About Us
- Company Intent
- History
- Approach
- Background
- Experience
- Products and Capabilities
- Business Alliances
- Research and Development
Company Intent
Gough Plastics: Caring about People and the Planet with a Passion.
This statement grew from the identified core company values. These values centre strongly on a balance between family and work and caring for the environment.
The family focus is rooted in the fact that the company is a family owned business. This value extends to a strong caring and respect for employees and their family needs.
Our concern for the environment translates into action in the form of our products and materials. Our key product development focus is the safe storage, treatment and use of water - one of the world’s most precious resources.
Through our product development selection process, we positively screen for products showing environmental benefit. Our range of products expresses this value strongly:
- Hybrid Toilet System - Our award-winning, environmentally friendly toilet system
- Dump-Ezy - The convenient receptacle and separator for chemically dossed porta potty waste
- Gough Tanks - Safe secure storage of water and other liquids
When looking at the whole of life cost of our products, a key environmental bonus is also the recycleability of much of the polyethylene raw material we use for manufacture.
We wish to state not only what we care about, but also how we go about our work. We are not about having a feel-good aim without the action. Instead we strive for our goals with passion.
History
Gough Plastics is a family owned company based in Townsville, North Queensland. The company is a Research, Design and Manufacturing unit specialising in new products from conception through to point of sale.
The company is built on a strong family base which gives both flexibility in operation and security of existence. It is this family unit which will continue to steer the company into future growth and expansion. Gough Plastics has already put into place plans which will see the company expand in both local and overseas markets.
Gough Plastics is a Rotational Moulding company with Global and Australasian expertise in Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Industries. The company has been operating from its Townsville base since 1989 and has successfully completed projects in Brazil, Germany, Papua New-Guinea and throughout Australia. The company takes great pride in its achievements in all fields, especially those which have a bearing on Health and Environmental matters.
Approach
The professional team working at Gough Plastics has grown with the company into a dedicated group of professionals with a proven track record in the research, design and manufacture of specialised Plastic products. This team is aware at all times of the requirements of the client and the need to produce products that will be serviceable, meet the demands of the end user and fit in with the cultural and environmental situation in which they will eventually be used.
This team marries together the technical, administrative and financial skills at its disposal to offer an innovative approach to its clients. This team has proven its ability to interact with the client on all levels. It is this approach that has seen the company grow from strength to strength.
Background
The name Gough is a name that has been associated closely with improving products and conditions under which people work and live with for many years. This is especially so in the Sugar Industry. This association started during the Second World War when Herbert Gough spent much of his time helping the Italian migrant farmers in the Lannercost area of the Herbert River Valley, Queensland, to remain viable during the times of internment.
These times were full of inventiveness and ingenuity and they carried through to the sons of these men as was to be proven in the resourceful and inventive mind of the founder of Gough Plastics. During his time as a farmer Peter Gough was responsible for developing a cane planting system which was to become the accepted norm in the Sugar Industry World wide.
It has been this sort of resourcefulness and willingness to succeed and overcome challenges, that has seen a family company grow into a dedicated team of professionals striving for excellence under the banner of Gough Plastics.
Experience
Through a process of self education, development, training and importation of the people and technology required, Gough Plastics has been able to meet the requirements of its wide client base. These clients range from the back yard inventors to the multinationals.
The first major project undertaken was the Fly Buys Shell Project. In conjunction with a sign company Gough Plastics embarked on a rather adventurous project for a company of its size. The project involved the manufacturing and packaging of the product for its supply Australia wide. This project was successfully completed to the customers satisfaction and was to bring into the company the confidence to move onto bigger and better things.
The securing of the contract to supply Austoft Industries, the worlds leading Sugarcane Harvester manufacturer was a great achievement. This is so because this required a completely new product, researched, designed and manufactured by Gough Plastics, to be introduced into an industry in which this product is now accepted World wide.
Plastic Extractor Hoods are now in use in every major mechanized Sugar producing nation in the World through Austofts' network of agents and their Brasilian manufacturing arm. The ongoing Research and Development program at Gough Plastics has seen many changes occur in this particular product.
The desire to improve efficiency and productivity of the product has seen the company become the World leader in this field.
Another successful undertaking has been the development of a Conveyor Belt Cover system which controls the problem of airborne particles entering the atmosphere as a result of the transport of materials by conveyor. This system has proven to be extremely successful in the Sugar Milling sector where the control of Bagasse dust was proving to be a costly exercise.
Gough Plastics developed a system of containment which eliminated the need for constant clean up works and in doing so removed airborne pollution from the environment.
Once again this project was a result of the team at Gough Plastics being capable of identifying a problem area and having the resources at its disposal to achieve a positive result. This product is quickly becoming the accepted method of product containment in the Sugar Industry and is set to make inroads into the Conveyor world.
These projects are proven examples of the ability of Gough Plastics to take projects in hand and develop them from conception to completion. On a day by day basis Gough Plastics is able to help its clients meet their needs by drawing on the experience and knowledge it has gained from previous undertakings.
Products and Capabilities
A Product range has been developed at Gough Plastics based on consumer driven needs. Gough Plastics has been at the driving edge of the introduction of plastics into the areas where previously used materials were becoming both impractical and expensive. These products are varied and diverse and are spread through a broad spectrum of industry.
Gough Plastics has in its product range containers ranging from 50 to 9,000 litres which are suitable for wide range of uses. This range includes tanks for the storage and transport of water and chemicals which can be made from a variety of base materials depending on requirements.
