Industry News

For 35 years, National Resources has sourced and supplied local Australian manufacturers with an extensive range of specialist products from around the world. The business has long served the industrial, building, and health industries by trading in rolled aluminium, flexible packaging, PVC films, and medical products. Across its global supply chain, National Resources annually sources 233 products from 139 partners in 22 countries. Each supplier is carefully selected for its superior quality standards and responsiveness. Inventory distribution begins in its large warehouse in Victoria and is then routed through storage and logistics networks across Australia. Maintaining a complex supply chain while driving the business’s financial performance relies heavily on cash flow management. National Resources Managing Director Leon Cox says that having access to working capital to bridge any delays in cash conversion is vital. “Working capital is critical to our business. We buy materials from overseas suppliers and pay when the goods are shipped. It’s on the water for 30 days, and then we offer customers terms of trade locally. That’s a transition period between 90 and 150 days between paying for goods and being paid…

Enforcing drug and alcohol policies in the manufacturing industry is a crucial task that requires a careful balance between safety and fairness. In environments where machinery operates and safety is paramount, stringent drug testing policies are common. Recent rulings have shown that enforcing these policies must consider the nuances of employee conduct outside work hours. Key Case: Sydney Trains v Goodsell [2024] FWCFB 401 (‘Goodsell’) A landmark case this year, the Goodsell case, provides valuable insights. In this case, an employee with a spotless 26-year record tested positive for cocaine during a random drug test. He was dismissed for breaching the company's "drug-free" policy, which mandated that employees must not use drugs at any time. While the Fair Work Commission (FWC) acknowledged that the company had a valid reason for dismissal, it also deemed the action unfair due to the employee's long service and otherwise clean history. Important Takeaway: Positive drug test vs. fair dismissal A positive drug test can justify dismissal, but it does not automatically ensure it is…

HVAC systems run almost constantly, leading to an increased risk of belt failure - and a potentially costly ripple effect on sensitive, temperature-controlled facilities. HVAC systems are often exposed to extreme ambient temperatures and environmental conditions, which can strain equipment. Maintaining your facility is already complex without adding in additional maintenance or unexpected part failure. Gates has engineered high-performance belt solutions that can withstand high temperatures, chemicals, and humidity without re-tensioning and at a lower upfront cost than comparable belts.   V-BELTS - TRI-POWER™ & QUAD-POWER™ 4 MOULDED NOTCH V-BELTS V-belts are essential power transmission components in industrial applications worldwide. Excessive belt slippage, stretching, and wear can result in big problems for facilities, with disproportionate resources spent re-tensioning, maintaining, and replacing underperforming belts. Gates offers high-performance v-belts engineered to save energy, minimise maintenance, and have a longer lifespan than competitive belts. Raw edge, moulded notch construction saves up to 3% on energy costs over wrapped belts. Specially designed moulded notches dissipate heat better than standard v-belts and are engineered to increase flexibility for improved energy efficiency. FEATURES: Innovative…

The Gaia EnviroTech business is the Bioenergy and Waste Management division of Gekko Systems, based in Ballarat, Victoria. The company has partnered with Jock Charles from the Berrybank Farm, who has successfully operated an Anaerobic Digester (AD) on piggery effluent in the Ballarat region for 30 years. The modular biodigester design was developed by Gaia EnviroTech and is manufactured onsite at their local facility. The expandable configuration is targeted to treat 5-20k tpa organic waste and upwards. Objectives The system in this case study was installed as a 12-month research and development project to establish the viability of an anaerobic digestion plant designed to convert dairy effluent to energy and minimise odour. The secondary objectives were to increase the nutrient value of the manure and ease handling constraints (e.g. allow longer-term storage). This was required to provide the dairy with a viable option for future herd expansion. The family-owned dairy houses cattle in a large shed and periodically takes them to pasture. In addition to milk production, potatoes are grown on-site and benefit from the nutrient value of the manure.…

