Government News

Australia has an opportunity to develop a sovereign sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) industry, with domestic demand for jet fuel expected to increase by 75% by 2050, according to a new roadmap released recently by Australia's national science agency, CSIRO and Boeing Australia. Unlike conventional jet fuel, SAF is produced from renewable sources – like agricultural waste, animal fats and vegetable oils – and significantly reduces carbon emissions over the fuel’s life-cycle making it a more sustainable alternative for powering aircraft. The Sustainable Aviation Fuel Roadmap builds consensus on developing an Australian sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) industry, identifying opportunities to produce and scale production using Australian feedstocks. CSIRO Senior Manager and lead Roadmap author, Max Temminghoff, said Australia was in a prime position to develop a domestic industry. “By actively working to liberate feedstocks, the roadmap estimates that Australia is currently sitting on enough resources to produce almost five billion litres of SAF by 2025. This could supply nearly 60% of jet fuel demand projected…

Opal’s Wodonga facility, which utilises the latest advanced, high-speed packaging manufacturing technology, has a total footprint of approximately 55,000 square metres. The facility will process recycled and kraft paper from Opal’s Botany Mill in Sydney and Maryvale Mill in the Latrobe Valley. Opal has invested in Australia’s newest corrugating facility, which will produce packaging for a wide range of fresh produce, food processing, FMCG and manufacturing industries across Australia. The facility also features a highly automated materials and waste handling system. Mr Fumio Manoshiro, Chairman of Nippon Paper Industries Co., Ltd, officially opened the Fibre Packaging facility by unveiling a special commemorative plaque made by the creative design team at Opal Specialty Packaging. Opal is a member of Nippon Paper Group, one of the world’s leading pulp and paper manufacturers. The Victorian Government also provided grant funding for the project, to support jobs in regional Victoria. Minister for Regional Development, Gayle Tierney, congratulated Opal on the opening of its new facility. “Our support for Opal’s new $140m investment in Wodonga is a…

Australia’s premier manufacturing technology trade show, AMW Sydney 2024, is promising to be a dynamic and innovative event that brings together professionals, companies and experts from many industries related to manufacturing, engineering and technology. It is AMTIL’s aim for Australian Manufacturing Week to be more than just an exhibition. This is the centrepiece of a week-long celebration of manufacturing in Australia today. “On the back of the overwhelming success of AMW 2022 in Sydney, we have returned to the ICC at Darling Harbour for April 2024 and are excited to be delivering another strong show,” said Shane Infanti CEO of AMTIL, organisers of Australian Manufacturing Week. “We are very pleased to have the support of the NSW Government as the Major Sponsor for AMW. Government support is important in delivering the message to our industry that manufacturing is important and that the support mechanisms are there to assist.” Australian Manufacturing Week will take place at the International Convention Centre, Darling Harbour, Sydney. The stats from our Melbourne show at the MCEC showed conclusively the appetite for…

Weld Australia's Excellence Awards are the most prestigious event on the welding industry calendar. The Awards showcase and celebrate the world-class work being undertaken by local welders, fabricators and industry educators.   This year, the awards were held at Waterview and saw the best and brightest from the ACT and New South Wales' welding industry come together to acknowledge the incredible calibre of work achieved over the past 12 months.   According to Weld Australia's CEO, Geoff Crittenden, "The 2023 New South Wales and ACT Welding Excellence Awards highlight the outstanding achievements of our local professionals while emphasising the industry's unwavering commitment to excellence. At Weld Australia, we are proud recognise both companies and individuals who are pushing boundaries in welding quality, safety, and innovation."   "Our celebrated winners this year represent both businesses and individuals dedicated to crafting innovative and sustainable strategies, prioritising safety, and enhancing the overall skill set in the welding community," Crittenden said.   NEPEAN Engineering & Innovation won the 2023 Company of the Year Award - Fabrication. Established in 1974, NEPEAN Engineering & Innovation has…

