Based in the Adelaide suburb of Thebarton in South Australia, FCT Flames is one of the first small businesses to benefit from a bond facility provided by Efic, Australia’s export finance agency.
FCT Flames provides consultancy, engineering design, project management and equipment supply services for major events around the world.With a team of 25, the company’s mechanical and electrical engineers are specialists in the design, manufacturing and operations of flame effect equipment for global ceremonial and high profile sporting events such as the Olympic Games.
Regarded as global leaders in flame technology, they have produced some of the most-watched flames since the cauldron and relay torch that lit up the Sydney Olympic Games in 2000.
A number of iconic projects in their portfolio include the Athens Olympic Games ‘Ring of Fire’, the spectacular cauldron showcased at the London Olympic Games, and the burning man and eclipse cauldron that captured audiences at the recent 2015 t European Games in Baku, Azerbaijan.
The business is also a decorative flame supplier for arts festivals, operas and community cultural / entertainment events.
With 90 percent of FCT Flames’ revenue coming from exporting and a proven track record of successfully delivering projects around the globe, the company was pleased to win the contract to supply the cauldron burner for the 28th South East Asian Games opening ceremony hosted in Singapore last year.
Before granting the contract, however, the organisers required bonds to be in place to guarantee the project’s installation.
According to David Retallack, CEO of FCT Flames, without bond facility provided by Efic, the company would have had to turn the contract down.
“Efic was instrumental in helping us overcome this barrier and secure the contract. They provided a $500,000 bond limit to our bank, in support of an advanced payment bond and a performance bond for this contract, as well as any future eligible export contracts that we may secure.”
This enabled FCT to provide a bank guarantee to the games’ organisers.
“Efic were great to work with, professional and they understood exporting. Efic were able to work closely with our bank and between the bank and Efic the documentation seemed to flow relatively easily and smoothly. The support that Efic gave us with the bond was very important to FCT because it enabled us to accept the contract,” concluded Retallack.
FCT Flames is now well positioned as an exporter with a number of projects in the pipeline and looking to strengthen and expand their offer to new markets.
This is prime example of how Efic is helping small businesses to achieve export success and make it easier for them to compete on the global stage.
For more on Efic visit www.efic.gov.au or phone 1800 093 724
Image (sourced): Simon Cross, Adelaide Now
Trending
Weekly business news and insights, delivered to your inbox.