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The Additive Manufacturing Pavilion will be an unmissable part of AMW 2022. The boom in interest in 3D printing continues to gain momentum, and AMW visitors will get a chance to see the latest innovations in this area first-hand. The Additive Manufacturing Pavilion will feature demonstrations of the latest 3D printers and services from a range of companies and organisations that lead the field of additive manufacturing. One highlight of the Additive Manufacturing Pavilion will be RAM3D. Based in Tauranga, New Zealand, RAM3D has been leading the way in metal 3D printing in the Southern Hemisphere for more than 10 years. From its high-tech manufacturing facility it creates parts for a variety of world-wide industries; from titanium knives used by the Team NZ Americas Cup crew, to customised handlebar extensions for the New Zealand Olympics Cycling team. It produces inconel and titanium parts for aerospace and defence customers, and can also print in Stainless Steel 15-5ph and 316L, Titanium 64, Inconel 718 (high temperature alloy) and Aluminium (AlSi10Mg). “Advances in 3D printing…

The Federal Government on 3rd March announced $20m in grant funding support for Fleet Space’s Australian Space Manufacturing Hub – to be located at the recently announced Australian Space Park at Adelaide Airport – under the Collaboration Stream of the $1.3bn Modern Manufacturing Initiative . The South Australian Government is also contributing $20m towards the $66m project, which is expected to create 221 local jobs, as well as more than 1,000 others indirectly. Fleet Space is Australia’s leading space company. The company has designed, built and launched the country’s only commercial satellites and has six satellites already in orbit as it works towards a mission towards building a constellation of 140 small satellites in Low Earth Orbit. Fleet Space plans to build a satellite Hyper Factory in Australian Space Park in Adelaide, and develop new 3D printed small satellites. The Federal and State funding will supplement industry investment into the Australian Space Park by Fleet Space Technologies, AT Space, Alauda and Q-CTRL. The purpose-built facility…

The Federal Government has announced support for a project led by Australian Plant Proteins (APP) under the Collaboration Stream of the $1.3bn Modern Manufacturing Initiative to transform local production of pulse protein ingredients and help meet the growing global demand. APP owns Australia’s only commercial-scale pulse protein extraction facility. This project will quadruple production in South Australia, to produce 25,000 tonnes of pulse protein yearly. Partnering together with one of Australia’s largest family-owned food producers, Thomas Foods International and the Australian Milling Group, more than $378m will be invested in the construction of three plant protein manufacturing facilities supplying domestic and international markets. South Australia produces over a quarter of all Australian pulses and this project gives Australia the opportunity to value-add by up to eight times the value of the product. That value will be captured here in Australia for Australians benefit. Locally based plant…

The Additive Manufacturing Pavilion will be an unmissable part of AMW 2022. The boom in interest in 3D printing continues to gain momentum, and AMW visitors will get a chance to see the latest innovations in this area first-hand. The Additive Manufacturing Pavilion will feature demonstrations of the latest 3D printers and services from a range of companies and organisations that lead the field of additive manufacturing. One highlight of the Additive Manufacturing Pavilion will be RAM3D. Based in Tauranga, New Zealand, RAM3D has been leading the way in metal 3D printing in the Southern Hemisphere for more than 10 years. From its high-tech manufacturing facility it creates parts for a variety of world-wide industries; from titanium knives used by the Team NZ Americas Cup crew, to customised handlebar extensions for the New Zealand Olympics Cycling team. It produces inconel and titanium parts for aerospace and defence customers, and can also print in Stainless Steel 15-5ph and 316L, Titanium 64, Inconel 718 (high temperature alloy) and Aluminium (AlSi10Mg). “Advances in 3D…

The compact, easy-to-use, flexible and affordable Agile Flex has established a solid foothold in the US market, offering local manufacturers and machine shops a truly agile machine tool-loading solution as well as an antidote for staff shortages and sick leave absences. Success in North America includes a few successful installations in Canada. Now the company is entering the UK market through a recent appointment of a local distributor, also with an eye on the greater European market. While many workshops across the globe are realising the productivity benefits of installing an Agile Flex on their CNC machine tools, the Agile Flex is also developing significant attention in the Australian market due to its reputation for best-in-class software and maximum productivity out-of-the-box at a market-leading price. To get an Australian perspective, we interviewed Derek Hyde, one of the owners of Melbourne-based Jodek, to find out more about his company’s choice to invest in not just one but two Agile Flex 12D systems.   AMT: What…

The initial release of the WCE platform features WCE4, a four-flute geometry which combines advanced, high-performance features with a brand new, versatile grade offered at a highly competitive price. “With its new design, the WCE4 delivers the next generation of versatile end mills to help our customers be more productive and efficient,” said Tamir Sherif, Solid End Milling Global Portfolio Manager at WIDIA. “The WCE4 is an attractively priced tool for small-to-medium shop floors where reliability and consistent tool life are high priorities.” Two key features of the tool are its asymmetrical index and variable helix. The combination of the two reduce vibrations and enable heavy cuts, while the new grade, WU20PE, enables versatility on steel, stainless steel and cast-iron applications. These design features, coupled with the four-flute geometry, deliver an end mill with reliable performance and application versatility – even in demanding operations such as full slots and heavy cuts. The WCE platform includes four-flute, square-end and ball nose end mills with both straight and Weldon shanks and is available…

