Working at Gunns as an Area Forester, my main role includes developing Forest Practices Plans (FPP’s) for forest compartments and ensuring our contractors in the forests are following the guidelines stated within these plans. Looking after our natural and cultural values is an essential part of FPP preparation, so my intent is to ensure all forest activities comply with the Forest Practices Code and contractors work in accordance to safety management practices. FPP’s are prepared to document and plan proposed forest operational activities, including harvesting, road construction and re-forestation. Use of the Gunns Global Information System (GIS) provides resource information and assists with planning and digital mapping. After a thorough and intensive evaluation of a coupe, including identification of flora communities and threatened fauna habitat along with any other environmental or operational issues, the FPP is finalised. Once the FPP is completed and certified, I then go through the FPP with the forest contractors prior to any operational activities commencing. You need to be physically fit as there’s a lot of forest to cover and a lot of travel involved. I like to schedule weekly visits with the contractors at each coupe location, just to ensure any arising issues can be discussed and resolved within a suitable time-frame. Communicating with contractors, landowners and local government agencies is important, which makes this a challenging role balancing forest activities with the local communities. At the completion of the operation, it is satisfying to see the final products that have been recovered from the coupe for downstream processing.
As a Business Development Manager with Gunns Plantations Ltd, my key role is to meet and exceed annual sales performance targets in our agribusiness investment products and to provide technical and marketing support to licensed dealer groups and financial planners. I essentially build and grow relationships with a myriad of people.
A typical day encompasses following my weekly activity plans which can involve visiting dealer groups and financial planners in Victoria and Tasmania to build on existing relationships, or source new opportunities.
The most challenging aspect of the job would have to be keeping abreast with the financial services industry and maintaining my level of technical knowledge. As for the most satisfying part of the job, for me that would be the thrill of the sale. It may take years to convince someone to use your products and when they do it’s extremely gratifying.
After working in Tasmanian wineries as a Cellar Hand for 7 years, I joined the Tamar Ridge Estates team at Kayena Vineyard just prior to their 2008 vintage.
As the Cellar Manager, my day starts bright and early at 7am and I am responsible for the day to day running of the winery. Every day is different, with both office and winery duties to fulfil.
I may be attending meetings, developing operating procedures or monitoring occupational health and safety management. Or I may be found attending one of the fermenters in the winery, preparing wine for bottling, making additions to tanks or operating a press.
So, whether it be purchasing equipment or assisting with equipment maintenance; co-ordinating the hire of staff, an especially busy role at harvest time, or supervising contractors, it’s the diversity of the role that keeps my job both interesting and challenging.
I’m lucky to have the picturesque Tamar Valley as my office. Being located in such a beautiful part of north-eastern Tasmania makes my job all the more enjoyable.
Since I’ve relocated from Mt Gambier to Launceston, I’ve been working at Gunns Timber Products as their Tasmanian Customer Service Representative.
It’s always fairly busy each day with customers contacting me to place their timber orders, to follow-up on these orders and to assist them with any enquiries they may have. The orders are placed into a database where they can also be tracked. You really need to have a high attention to detail to make sure they are accurately entered for processing.
There’s always something new to learn, especially with all the different products we have on offer, and as I’m in regular contact with the production guys in the mill, they are always happy to assist.
I like dealing with a range of people and getting know the regular callers - and I really love being able to help the customers with their queries, building a good rapport with them over the phone.
As a Forest and Land Assessor with Gunns, a typical day for me would be meeting a land owner or farmer to discuss forestry operations on their property. My main role is to assess the value and volume of the standing timber they have. This might involve the final harvest or thinning of a plantation or selective logging. I also discuss with them any upgrading of roads, the reserves that are required or the establishment of the next plantation as part of my visit. Then it’s back to the office to develop maps and to estimate the cost of the operations to help determine the value of the wood. After that, I write a contract to purchase the wood from the land owner. It’s a good mix of office and field work and I’m dealing with lots of different people. I get to see a wide variety of forests across North East Tasmania and there are plenty of operational, planning and technical challenges to take on every day.
As a Forest and Land Assessor with Gunns, a typical day for me would be meeting a land owner or farmer to discuss forestry operations on their property.
My main role is to assess the value and volume of the standing timber they have. This might involve the final harvest or thinning of a plantation or selective logging. I also discuss with them any upgrading of roads, the reserves that are required or the establishment of the next plantation as part of my visit.
Then it’s back to the office to develop maps and to estimate the cost of the operations to help determine the value of the wood. After that, I write a contract to purchase the wood from the land owner.
It’s a good mix of office and field work and I’m dealing with lots of different people. I get to see a wide variety of forests across North East Tasmania and there are plenty of operational, planning and technical challenges to take on every day.
I started working for Gunns while still at school, selling paint and tools at the Mitre 10 store. I then moved to a full-time role before leaving to undertake a Bachelor of Science Forestry degree. It was while completing this degree that I secured a forester role with Gunns and after four years moved to my current role.