The Australian food industry is poised for continued growth between 2024 and 2028, driven by several key factors, according to the report Australia: Food Manufacturing Market Overview 2024–2028. Among the most significant trends are the rising demand for health-focused, sustainable food products and more premium and convenience foods. The report states, “These shifts are anticipated to spur product development and packaging innovation, catalysing growth across various market sub-sectors. “Simultaneously, sustainability and transparency are becoming increasingly important in food manufacturing, with consumers demanding more eco-friendly packaging and clear, honest labelling. Manufacturers who successfully respond to these demands will likely enhance their market shares during this forecast period.” Regulatory changes, trade agreements and macroeconomic factors will further influence the market. Therefore, understanding the competitive dynamics, market segmentation, and growth opportunities will be essential for food and beverage manufacturers to navigate this evolving market landscape successfully. The Australian food and beverage industry also increasingly benefits from technological advancements, particularly in automation, digitisation, and artificial intelligence. These technologies, which aim to increase efficiency and reduce costs, are expected to reshape the…

Enel X is the only contracted party to provide 95MW of Demand Response firming capacity in NSW, to help meet the energy security target. With increasingly challenging grid conditions due to weather conditions, low wind and hydro output, coal outages, and spiking electricity prices, flexible demand is an increasingly critical resource for firming the grid and putting downward pressure on electricity prices for all consumers. Businesses and organisations in the greater Sydney region can provide flexible demand—the inherent ability to adjust when grid power is used—as part of Enel X’s Virtual Power Plant (VPP) to help ‘firm’ the grid and keep the lights on. Firming capacity helps the grid integrate renewable energy assets safely. Participants are paid both for committing to be available and for reducing grid energy consumption for set periods, generally only a few times a year. “Western Murray Irrigation has supported the grid across multiple Demand Response programs with Enel X’s VPP since 2020,” said Judith Damiani, Chief Executive of Western Murray Irrigation. “Participation is straightforward and works well for us. An automated system…

Pick-and-place robots are increasingly important in automated processes, such as assembly lines. With its EXPT, the automation specialist Festo offers an exact and dynamic solution for this. Operating at up to 150 picks per minute, the robot works continuously. For this, safe and gentle feeding of the cables to the gripper had to be guaranteed. The unique feature—a rotating additional axis—led to increased wear of the cables. With a unique energy chain for tight installation spaces and dynamic applications, including a rotation module, the cables are now safely guided at high rotation angles Problem Festo SE & Co. KG is a leading provider of automation solutions for processes and entire production plants. The manufacturer also includes its universal parallel robot, "EXPT," in its extensive product portfolio. The tripod-based pick-and-place robot works with high performance and precision and manages up to 150 picks per minute. Its design and control system enable flexible and cross-application use, enabling convenient implementation in applications with several robots in the production line. An A5 axis was to be implemented at the lower end…

Servo systems are increasingly finding their way into applications used by industry; everything from simple vertical filling machines to high-speed printing presses are using servos to improve their output. Harry Mulder, Product Specialist for Motion Products at Beckhoff Automation, explains that while some believe all servos are the same, there are, in fact, some clear differentiators. “It’s these differences that yield big benefits.” What sets Beckhoff apart from the rest, according to Mulder, is its wide selection of motors and matching gearboxes. “Each motor offers a range of feedback options - everything from resolvers for harsh environments to 24-bit multi-turn absolute encoders with SIL 2-rated safety. Beckhoff also supports EnDat, SSI, BiSS and other protocols, as well as providing input for secondary feedback systems.” One feature that rates very highly among end users is a single connecting cable between the motor and the drive, commonly known as One Cable Technology or “OCT”. “Using just one cable to carry power, braking and encoder signals is more cost-effective and so much more convenient than running separate cables. In addition, not having a…

Aluminium remains a key structural material used in multiple industries worldwide, and Tiwai Point is New Zealand’s only smelter. A significant investment in new robot welding equipment shows that Rio Tinto is firmly committed to a future in the Deep South. According to long-serving staff member Paul Cavanagh, Rio Tinto’s Tiwai Point has always been about its people, and that’s the driving factor in a recent upgrade and doubling of its robotic welding equipment. "It’s about keeping people away from the load. People and safety first,” he said. Tiwai Point has used robotic welding since 1995, and this is the second upgrade since 2008 – but this time, the number of robots has doubled, along with the addition of an extra robot for loading heavy steel pins, a previously manual task. Cavanagh, the crew leader for the rodding process, says recent uncertainty was in the rear-view mirror, with the smelter securing a 20-year deal for electricity supply. For some time, it was clear that the old system used to weld anode rods in aluminium production—around 550 are…

