Member News

We recently conducted an extensive survey looking at what sort of events you would like to see in future, what form they should take, and what content they should cover. This program has been designed in response to that survey’s findings, incorporating regulars such as our annual general meeting (AGM) and our Christmas Golf Day, as well as educational site tours, breakfast seminars and networking functions. The events listed below will be added to as the year continues, so keep an eye on the AMTIL website for more information as it emerges. AMTIL Tour of Australian Synchrotron Australian Synchrotron, Clayton, Victoria 8.30am-10.30am, Wednesday 13 April The Australian Synchrotron is a world-class national research facility that uses accelerator technology to produce a powerful source of light – X-rays and infrared radiation – a million times brighter than the Sun. It supports a broad range of high-quality research, with applications in sectors from medicine and nanotechnology to manufacturing and mineral exploration. Its highly advanced techniques and passionate staff are contributing directly and demonstrably to…

The Melbourne-based company, which specialises in hi-tech tool and cutter grinders, was also named the winner in the Manufacturing category. Co-founder and Director Pat Boland accepted the awards on behalf of ANCA. Trade and Investment Minister Andrew Robb made the announcement at the awards ceremony held to honour the achievements of Australian businesses in international markets. “ANCA has been a leader in its field for 40 years and in that time it has significantly expanded its export markets and is on track for a record year of growth,” said Robb. “They’ve hired 160 new employees to meet the increasing demand for their products, and are proof that Australia has a very healthy future manufacturing high-quality and innovative products.” ANCA exports 98% of its products to customers such as Boeing, Sandvik and Rolls Royce. ANCA machines are used to make tools that are used to make products such as planes, cars, smart phones and medical products. On receiving the major award, Boland thanked the team at ANCA and his co-founder Pat…

This past year the Board and our senior staff reconfirmed our role is to represent and promote the interests of manufacturing technology suppliers and their customers (the ecosystem). For our Manufacturing Technology Suppliers, our focus is on encouraging investment in technology. We do this through marketing and promotional opportunities, whether it be Austech, our AMT magazine, online offerings, talking to government about incentive schemes and other services. We want people buying machine tools, automation, robotics, software, cutting tools and ancillary equipment. We need to focus heavily on this area. For our Manufacturing Technology Users, our focus is on…

The company, a market leading CNC tool grinder manufacturing business and longstanding member of AMTIL, will represent Victorian manufacturing at the Australian Export Awards on 27 November. ANCA has a history of achievement, having won ten GOVEA awards and two Australian Export awards previously. With a Melbourne headquarters the privately owned company turns over $200m annually and employs over 950 staff globally. Co-founder and Director Pat Boland commented: “We are very proud to be recognised by one of the most prestigious business awards for our innovation excellence and ongoing contribution to the Australian economy. ANCA is proof that an Australian company can successfully compete and prosper in a global market and I thank our amazing team whose hard work helps us retain our leadership position. “ANCA’s success has been in the development of world leading products that solve customer needs and supporting these products with advanced and lean factories and a global sales and service distribution system. Precision cutting tools are a fundamental component of advanced manufacturing and ANCA is immensely proud of its…

The Australian PMI fell by 1.9 points in October to 50.2 (readings above 50 indicate expansion in activity, the distance from 50 indicating the strength of the increase). The result marked the longest run of expansionary readings since July 2010. “A strong export performance in October helped manufacturing hold onto the gains made by the sector over the previous three months, clocking up the longest expansion in five years,” said Ai Group Chief Executive, Innes Willox. “There was, however, some easing of momentum: while production lifted again, domestic sales and employment were lower and new orders were broadly unchanged. The process of broadening the base of growth across the economy remains gradual and tentative. There is clearly scope for stimulatory measures to boost domestic activity.” Four of the eight manufacturing sub-sectors expanded: wood & paper products (down 5.5 points to 64.0); textiles, clothing, footwear, furniture & other manufacturing (up 0.5 points to 56.9); petroleum, coal, chemical & rubber products (up 0.3 points to 57.5); and, for the first…

The event drew an impressive turnout, with a mix of new and long-term members in attendance and a packed schedule of association business to get through. Members in attendance were able to hear about AMTIL’s latest plans and initiatives, as well as getting an update from AMTIL CEO Shane Infanti on the previous year’s activities. AMTIL President Paul Fowler gave a Welcome address, while Board Member Saxon Fletcher provided a summary of AMTIL’s financial report. Fletcher, along with fellow Board members Brigitte Stavar and Mark Dobrich, were all up for nomination, and were renominated for another two-year term. In addition, AMTIL welcomed a new member to its Board, as Phil Xuereb of Sutton Tools was confirmed to join. “We’re very glad that all of our Board members will remain in place,” said Infanti. “All of the Board give up their time completely voluntarily to do this, so on behalf of AMTIL and its membership, I’d like to express our gratitude for their invaluable contribution. And I’d like to welcome Phil, whose…

Traditionally, beam coping has been done manually by marking the dimensions for coping on the workpiece as per the drawings and then manually cutting out the cope from the steel beam using oxy-fuel gas torch. This method leaves a rough cut requiring considerable chipping and grinding to improve the finish. Coping machines provide high speed and quality, eliminating all the drawbacks of manual coping. While there are many different machines from well-known overseas manufacturers on the market, ART has studied the needs of every steel fabrication shop in Australia, from small to large, in order to develop an automated, versatile machine made at its manufacturing facility in Brisbane. The machine steel fabricators around the country a competitive edge – not only by creating an efficient automated machine, but also by offering local service and support. “We developed the Metaltek XB series to answer the need for fully-automated structural steel processing in one machine,” explains ART Director David White. “To eliminate as much…