The new Allan Labor Government is on track to deliver the largest investment in locally-made trams in Australia’s history – supporting thousands of jobs and improving access to Melbourne’s iconic tram network. Melbourne’s locally made next-generation trams are one step closer after a life-sized model of a G-class tram was unveiled for testing and evaluation for the first time ahead of production ramping up. Minister for Public and Active Transport Gabrielle Williams recently visited Tullamarine to unveil the first life-sized mock-up of a next-gen tram for testing and evaluation – set to hit the network by 2025. The Labor Government is investing $1.85bn in 100 new G-class trams alongside a new tram maintenance and stabling facility when the fleet is ready. The more accessible trams will be built by Alstom in Dandenong using at least 65% local content and supporting up to 1,900 local jobs through manufacturing, the supply chain and construction. They will replace some of Melbourne’s longest-serving A and Z-class high-floor trams, making our public transport network more accessible for all Victorians. With greater capacity than the high-floor trams, they will…

Q-CTRL, a global leader in developing useful quantum technologies through quantum control infrastructure software, and Diraq, a leading innovator in Silicon-based quantum computing, today announced they will be partnering on three multi-million-dollar projects to expand the commercial adoption of quantum computing. It represents the first stage of an anticipated partnership delivering new, high-impact quantum computing capabilities to the global market, from Australia. The two Australian quantum technology companies will deliver three projects together: two from the NSW Office of the Chief Scientist and Engineer’s Quantum Computing Commercialisation Fund (QCCF) and one from the US Army Research Office. Q-CTRL and Diraq are sharing responsibilities on the projects: Diraq will develop and provide access to its Silicon quantum computing hardware and Q-CTRL will build and integrate its quantum infrastructure software solutions to deliver maximum end-user value from the hardware. Q-CTRL and Diraq highlight Australia’s leading role in the global quantum technology industry. Diraq’s hardware is constructed using a novel technology known as spins in silicon, offering true scalability in the number of qubits…

Australia’s premier manufacturing technology trade show, AMW2024 is promising to be a dynamic and innovative event in Sydney that brings together professionals, companies and experts from many industries related to manufacturing, engineering and technology. It is AMTIL’s aim for Australian Manufacturing Week to be more than just an exhibition. This is the centrepiece of a week-long celebration of manufacturing in Australia today. “On the back of the overwhelming success of AMW2022 in Sydney, we have returned to the ICC at Darling Harbour for April 2024 and are excited to be delivering another strong show,” said Shane Infanti CEO of AMTIL, organisers of Australian Manufacturing Week. “We are very pleased to have the support of the NSW Government as the Major Sponsor for AMW. Government support is important in delivering the message to our industry that manufacturing is important and that the support mechanisms are there to assist.” Australian Manufacturing Week will take place at the International Convention Centre, Darling Harbour, Sydney. The stats from our Melbourne show at the MCEC showed conclusively the appetite for large-scale manufacturing exhibitions is healthy for…

Australian Precision Technologies has announced through the Australian Defence Alliance it has received a contract from Kongsberg Defence Australia to manufacture precision-machined components for the KONGSBERG Naval Strike Missile (NSM) Launchers delivered under Project SEA 1300. The NSM will replace the Harpoon Anti-Ship Missile capability currently on the Royal Australian ANZAC Class Frigates and HOBART Class Destroyers. Australian Precision Technologies will manufacture highly complex precision-machined components utilising state-of-the-art manufacturing technologies and lean management best practices. The components will be manufactured in the Australian Precision Technologies Berwick facility and will present new job opportunities in project management, quality assurance and advanced manufacturing applications. The contract will also enable Australian Precision Technologies to invest in more advanced CNC machining technologies and quality control equipment to ensure that high standards of quality are achieved. “APT has diversified into the Defence and Aerospace industry sectors over the past 15 years, and that has provided us with the opportunities to secure contracts such as this through the culture of the company employees and the strategic outlook required to support defence contracts,” said Richard Weinzieri, APT’s Managing Director. “The…

