The Australian Manufacturing Technology Institute Limited (AMTIL) held a special cocktail reception at SEA LIFE Melbourne Aquarium on 8 August to celebrate the 20th anniversary of its foundation in 1999.
The event was attended by more than 180 industry leaders from manufacturing businesses across Australia, as well as representatives from manufacturing technology suppliers, government and industry bodies, universities and research organisations. AMTIL CEO Shane Infanti has been with AMTIL since the very beginnning, and he noted that the association’s 20th birthday coincided with a strong resurgence in Australian manufacturing.
“It’s great to be celebrating 20 years of AMTIL at such a positive time for our industry,” said Infanti. “There’s been a lot of pessimism in recent years with the GFC and the car industry closures, but right now we’re just seeing exciting stuff going on all across the sector. So tonight’s event isn’t just about looking back on 20 years of AMTIL; it’s about looking forward to what I think is a very bright future for Australian manufacturing.”
AMTIL is the peak national body for the precision engineering and advanced manufacturing sector in Australia. The association was founded on 11 August 1999, following the merger of the Institute of Machine Tools Australia and the Australian Machine Tool Association, and today has a membership of manufacturing companies and technology suppliers spread across every state and territory in Australia.
Since its establishment, AMTIL has conducted a range of activities to support the industry. The assocation organises various industry events – most notably Austech, Australia’s premier advanced manufacturing technology exhibition. It releases a number of publications and industry reports, including its industry-leading publication AMT Magazine. Moreover AMTIL is a partner organisation on government initiatives at both federal and state level, such as the Entrepreneurs’ Programme and the Additive Manufacturing Hub (AM Hub).
Manufacturing in Australia has changed dramatically over the last 20 years, and AMTIL has changed and evolved with it. But according to Infanti, the need to support and promote the interests of the industry remain as important as ever.
“Australian manufacturing needs to constantly adapt if it is to prosper and grow, and at AMTIL we’re committed to helping facilitate that,” said Infanti. “This May we ran our most successful Austech exhibition to date. The AM Hub, which we launched last year, is proving to be a great success. And there are plenty more initiatives in the pipeline. We’re looking forward to supporting Australian manufacturing for many more years to come.”