Derel Wust runs Newcastle, NSW rail technology company 4Tel from Cooee Bay near Yeppoon

Railway signals one moment, ragout overlooking the Keppels the next: How this savvy businessman is making his dreams come true.

From the comfort of his Cooee Bay home, Derel Wust runs a multi-million dollar technology business based in Newcastle, New South Wales.

And there’s no way he would trade the idyllic Capricorn Coast for the hustle and bustle of the city.

After he graduated from Yeppoon High, Mr Wust undertook a degree in electronics followed by a 20-year stint in the Air Force.

It was there the son of a Rockhampton fitter and turner was exposed to the technology for which he sensed there were private sector applications.

His company 4-Tel specialises in the fields of train control systems; its projects typically involve spending millions of dollars over many years on research and development.

“I run a multimillion-dollar business from Queensland but I don’t make one dollar in Queensland,” Mr Wust told The Morning Bulletin.

“Go figure.”

He works in areas controlled by NSW government entities or previously government entities since privatised.

“Back in the early days, nearly 20 years ago, I would commute probably three or four times a month to Melbourne or Sydney, and stay for a week at a time,” Mr Wust said.

“Similar to a mining family, you can keep a happy family together in a good location with good schools.”

Derel Wust of 4-Tel

Like many businesses, Covid forced 4-Tel to explore using distance communications more regularly, but Mr Wust won’t rule out the need for some face-to-face.

“I can’t underplay how important it is to work directly with customers whenever you can, wherever you are,” he said.

“That’s why I’ve been involved in conversations about the need to keep building Central Queensland’s technology and transport systems, to get that balance between working at a distance and being on hand.”

Derel Wust in 2013. Photo Allan Reinikka / The Morning Bulletin

Now he’s retired, one of his daughters runs the company of 55 staff from the Newcastle end.

Her siblings, who stayed in Central Queensland, include a university worker, a physical therapist and an electrician.

Mr Wust said his family “can’t go past” their beachside location in Cooee Bay, where they enjoy a barbecue on the deck and a walk on the beach.

The Yeppoon main beach.

So he’s keeping the block and drawing up plans to build in their “dream mansion” in place of their 70-year house.

It is success stories like this that keeps the Capricorn Coast’s economy booming, with new buildings on the rise and older ones undergoing a face lift.

Yeppoon’s affordable real estate continues to attract professionals to its higher end and working families to suburbs where the median price remains much lower than capital city homes.

And the impact on local tourism and hospitality businesses is remarkable.

Mr Wust favours the Yacht Club at Keppel Bay for a Friday-night feast.

“There’s only one item on the menu, that’s what you get,” he said.

“But it’s always delicious and the service is excellent.”