A stand out in this product group is the new 1000 litre cube which has been developed for the resource recovery sector. A new 3000 litre Transporter tank has also been added. This product was specifically introduced for the chemical spraying industry and adds to the other purpose built tanks already available to this specialized field.
Due to the company's involvement in such diverse industries such as agriculture and mining, the need for products to safely contain potable drinking water was established. Water is the essence of life as any farmer or geologist contending with mother nature will tell you.
With this in mind a range of products were designed to suit the vehicles used in these types of endeavors, ensuring water is available on tap. Recent additions to this range have been water and dust proof containers suitable for the storage and transport of anything from food provisions to expensive research equipment.
This range of product is now available through a network of nationwide dealers of 4WD equipment. This network includes companies such as TJM, Opposite Lock and ARB.
The company's involvement in the mining industry and with its various support groups has led to the development of some very advanced products.
Kowari Motors are a manufacturer of underground mining equipment servicing Australasia. Their specific need was to have a product capable of not only withstanding the rigors of mining activities, but to also stand up to the harsh corrosive environment in which it had to operate.
Through a combined effort, Gough Plastics was able to develop a product which has saved the likes of MIM substantial amounts of money in maintenance and replacement costs.
As well as having a diverse range of products the company has developed a Plastic Fabrication Department. This department has the latest extrusion welding machines at its disposal to carry out installation and fabrication works in house or in the field. Projects to date include the construction of a 3,500 litre water tank to fit a Army vehicle capable of being transported by aircraft and the installation of the polypropylene tanks at the Yabulu Nickel Refinery Cobalt R&D pilot plant.
This department also carries out repair and maintenance work which saves our clients the cost of replacement by extending product life. Two examples of this type of work have been done at McArthur River Mine and Cardwell Seafarm Prawn farm. In both cases extensive repairs were carried out which not only saved the client the substantial replacement costs, but also saved expensive shutdown costs and resultant production losses.
Being able to gel together manufactured and fabricated products with onsite works enables us to better suit our customers needs.
The range of products available and the ability to fabricate give Gough Plastics the versatility required to meet the challenges of the market place. It is only with constant communication with clients and suppliers that innovation and advancement can succeed
Business Alliances
Gough Plastics has been fortunate through hard work and dedication to form a number of business alliances which give the company a solid base on which to grow and plan for the future. This base is spread across a broad range of markets and in being so minimizes the effect of market trends and fluctuations. This is important to manage the structured continual growth of the company.
Gough Plastics is currently involved in a research project with James Cook University, Townsville City Council and NCDC which, when successful, will propel the company into the future. These joint ventures require a great deal of time and effort, but the finished products should go a long way to help providing solutions to major health and social problems among indigenous communities throughout the world.
This knowledge, and the recognition of these research bodies and the abilities of Gough Plastics has been a gratifying reward to the dedicated team working on this project.
Austoft Industries who have been taken over by the agricultural giant Case IH have proven to be one of the companies greatest assets. Through a close working relationship with this company we have jointly been able to remain market leaders in the field.
This association has also enabled Gough Plastics to export product and technology to the Brazilian manufacturing arm of Austoft. The Brazilian Sugar industry is in its infancy in regard to the mechanization of harvesting of the product. The potential for growth in this area is substantial and the company intends to use the resources at its disposal to be part of this exciting growth.
The ongoing Research and Development being carried out between Austoft and Gough Plastics remains the key to the ongoing success and growth of the company in this highly competitive field.
Beltreco is an Australasian conveyor belt company with a network of branches and agents servicing all types of industries. The association between this company and Gough Plastics has led to the development of a range of product capable of handling the environmental and physical requirements of today's competitive industry. Beltreco handle marketing, Gough Plastics does the manufacturing and jointly the companies carry out research and development. This results in a very strong team capable of meeting the needs of the client quickly and efficiently in a very cost effective manner.
North Queensland Resource Recovery is an environmentally driven company who specialises in the recovery of oils and waste products generated through all types of industry. In conjunction with Gough Plastics, a range of products has been developed specifically for the safe containment, transport and handling of non-environmentally friendly products so that they may be processed and recycled.
These products had to be designed to be user-friendly to ensure easy disposal of the waste materials. The product was designed to be quickly dismantled to ensure ease of cleaning and it had to stack together and be forkliftable for savings in transport costs.
Through its association with companies such as North Queensland Agricultural Supplies and other agents, Gough Plastics has ensured it has direct access to a major part of the Queensland agricultural community. These groups, along with the companies mentioned above and the new clients coming to Gough Plastics will, with careful management and planning, ensure strong growth into the future.
Research and Development
A very strong commitment to R & D has played a major part in strong and continual growth of the company. The desire to search for the new, to solve problems and to create easier, more efficient, cost effective, environmentally and socially acceptable solutions in a rapidly advancing world is the driving force behind the team at Gough Plastics. Each setback is seen as a stepping stone to the successful completion of the task at hand, and every success seen as a challenge to take on the next project.
The team at Gough Plastics, through its own abilities and its access to research institutions regarded to be amongst the best in the world, is continually striving for success.
Research and Development is not limited to the finished product at Gough Plastics. Part of the team is dedicated to the continual research and improvement of the manufacturing side of the company. Systems control plays an important part of the Rotational Moulding process and the ability to monitor and control enables the R & D team to carry out trials, have positive information to work with and to ensure quality control in the production process.
The team is currently developing a system in a form not currently available to the industry. This system will allow Gough Plastics to advance into the future as new and exciting developments take place within the industry.
Research and Development is a vital part of the growth of any company and the team at Gough Plastics are dedicated to the advancement of the company in a highly competitive world.
For further information please contact us directly.