Month: October 2017

Under the theme ‘Manufacturing’s Future in a Digital Age’, some of the speakers who will be presenting at the Conference include: Brad Howarth. Keynote: ‘Navigating to a Digital Future’ Brad is a respected authority on technology, marketing and digital media. As a journalist, Brad spent the last two decades researching and writing about technology’s impact on organisations, society and individuals. While he continues to study change as a freelance journalist, as a speaker and facilitator he works with organisations to help them understand and plan for changes yet to come. In 2012 Brad was selected to participate in the Prime Minister’s Digital Economy Forum alongside leaders from Australian industry and academia. Brad’s books ‘Innovation and Emerging Markets’ and ‘A Faster Future’ (co-authored with Janelle Ledwidge), respectively examined the impact of high-speed communications technology on business, society and individuals, and the path to commercialisation for Australian technology innovation. His latest, ‘Managing for Change’ (with Peter Fritz AM) sets out a practical guide…

Tuff Manufacturing After 40 years in engineering, Charlie Quagliata of Tuff Manufacturing established a new business in North Queensland and at the same time initiated a relationship with leading CNC machine supplier Okuma Australia for the first time. Tuff Manufacturing produces high-quality hydraulic cylinders for a range of applications including components for concrete trucks and agitators, and with a strong emphasis in the supply of components to original equipment manufacturers including steel and nylon rollers and chute cylinders. “Operating a precision manufacturing operation approximately one hour’s drive south of Townsville meant that quality, reliability and back-up service on the machine was essential and Okuma had what I wanted in a large machine,” said Charlie. “Whilst I have an experienced team of skilled engineers, the high-level training aspect was also what we were looking for and the Okuma technicians didn’t leave until we were happy and they have bent over…

Ms Penelope Heller, who was diagnosed with chondrosarcoma (a rare bone cancer) in 2014, had to have her cancer affected sternum removed. Her surgeon fashioned a replacement sternum and ribcage using off-the-shelf solutions and while the procedure effectively removed the cancer, ongoing pain and problems breathing made post-op life unpleasant. On 2 August, the 20-year-old American underwent further surgery to replace her implant with a customised sternum and partial ribcage made from 3D printed titanium and combined with Anatomics’ ‘PoreStar’ technology, a unique porous polyethylene material providing “bone-like” architecture to facilitate tissue integration. It is the first time this technology has been used in the United States and only the second time in the world that a 3D-printed composite sternum and ribcage has been implanted. 3D printing has significant advantages over traditional manufacturing methods, particularly for biomedical applications. 3D printing allows for advanced personalisation of implants so they uniquely fit their recipients, as well as rapid manufacture, which could mean the…

Times are changing. Cloud-based Software as a Service (SaaS) overcomes the traditional IT and budget barriers to provide a business with reliable, cost-effective software that is easily and quickly deployed. Cloud-based software doesn’t involve large, upfront licencing costs or massive internal IT overheads and, critically, delivers the high level of functionality required to improve performance in both proactive and reactive maintenance activity. With the continued emphasis on every sector to ‘do more with less’, organisations are under increasing pressure to maximise asset value. For the manufacturing site desperate to minimise downtime and improve productivity, asset maintenance is finally taking centre stage. Yet the vast majority of businesses in Australia & New Zealand are struggling to drive forward improvements. Most…

The list of materials that can be produced by 3D printing has grown to include not just plastics but also metal, glass, and even food. Now, MIT researchers are expanding the list further, with the design of a system that can 3D print the basic structure of an entire building. Structures built with this system could be produced faster and less expensively than traditional construction methods allow, the researchers say. A building could also be completely customised to the needs of a particular site and the desires of its maker. Even the internal structure could be modified in new ways; different materials could be incorporated as the process goes along, and material density could be varied to provide optimum combinations of strength, insulation, or other properties. Ultimately, the researchers say, this approach could enable the design and construction of new kinds of buildings that would not be feasible with traditional building methods. The robotic system was described in April in the journal Science Robotics, in a paper by Steven Keating PhD, a mechanical engineering graduate…

DMG MORI has integrated the additive laser deposition process in a fully-fledged five-axis milling machine. This intelligent hybrid solution combines the flexibility of additive component manufacturing with the precision of machining, thus enabling the additive manufacture of complete components in finished-part quality. This procedure uses a deposition process by means of a metal powder nozzle, which enables complete machining without the need of a process chamber and is up to ten times faster than generation in a powder bed. It also makes it possible to produce overhanging contours without a supporting geometry. The combination of laser deposition welding and machining on one machine opens up completely new possibilities in terms of applications and geometries. In particular large components can be produced cost-effectively with this hybrid solution. In addition the flexible changeover from laser processing to milling makes it possible to machine component segments directly that would otherwise be impossible to reach on the finished part. The market for additive processes has grown at a…

Trends in product design can also incite vibration. To enhance product strength and reduce assembly costs, manufacturers increasingly machine parts from monolithic workpieces. Producing internal features of the parts requires tools to reach into deep cavities, and the extended tool length exaggerates vibration. Attempting to minimise vibration by reducing cutting parameters decreases productivity and increases manufacturing cost. Prime among the various approaches to vibration control are passive/dynamic systems that utilise tuned-mass damper concepts to absorb vibration before it progresses and disrupts the machining process. Vibration – A common issue All sectors of industry recognise excessive vibration as a destructive condition. Repetitive operating and/or external forces generate sympathetic motion that can resonate within a machine, building, or bridge and grow to a dangerous magnitude. Manufacturers and builders often apply tuned mass damper concepts to overcome vibration. A tuned mass damper is a component that is suspended within…

