| 35 Leading the way in head protection T T Sue Russell Pacific Helmets manufactures a wide range of safety helmets built to the highest standards. Whanganui - Pacific Helmets REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT Pacific Helmets owner David Bennett is proud of the fact that his history in Whanganui dates back to the family starting to arrive in the district from 1890 and that wife Marion’s family goes back even further, to 1863. He says the region is a great place to live and to grow a business pointing to the fact that there are several large-scale companies specific to Whanganui that manufacture world-leading products. “Whanganui manufacturer’s often fly under the radar yet what they are producing is right up there with the world’s best and in the case of what we manufacture I believe our Pacific brand is in the top five.” He also points out that these businesses are not competitors in manufacturing but rather complement each other and trade with each other for mutual benefit. His association with safety helmets extends back to the time when he worked for Suzuki who could import motor-cycles, however motorcycle helmets were a restricted import. “You couldn’t buy helmets for love or money,” is how David describes those times, as wearing a motorcycle helmet had only become compulsory in 1973, and World War 2 import controls still were in place. So, he says it just made sense to look at specialising in the manufacture of helmets and to produce these to specifications that no other company had achieved. The production factory, in Castlecliff started in 1980 and in 1984 Pacific Helmets Ltd won it’s fire helmet tender for the NZ Fire Service (now FENZ). Then came the production of cycle helmets and by the late 1980’s David was actively looking around for other markets. By contacting the NZ High Commission in London David was able to make business connections with the London Fire brigade who were still wearing helmets made with cork shells when the Kings Cross underground fire had happened two years earlier. “After this tragedy the London Brigade was given additional money to upgrade its PPE gear and in 1989 Pacific secured this contract even before the tender closed.” In Australia, David is proud of the fact that every single emergency service has one or another Pacific helmet. Dealing with the massive bush fires that have now become annual events in Australia has become an issue of increasing concern to fire services in that country. “Historically, the NSW rural guys never liked the plastic shell helmets they were issued with to go into these blazes. It’s very hot work near bush fires and the helmet brims could melt around the ears.” After last year’s fires, fundraising bought in some A$50m, which was provided for emergency services to outfit crews with the best possible PPE. Currently, Pacific have started building the helmets for use in this year’s fire season. This brigade has some 75,000 mostly volunteer fire fighters. “Our helmets have to be safe, and are built to exceed the minimum performance required by helmet standards. “The helmet wearer may never get a warning so the helmet has to do its work. “They exceed a variety of international helmets Standards and our facilities were the first safety helmet factory in the world certified to ISO 9001 standards.” Today, the company employs 80 staff with 17 temporary contractors, with 60 actually building helmets in the factory. The balance of the permanent staff are in sales development, administration, design and R & D. David and Marion’s daughter and son-in-law also run the Australian-based warehousing facility in Southern Queensland. They distribute the helmets plus other fire-fighting head-totoe PPE sourced from international suppliers. And beyond the factory gates, and pursuing markets overseas, David also acts as a safety helmet advisor for the ISO committee working on new international fire-fighting PPE Standards. One thing that makes doing business so rewarding in Whanganui is the quality of the people, particularly those from strong Iwi families, who live and work in the city. Although, the staff are a bit like a mini United Nations, with staff originating from several Pacific islands, Malaysia, UK, India plus lots of Kiwi’s of course. “I think you get that in smaller provincial cities where families go back a long way and people don’t tend to move away. “They carry a loyalty to the region and a real enthusiasm in their work. Plus, Whanganui is bursting at the seams as more people move to live here.” When it comes to quality graphic print solutions, we’ve got the answer. Product Labelling | POS & Merchandising | Industrial & Technical Labels Pacesetter Print is proud to support Pacific Helmets NZ
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NDc2Mzg=