With all of us officially meeting up for the first time at the Wellington airport the groups networking got off to a bit of a slow start, with everyone waiting around for the crew but not knowing who to look for lol. But that never lasted long as the combination of the NZ hosts and the relaxed agenda allowed for all to meet, and begin to swap industry stories and experiences.
We had a good balance during the tour of plant tours and tourist stops. It was great to have some inside knowledge of where to get a good feed etc ie. burger joint on the HWY.
The hospitality from the NZ operators that welcomed us into their plants, answered our questions was awesome and we even had a traditional song performed at the Palmerston North WTP. Thanks Luke.
The WIOG Conference in New Plymouth was well organised and the Aussies were made welcome by all. We put a team in the tapping and pipework comps, getting runner up both times (due to the time difference and home ground advantage lol). We were represented in the taste testing with the aussie judge making the TV and front page of the paper. The Papers delivered were very interesting and one thing that was made apparent was the water industry has similar struggles/issues and solutions/ingenuity no matter what side of the ditch.
At the end of the week we had gone from a group of strangers with similar jobs to a group that was a bit sad for it all to end. We had a great debrief in Auckland prior to heading our separate ways and I have no doubt that the memories will last for a while.
Contributed by Leigh Walton, TasWater
