Staff Writer | Palladium - Mar 05 2018
Realising Results through Remote Logistics

It was the largest mission that the Commonwealth of Australia (COA) had ever undertaken to support the restoration of peace, law and order in a neighbouring country.

The Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) was a response to the violence and lawlessness that plagued the Solomon Islands, and is now regarded as one of Australia’s most successful foreign policy achievements.

When it decided to lead the mission, COA knew that it would need an in-country base so measures could be taken to achieve stability. They did not have the resources to provide the logistics operations that this remote base would require, so their challenge was to find an experienced contractor who could effectively provide these services. COA decided to select Palladium because of our proven past performance, value for money approach, flexibility and commitment to continuous improvement.

“I would also like to extend our appreciation to all [Palladium] staff for their unwavering dedication, support and commitment to the RAMSI mission...[the team’s support] has ensured that not only [has the base] continued to run smoothly over the years, but also that all members have had three quality square meals a day and have lived in a safe [and] secure environment”
Australian Federal Police, July 2017

Despite operating in a difficult to reach market, we responded to over 2,000 procurement requests a year and gave COA the ability to easily scale their levels of stock as the mission’s needs changed. In RAMSI’s final year, we imported 1,114 cubic metres of sea freight and 311 cubic metres of air freight into this remote environment.

We also provided a wide range of grounds, facilities and maintenance services to keep the base running smoothly. This included accommodation management, waste management, ground refuelling, transport management, laundry management, facility cleaning and maintenance, facility project management, pest removal and infrastructure utilities management. Over RAMSI’s final year the team achieved the following results:

  • 14,506 loads of laundry
  • 5,233 air conditioning tasks
  • 1,175 electrical tasks
  • 794 carpentry tasks
  • 169 vehicle safety inspections

Our catering team consistently received high client satisfaction ratings. Some diners even went so far as to declare that the kitchen had prepared the best pizza, ribs, seafood and pumpkin soup that they had ever tasted.

Over RAMSI’s final year, we served 36,382 meals and received 201 catering comments on average each quarter. 99% of these comments were positive, 0% were negative, and the remaining 1% were requests for alternate meals.

When the mission concluded in 2017, former Prime Minister John Howard stated that “it was overwhelmingly successful…” The program’s logistics support services had been consistently delivered in a smooth and transparent manner, and as a result, COA were able to focus their efforts on achieving the mission’s goals. They not only stabilised the local environment in the short-term, but also empowered the local police to maintain their country’s law, order and stability over the long-term.

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