Hydraulic tooling and bolt tensioning specialist, Technofast is adding a new pipe fitting technology to its range as the exclusive distributor for HAELOK® in Australia and New Zealand. Swiss-engineered HAELOK® pipe fittings can be swiftly installed in under a minute, providing a secure metal-to-metal gastight connection without sealing elements and welding, which add time and cost to the process. Proven in service for more than 20 years in major European markets, the durable and efficient HAELOK® fittings apply to a broad range of applications, including power stations, high-pressure hydraulic lines up to 1270 bar for smaller sizes (up to four-inches at 250 bar), oil, gas, and petrochemical refineries (including offshore), navy, marine, and defence, acidic environments, heavy mine sites, steam and biogas lines in sugar mills, and hydrogen piping. “The HAELOK® range is a natural extension of our Technofast range, which is already focused on saving downtime by efficient bolt tensioning technologies applicable to similar industries,” said Technofast Founder and CEO, John Bucknell. A better connection HAELOK® fittings function using an axial crimp. They have a tapered press…

In a move set to strengthen Australia's domestic manufacturing sector, Capral Aluminium has entered into a strategic supply partnership with Tindo Solar, Australia's only solar panel manufacturer. This collaboration will see Capral supply extruded aluminium for Tindo's locally produced solar panels, with the potential for further expansion to support Tindo's future Gigafactory. This partnership marks a significant step for both companies as Tindo scales its operations to meet increasing demand. The initial supply arrangement signals a shift by Tindo towards prioritising local suppliers in the renewable energy sector. Capral operates several aluminium extrusion plants across the country and is recognised within the Australian market as a leader in the supply of 'LocAL' lower carbon aluminium. This partnership aligns with Capral's commitment to sustainability and supporting Australian industries. "Capral's collaboration with Tindo is a testament to the strength of Australian manufacturing,” said Luke Hawkins, Capral's Divisional General Manager of Industrial and Supply Chain. “While our initial focus is on meeting Tindo's current production needs, we are particularly excited about supporting their future Gigafactory with locally extruded aluminium. This…

In recent years, Porsche Werkzeugbau GmbH in Schwarzenberg, Germany, has advanced its mechanical machining to the highest technical level. Two large Starrag HSC machining centres, Droop+Rein FOGS, play a major role in this. The machines finish press tools for moulding skin parts of vehicle bodies with the utmost precision and produce surfaces with grinding quality. A premium car manufacturer should have a premium engineering plant. To ensure that the Porsche Werkzeugbau GmbH Schwarzenberg plant fulfils all of the preconditions for this, €40million was invested over the last five years to develop the tool-engineering plant to the highest possible level following the transition from KUKA. Among other things, the Schwarzenberg-based company used this money to set up two new production halls, purchase a new 25,000kN servo press for production-related tool try-outs and invest in retrofitting and new machine tools – including two Starrag HSC centres of the Droop+Rein FOGS 35 68 N40C type. In addition to this, mechanical production was completely overhauled and the production processes were restructured. All of these measures were based on a solid foundation. Beforehand, the whole…

Hexagon’s Manufacturing Intelligence division has unveiled ProPlanAI, an automated computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) programming tool that cuts the time it takes to program factory machine tools by 75%. Powered by Microsoft Azure services built into Hexagon’s cloud-based Nexus connectivity and collaboration platform for discrete manufacturers, the new artificial intelligence technology is the next step in the evolution of CAM programming, enabling machine shops to achieve operational excellence at scale. ProPlanAI was unveiled at the Microsoft Ignite Conference in Chicago. Hexagon’s AI application uses Microsoft’s Azure OpenAI Service, Azure Cosmos DB, and Azure Databricks to help manufacturing businesses of any size apply their institutional knowledge more quickly, easily, and thoroughly. It uses artificial intelligence (AI) to automate time-consuming process planning. ProPlanAI, due to launch in Q1 2025, will ‘learn’ from the data created by a company’s CAM programmers. This will enable manufacturers to automatically explore existing programming information to predict ideal outcomes tailored to a company’s preferences, production capabilities, and needs. Available within Hexagon’s popular desktop CAM software and powered by Nexus, ProPlanAI will continuously learn and adapt, ensuring programs are…