Will Sell Out!  First In Best Dressed!  Avoid disappointment!

It's Not too Late to Get Your Awards of Excellence Entries In! Get Them into Us by End of Play This Week!

SPASA Victoria Awards of Excellence Gala Dinner Invitation

See who will win a prestigious SPASA Award of Excellence.

Winning a SPASA Award of Excellence puts your business on a pedestal and gives consumers confidence that they are dealing with the best. More and more, consumers are choosing SPASA Awards of Excellence winners for their quality workmanship, flair and design excellence.

The 29th of July 2017 will be a night to remember, with culinary delights prepared by award winning caterers Epicure and entertainment by the irrepressible Rusty Bertha.

When: Saturday 29th July 2017  Where: Olympic Room - MCG (Enter via Gate 3)  Time: 7pm  Dress: Formal

RSVP by 28th June www.spasavic.com.au/galaticket

Book Your Tickets Now!

The Victorian government has yet again been urged by a coroner to implement better pool safety measures following the drowning death of a two-year-old boy, who left his sleeping mother and entered a backyard pool through a faulty gate.

The death of Elijah​ Meldrum on September 14, 2015 was preventable, according to coroner Audrey Jamieson, who found the rental property's tenants failed to inform their landlord and letting real estate agency that the pool's two gates were not working.

In findings published on Monday, the coroner said Elijah's death occurred amid "…the seemingly perpetually inadequate regulation of swimming pools in Victoria".

 Ms Jamieson's call on the state government to overhaul pool fencing regulations and establish a program similar to that in Queensland is the fourth time since 2012 that a Victorian coroner has recommended action to prevent child drownings.  

Figures released by the Coroners Court show 26 children drowned in domestic pools in Victoria between 2000 and the start of 2015. In most cases, fences or gates were either faulty or left open.

"In Victoria, it is relatively simple for properties with pool safety barriers and gates that do not meet regulatory standards to remain undetected," Ms Jamieson said.

Since Queensland introduced tougher regulations in 2010, the state's rate of child drownings in pools has halved, the coroner said.

SPASA Victoria Media Release - State Government Defies Coroner & Rest of Australia On Toddler Safety - 3 May 2017

SPASA Victoria Media Release - Government Allows Victorian Children To Remain At Risk - 2 May 2017

SPASA Victoria CEO Brendan Watkins Speaks on 3AW With Neil Mitchell

Watch 7 News article – Victorian Coroner Calls For Urgent Pool Safety Changes

The Age - Toddler's Drowning Prompts Coroner to Call for Action on Backyard Pool Fences

Coroner Audrey Jamieson's report 'Finding Into Death Without Inquest' dated 1 May 2017

The property industry is the largest sector in the Victorian economy.

In 2015–16, more than 57,000 planning permit applications were approved through the planning system, providing for an estimated 46,000 new dwellings and 62,000 new lots. This created about $25 billion of proposed economic investment in Victoria.

With the state welcoming about 100,000 people a year, pressure on jobs, housing, infrastructure and other services will intensify. In Victoria, the Planning and Environment Act 1987 (the Act) sets out seven broad objectives for planning-directed sustainable outcomes that are beneficial to both current and future generations.

Read the Victorian Auditor-General's Report 'Managing Victoria's Planning System for Land Use and Development' in full HERE

Our very own SPASA Technical Advisor (Complaints) - Neil Wray - is a new World Champion, having just won in the Cycling World Masters!

Neil has just broken the World record time for the flying 200m at the Avantidrome in New Zealand.

Please join us in congratulating him on this fantastic achievement!

Event 10: Final Time Trial Men 10

500 m - Result

Event 10c: Classification Time Trial Men 10

Your relationship with your builder is like any other business relationship. It carries certain roles and responsibilities and, as a consumer, it is important to know where to go if problems arise. There is a range of services available to advise and assist you to resolve issues or disputes, should they arise. In the first instance you should contact your builder directly to discuss and rectify the problem.

