The Australian Pipeliner: It has now been less than two years since Anode Engineering emerged as a specialised supplier for the pipeline industry. Your background was as part of a group of cathodic protection engineers that spent more than thirty plus years developing a very strong engineering/contracting/ service group. What was the initiative that led you to make the change from a strong engineering background to a dedicated supplier to the industry?

Wayne Burns: Over the years of building an engineering and service company, I had found that the focus of a supplier section of the company was regularly diluted due to perceived higher priorities in the engineering section of the company. I have observed this same problem in a number of engineering companies who also aspire to also be a specialist supplier. The result is that true professionalism in the engineering section of the business was not culturally carried through to the products. Many engineering supply houses do not understand that sales people must study and understand their products as much as engineers are trained in their design disciplines.

TAP: How has your engineering background assisted in Anode Engineering’s role as a specialised supplier?

WB: Our history and knowledge of the products our suppliers like is supported by our engineering knowledge and understanding of the applications of the products we supply. Whilst our company name is Anode Engineering, we are basically a specialised supplier with engineering knowledge and know how in the applications of products we provide.

TAP: The name Anode Engineering suggests that you are an engineering company that specialises in anodes. How do you address this image with your clients?

WB: The name of a company is less important than what people perceive the name to represent. While the company does supply anodes of all shapes and types, this aspect of our business represents a small portion of our annual income. Our focus as a supplier is delivering quality products as detailed on our website. These products are supported by the technical knowledge and understanding of the applications of those products.

As part of our overall industry education, our clients are learning to appreciate that we have many years of excellent product knowledge in all of our suppliers’ products. These products include pipe and cable locators, pipeline pigs and signaling equipment, earthing materials and specialised backfills and instrumentation equipment.

Pipeline integrity is at the core of our long term vision for the company. Supplying critical equipment like the cold cutting equipment, the pigs to clean pipelines, filter elements for clean gas delivery, vapor corrosion inhibitors for corrosion treatment and mothballing of equipment and plant, and alternative power supplies such as solar power and thermo-electric generators all form part of a package of goods that position our people strategically in the industry suppliers interface. Our people, who are based in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne and Perth, are a team dedicated to supplying the products required in a timely manner and at a competitive cost.

TAP: Where do you see Anode Engineering in the medium term future?

WB: We have built a reputation of being a reliable supplier with knowledge and deliverability that can be relied upon. Our future is in continuing to conduct training for clients in the use and applications of the products we supply. In this day of electronic information transfer, we see our team and our suppliers becoming more innovative in delivering this technical support by many means across the Australasian market.

TAP: What is the biggest challenge facing a specialised supplier approaching their second year in the market?

WB: After thirty five years in the market, our biggest challenge has always been to get the message out that we are the Australasian distributors for the products we promote and that the best support and service for that equipment is provided by our team of sales and service personnel. Behind this, we are generally distributors for suppliers who are holders of international QA accreditation.

Accordingly this is a platform we pursue as a supplier, such that our company will continue to be seen as a supplier of quality products to the industry.

Our motto is delivering “positive product solutions” and it is that mandate that will make Anode Engineering the primary specialised product supply organisation before 2010.