46 ACAPMAg (November 2012)

regional review:

Kwinana Beach, wa

PROFILE

The name Kwinana is aboriginal for Pretty Maiden. However, the beach in Western Australia was actually named after the SS Kwinana, which foundered after breaking free from its mooring during strong winds in 1922.

After several years with the large vessel beached against the shore, some saw an opportunity. Cutting the hulk to the waterline and filling in with concrete the ship is now used as the anchor point for the Kwinana jetty.

During the 1950’s, developers also saw the prospects offered by the coastal region when the area was zoned for industrial development. BP’s Kwinana Refinery was one of the first industrial facilities to be built, with Alcoa, CBH Group, CSBP and Coogee Chemicals building plants soon after. Many more have been built over the years with most continuing operation today.

Craig Burrows, Director of Fuel Distributors of Western Australia (FDWA), also understands

that you never let an opportunity slip by; making a strategic decision, that eventually brought his business to the Gull – now Coogee Chemicals - Terminal in Kwinana.

Member profile: Fuel Distributors of Western Australia

After his professional Australian Rules football career came to an abrupt halt, due to a back injury, Craig took the chance and responded to an advertisement seeking distributors for Gull Petroleum.

Being appointed as the Gull Distributor turned out to be the easy part of starting a brand new business. With few customers and even fewer resources Craig, wife Alex and father in-law Martin spent the first two years running the business from their dining room, which was converted to an office.

“Our first customer was over 350 kilometres away from the office, but our truck delivered to them

weekly, so other farmers got to know us and we grew from there,” said Craig.

Growth meant the need for a new office location so in 2000, Craig moved the company into the Gull Terminal in Kwinana, where the staff continued operation from the back of the workshop.

“The Gull Terminal at Kwinana Beach is where we loaded all of our fuel and housed our trucks. When the opportunity presented itself to move the office into the terminal we took the opening and never looked back,” said Craig.

“Even though Gull sold the terminal to Coogee Chemicals during 2010, we have remained there. This is to our advantage as we are firmly housed in one of only two fuel terminals in Perth.”

The move proved to be an important step in the success of FDWA, as it put the company in the right location when Mobil decided to close their West Australian operation in 2004.

47ACAPMAg (November 2012)

“When Mobil left we almost doubled the size of the company overnight,” explained Craig.

“We picked up their employees and went from five to nine trucks. We also started growing our cartage side; we won the Gull cartage contract and now shift in excess of 500 million litres.”

Today FDWA supplies fuels and lubricants to more than 2,000 customers located around the greater south-west of Western Australia. Their recently expanded fleet of 35 trucks enables FDWA to service a wide range of industries including commercial, mining, service retailers, local government municipalities and rural industries.

With the introduction of three company run retail service stations, Craig believes he is embarking on another great opportunity. He knows it is not going to be easy - like when he first started in business, making the decision to gamble on a new venture is

the hardest part.

About Kwinana Beach

Kwinana Beach is one of three public beaches at Cockburn Sound - an inlet of the Indian Ocean extending 100 kilometres from Fremantle to Cape Peron - thats look out to Garden Island, which lies around five kilometres off the coast and is the primary base for the Royal Australian Navy’s HMAS Stirling.

The beach itself extends for just over one kilometre north of the breakwater and offers a range of facilities such as a reserve, jetty and boat ramp which are commonly used by local fishermen.

Located 500 metres offshore is the Shoalwater Islands Marine Park which boasts a wide variety of sea life, birdlife, white sandy beaches, a penguin colony, dolphins and sea lions. Visitors can opt to take a chartered expedition over to the island to visit

the local penguins, go swimming with dolphins or paddle in a canoe along the pristine waters. While, approximately eight kilometres south-west is Perth’s marine playground and popular holiday destination, Rockingham, which offers a range of environmental parks, water sports and sandy beaches.

Lovers of sailing, windsurfing and surfing should head to Safety Beach which offers perfect conditions for water sports. The West Coast Dive Park is best for divers and snorkelers that wish to experience life under the sea and see a world of fish and coral, as well as dive wrecks.

For more information about Kwinana Beach and surrounding suburbs visit kwinana.wa.gov.au

• Cherie Mildwater

Cockburn Sound (image courtesy of Grahame Bowland, Wikimedia Commons)