12 December 2022
A Tasmanian family-owned business will supply the beer and post mix system equipment for the new Spirit of Tasmania vessels.
Tasmanian Independent Beverage Systems (TIBS) is the latest Tasmanian company to receive a contract from ship builder Rauma Marine Constructions (RMC) and Spirit of Tasmania to be involved in the fit out of the two new ships.
On top of supplying the beverage systems, TIBS will also conduct regular maintenance once the ships are operating.
TIBS owners Claire and Max Cabalzar said they were excited that this work would be undertaken by a Tasmanian company.
“We had been working at the tender for a little while and we were really happy to receive support from Spirit of Tasmania,” Ms Cabalzar said.
“Receiving the phone call from Spirit of Tasmania confirming the contract was a real highlight for the business.
“We couldn’t wait to share the news with our friends and colleagues.”
“As a small family business we feel really proud to be involved in such an important project and thank the state government and Spirit of Tasmania for favouring Tasmanian businesses in this way.”
TIBS operations manager Rick Cabalzar will be travelling to Finland during the final stages of the build to assist with the install of the beverage systems.
“This is the first time we will be travelling overseas for work, so this is a real jackpot,” Ms Cabalzar said.
“We have worked really hard in our business and to secure something of this magnitude with only a small team is something we have just dreamt about.”
RMC formally started construction of Spirit of Tasmania IV earlier this year when the first steel was cut at a traditional ceremony at the RMC facility in Finland.
While the new ships will be a similar design to the current Spirit of Tasmania vessels, they will feature substantially larger capacity for passengers, passenger vehicles and freight.