If you’d sat behind the desks of the CEOs of Australia’s leading industrial fabrication, transport and marine businesses in March 2020 as the first wave of COVID-19 restrictions rolled out, you’d never have predicted the turn events these industries would experience over the coming 24 months. Many were forecasting reduced demand, industry downturns, staff reductions and operational stand-downs. Fast forward two years and as an industry we are riding a collective wave of strong demand. Local manufacturers are benefiting from the reduced presence of imported aluminium products, spurring increased demand for locally fabricated aluminium products. The strong growth in demand has created a different type of challenge for local businesses that use aluminium, who are now faced with supply challenges due to material shortages and supplier capacity, while subject to unprecedented aluminium pricing pressures. In fact, capacity to supply aluminium products within Australia has never been pushed so hard, with pricing impacts and supply shortages affecting everything from beer cans…

Building on $70m of investment by Thales Australia in the Lithgow facility that has included new equipment and product development over the past decade, Phase 1 of this new industrial plan will establish a modern manufacturing and integration hub for the design, development and precision manufacture of next generation weapons systems for the Australian Defence Force, industrial partners and export customers. The ceremony was attended by leaders from local, state and federal governments including: Paul Toole MP, Deputy Premier of NSW and Member for Bathurst. Toole said: “This is a momentous occasion for both Thales and Lithgow today. The $6.5m investment by Thales in a new facility here in Lithgow shows that Thales is going to be in Lithgow for a long, long time. Today marks the future, and a new era that not only secures existing advanced manufacturing jobs…

A regional development package has been revealed as well, targeting a bunch of regional centres includes massive investment into infrastructure projects in the Northern Territory, Queensland, New South Wales and the Pilbara area of WA.  These sectors cover telecommunications, road, rail and regional health. The commitments total more than $21bn over the medium term. Simon Birmingham, the Liberal government finance minister, described the government’s budget management was allowing for the delivery of a dividend back to taxpayers.  But, he said, “it seeks to apply those dividends in a careful, cautious, responsible way to set Australia up for the future.” The deficit for 2021-22 is expected to be $79.8bn, with total deficits across the four-year forward estimates totalling $224.7bn.…

“Increased sales growth and demand across Australia has resulted in us steadily expanding the Yawei range, which today includes CNC fibre lasers, tube lasers, pressbrakes, turret punch presses, guillotines and smart-factory automation solutions,” said Applied’s Sales and Marketing Manager, Daniel Fisher. “The value for money and performance aspect is why so many companies have opted for Yawei. The competitive price of Yawei machines has enabled many local manufacturers to bring their fabrication work back in-house. It has also allowed job shops to expand their range of services and capabilities enabling them to secure new business opportunities.” Two new models recently introduced further add to the impressive line-up: a laser punch combination and a panel folder. The new HPML Laser Punch Combination combines the forming capabilities of a turret punch press with the flexibility of a fibre laser cutter - all in the one machine. The machine features class-leading components which are a hallmark of all Yawei machines; these include a Siemens 840D controller, IPG laser source…

AMT: You were recently the author of a report ‘Rebuilding Vehicle Manufacturing in Australia’. Tell us a little about its findings. Mark Dean: My report shows that Australia has all the key elements to develop an electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing industry in this country. We have rich mineral reserves. We have an advanced industrial base. We have a highly skilled workforce. And we have consumer interest, not just in the purchase of EVs, but also in seeing an EV manufacturing industry in Australia. The one thing we lack is a Federal Government with the political will to create an active, interventionist industry policy to bring those pieces together and develop a plan for the growth of an EV industry, which could effectively be economy-transforming. And I’ve developed four building blocks around areas that would be fundamental to an industry policy for EV manufacturing in Australia. AMT: Would this be a significant export industry as well? In the past Australian car-makers often struggled outside the domestic…

Founded in 1984, CNC Design is a leader in motion control and drive-based solutions throughout Australia, New Zealand and South-East Asia, and has established itself as one of the world’s foremost specialists in developing and retrofitting CNC machinery. CNC Design is based in Nunawading, Victoria, and in the last few years the company has been building and supplying very large volume 3D printing and machining systems for thermoplastics, concrete, and wax. In addition, CNC Design is the exclusive representative for Siemens machine tool products in Australia and South-East Asia, and has partnerships with Güdel and Comau. The company has an extensive service, sales and engineering network in the Asia-Pacific region, with more than 175 people located in its offices in Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore. The team at CNC Design has completed more 2,500 projects in 30 countries. Big area additive manufacturing Drawing on its extensive experience…