Member News

AMT: Tell us about the Industry Capability Network and what its role is. Grant Anderson: ICN Victoria is a not-for-profit organisation that has been around since 1984 and our mission is to maximise opportunities for local industry. We play a key role in liaising with government agencies and bidders ensuring that local suppliers have an opportunity to register interest in upcoming government projects. Another huge part of our role is to administer the Local Jobs First policy on behalf of the Victorian Government and that includes assessing projects for potential local content. Local Jobs First is about creating local jobs and opportunities for Victorian businesses and workers, whilst achieving value for money. We also have two main product offerings - ICN Gateway and ICN Analytics. AMT: And for an ordinary manufacturing business seeking to win work on a project through the ICN, what sort of pathway would that take? GA: Local businesses, including principal contractors and local suppliers of goods and services can use the ICN Gateway to register their business capability, access project opportunities and search…

Managed by husband and wife team Anthony and Lisa Coleman, ACIM specialises in designing and manufacturing inflatable packers, hydraulic fracturing systems, tools and data loggers for the geotechnical, mining, and oil & gas markets. Established in 1990, it has grown from humble beginnings servicing the Australian market, to a company that now sells into international markets such as Chile, South Korea, Italy, Russia, America and Indonesia. ACIM in-house designed products are recognised by customers for being innovative and of the highest quality. In 2013 when ACIM decided to bring manufacturing in-house, it gave John Hart the opportunity to offer a solution to suit its requirements. As a result, ACIM invested in a Mazak Quick Turn Smart 350M multi-function lathe with milling capability. The machine combines productivity, high accuracy and high reliability handling parts up to 420mm in diameter and 1,250mm in length. Anthony explains: “Programming was the main reason we selected a Quick Turn Smart. It has proven to be very easy to learn, and being a small…

There are many ways to define a Makerspace, but essentially it is a place where people can come to use – and learn to use – equipment, develop creative projects, or simply gain experience. They are most commonly associated with offering technology to create, develop and design in an informal, non-traditional, environment. Becoming a member of a Makerspace enables you to access the resources (training, machinery, technology and materials) at times that are convenient to yourself, without the capital outlay often required for production. FAB9 is a purpose-built space, located in the Melbourne suburb of Footscray, for hardware entrepreneurs, engineers, designers, tinkerers, craftspeople, artists, hobbyists and anyone who wants to experiment through the making of physical objects. Whether you’re an amateur working on a fun project, or an inventor set to create the next world-changing product, they are open for people of all interests and skill levels. Architecturally…

The lab will enable manufacturing and other industries to create ‘digital twins’, or virtual replicas of physical objects and systems. By 2020, the International Data Corporation (IDC) estimates 30% of the top 2000 global companies will be using data from Digital Twins of Internet of Things (IoT) connected assets to improve product innovation success rates and organisational productivity, achieving gains of up to 25%. The Mixed Reality Lab houses a set-up of industrial and consumer optical cameras and sensing equipment to capture detailed information about a physical object and the space surrounding it. The equipment is underpinned by sophisticated algorithms which merge the enormous amounts of data collected to create a digital twin in a matter of minutes. Matt Bolger, senior software engineer at Data61, said the lab is a unique combination of Data61’s research expertise across machine learning, computer vision, computational modelling, IoT, and CSIRO’s patented Stereo Depth Fusion technology for depth estimation. “This technology is game-changing for manufacturing and other industries,” said Bolger. “By comparing a digital twin of a manufactured object…

In the Agriculture, Mining and Utilities category of the annual AFR / Boss Magazine Most Innovative Companies listing, the Brisbane-based mining equipment designer and manufacturer ranked second out of more than 800 nominated organisations across Australia and New Zealand. Compilation and ranking of the annual list by a panel of expert judges is based on a rigorous assessment process. And, for the first time in 2019, organisations were ranked directly against their peers. The assessment process measures a unique innovation implemented in the past 12 months. Specifically, the judges look at how valuable the problem is that the innovation is solving, the quality and uniqueness of the solution, and the level of impact that the innovation has had. Cultural aspects of the company that demonstrate a sustainable and repeatable approach to innovation, including strategies, resources and process, are also part of the assessment process. Designed and manufactured in Australia by Austin Engineering, the two-piece bucket features well-defined reusable upper and consumable…

Based in Warren, Michigan, the company is committed to improving the lives of factory-floor workers through safety, reliability and efficiency in manufacturing, for industries ranging from medical devices to automotive. “Industry 4.0 is really the ecosystem that is a smart factory,” says Andrew Storm, Eckhart’s CEO. “It takes all of the systems in a factory, ties them together to help not only those who manage the process, but also to help the employees on the factory floor become more informed on the health of the system.” “Ninety percent of Fortune 500 manufacturing CEOs believe adopting Industry 4.0 technologies is imperative,” adds Dan Burseth, Vice-President of Eckhart. “And we build technology implementation plans with some of the largest manufacturers in the world, designing tools, equipment and automation that truly improve the life of the people tasked with running the line.” Customised, proven additive solutions Eckhart develops customised factory floor solutions to address the specific needs of each client, walking the floor to see exactly where ergonomics, line of…

