Caltex’s magazine for employees, franchisees & resellers
Issue 43 Jun – Jul 08
Gallery
Lytton refinery operator Mark Robinson turns on the recycled water tap with John Jardine (left) and Peter Campbell
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Caltex efforts bring big boost for Starlight
Once again physical and financial support from Caltex and its people has delivered a windfall for the Starlight Children’s Foundation. Our efforts this year helped us to increase our Starlight Day contribution to around $250,000 – nearly $30,000 more than last year.
In a thank you letter Starlight CEO Jill Weekes said how much Starlight values Caltex’s support. “As our premier partner you have helped us to make an enormous difference in the lives of thousands of seriously ill children and their families,” she wrote.
The biggest boost in sales of Starlight merchandise was in the reseller and retail network which this year raised around $179,500 compared with $154,700 in 2007. Some of the strongest sales occurred in convenience stores in the weeks leading up Starlight Day on 2 May, with a stockout at the end of April and a rush to resupply in early May.
At Caltex operations employees selling Starlight merchandise raised over $67,000. Volunteers at 2Market, Kurnell refinery and Fremantle terminal sold more this year and increased their sites’ contributions.
Starlight will be shining again at Caltex in August with fundraising dinners planned for Sydney and Melbourne and a special event in Brisbane.
Recycled water flows into Lytton refinery
Recycled water has begun flowing into Lytton refinery at the rate of three million litres a day with the commissioning of a microfiltration reverse osmosis plant at the nearby Wynnum waste water treatment facility.
Lytton’s switch to recycled water follows years of planning and cooperation between Caltex, the Brisbane City Council and Queensland Government. The $35 million project was funded by an $11.7 million grant from Queensland’s Business Water Efficiency Program (BWEP) and by Brisbane City Council with the investment to be amortised over the life of a 15-year supply contract with Caltex.
The plant, completed on time and on budget, was officially opened on 28 May by the Lord Mayor of Brisbane Campbell Newman. The mayor thanked Jim Reeves, the Divisional Manager of Brisbane Water (a division of the council) for establishing the reclamation facilities, and CEO Des King for Caltex’s support and participation.
Des expressed delight that Caltex was able to work with Brisbane Water to help save up to 4.5 million litres of fresh drinking water a day for the local community. The refinery’s daily water needs are 5.2 million litres but at present local household restrictions mean only three million litres a day of treated water are available from the new facility.
It’s mainly used in the refinery’s cooling towers where it circulates to remove excess heat from process units, and in the demineralised water plant which feeds boilers to make steam for turbines.
The refinery still requires drinking water for 15 per cent of its overall supply because the recycled water is demineralised and not suitable for uses connected to human consumption. Salts must be restored to it before it can be used for some industrial processes.
The refinery spent $5.1 million on infrastructure to carry the recycled water, with half funded by a grant from BWEP. Lytton is also providing a scholarship to refinery chemist Colette King who will do a PhD on the environmental effect of the use of recycled water on the refinery.
These winners have the write stuff
“The Caltex writing award is a fabulous prize because it supports kids throughout Australia,” says Melbourne musician Claire Chisholm. “It’s let me pay something back to an organisation that’s affected my own life in a very positive way.”
Eighteen year old Claire, a talented French horn player, was one of five winners in the latest Caltex Best All Rounder national writing contest where they nominate a charity to receive a donation from Caltex. The winners’ work this year was a celebration of life, music, generosity and triumphing over adversity.
Claire Chisholm’s essay was inspired by her passion for music and her admiration for Melbourne Youth Music (MYM), an institution that nurtures young talent. It put forward a strong case for the program that faces financial difficulties.
Like the other winners the former schoolgirl at Melbourne’s Strathcona Baptist Girls Grammar was motivated by philanthropy.
“It’s exciting,” she told The Star. “I’m so glad to be giving something back to an organisation that desperately needs more funding. Hopefully it’ll reduce the risk of losing such a valuable institution. It was also a nice encouragement for me personally – a way to finish off the year on a high.”
The writing competition is open to recipients of the Caltex Best All Rounder Award which is offered to secondary schools across Australia and is conferred on final-year students who have given of their best in the classroom, on the sportsfield and in their community.