As Operations Manager – North East for Gunns Plantations, I’m really the central hub and control point for all things operational, be it co-ordinating plantation establishment, procuring land, supervising foresters and contractors and preparing monthly reports.
I tend to spend most days in the office, with one day a week in the field, meeting with landowners, contractors and the community.
It’s a busy and exciting role with communication being a key part of the job. There are always plenty of challenges in the day to day operation of the business, but that’s what I really enjoy. Being able to meet the company’s objectives is particularly satisfying, and then seeing the contribution of resources for the future, makes it all worthwhile.
It was 13 years ago when I started working at Gunns Mitre 10 as a casual check-out operator at the Youngtown store. I then moved to an Assistant Manager role, and after a 6 month maternity leave break, accepted another Assistant Manager role, this time at the Cimitiere Street store.
I’m now happily employed as Gunns’ Product Category Manager and look after the range of products we stock for the outdoor garden, paint and clothing departments across all of our Tassie stores.
I like to work on the good, better, best scenario when selecting a product range. It all depends on what products work best for each individual store. Occasionally I travel to Melbourne to review the latest ranges, but mostly I liaise with the vendor sales representatives who offer helpful advice and guidance on the latest trends, whether it be the most popular colour range for painting indoors or the most suitable clothing and footwear for builders and tradespeople.
Once I’ve chosen a product range to stock, I liaise with our Marketing team to ensure it’s promoted and included in our latest catalogues.
It can be quite challenging determining the right product range for each of the stores, but also really rewarding when you see a product line ‘selling like hot-cakes’ and knowing that you’ve made the right choice.
I started working at Hinman Wright & Manser 21 years ago as an apprentice carpenter. After swapping the hammer and nails for pen and paper, I’m now spending more time in the site office than out on the construction site itself.
On most medium sized projects we would have around 30 or so staff and contractors on site, and it’s my job to make sure they are all correctly inducted. To do this, I write up a job safety analysis for each site, brief all workers and ensure they also abide by the Gunns Safety Plan. Along with supervising and co-ordinating the staff and contractors, I also develop the program of works and ensure that quality controls and OH&S standards are met and adhered to.
I really enjoy the interaction with the different tradesmen, meeting new people and liaising with the project architect, project engineer and the client.
We’re currently working on the new Rocherlea Primary School after recently completing the Scotch Oakburn College redevelopment and the grandstand extension at Aurora Stadium. This was certainly one of the more challenging jobs for us and to see the grandstand full of supporters on major event days is especially satisfying and rewarding.
With a background in the tourism industry, I’ve been fortunate to have worked at Entally Estate since 2000. Built in 1819 by Thomas Reibey, the heritage-listed property is far more than just a tourist attraction, with local artists showcasing their artwork in the house itself and the property hosting a number of community events throughout the year.
As Site Manager, my role is varied and involves the day to day running of the site. This includes recruiting and managing a team of around 30 volunteers, undertaking site research, rental property and livestock management and organising weddings held at the Estate.
It’s a privilege to work at such an iconic property and to walk the corridors and pathways of a residence whose family helped shape the Australian economy. The challenge of co-ordinating a volunteer workforce is well rewarded, with the superbly presented gardens and grounds a feature of the Estate.
Being able to interact and share the history of Entally with the public is especially gratifying, as well as being part of the ongoing preservation and restoration program.
Over the past 28 years, I’ve been fortunate to work in many different roles throughout the company. As a teenager I started as a cleaner in the band mill, and moved through a variety of jobs including work at the Waverly green mill, a retail trade sales position in the timber yard at Mitre 10 and a position working at the truss plant.
As Sorter/Stacker Supervisor, I now manage seven staff that sort, grade and stack the timber that comes in from the mills around the state. A production list provided by the planing mill determines the size specifications required. On any typical day, approximately 65 cubic metres of timber is processed, covered and labelled ready for transport to the planing mill.
I’m lucky to have such a close knit team with one of the best attendance records – it’s really rewarding to see the good staff morale and the team working together productively.
With 83 hectares of vineyards at White Hills, and a further three hectares each at the Rosevears and Entally sites, most of my time as Vineyard Manager is spent co-ordinating operational tasks, including pruning, spraying programmes, netting and picking, and ensuring these tasks all fall within set budget guidelines.
Over the summer months I co-ordinate the irrigation, fertiliser and canopy management programmes, monitor soil moisture and attend to the general health of the vines.
I manage a team of six staff, however during harvesting this can increase to around 60 additional casual workers. It’s a busy time liaising with the winemakers, ensuring workers comply with OH&S practices as well as managing the labour hours.
Being a very steep site, the White Hills terrain can be challenge to manage. Finding reliable and skilled casual workers is also a test, however at the end of the harvest it’s really satisfying to see that the year’s hard work has paid off, resulting in a quality product for Tamar Ridge Estates & buyers alike.