As of February, we’ll be producing six editions of AMT per year, instead of ten. As opposed to the current monthly schedule (excluding December and January), each new magazine will come out every second month: February, April, June, August, October and December While this means AMT readers will get twice as long to read their copy of the magazine, there will be a lot more in each issue for them to get through. Next year we’ll be including a broader range of features in each issue, with each feature exploring its subject in greater depth. The new, bi-monthly schedule allows us to cover a greater array of industries and a more diverse range of products over the course of the year. In addition we’ll be continuing to expand our coverage via our online channels, via www.amtil.com.au/News. For information about advertising in AMT Magazine, please contact our Sales Manager, Anne Samuelsson, by calling 03 9800 3666, or by emailing asamuelsson@amtil.com.au. To submit articles or to discuss editorial ideas, contact AMT’s Editor William…

In 1898, a young and aspiring innovative engineer named Eiichi Okuma established the Okuma Noodle Machine Co. to manufacture and sell noodle-making machines. It may seem an unusual field of technology to enter, but the consumption of noodles was (and still is) very high in Japanese cuisine and an invention to cut down the massive labour content in producing them was indeed revolutionary. Eiichi Okuma went on to make several automated machines, most notably cigarette-rolling machines and even textile-knitting machines a little later. However, it was in 1904 that machine tools became Okuma’s focus as industrialisation really took hold, and by 1918 Okuma Machinery Works Ltd was formally established and the volume production of the OS Lathe commenced. By 1937, Okuma was the number 1 machine tool producer in Japan by value. The company’s growth remained rapid through the 1950s, and in 1963, it launched the OSP control with its unique absolute position feedback encoder, thus becoming the only machine tool builder to build its…

We have just gone through a number of focus sessions with our members and gathered feedback from them that the cost of inputs into their businesses is getting prohibitive and reducing their competitiveness. So I thought it would be a timely reminder that the benefits of industry associations should not be overlooked when it comes to minimising costs in your company. AMTIL offers quite a few member services including electricity brokerage, all types of insurance, foreign exchange, telephone and ICT solutions, and consulting services through William Buck. Make It Cheaper is our energy expert. The company offers a quick, easy and efficient route into what can be a murky energy market, doing everything they can to save time and money for your home or business. Their experts will compare prices from Australia’s leading energy suppliers to ensure you’re getting a fair deal. Once they have found the best prices from their panel of 14 different retail providers, they then set you up on these rates to make your…

The Australian PMI increased by 0.4 points in September to 52.1 (readings above 50 indicate expansion in activity, the distance from 50 indicating the strength of the increase). Six of the seven activity sub-indexes expanded: new orders (up 0.5 points to 53.4); production (up 0.5 points to 51.7); manufacturing sales (up 4.6 points to 53.2); supplier deliveries (up 0.9 points to 53.9); employment (down 0.6 points to 50.7); and exports (up 4.6 points to 53.2). Manufacturers ran down their stock levels for an eighth consecutive month (broadly unchanged at 48.6). The input prices sub-index eased 0.9 points but remained elevated at 66.9 as further depreciation in the dollar raised prices for imported inputs. The wages sub-index fell by 9.3 points to 55.0 as the annual wage increases for national minimum and award wage rates (effective July 1) have now passed. “In encouraging news for an economy searching for sources of growth outside mining, September saw the manufacturing sector consolidate on gains generated in recent months,”…

Since its establishment in 1917, Sutton Tools has continued to develop an expanding portfolio of cutting tools. Today, while its products are exported worldwide, the company remains a proudly Australian family business. The tour took in the entire production process, from raw materials to warehousing and distribution, providing fascinating insights into its specialised areas such as coatings, heat treatment and the company’s dedicated regrinding facility. One highlight was a look at the inspection process on a line of tiny forming taps that Sutton supplies to Foxconn in China for the production of Apple’s products. Sutton produces more than 10,000 of these taps a year, and each one must be meticulously checked for quality. Sutton’s Chief Manufacturing Executive, Peter Sutton, was particularly happy with the tour, saying it allowed the company to showcase its world-class facility and demonstrate that manufacturing can continue to exist in Australia. “We really enjoyed hosting the tour,” said Sutton. “It was a great networking opportunity to meet others from the…

AMT: Let’s start with your background and how you came into your current role. Geoffrey Brooks: I started originally in chemical engineering. After I graduated I started working in a lot of small companies that were building and making and fabricating things. I got involved with all sorts of things; I ran a plastic fabrication business for a while. After a few years of that I did a PhD in pyrometallurgy (the science of making metals), and most of my research in the last 20 years has been in that area. I’ve worked in Canada, the USA, and I’ve been at Swinburne for the last 10 years. Personally I’m a specialist in the science of making steel, and I’ve also done a lot of work in aluminium and magnesium. A few years ago the university asked me to take over the role of co-ordinating all the manufacturing research at the university. And Swinburne has a lot of manufacturing research across all sorts of areas: IT, electric vehicles, nano-materials – it’s a very broad…