A close call for winners of the Business Challenge

Saturday 28th May 2005

A close call for winners of the Sustainable Business Challenge!

Record entries made judging extremely tough for this year's Environment Bay of Plenty Sustainable Business Challenge held at Kiwi 360 on Friday night. Forty nine businesses entered the awards and over 200 business people attended the gala presentation. Business Commentator Rod Oram delivered the after dinner address.

Tauranga businesses Compass Community Village and Avalon Training Centre won the stage one and two business categories respectively, with Rotorua company Wildland Consultants winning the stage three business category. Standing out for their advanced sustainability initiatives was Ohiwa Holiday Park, near Opotiki, who was awarded the supreme award for their sustainable business achievements.

According to Calum Revfem, regional manager of the BOP Sustainable Business Network (SBN) "The fact that entry numbers were high made judging particularly tough this year which is a move in the right direction to making business awards a more creditable acknowledgement for winners. It also emphasizes the growing awareness to become sustainable. All of the winners had a system in place to identify, monitor and improve their sustainability performance."

Education Tauranga, an education providers cluster group, won the Sustainable Economic Development award with the Innovation category being awarded to Action Stations - an environmental education business running unique New Zealand educational tours.

Run by SBN, the awards recognise the achievements along the sustainable business journey at each stage, one, two and three, sustainability innovation and sustainable economic development. A panel of expert judges from around the country assessed the entries and undertook site visits to make the awards.

The awards were supported by Environment Bay of Plenty, the major sponsor, as well as the TrustPower, New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, Rotorua District Council, RIOCH, Tauranga City & Western Bay of Plenty District Council's.

Results SBC 2005:

Stage one

Finalists: Compass Community Village, Opus Consultants Tauranga, Wave Design and Marketing

Winner: Compass Community Village

Stage two

Finalists: Avalon Training, Fulton Hogan BOP, Rainbow Resort

Winner: Avalon Training

Commendation: Fulton Hogan BOP

Stage three

Finalists: Comvita, Action Stations, Wildland Consultants

Winner: Wildland Consultants

Sustainable economic development award

Finalists: The Junction, Education Tauranga, Central Engineering Group

Winner: Education Tauranga

Commendations: The Junction and Central Engineering Group

Innovation award

Finalists: Sealed Air, Action Stations, LFC Flooring

Winner: Action Stations

Supreme award

Winner: Ohiwa Holiday Park

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Bay of Plenty Sustainable Business Challenge 2005

Launching March 3&4, Entries Close April 29, Awards Night May 27

Sustainability made simple

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