June 11, 2020
AMT: Firstly, tell us about Axiom Precision Manufacturing and what you’d been doing as a business prior to the coronavirus pandemic. Craig Maynard: Axiom Precision Manufacturing is a 40-year-old family-owned company. Before coronavirus we had mainly been doing defence, aerospace and some medical manufacturing; precision machining, assemblies and electronics integration as our focus. We spent 35 years in automotive manufacturing, in tooling and production. We did work for Toyota and Ford, and a little bit for Holden. But also tooling exports to the US, South America and South Africa. Now with precision machining we’re exporting both indirectly and directly with defence projects such as the F35 Joint Strike Fighter and the Silvershield program. Since automotive finished, we’ve experienced significant growth with defence and aerospace over the last few years, growing from 40 to 70 staff. AMT: How has coronovirus affected the business? CM:…
June 11, 2020
According to figures from the South Australian Chamber of Mining and Energy, royalties paid to the State Government are projected to reach $325m for the 2019/20 financial year, up from $299m the previous financial year and $207m in 2015/16. Jobs in the sector in SA have also grown to reach 27,200 direct and non-direct employees this year and have been boosted in recent times by more than 1,000 direct construction and production jobs at Oz Minerals’ new Carrapateena copper/gold mine, 160km north of Port Augusta. While global commodity prices, which are calculated in US dollars, have dipped in the past few months, this has been largely offset locally by a slump in the value of the Australian dollar to some of the lowest levels in almost two decades. A global survey of 2,400 explorers, developers and other mining-related companies was released in February and listed SA as the sixth-most attractive jurisdiction in the world for mining investment, up from 24th in 2018. The Fraser…
June 11, 2020
Waste reduction and the associated recycling has become a crucial part of the Australian landscape over the last few years and plays a key role in minimising landfill and driving growth in the number of new products manufactured with recycled material. With the dual benefits of reducing landfill and lowering waste disposal costs, many businesses are looking for effective, reliable and cost-effective solutions for waste reduction. Applied Machinery is the sole Australian distributor for Genox Recycling Technology’s extensive range of shredders and granulators, which are perfect for reprocessing waste material for direct input into closed loop manufacturing, secondary processing or simple volumetric savings in recycling skip bins. Genox is a combination of the words ‘Generating Oxygen’, which serves as the cornerstone of its efforts towards creating a better environment through new and innovative technology. Genox’s range of shredders and granulators are suitable for all kinds of waste products. The Vision series comprises high-quality, cost-effective shredders, while the Gran-Calibur series of granulators offers defined…
June 11, 2020
GST is usually a subject left to our friends and fellow Corporate Partners over at William Buck Chartered Accountants to explore. However, just like the dreaded Coronavirus has been pushing our businesses into new territory, the Deferred GST Scheme being implemented by the Australian Government is forcing our humble logistics firm to delve headfirst into the wonderful world of GST to an extent never seen before. What fun! So, let’s get down to the nitty gritty - What is the Deferred Goods and Services Tax (DGST) Scheme and how can we, as importers, utilise this initiative to help our businesses soften the blow of the pandemic? As the Australian Government ATO website puts it, “As an importer, the deferred goods and services tax (DGST) scheme allows you to defer…
June 11, 2020
This diverse industry features a wide array of moulding components, often featuring materials that are difficult to machine, with a requirement for tools capable of high feeds and large material removal rates. Common components include plastic injection moulds, forging dies, die casting and micro moulds, with each requiring application-specific tooling. This range of applications covers heavy roughing through to fine finishing. Dormer Pramet works with a wide range of die and mould manufacturers, from companies making small components, such as moulds for bottles and mobile phone cases, up to large forgings. Workpieces are often made from difficult to machine materials, such as pre-hardened steel, hardened tool steel and stainless steel. The most typical include P20, H13 and D2 tool steel materials, based on international standards. P20 is a versatile, low-alloy material that offers good levels of toughness and moderate strength. It is commonly used for plastic injection moulds and die castings. A versatile chromium-molybdenum material, H13 is suitable for applications where temperatures fluctuate during the…
June 4, 2020