The article – entitled ‘Attracting Investors To Realise Australian Life Sciences Full Potential’ – also reveals that investment in life sciences is increasing, with the sector raising $1.384bn in capital in 2016, and with Federal Government programs like the Biomedical Translation Fund (BTF), stimulating private sector investment. The BTF comprises of $250m in Commonwealth funding, matched by private sector investors contrubutions, and will be used to invest in promising biomedical discoveries. MTP Connect – Accelerating growth in life sciences MTPConnect (The MedTech and Pharma Growth Centre) is one of the Federal Government’s six Industry Growth Centres. The Department of Industry, Innovation and Sciences states that the Industry Growth Centre Initiative enables national action on key issues such as collaboration, commercialisation, international engagement, skills and regulation reform. The Federal Government has allocated $250m for the Growth Centre Initiative over four years…

Located in Melbourne’s south-east suburbs, Bystronic’s new Demo Centre marks a major expansion of the company’s presence in the country. The open-house event began with an official opening ceremony, during which the ribbon was cut to open the facility, and in accordance with company tradition, the Australian team was presented with a large Swiss cowbell to mark the occasion. “Over the years Bystronic’s presence in Australasia has been with another channel,” said Robert Bécsy, Managing Director of Bystronic Australia. “But this year we have finally taken the step of going forward on our own, deepening our footprint and strengthening our presence to serve our customers better.” Visitors to the event enjoyed an opportunity to take a guided tour of the Demo Centre. The large showroom area featured displays of the latest technology from Bystronic, including the ByStar Fiber laser cutting system, as well as the Xact Smart and the Xpert 40 machines from its bending range. There were also a series of symposia throughout the event in the Centre’s…

William Buck is a leading firm of chartered accountants and advisors with offices across Australia and New Zealand. Established in 1895, it has more than 70 directors and 500 professional staff, and is wholly owned and operated in Australia and New Zealand. As a longstanding service partner to AMTIL, William Buck offers AMTIL members the opportunity to benefit from a broad range of accounting and business services including specialist tax advice, audit, wealth creation and superannuation. The AMTIL National Conference will explore the theme ‘Manufacturing’s Future in a Digital Age’. The one-day event will focus on the latest trends in digitalisation and the ways in which emerging technologies will impact our industry in both the short and the longer term. The Conference will present a unique opportunity to learn about the trends and developments that will shape and define Australian manufacturing in the coming years, as well as to network and celebrate our industry. Anyone with an interest in manufacturing and its future is invited to attend…

Mrs Pilz visited Australia in late August and affirmed that Pilz’s Australian business has the potential to be a local powerhouse of engineering. Pilz Australia is headquartered in Melbourne, with offices in Sydney, Brisbane and Auckland, providing sales and logistics, along with turnkey engineering projects to the local market. Pilz Australia forms part of the Asia Pacific region for Pilz, where it has high expectations for growth, in line with business doubling in five years to nearly $100m, accounting for 20% of company revenue. Australia was part of the company’s first foray outside Europe in 1998, when it launched subsidiaries in Australia, Brazil and Japan – with Australia seen as a forerunner into the Asia Pacific market. Australia has a safety culture that matches Europe’s – in particular Germany – which leads the world in safety products and services. Pilz came to world-wide acclaim as the pioneer of the Emergency Stop – that red button you see on machinery…

The event will be hosted by Industry Capability Network (ICN) Victoria in conjunction with the State Government’s Department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transport and Resources (DEDJTR). According to Don Matthews, Executive Director of ICN Victoria, the whole objective of the event is to provide opportunities for Victorian manufacturers to gain invaluable insights into other successful Victorian businesses, by showcasing those businesses effectively, and allowing them to network with other manufacturers and government representatives. “It’s part inspiration, part education, part networking,” says Matthews. “I think given the context of how the manufacturing sector is transitioning to a new reality, where we’ve seen the closure of automotive, and Hazelwood: how do you create new opportunities amid that changing landscape?” This year a number of companies will be on display that have made the successful transition from being largely dependent on one sector, such as automotive and into servicing more diverse marketplaces. The showcase will feature companies that have either successfully transitioned into new sectors or built stronger positions in their sectoral market…

Twelve months down the track, AMT Magazine spoke to Paul Minty, Manufacturing Integration Manager at Integra Systems, about the company’s motivations for acquiring the new machine – a Salvagnini L5 fibre laser cutter installed by Machinery Forum – and how it has impacted operations.   AMT: What was the motivation for purchasing a fibre laser cutter? Paul Minty: Our business was getting more and more focused on industrial designed products so we had a greater need to create interesting shapes with our metal cutting that went beyond our standard library of turret punches. This meant we were sending out more and more projects to surrounding laser cutters. While they were doing a good job, no one was using a fibre laser, so they weren’t quick enough for our prototyping cycle, which we could do within an hour if we were cutting out of the metal with our punching technology. We had really become addicted to that speed and agility.…