same purpose as everyone
else on site to deliver the shutdown objectives.”
Delivering results
“The feedback we received from our staff and
contractors alike regarding NZ Safety Blackwoods’
presence on-site was extremely positive,” says
Clive. “Their expertise and product provision
contributed a great deal to ensuring that planned
work orders were completed to schedule and any
emergent works could be addressed immediately.
“The information provided by the daily track
and trace reports will enable our planning and
budgeting processes to be refined further in anticipation
of our next planned shutdown phase.”
Call to action
Engage with the experienced team at NZ Safety
Blackwoods in the planning stages of your project
so we can work together to design a customised
solution that utilises our experience; stores and
warehouse solutions; on-site facilitation services;
and smart scanning technology and reporting
– to minimise costs, improve productivity and
streamline operations on your next shutdown.
48 May 2019