After several years testing equipment for companies in a range of industries, from fabrication and chemical plants to aviation, Dirk De Beer used his redundancy payment to settle in Kalgoorlie and realise his dream of owning his own business.

A 28 year-old single man, Mr De Beer set up a desk in his home garage and invested in tools and a converted telecoms service ute.

That was how Mr De Beer business, Goldfields NDT Pty Ltd, first began.

Non-destructive testing (NDT) is testing and analysis used to evaluate materials and structure for defects, without causing damage to the original part.

Landing contracts with BHP’s Nickel Smelter in Kalgoorlie and other mining companies, Mr De Beer’s small business took off.

His journey took him from being a sole trader with a second-hand ute to being the managing director of a business currently employing about 20 people.

Just last year, Mr De Beer opened a purpose-built workshop on the outskirts of the famous Super Pit and is so busy he is now looking to hire an additional four staff who reside in Kalgoorlie.

He also uses his relationships with other like-minded small businesses to take on big contracts like an upcoming shutdown at BHP’s smelter.

“I started in this industry as a bachelor and am now married with two boys – we have built our ‘forever home’ in Kalgoorlie,” Mr De Beer said.

“It’s more than just business, its personal too, and I have a great team.

“With businesses like BHP supporting us in the early days, we can now support them with local expertise when skilled resources are scarce – that early investment has allowed us to get to a position where we can grow the business and invest back into the community,” he said.