Building Disputes

During a building project, a dispute may arise between the builder and home owner(s). If you become involved in such a dispute, you should attempt to resolve the issue directly with the other party before taking any further action.

• If you are a homeowner, please view information on how to address a building dispute on the Building disputes, defects and delays page on the Consumer Affairs Victoria website.
• If you are a builder, please view the dispute resolution information on the Builders and tradespeople page on the Consumer Affairs Victoria website.

If the issue remains unresolved after you attempted to resolve it on your own, you can visit the Domestic Building Dispute Resolution Victoria (DBDRV) website to lodge an online application for dispute resolution.

The DBDRV provides building disputes resolution without the cost and time often associated with courts and tribunals, and has the power to issue legally binding dispute resolution orders and certificates.

For more information, please visit the DBDRV website or call the Building Information Line on 1300 557 559. As members would know, the association also refers consumers to the Law Institute on 03 9607 9550 for independent legal advice.

A Guide to Domestic Building Dispute Resolution Victoria

Members having experiences with the DBDRV, good, bad or otherwise, are asked to contact Marita on 9501 2040 to provide feedback on this new government initiative.

The recent changes to the Building Act 1993 that commenced on 1 July 2016 now requires owners to be more aware of building work activities on their property. Owners need to ensure building permits are in place and that the closure of any building work is achieved by the issue of either an occupancy permit (OP) or a certificate of final inspection (CFI).

So what do these two documents mean and what are the differences between them? To explain this, we need to start with the building permit.

Building Permit

A building permit is required for all building works under the Building Act 1993 and Building Regulations 2006 unless it is specifically exempted by the Regulations. When issuing a building permit, the relevant building surveyor must nominate whether an OP or a CFI is required on completion. All work needs to be closed out by either a CFI or an OP.

The primary difference between these two documents are;

It should be noted that an OP is not applicable to an alteration to a Class 1a building or within a Class 2 or 3 unit or any Class 10 building.

Occupancy Permit

An OP is a document that signifies a building surveyor is satisfied that a building is suitable for occupation pursuant to Section 46 of the Act. Specifically, this states;

"Occupancy Permit - Building surveyors are responsible for ensuring a building is safe, occupiable and fit for purpose and this is the purpose of the OP. It is an offence to occupy a building following building work that needs an OP unless an OP is in place.

Owners need to note that an OP is issued when a building is ‘suitable to occupy’ from an occupant safety point of view and it is not a statement that all the building work under the building permit is necessarily complete nor is it a certificate stating that all building work complies with the relevant legislation.

An application for an OP is a separate permit process and is made to the building surveyor who issued the building permit. In deciding whether to issue an occupancy permit, the building surveyor may request certificates or statements from various practitioners involved in the building’s construction to confirm that the work complies with relevant building legislation and to check on the mandatory inspections performed. An OP can only be issued when the building surveyor deems every item that can affect safety, health and amenity and the safe use of the building inclusive of all plumbing works is in place and fully operational.

Certificate of Final Inspection

A CFI is a statutory document issued under the Building Act and the Building Regulations. A CFI is issued by a building surveyor for alterations, refurbishments, fit outs, or other building works to existing buildings (including houses) that do not require the issuing of an occupancy permit.

It is important to appreciate the meaning of item 2 above in that the building surveyor will issue a CFI when he or she is satisfied that a building after completion of the building work is suitable for occupation relative to health and safety concerns, in exactly the same manner as an OP. There is no specific separate application process when a CFI is to be issued.  For more information visit www.hendry.com.au

We strongly encourage you to 'fly the SPASA flag' and display your member logo at every opportunity - including your website, social media presence, magazine features and other print advertisements - but please ensure you use the correct logo!

All members must use their SPASA Member category logo (below) and not the SPASA Victoria logo (right). Please note that SPASA Restricted members do not have access to a logo. They will upgrade to Pool Builder membership after completing the mandatory training & consumer references.

