Training and skilling have been big part of the MTA Queensland’s structure since 1975 when it began providing the automotive sector with the skill sets required to meet current and forecast demands. In 1997, as a consequence of the deregulation of the vocational training market, the MTA Institute (MTAI) became a Registered Training Organisation servicing the field of vocational education for automotive traineeships and apprenticeships. It is the premier provider of automotive vocational training in Queensland delivering leading-edge courses to students. The Institute is the primary supply chain for a skilled workforce for the automotive industry across Queensland.

For more than a decade, I’ve been involved with the MTAI in leadership roles. Over that time, there’s been consistent advocacy to Federal and State Ministers, departments and agencies for a defined pathway for interested secondary school students to be inducted directly into the apprenticeship and traineeship system. There must be, for students and parents, the prerequisite knowledge of the academic requirements to enter the trades equivalent to those required for entry to an undergraduate qualification. There must also be an awareness of the tremendous opportunities that vocational pathways offer.

It was with the great sense of achievement we noted the Federal Minister for Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business Michaela Cash announcement that vocational education and the trades will have equality with tertiary education. I had met with Senator Cash in October 2018 at a policy discussion lunch at which I raised the issue of a pathway from secondary school to an apprenticeship and the need for government focus and investment in skills for the automotive value chain. I was encouraged with what I heard at that time.

The Federal Government has advised there is a $1.5 billion Skilling Australians Fund to help young people into apprenticeships and is encouraging high school students and their parents to consider the options available to them. ‘A university degree is not superior to a VET pathway.’ The automotive trades are on the National Skills Needs List which addresses areas of persistent skills shortage in the Australian economy.

A trade job is not inferior to professional employment. The MTAI has had students with an undergraduate medical degree looking for a career change and choosing to undertake automotive training. The MTA Queensland 2018 Apprentice of the Year Jack Goodrich from Twidale Auto and Motorcycles at Goondiwindi, has a Bachelor of Science but chose the automotive trade as his career path. For students or parents seeking automotive apprenticeship information, the MTAI contact is on the website www.mtai.edu.au

A Year of Achievement

The 2018-19 financial year has been a year of achievement. This did not happen by chance. There’s been unity of purpose across the Group and the corporate office and led by a united Board of Directors focused on achieving outcomes for the membership and the Association. Independent and external assessments of specific actions and policies indicate we are upholding the tenets of our vision “to be Queensland’s most trusted, influential and engaged industry peak body”.

• Members and the corporate office should take pride in the recognised achievements of being selected the winner of significant awards:
• Australian Business Award for Business Innovation which recognises organisations that implement business initiatives which demonstrate innovative solutions for new and existing business needs.
• The MTAI, the recipient of the Queensland Training Award for Small Training Provider of the Year which makes the MTAI eligible for the Australian Training Awards.
• The Lord Mayor Business Awards finalist in the category of Australia Pacific LNG Award for Business Innovation which will be announced on 18 October.

These achievements have not been at the expense of the quality of services delivered or the Association’s fiscal position. The Association’s Auditor BDO Audit Pty Ltd, has completed the audit of the accounts which reveal an impressive result for the end of the financial year. Account and audit details will be presented to the Annual General Meeting Board of Directors meeting and published in the Annual Report, November edition.

Member Engagement Strategy

The Strategic Plan 2019-2021 sets ‘service excellence’ as the prime priority. As mentioned in previous From the Desk of the CEO, a Member Engagement Strategy has been established to increase one-on-one interactions with members. The purpose is to listen to the views and issues of members and inform of the many advantages of belonging to the MTA Queensland. Similar to all undertakings by the corporate office, there must be investment in the skill sets needed to achieve the outcomes. Recently there was a two-day training event that covered off on ‘service excellence’ and sales through service that all participants valued.

Events

It is the practice to reciprocate the courtesy of the Australian Automotive Dealer’s Association (AADA) in supporting the MTA Queensland events. I attended the AADA convention ‘2020 + Beyond’ and the President’s dinner where former Chief Executive Officer David Blackall was farewelled and James Voortman welcomed to the role by the AADA Chairman.

The convention, aptly, was centred on the theme that dealerships have two front doors: the conventional one opening out onto the street and the online one through which many potential customers now enter. An overlooked matter is the contribution automotive retailers deliver to Australia’s economy. The reality is that the sector creates $57 billion in turnover per year and collects $2 billion in tax.

Following MTA Queensland’s nomination in the Lord Mayor Business Awards in the Australia Pacific LNG Awards For Business Innovation category, I presented to an eight-person panel on the merits of the Innovation Hub and its activities. I further attended a formal networking opportunity hosted by the Lord Mayor for the 2019 finalists on the 30th September.

Challenges and Opportunities

A significant and ongoing issue for the automotive value chain is the disposal of end of life tyres. In Australia, 23 million are generated annually. The MTA Queensland is in discussions with a green technology startup which has developed a technology which is capable of recycling end-of-life car and truck tyres into saleable commodities of carbon, oil and steel. Due diligence has commenced into an investment opportunity with this start-up. It has enormous potential for the industry and will bring significant social, environment and economic benefits. The MTA Queensland Board will review the due diligence and determine if to invest and the level of the financial commitment.

And the last thing

The incursion of autonomous vehicles across the landscape has had a recent disruption. The global mining giant Anglo American has paused plans to roll out autonomous trucks at its Queensland Dawson mine. The feasibility study to replace the existing fleet of haul trucks with autonomous haulage systems did not match up against other options for the capital outlay. The existing fleet will be overhauled. The company will revisit autonomous replacements when the existing fleet reach the end of their operational lives in two to three years’ time. Indeed, the issue of operational life is relevant to our industry and does pose an increased risk towards our already burdened waste liability. If our current fleet have a shortened life cycle due to preferences by consumers for new technology such as EVs and AEVs, then we will have the challenge to address this issue.

The focus for the next month will be attending to membership and commercial issues and preparing for the Annual General Meeting of the MTA Queensland Board.

Until next month, as Henry Ford, the industrialist and the founder of the Ford motor company said, ‘execute ideas with enthusiasm . . . as it is the bottom of all progress’.