Editors letter

Hello and Welcome
to the May issue of EM.

Many events of a various nature take place throughout the year in a company as big as ESB and more often than not we take the organisation of these events for granted.

However every event, even an annual one, is different each time. The people attending and their individual requirements can change, the numbers attending change and of course the location in some cases. One such event is the annual Power Challenge and I think this year, more than most, I realised how much work is put into the organising of such a large company event, almost all of it on personal time in a voluntary effort.

The nature of the Power Challenge, which has taken place in Killarney for many years now, means that safety is a major priority for the organisers. Two hundred people performing outdoor activities at an adventure centre, some involving water and others taking place in the dark, means that every effort has to be made to ensure that the event takes place in a manner which will not result in an injury to any of the participants. After that there is the sheer logistics of transporting, accommodating and feeding nearly 300 people in all, some travelling from ESBI locations abroad.

While much help and assistance is given by the staff of Cappanalea Adventure Centre, Civil Defence and Killarney National Park we must remember that without the people locally on the ground and of course the organising committee the event would really never take place. All of this is additional to organising the tasks, score keeping, marshalling, collection of personnel from literally trains, boats and planes etc. AND ensuring everyone enjoys a great closing function and prizegiving without any incidents of concern.

Tremendous credit is due to the participants who travel long distances, endure hardships and lack of sleep to make the event an amazing success. The big numbers taking part each year are a tribute to its success but let's not forget that while we can sit back and wait to enjoy next year's event the people on the ground are already well into the preparation of the 2008 event.