AMTIL welcomes the establishment of the NCCC and looks forward to working with its members over the coming months. The Commission is working across business-to-business and business-to-government networks to unlock resources, break through bottlenecks and fix problems so Australian businesses and communities are supported in the months ahead. I recently met with a few members of the Committee and discussed a number of issues and opportunities that face our sector. I discussed the three key areas that are needed to support the Australian manufacturing industry’s sustainability and growth. The need for us to continue investing in technology, continue developing the skills of our people and continuing to explore market access opportunities are paramount to a strong manufacturing sector coming out of COVID-19. Investment in technology AMTIL’s surveys and statistics have shown a recent decline in investment in capital equipment and machine tools. The last time we saw declines…
June 4, 2020
Founded in 2002 by Lindsay and Kelly Malley, the company is a contract manufacturer specialising in CNC machining and small-to-medium fabrication. Its extensive range of services also include profile cutting, a robot welding cell, sandblasting and painting utilising both advanced and Lean manufacturing principles. Hydraulic manifolds, tapping blocks, drive shafts, hardened pins and bearings and small-to-medium fabricated assemblies are some of the most common products that are manufactured by Maltec. Maltec’s broad engineering capabilities are evident in some of the more unusual products that the company has manufactured; these include a spear tip, a nozzle for a hydroelectric project and several dog enclosures for Tasmania Police. The company’s client base comprises 40% local, and 60% mainland Australia and overseas. Maltec’s customer base includes many well-known companies such as Caterpillar Underground Mining, Epiroc (formerly Atlas Copco), Elphinstone (CAT OEM, Haulmax, Railmax, SVS) and AQ1 Systems, which produce aquaculture and sensor-based feeding control delivery products. “We make a lot of small…
June 4, 2020
RUAG is an independent supplier and life-cycle support provider of systems and components on behalf of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) and other international air forces, as well as civil aviation, worldwide. The upgrade to its facility will improve productivity and enhance the reliability of the manufacturing process to benefit customer supply chains, including those for hydraulic components for the Joint Strike Force (JSF) F-35 program. Industry 4.0 brings with it the next-level advancement of interconnectivity between devices, equipment, tools, visualisation systems, and their human users within the manufacturing system. It is an optimisation and networking of existing computerised technologies, with a central server to create cyber-to-physical systems for ensuring a smarter, more productive factory. The move to full interconnectivity at RUAG’s Hydraulic Centre of Excellence, housed at its Bayswater facility, generates significantly improved efficiencies as it creates a new human-to-machine interface. Real-time performance data is immediately available at any given moment throughout the manufacturing system…
June 4, 2020
EGR produces thousands of tonnes of plastic sheeting a year for the automotive industry in Australia and globally. However, with COVID-19 slowing the automotive sector, EGR saw an opportunity to use its resources to help with PPE while at the same time keeping its business financially viable for the employment of its 800 local staff. EGR enlisted long-term partner Konica Minolta to assist with rapid prototyping of the face shield design. Konica Minolta was on hand to 3D print design iterations the same day or overnight, for the quick transition to mass manufacture. Capacity is now at 50,000 face shields per day in EGR’s Brisbane manufacturing facility. John Bartley, Group General Manager at EGR, said: “EGR is by nature an innovative company that can recognise new opportunities and the need to adapt to market conditions. For an Australian manufacturer, this speed and agility is critical to survival. We saw the opportunity to deploy EGR’s resources to address a critical need for…
June 4, 2020
In early 2017, the International Agency for Research on Cancer reclassified welding fumes as a Group 1 carcinogenic. The change was primarily associated with the effects of ultra-violet (UV) exposure on the skin and eyes, lung cancers and limited evidence for kidney cancer from welding fume exposures. Short- and long-term exposure to fumes impacts on a welder’s health negatively, causing eye, nose and throat irritation, lung infections, asthma, lung damage and various types of cancer. It is therefore important that welders understand the hazards of the materials they are working with and the scale of exposure. Workplace health & safety (WHS) Regulations require employers to provide information and training for workers on exposure to hazardous materials in the workplace. In every workplace, health & safety holds the highest importance and workers and employers need to ensure it is being upheld every day. To assist, Pro-Visual Publishing in conjunction with the Australian Industry (Ai) Group and the National…
June 2, 2020
[vc_column column_width_percent="100" gutter_size="0" override_padding="yes" column_padding="0" overlay_alpha="50" shift_x="0" shift_y="0" shift_y_down="0"…
