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Legislative Council - Fifty-First Parliament, Second Session (51-2)
2008-07-03 Daily Xml
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COUNTRY FIRE SERVICE

The Hon. C.V. SCHAEFER (15:10): My question is to the Minister for Emergency Services. Is it true that a number of the new trucks provided to the CFS by the government are in fact useless because the coupling devices do not match the existing trailers, and is it further true that the government has contracted the manufacture of CFS trucks to a Victorian firm rather than the usual Murray Bridge firm, in spite of the fact that the Victorian government has chosen to contract to the Murray Bridge firm?

The Hon. CARMEL ZOLLO (Minister for Emergency Services, Minister for Correctional Services, Minister for Road Safety, Minister Assisting the Minister for Multicultural Affairs) (15:11): The question asked by the honourable member was answered during the estimates committee at great length by the Chief Officer of the Country Fire Service.

The Hon. J.S.L. Dawkins interjecting:

The Hon. CARMEL ZOLLO: It does appear that Hansard is read, which is a good thing.

The Hon. J.S.L. Dawkins interjecting:

The Hon. CARMEL ZOLLO: I would like to think that members in this place would, of course, be in the parliament and be listening to estimates, especially when they claim to be interested. In relation to this contract, as I have said, a question about it has already been answered at great length. However, essentially, Mills-Tui constructed 10 34P-type appliances for the CFS as part of its 2007-08 build program. Mills-Tui is a quality-endorsed company (again, all this is on the record) under AS9001, relating to design and construction, and as such its systems are subject to independent audit. All CFS vehicle build contractors are AS9001 quality endorsed.

The structural issues developed in the appliances after they were put into service. These were design issues rather than quality issues. From memory, the Chief Officer of the CFS, Mr Euan Ferguson, mentioned that there were cracks in some of the lockers. Mills-Tui has previously manufactured appliances for the CFS and there have been no significant problems with those appliances. The 34P appliances were allocated to Ceduna, Jamestown, Yankalilla, Karoonda, Woomera, Meningie, Cape Jervis, Port Lincoln, Tea Tree Gully and Oakbank/Balhannah. Again, I do remember all this being placed on the record. A number of quality issues were identified when the appliances were delivered to Adelaide and these were resolved with the assistance of Mills-Tui. As one would expect, Mills-Tui would be responsible for resolving those problems.

Independent advice was sought which indicated that the product did have some issues. The CFS has worked and will continue to work with Mills-Tui to address the issue; and, as we know, SAFECOM now is the sole point of contact regarding this matter. I am advised that Mills-Tui has accepted liability (as one would expect) and is going about fixing those appliances at no cost. From memory, and I could be corrected, I think there were 10 appliances. The CFS is reviewing the way in which it inspects appliances prior to delivery to determine whether improvements in the process can be made. The CFS has devised a 528-point inspection list and has revamped the process for vehicle inspection so that more technical staff are involved in vehicle inspection and sign-off.

The Hon. J.S.L. Dawkins interjecting:

The Hon. CARMEL ZOLLO: Well, obviously they are very large vehicles. As we all know, they cost a lot of money. We have about 900 appliances in South Australia, and it is this government that has resourced our emergency services—

The Hon. P. Holloway interjecting:

The Hon. CARMEL ZOLLO: Perhaps they want 1,000. Clearly, these are operational matters. The chief officer has advised me that these appliances, together with the remainder of the 2007-08 build, will be completed and delivered well before 1 November 2008. I need to reassure the chamber that any delays in the delivery of the appliances will not leave the CFS under-resourced. Because of the way that the CFS manages its business, there are always additional appliances for use. I think the chief officer gave us an example of what happened with the major incident on Kangaroo Island, where all appliances were available.

In relation to the procurement process, to which the honourable member alluded, in 2001 SAFECOM established a panel of contractors for the manufacture of appliance vehicles for the CFS, the MFS and the SES. This panel was established through an open tender process managed by SAFECOM, with contractual deeds of agreement established through the Crown Solicitor's Office. The panel comprises body builders, cab chassis providers and pump providers from Australia and New Zealand. All panel members provide submissions with the knowledge that they must compete on a level playing field with other appliance manufacturers.

In relation to the 2007-08 appliance acquisition process, all tenders were evaluated on the range of criteria set out in the request for quotation documents, and all policies and guidelines were strictly adhered to. In evaluating tenders, SAFECOM adhered to the application of the State Procurement Board, policy 9, and the Australian and New Zealand government procurement agreement. In accordance with that agreement, public authorities must give preference to South Australian suppliers over those from another Australian jurisdiction or New Zealand.

In August 2007, this policy was rescinded; however, the principles were included within the broader international obligation policy that also provides reference to the application of the Australia/United States free-trade agreement. Other AFAC members are able to purchase from the South Australian panel participants and, clearly, Moore Engineering is one of those participants; hence the information provided by the honourable member opposite.

The year 2007-08 saw the Tasmanian and ACT Fire services actively participate and award contracts to South Australian manufacturers. I think it would be fair to say that issues like these are part of normal procurement. The CFS is dealing with this very well, and there is no adverse effect on our procurement and to the number of appliances that we have in readiness in this state and, in particular, of course, for the coming fire season.

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