One in three exhibitors new to safety show

Around 30% of The Safety Show Sydney's exhibitors will be new and there will be other fresh attractions when NSW's largest workplace safety event returns from October 24 to 26 this year.
Also new in 2007 is the creation of Sydney Materials Handling, a show dedicated to load, move and shift solutions, co-located with The Safety Show Sydney.
While the spread of products ranges from asbestos removal through to workplace wellness programs, the official feature areas include corporate health, height safety, building, electrical engineering, technology and training, and - new this year - automated safety.
The technology on show will be complemented by advice from principal sponsor, WorkCover NSW, which will offer 18 workshops over the event's three days.


Mining companies lead economic growth

Mining companies are leading the charge and underpinning Western Australia's booming economy but skill shortages are continuing to hamper growth, says accounting firm Deloitte.
Mining companies in the Deloitte WA Index - which measures the financial performance of all WA-listed companies - had an increase in total value of 133% or $44 billion over the 12 months to June 30. This compared with 91% or $15.8 billion increase in 2005/06.
Deloitte Perth managing partner Keith Jones says the WA mining boom is unprecedented, with growth over the past 12 months eclipsing the year before.
Jones says demand for commodities is likely to remain strong, with China and, to a lesser extent India, fuelling the appetite for resources.
"Economic growth continues to be very strong; the demand that we are seeing in the resource market is really driven by offshore demand," Jones explains.
"That's still what's fuelling the marketplace."
Jones says while demand is strong, the industry is still facing the constraints caused by skills and people shortages.
"I think that growth will continue but it certainly has an impact on the capacity of the market to bring more projects online," he adds.
"The difference between companies that are thriving or surviving or growing is linked to the access of skills in the market."

Regional surge for Forkliftaction.com

Australasia has experienced a huge subscription surge as Forliftaction.com's global audience grew by 50% over the past 12 months.
According to general manager Ann Hofmans, the Australasian audience has grown 2.5 times in size.
"This growth tells us that there was a real need for authoritative information about the forklift industry in Australasia. Clearly, with a dedicated regional edition, Forkliftaction.com is meeting that need."
Hofmans adds the surge represents a huge marketing opportunity and should provide reassurance to current advertisers that their message is reaching an increasing number of people.

EMC secures filter distributorship

EMC Group is now the sole distributor for Wesfil Filters Australia for the forklift market.
Managing director Stefan Marschner says the partnership will enable EMC Forklift Parts to offer the best service to the materials handling industry.
Wesfil's product range includes oil, air and fuel filters under the Cooper, Wesfil and Maxx brands.