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HIRE AND RENTAL NEWS • APRIL/MAY 2015
The industry has seen many changes over
the years, and Phil has always been on
top of things and pro-active by getting
information and then letting the members
know, so we can make informed decisions.
My best wishes to Phil on his future
endeavours!!
Maurice Rivera
Oldfields Advance Scaffold
Thanks for all the support and
information sharing you have given
the Hire and Rental Association of
New Zealand over the years. It has
been a pleasure catching up with
you at both the Kiwi and Aussie
conferences. Wishing you all the
best to where ever life may take
you now.
Tim Mikkelsen
HIANZ President
I first came to a HRIA conference on the
Gold Coast in the early 2000s. I can't
remember which year exactly, but what
I do clearly remember was how the
conference and exhibition stood out from
any other exhibition or conference.
Other conventions had social programs
and other exhibitions were larger or
had bigger crowds, however the HRIA
had one major factor that set it apart,
people contributed! At the HRIA a spirit of
inclusiveness, almost family has flourished
with people swapping stories and ideas,
genuinely enjoying each other's company.
None of this happens without leadership,
and to me this was evident at my first
introduction. Many people make up a
good team but ultimately a team needs
I want to pass along my appreciation
for the time and effort Phil has put
in as CEO.
Congratulations on a job well done
and a big thank you for a wonderful
20 years. I don't know about you but
it feels like a long time to me!
When Phil came into the role the
association was pretty disjointed and
fairly ineffective. Phil worked with
us to improve services for members
and today, compared to 20 years
ago - our association has seen a big
improvement! Phil is leaving a great
legacy.
I can't talk out of school too much
- after all, Phil is a pretty straight
laced type of guy - but he has been
a great friend to the industry and to
me personally and to all the folks at
Kennards too and no doubt to many
more! Thanks for the memories.
Peter Lancken
Kennards Hire
My first memory of Phil was when I
met him in the Kennard's Hire head
office in Sydney where Peter Lancken,
then national association president
Peter Walden and I interviewed
him for the position of CEO of the
proposed new HRIA national body.
During the interview I could see Phil
had a huge amount of experience in
the hire industry which both Peter
Lancken and I saw as a bonus for
what we were trying to achieve in the
creation of the new association.
In May 1999 I was elected as the first
National President and it was our
job to lobby all state associations to
join the HRIA. The three of us toured
the country pushing the case for
becoming one body. We got to learn a
lot about each other's passion for the
industry in that time and a lot about
each other.
The success and the growth of the
HRIA and EWPAA and our national
office and conventions is a testament
to Phil and his team for their
dedication to the job.
It has been an absolute pleasure to
work with someone who I cherish as
a dear friend and colleague. We had
some good and bad times in the early
days together but the good times well
outweighed the bad.
Gary Kerr
Kerr's Hire
In all my years in business I have come
in contact with many associations,
federations and bodies and none have
been run as effectively or efficiently as the
HRIA. I believe Phil is the difference; he
has so much passion and belief in what
he does, he just keeps on doing it. Phil
has been a great mentor. He has been a
good friend and most importantly Phil has
always brought humour to his involvement
within our industry, he will be sorely
missed.
Luke Geelan
Shore Hire
leadership and a direction. Without
argument Phil has brought this to the
HRIA, his analytical style and sense of
humour are strong personal assets he has
shared with us all. The association is in a
sound financial position and remains an
important focal point for members all of
which can be attributed to Phil's vision.
When I had the opportunity to serve the
association in a small way Phil made sure
I had the resources and support I would
need to be effective. Thanks Phil, you will
be missed you know that, your legacy
being you leave the association in good
shape with a strong future.
Tom O'Dowd
No Fuss Event Hire
+ Events National President
TRIBUTE
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34
Y E A R S
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proud supporters of
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HIRE & RENTAL
INDUSTRY
FOR OVER 30 YEARS