WORLD-leading protected military vehicle builder Thales was the standout performer at last week’s Bendigo Bank and Be.Bendigo Business Excellence Awards, winning both the Manufacturing Award and the 2026 Bendigo Bank Business of the Year title.
In announcing Thales’s triumph, the judging panel paid tribute to their ongoing investment in the community and local jobs.
“There is clearly innovation embedded in the Bendigo Thales operations and their commitment to community, employment and growth in our region is evident,” they said.
Site manager Rhett Nankervis, who accepted the awards on behalf of the company, said the local staff were “ecstatic” about the twin accolades.
“To win Business of the Year, it’s really shown how much our work means to the community,” he said.
“I’ve been walking through the gates every day for the last 24-odd years. I’m proud about what we do and I know the 270 other staff on site are also really proud about it too.
“It’s really important to us for people to actually know the business and the people behind it.
“There’s 26 staff onsite –10 per cent of the workforce – who have worked here for over 30 years. I think that shows the worth that we put into our people and how much we value the individual.
“Obviously, they keep turning up because they don’t want to look for another job.”
Nankervis said his own extended stretch at the former Bendigo Ordnance Factory and Australian Defence Industries site comes back to “the pride about what we do, especially if you get to shake the hand of someone who has been in a vehicle that has been blown up and it effectively saved their life”.
“I met a couple of those people last year.
“One introduced me to his two sons and said, ‘The only reason they have a father is because of you guys’.
“When you hear that, it really hits home about how important our work is.”
More on the awards over the page.