In addition - please be reminded that if you are a Gold winner in the Awards of Excellence, you must only display the specific logo stating the name of the award, as per Terms & Conditions of Entry: 'Award winners are encouraged to advertise the winning of an award utilising the official SPASA winner logos. The award-winning category must also be stated on all advertising and promotional materials'.

SPASA Victoria provides the required logo/s in several formats to suit all needs, including zipped high-res versions for professional print advertisements through to low-res and inverse logos for website use. Please contact marita@spasavic.com.au for all logos, if required.

Please check your marketing material to ensure that you are SPASA logo compliant. Here are the member category logos:

The Australian Government has a range of measures designed to support small business.

Small businesses like yours employ 5.5 million Australians and generate $380 billion, which is great for our economy.

That's why the Australian Government has a range of initiatives to help small business succeed, grow and create jobs including:

• Tax cuts
• Simpler GST reporting
• Faster depreciation deductions for assets up to $20,000
• Investor tax breaks
• Help for start-ups
• Tools for easier tax compliance
• Less red tape
• Free Trade Agreements
• Employee share schemes
• Support services for small business
• Training and skills programmes
• A Small Business Ombudsman

It's all about giving small business a big future.

For more information visit www.business.gov.au/smallbusiness?gclid=CMe8oL7Pr9MCFQwAvAodxlMLxg

Running a business takes more than a day-by-day approach. You need a clear idea of where you want your business to be in ten years from now — your own North Star that not only inspires you, it inspires your team as well. Essentially, if you want to get somewhere and you want people to follow you there, you have to visualize it first: you can’t be a leader without vision.

The problem is, most of us are too busy tackling the everyday challenges to sit back and look at what we’re doing and where we want to be. Buried under the daily pressures of running a business, most small business owners can barely think six months ahead, let alone ten years.

Read this article in full from Business 2 Community HERE

Nearly 400 multicultural school students from Melbourne’s South Eastern Suburbs took part in practical water safety education sessions at Bonbeach and Edithvale Life Saving Clubs in late February.

Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) students from the Middle East, Asia, and Africa participated in six separate multicultural beach days as part of the “Building Capacity and Developing Social Inclusion For CALD Youth” project, funded by nib foundation.

The aquatic skills and education program is targeted at CALD youth in the cities of Brimbank and Greater Dandenong, and aims to educate over 1600 people from these highly diverse areas about vital water safety information.

In the 2015/16 financial year, 280 people drowned in Australia, many of whom were from CALD backgrounds.

LSV Manager for Multicultural Projects David Holland said it was important that all new arrivals to Victoria had access to basic water safety information.

“For many of these students, this is their first ever experience of an Australian beach. They may come from countries where water safety is not a priority, and are therefore not aware of things like rips, or how to attract attention in an emergency.” Mr Holland said.

Read the full article from Life Saving Victoria HERE

If you missed our FREE SPASA Learning session 'Sales for Non Sales People' on 2nd May, you can now view Katherine Grace's presentation slides HERE.

Katherine Grace of Elemental Solutions shared her inside information tailored specifically for the construction industry - and for people who don’t like sales!

She spoke about having the necessary tools and techniques to make you feel completely comfortable throughout the sales process and having the confidence to value your work and show your business off to potential clients without looking arrogant.

Katherine also shared how to develop promotional material that will help sell you well before you meet a client, what to do and say in meetings, and how to present your quote so you have a great chance of winning the job.

All attendees were provided with sample templates and went away with increased confidence in their ability to interact with clients and a better understanding of how to secure valuable new business.

See Katherine Grace's presentation slides on 'Sales for Non Sales People' HERE

Don't miss Katherine's highly recommended next session - 'Marketing With No Marketing Budget' on Tuesday 13th June 1.30pm at the SPASA Office.