Entrants were asked to write about why Caltex should donate $1,000 to a charity or community organisation of their choice. They could also win $500 each for their former schools and themselves.
The other winners are Tim Bell of Erina Heights and Ashley Leal of Cowra, both in New South Wales, Perri Burns of Melbourne and Georgina Clutterbuck of Mooloolah, Queensland.
Autism no barrier to success
Tim Bell’s is an especially interesting story. His essay describes his life journey since being diagnosed with autism at age five, and the part a NSW Central Coast organisation, Autism and Asperger’s Family Support Group, played in helping him on his way.
The group proved invaluable for his parents when they were told their son would never achieve a mainstream education or live a normal life, Tim says, providing information and emotional support. And thankfully all the predictions were wrong. “My mother and father refused to accept the limits.”
Tim became a peer support leader at school events, had artworks displayed and regularly delivered speeches at ceremonies. His plans now include studying at TAFE and becoming a graphic designer.
“I was gobsmacked to win the Caltex prize, especially considering the competition I was up against,” he says. “It’s great that Caltex should have a program that helps people like this. More companies should do the same.”
Preserving life
Perri Burns, who’s studying Arts-Law on a scholarship at Deakin University this year, described the work commitment of the Point Lonsdale Surf Life Saving Club to preserving life at the potentially dangerous Back Beach.
Georgina Clutterbuck, currently studying physiotherapy at the University of Queensland, promoted the work of the Australian Red Cross Blood Bank, which “relies on the passion and generosity of Australians to provide others with a chance to live”.
Ashley Leal wrote of the dire need for a new CTG machine in the maternity unit of Cowra’s hospital. Without the machine that assesses foetal heartbeats, mothers in her region would have to travel hundreds of kilometres to deliver their babies. “The Caltex writing competition . . . may hopefully encourage more support in areas where it’s needed most,” she says. “It’s unfortunate that governments tend to forget about regional areas.”
Ashley is working at her local pharmacy full time and plans to attend university next year.
Managing Director Des King was impressed by the quality and content of the entries this year, and thanked everyone who took part.
“Whether they were speaking up for their local footy team or an international charity, they displayed a desire to help others,” Des says. “Many drew on personal experiences. Together their submissions testified to the generosity of the future leaders of our community.”
LPS at work
The reach of the Loss Prevention System (LPS) extends into the furthest corners of Caltex, and can apply to our charity efforts just as well as any other area of work.
As part of a Safe Performance Self Assessment (SPSA), the 18 volunteers from Fremantle Terminal who sold merchandise for the Starlight Children’s Foundation in May began planning their Starlight Day strategy early. They met in February to identify what they could do to make their fundraising at Perth railway stations a success and, most importantly, incident free.
Armed with information gained from discussions with stakeholders, they decided on where volunteers should stand and how the cash they collected and merchandise could be stored securely. They were grouped in pairs for safety reasons, and a group of three acted as cash collectors and provided more merchandise as needed on the day.
A bank agreed to count the money after hours so it was out of public view and volunteers were reminded of the dangers of walking in groups and holding cash.
The team’s efforts were a stunning success, says WA Starlight Champion and WA Retail Support Coordinator Joanna Cutts, raising $10,100 in two-and-a-half hours.
Adds Joanne: “Can we do this better? Each year we can refine it to make the day more successful.”
Meanwhile on Starlight Day in Sydney the SPSA tool made sure the 15 volunteers cooking at the Starlight outdoor barbecue in Martin Place were also safe. Large drip trays, non-slip mats, fire proof marquees, instructions to wear aprons, closed shoes and trousers as well as plastic gloves for handling food and a safety briefing all helped to protect the 15 tireless chefs, who included CEO Des King (pictured).
"Because our people were outdoors in the middle of the day we also supplied them with Caltex caps and factor-30 sunscreen,” said Sydney Starlight Day Champion Suzanne Cohen.
Many service station people who run fundraisers could also consider similar SPSAs to keep their employees safe, Suzanne suggests.
The Sydney cooks raised $2,180. As it did with their colleagues in Perth, LPS helped ensure they all went home without incident.