The Additive Manufacturing Cooperative Research Centre (AMCRC) is an industry-led collaborative research funding organisation focused on advancing Australia’s additive manufacturing sector. The centre brings together industry partners, developing the next generation of products and services, and research institutions to conduct cutting-edge research, develop new technologies, and drive innovation to foster a globally competitive innovation ecosystem for advanced manufacturing. The CRC matches dollar-for-dollar Industry Partner cash for collaborative manufacturing R&D and innovation projects with CRC Research Partners. This is a potential fit for Industry Partners (e.g. manufacturing and related businesses) where strategy includes: investing in an eligible transformative manufacturing R&D project with a CRC Research Partner of between two and five years in duration, that can commence from 2025 onwards; spending at least $250,000 cash per project to fund the cost of researcher salaries and operating costs at a CRC Research Partner (which, if eligible, the CRC can match dollar for dollar up to a maximum of five million dollars per business); with the Research Partner(s) conducting at least 50% of the overall project research effort; utilising and/or developing new…

Plastic waste has become one of the most pressing environmental challenges of our time. The accumulation of plastic waste in landfills and oceans has reached alarming levels, demanding innovative solutions to tackle this crisis. In recent years, a revolutionary concept has emerged—a game-changing method of plastic waste recycling using an induction furnace. This cutting-edge technology has the potential to transform the industry by bypassing traditional granulating processes and directly converting plastic waste into extruded products. In this editorial, we explore the revolutionary induction furnace and its potential to revolutionise the plastic waste recycling industry. The induction furnace represents a significant leap forward in plastic waste recycling. Traditionally, recycling plastic waste involves a labourious and energy-intensive process that includes sorting, shredding, granulating, conveying, agglomeration and extrusion. However, the induction furnace offers a breakthrough approach by directly processing plastic waste into extruded or form moulded products without the need for these additional processes. This streamlined method not only saves time and energy but also reduces the cost associated with recycling plastic…

Sus scrofa is one of the most successful environmental and agricultural pests in Australia. Commonly known as feral pigs, their numbers are said to range between 3.2 million and 30 million and they inhabit 45% of the country’s land mass. Farmers and scientists have been working on containment programs for several years, with limited success. These animals reproduce at an alarming rate, destroy livestock, spread weeds, and damage infrastructure. Common food sources for these voracious creatures are food at landfill dump sites and food waste that is being composted. Food waste can contain contaminated animal products (whether legally imported or otherwise) that may not be safe for feeding to domestic or feral livestock. The biggest risk is that pigs may get infected with foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) or African swine fever (ASF). The risks of spreading FMD and ASF through Australian livestock are very high. The 2001 outbreak of FMD in the UK was traced to a small farm that fed their pigs with swill, which is prohibited in Australia. Swill is animal food that contains or has been in contact with, meat products or…

Leading renewable energy developer ACEnergy is setting its sights on a portfolio of distribution scale Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) as it seeks to expand its project range and support regional communities. The company is also calling for industry collaboration to introduce reforms that will expedite the rollout of renewable energy projects that are critical to the transition to net zero. ACEnergy has assembled an expert team across the development value chain; from land acquisition to grid connection and operation and maintenance, and often holds the assets it develops for the long term. This approach means ACEnergy becomes part of the communities in which it operates, working with local suppliers and providing job opportunities to local people. The initial 50MW/100MWh distribution battery portfolio is currently undergoing planning studies, with sites selected across Victoria and NSW. ACEnergy intends to retain ownership and operate the assets over their life. ACEnergy has picked locations where BESS can work in concert with local grid demand. By coordinating their operation according to the local network demand profile, the distributed BESS will increase network capacity, alleviating curtailment…

The newest round of the Innovate to Grow program, coordinated by Australia’s national science agency CSIRO, will equip small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the cyber security and digital technology sectors with critical research and development (R&D) know-how to grow their businesses. CSIRO’s Innovate to Grow program links businesses to expert knowledge, resources, and mentors to help businesses validate, and develop their R&D ideas that could lead to commercial outcomes. On completing the program, eligible participants can apply to work with CSIRO’s expert researchers and access dollar-matched R&D funding through the Kickstart program. Dr Marthie Grobler, Principal Research Scientist in human-centred cyber security at CSIRO’s Data61 strongly urged eligible businesses to consider applying to stay at the forefront of research impact in these critical sectors. “SMEs are the lifeblood of Australia, and many have innovative business ideas and solutions that could help mitigate cyber security threats and deliver a positive impact to other Australian businesses and the economy,” Dr Grobler said. “These businesses tend to face a myriad of challenges in bringing their ideas to life, namely investment of money, time and resources.…