After the R&D specialists were handed their notice from Toyota in 2014, they sat down and nutted out a new business concept. Bastion Managing Director Ben Schultz recalls how he and his co-founders, James Woolcock and Dean McGeary, wanted to incorporate their three passions: cycling, leading-edge manufacturing and Australian-made production. All keen cyclists, it was a classic case of creating the bike they wanted to buy but which didn’t exist. Bastion empowers the rider to design their own adjustable bike that is a unique fit not only to their desired specifications and aesthetic preferences, but the physical capabilities of their own body with all its ticks and quirks. Bastion shares the industrial warehouse it occupies in Fairfield, north-east Melbourne, with three other specialised…

Working closely with customers across the globe, Sandvik Coromant has developed a connected solution that enables manufacturers to speed up the machining of high-value components, confident that anything untoward (that is, anything that moves beyond strictly set parameters) can be identified. While Silent Tools technology from Sandvik Coromant is around 50 years old, the quantum leap comes from a new development that involves embedding sensors into the turning adaptors, making it much easier to fathom what is going on deep into a…

AMTIL’s AGM will be held on Thursday 31 October at Riversdale Golf Club in Mount Waverley, Victoria. The AGM will be preceded by a Breakfast Seminar, featuring a special presentation by keynote speaker Simon Kuestenmacher, Director of Research at The Demographics Group. Kuestenmacher is a rising star in data animation and interpretation, making astounding predictions for Australia’s future. A columnist for The Australian newspaper, he is frequently sought out by SkyNews, The Project, newspapers and radio stations across Australia as a commentator on demographic and data matters. Reaching more than 30 million people every month through his Twitter account, Kuestenmacher speaks on demographic trends, consumer insights and cultural change in Australia. Proceedings will begin at 8.00am with a networking breakfast, before the presentations get underway at 8.30am. The AGM will take place after the presentations. Tee up for Golf Day The AMTIL 2020 Corporate Golf Day will also be held at Riversdale Golf Club on Friday 14 February. As always the event will include a light breakfast, lunch and drinks,…

Developed in 2015 by researchers from CSIRO, ASPIRE is an online marketplace that intelligently matches businesses with potential remanufacturers, purchasers or recyclers to find new purposes for waste materials working towards the circular economy for Australia. Dr Melanie Ayre, research scientist at CSIRO’s Data61, said that since its launch, ASPIRE has diverted hundreds of different waste streams from landfill, including batteries, e-waste, metals, organics, polystyrene, ferric chloride and timber pallets. “Almost 80% of Australia’s waste is generated through commercial, industrial, construction or demolition activities,” Dr Ayre said. “We developed ASPIRE in response to rising costs of waste management, and to redirect waste to more productive uses.” Cameron McKenzie, ASPIRE’s newly appointed CEO, said the online marketplace has seen an impressive uptake amongst businesses, state governments and local councils in Victoria, but that a national network was pivotal in tackling the widespread waste crisis. “Around 300 businesses are using ASPIRE,…

FormFlow was established in 2016 to commercialise a metal-forming technique that enables the creation of joined corrugated metal shapes with no gaps, offering significant potential in the $1bn sheet metal roofing sector, as well as in other industries. Developed in collaboration with Deakin University, the innovation keeps out moisture, dirt, animals and embers, with an air-tight seal that also provides increased insulation. The technology is a world-first. “If you have two adjoining sheets of corrugated iron, either two walls or the two sides of a roof, rather than having to put a cap over the top of them, you can end it to match that bend and then slide another piece of sheet up underneath it,” explains Matt Dingle, a co-founder at FormFlow. “You end up with a smooth transition.” To move the concept to the production and services stage, ongoing collaboration has been essential. The Advanced Manufacturing Growth Centre (AMGC) came on board early, providing $250,000 in co-funding for a collaborative project between FormFlow, Deakin and Geelong-based…

The event was attended by more than 180 industry leaders from manufacturing businesses across Australia, as well as representatives from manufacturing technology suppliers, government and industry bodies, universities and research organisations. AMTIL CEO Shane Infanti has been with AMTIL since the very beginnning, and he noted that the association’s 20th birthday coincided with a strong resurgence in Australian manufacturing. “It’s great to be celebrating 20 years of AMTIL at such a positive time for our industry,” said Infanti. “There’s been a lot of pessimism in recent years with the GFC and the car industry closures, but right now we’re just seeing exciting stuff going on all across the sector. So tonight’s event isn’t just about looking back on 20 years of AMTIL; it’s about looking forward to what I think is a very bright future for Australian manufacturing.” AMTIL is the peak national body for the precision engineering and advanced manufacturing sector in Australia. The association was founded on 11 August 1999, following the…

It has been more than a year since China’s Government implemented the National Sword policy which would go on to have significant impacts across the global recycling sector. The policy set restrictions on the contamination levels of plastic waste, unsorted paper and textile materials, meaning China would only accept materials with a contamination level of 0.5% or less. From the 1990s up until 2013, global wealth manager Credit Suisse says it was cheaper to transport recycled materials by ship to China than it was to domestically transport by truck or rail in its 2018 report, The age of plastics at a tipping point. One particularly difficult waste identified in the report was modern food packaging, which use layers of different polymers as well as other materials like aluminium and ink layers that need to be separated before sorting if they are to be reprocessed. “Food packaging is also often contaminated by its contents, requiring screening and washing,” the report notes. “Councils also have different requirements…