RSVP to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

Peeing in the swimming pool is obviously a gross thing to do, and we’d certainly never condone it, but this swimming pool is so terrifying that we’re not sure we’d be able to refrain from turning the water yellow!

Because as you can see from the stomach-churning video below, this glass-bottomed pool is situated 500ft above the streets!

The pool – dubbed the Sky Pool – juts from the 42nd floor of a new real estate development called Market Square Tower in Houston, Texas.

Fortunately for those scared of heights, the residential complex has another, more conventional pool on the 4th floor terrace, but if you want to take a swim on the wild side then head on up to the Sky Pool…if you dare!

Read the full article from Flipboard magazine 'Swimming Pool' HERE

Many don’t understand how drowning looks — including aquatics professionals. While difficult, it is helpful to understand the process of drowning.

In evaluating more than 1,000 fatal drownings, I have discovered that there is considerable confusion about drowning and its process, even among aquatics professionals.

My objective here is to identify and correct some misunderstandings about what really happens when an individual drowns, from a physiological and behavioral perspective.

The misunderstandings and confusion begin with the definition of drowning. Historically there have been several accepted definitions. The most popular one states that drowning is death secondly to asphyxia while immersed in a liquid. This equates drowning to death.

Read the full article by John R. Fletemeyer in Aquatics International HERE

People often wish there were more hours in the day because they simply can’t accomplish everything they need to in the time available. The question is whether more time would make a difference, but we’ll never know the answer because time itself cannot be managed. There are 24 hours in a day, no more and no less, and even though we can’t change time, we can change what we do with it. Forget about managing time and start focusing on increasing productivity.

Waste Not, Want Not

The key to increasing your productivity is to not waste the time you have. The results of a salary.com survey showed that 89% of survey participants admitted to wasting anywhere from 30 minutes to several hours of their time at work each day. Much of this is due to ineffective use of the time available to them. An infographic from Scoro reports that “most of us spend more than 40% of our days doing non-work tasks.”

 Here’s their breakdown of the top five time-wasting activities in the workplace:

43.5% of time is wasted on email
42.3% of time is wasted in meetings
21.8% of time is wasted browsing online
17.4% of time is wasted while commuting
10% of time is wasted by procrastination

Read the article in full from H2Insider HERE

Friends of Aqua Technics heir Ben Beale have expressed their shock and grief after the 47-year-old died from a suspected heart attack on Monday while holidaying with family in Dunsborough.

The father of five was jogging along Geographe Bay Drive about 9.30am when witnesses saw him collapse on the footpath. Several people rushed to help including a local doctor who assisted with CPR until paramedics arrived, but Mr Beale could not be revived and was later pronounced dead at Busselton Regional Hospital.

Mr Beale was the public face of the swimming pool empire built by his father Lew, appearing in the company’s TV advertisements. His death comes just weeks before he was due to take part in a charity boxing match for which he had shed more than 10kg in the past two months.

In a family statement yesterday, Mr Beale’s father said he had been privileged to work side-by-side with his son in the family business for the past 25 years. “One of my great joys in life has been coming to work together on a daily basis in the family business,” Lew Beale said. “At the moment we are wrapping our arms around his wife Sarah and his children.”

 Ben's sister Lynley says, “He was my brother first but also my business partner.  We were extremely lucky to be able to work so closely together in business and still enjoy a glass of red together as a family. We are devastated to have lost a great leader, family member, colleague and friend. Ben was a people person and built many strong business relationships that formed the platform for success for ALT.  We will all unite together at ALT and continue to build the business, taking strength from Ben’s legacy.”

Close friend Damian Hampson had been staying with Mr Beale and his family in Dunsborough and said his death had left everyone who knew him devastated and in shock. “You would not meet a more selfless and caring bloke than Ben and it is just so hugely sad what has happened,” Mr Hampson said. “He had such a huge circle of friends and it is going to be very difficult for everyone to come to terms with.”

