Maitland City Council staff have been praised for making some savvy savings during the last quarter including $70,000 on the cost of new bulk fuels.
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The news runs hot on the heels of a similar report for the December quarter last year.
Cr Robert Aitchison was quick to get to his feet at last week’s council meeting, singing the praises of staff and describing the latest report as “a fantastic result for council.”
“The staff are really thinking outside the box in terms of where savings can be made,” Cr Aitchison said.
Earlier this year Cr Aitchison pointed out that council was making huge cost savings by embracing the latest technology such as drones and slashing its departmental budgets.
Some of the more unusual ways council had been making savings was through converting lighting and power to more efficient technology and there has also been great use of equipment and the rationalisation of specialised equipment like moving away from backhoes and excavators.
New technology also played a role with council using drones to undertake a major maintenance survey on the hard to reach slate tiled roof of Maitland Regional Art Gallery which eliminated the need for expensive scaffolding.
“This quarter the fuel savings council is making are huge,” Cr Aitchison said.
“Diesel fuel is essential for the efficient operations of council’s plant and machinery.
“It is vital to have a reliable, accessible source to enable operations – both in good times and during times of emergency,” Cr Aitchison said.
He said council officers carried out a comprehensive tender assessment based on a number of criteria including price but also importantly on quality and safety, including road transportation.
“Council resolved to award the tender to Hastings Co-operative Ltd for the supply of bulk fuels and it is estimated the contract will save approximately $70,000 per annum.
“Even in my business we have reviewed our sensis and saved similar amounts by people now going online rather than yellow and white pages so that saved council another $7000.”
Cr Aitchison said council is aiming for a $500,000 saving a year. “Which is $125,000 a quarter and these two savings alone were worth half of that amount,” he said.
He added that the city’s new sporting field came in under budget and ahead of time.
“There was some money left over which helped us pay for some of the furnishings in the grassed mezzanine area at the front gate,” Cr Aitchison said.