Only last Friday, Mr Beale posted on his Facebook page that he was “pumped” to be involved in the charity boxing event run by his long-time friend Troy Barbagallo which raises money for sick and disadvantaged children. He said on Facebook that the cause was special to him because his son had survived a form of bone cancer when he was a toddler which had forced him to spend months in Princess Margaret Hospital while he had treatment.

We are sure you will join the entire SPASA community in offering our deepest sympathy and condolences to Lew, Lynley, Sarah & families on their very sad loss.

As you grow your business, one of the most valuable uses of your time as a small business CEO is to manage the financial health of your business. In other words, is your business healthy and strong? Or, are you skating on such thin ice that one or two bad months could mean the end?

The health of your business relies on careful financial/cash management. Maintaining financial security will ensure you stay on top of debt and allow you the space to grow your business. You should also have a goal to have a business that can withstand a few ups and downs (emphasis on the downs) and let you get a good night’s sleep. 

Poor financial control is accountable for over one third of failed small businesses. Closures of this type are often associated with a lack of understanding of even the most basic financial terms and concepts, making financial illiteracy and a lack of sound advice the key reason many failing businesses become bankrupt.

As a business owner you MUST have at least basic skills in financial management. Expecting others in your business to manage finances is asking for trouble. Basic skills in financial management start in the critical areas of cash management and bookkeeping, which should be done according to certain financial controls to ensure integrity in the bookkeeping process.

Monitoring and managing your business’s financial health involves more than simply maintaining a cushion in your bank balance. It’s more than just keeping accurate books. It is more than staying up to date on your accounts payables and not letting your accounts receivables get too stale. Those activities are important, true, but managing your business for financial health is about taking a big picture view of your business, as interpreted through the detail of your financial statements. 

Understanding your financial statements, identifying which numbers matter most on those financial statements, and interpreting those numbers to make informed business decisions is vital. In other words, you are identifying key numerical indicators that tell you how fiscally healthy your business is.

You should be able to generate or ask for financial statements (from your bookkeeper or bookkeeping software) and analyse those statements to really understand the financial condition of the business. Financial analysis shows the 'reality' of the situation of a business, and financial management is one of the most important practices in management.

You want to make looking at your financial reports a regular practice, and you want to have in place those regularly generated reports to ensure you have the information you need at your fingertips.

There are three financial statements that you need to know in your business. These are:

1. Profit and Loss Statement  2. Balance Sheet Statement  3. Cash Flow Statement

Combined, these can show you the health of your business and answer the 3 following questions:

1. Did the business make a profit (Profit and Loss Statement)
2. Did the business increase owner’s equity (Balance Sheet)
3. Were assets used efficiently (Cash Flow Statement)

To simplify the process of measuring your business’s financial health, review the above statements at least once a month and analyse various components of the business. In the end, it will be up to you to decide the importance of your financial health.

Contact PROTRADE United to help you get a true understanding of the financial health of your company. Written by Protrade CEO, Jon Mailer

Member Benefits - Available to all Members in 2017

• AB Phillips - SPASA’s Risk Management, Insurance & Financial Services Provider
• Jeremy Johnson & Associates - Free Expert Legal Advice
• Expert OHS Advice - Jim Pashalidis, Australian OHS
• Career Dressing – Preferred Workwear & Corporate Clothing Supplier
• HR Central – Your People Management Professionals
• Online White Card Training with Aveling
• Houzz and SPASA – Free Profile-Building Website

See the full details of your Member Benefits here

SPASA Industry Training - Basic Chemistry - Tuesday 9 May

Board Meeting – Wednesday 10 May

SPASA Industry Training - Advanced Chemistry - Thursday 11 & Friday 12 May

SPASA Industry Learning - Employee or Independent Contractor - Wednesday 17 May

Awards of Excellence Entries Viewing – Tuesday 23 May