Technology News

Many of us have experienced that nervous feeling you get when you’re following a trailer that has begun to sway and it would appear that at any moment it could fishtail out of control. Worse still is the feeling of a loss of control while negotiating the twists and gradient of the road with a trailer in tow. Both circumstances can be stressful, and for both driver and surrounding traffic, potentially very hazardous. Trailers can easily become unstable and cause accidents when braking, swerving, overtaking, driving in high winds or on difficult roads. In 2016, loss of control accounted for 30% of caravan accident claims, with oversteering and fishtailing among the main causes. The need for a solution to this problem was identified by Bosch’s Australian Vehicle Safety Systems engineering team. This prompted an innovation idea and subsequent R&D project in 2014. The parent company acknowledged the local engineering capability and market opportunity, which led to the establishment of a Bosch global Centre of Competence for…

A staggering 51 million used tyres are discarded annually in Australia, causing environmental and health problems like the sea of stockpiled tyres in Stawell in western Victoria. Only 5% of used tyres are recycled locally in Australia, but researchers from the University of Melbourne have teamed up with Tyre Stewardship Australia and Merlin Site Services to come up with an innovative way to reuse the rubber. Project technical lead, Dr Mahdi Disfani from the Melbourne School of Engineering, has spent the last 18 months working on a pilot project with his colleauges Associate Professor Lu Aye, Dr Guillermo Narsilio and Dr Alireza Mohammadinia, that increases the number of uses for permeable pavements made from recycled tyres. “While there are a number of recycling solutions for tyres, like using them in children’s playgrounds, in landscaping or in asphalt layers, but the applications for high volume are limited,” says Dr Disfani. “Roads and pavements are everywhere. With the right product, we could have a serious…

Held at Leonda by the Yarra in Hawthorn, the one-day conference was focused on the ways in which emerging digital technologies are revolutionising manufacturing the world over, and explored the opportunities this created for the industry here in Australia. With a line-up of speakers that encompassed manufacturing companies, technology suppliers, research bodies and industry groups, the Conference offered a comprehensive, in-depth perspective of what the future holds. The event also featured 10 exhibitor stands from companies such as SICK, Lightwave Technologies and evok3D, the Innovative Manufacturing CRC (IMCRC), and the Conference’s sponsor - William Buck. Following a welcoming address from AMTIL Board Member Brigitte Stavar, the first presentation came from keynote speaker Brad Howarth. Drawing on two decades as a journalist covering technology’s impact on organisations, society and individuals, Howarth’s presentation offered a wide-ranging view on the impact digital innovations are having on the world of business and wider society. “Wealth is generally generated by those who drive change,” said Howarth. “So at some stage…

The breakthrough was announced by CSIRO’s Chief Executive Dr Larry Marshall in an address to the National Press Club in Canberra on 8 October. “Cracking the carbon code will allow industry to manufacture this incredibly strong and lightweight material for the first time from scratch, using Australia’s own top secret recipe,” Dr Marshall said. “Together with Deakin University, we’ve created the seed to grow our manufacturing industry in Australia – generating jobs of the future built on home-grown innovation.” Carbon fibre is only made by a handful of manufacturers around the world, each of whom hold their own secret, patented recipes. “From wind turbines to aerospace, even the latest Mustang wheels, a carbon fibre industry signals the kind of reinvention needed across Australian industry, shifting our focus from raw exports to high value products to retain our global competitive advantage,” Dr Marshall said. “This is another chapter in the innovation history of Geelong, where Australia’s first carbon fibre…

The town of Tuttlingen in particular continues to enjoy respect as a global centre for medical instruments, making a name for itself in the production of medical devices as early as the 19th century. Several hundred companies work in Europe’s largest medical instrument cluster on innovative products for the medical industry. One category of such instruments deals with traumatology – specifically, products for the treatment of bone fractures such as bone nails and screws. When fractures occur in hip joints and in the upper and lower extremities, bone screws may be used to compress the fragments and lock implanted intramedullary nails. These nails usually have two transverse bores, via which the nail is secured against dislocation with two screws. Why do bone screws require deep drilling? When a bone fracture has to be fixed with plates, nails, or screws, a so-called guide wire is positioned in the bone at the point in question. This wire is used to push the bone screw with…

Ms Penelope Heller, who was diagnosed with chondrosarcoma (a rare bone cancer) in 2014, had to have her cancer affected sternum removed. Her surgeon fashioned a replacement sternum and ribcage using off-the-shelf solutions and while the procedure effectively removed the cancer, ongoing pain and problems breathing made post-op life unpleasant. On 2 August, the 20-year-old American underwent further surgery to replace her implant with a customised sternum and partial ribcage made from 3D printed titanium and combined with Anatomics’ ‘PoreStar’ technology, a unique porous polyethylene material providing “bone-like” architecture to facilitate tissue integration. It is the first time this technology has been used in the United States and only the second time in the world that a 3D-printed composite sternum and ribcage has been implanted. 3D printing has significant advantages over traditional manufacturing methods, particularly for biomedical applications. 3D printing allows for advanced personalisation of implants so they uniquely fit their recipients, as well as rapid manufacture, which could mean the…

A successful local defence industry depends upon strong partnerships between businesses large and small. As the proposed prime system integrator for Army’s future Short Range Ground Based Air Defence capability under LAND 19 Ph 7B, Raytheon is dedicated to the identification of opportunities for Australian industry to participate in the project and enhance local industry capabilities. As part of this process, Raytheon has implemented an Australian Industry Capability (AIC) development plan to identify Australian suppliers who are able to support activities in areas such as component manufacture, assembly and test, systems integration and in-country sustainment for LAND 19 Ph 7B. To facilitate its engagement with Australian industry partners, Raytheon has implemented a supplier portal, as a secure online tool to allow Australian industry to register its interest and provide Raytheon with information about their capabilities. Registering an expression of interest via the supplier portal is the first step to identifying opportunities for industry participation in the LAND 19 Ph 7B project. Following the registration period…

Hargo Engineering Since 1976 Hargo Engineering has been providing specialist precision and repetitive engineering services to its customers across a broad industry customer base. Based in Croydon, in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs, the company specialises in CNC turning, milling and machining delivering precision engineering components to industries such as oil & gas, aerospace, defence, electronics and medical. Since its inception, this now-second-generation family business has invested in its people and the latest technologies. Hargo was founded in 1976 by Heinz Gogol in response to a need for precision engineering of small and very small components. And with 16 years’ experience in German engineering supplying the watch industry, Heinz soon built up a reputation for high quality and competitively priced components. Today the company is led by Heinz’s son Frank Gogol who, with his management team, continues to service customers to the high standards set by his father. Frank has also followed Heinz’s lead by continuing to make shrewd investments in technology. Two of the latest acquisitions have…

“During the development of cryogenic cooling with CO2, a large number of tests were carried out using various materials and under real production conditions,” says Schaarschmidt. “Our findings not only proved the general process suitability of CO2 cooling, but that it also increases the metal removal rate by up to 70% without increasing the tool wear rate. If the metal removal rate remains constant, the tool life increases accordingly.” The evidence provided by the experts at Walter is supported by various machine manufacturers and research institutes, including the Institute for Production Technology (IfP) at the West Saxon University of Applied Sciences of Zwickau (WHZ); the Fraunhofer IPT and WZL at RWTH Aachen University; and the Fraunhofer IWU at the Chemnitz University of Technology. For example, when milling high-alloy steels containing nickel – a 70% longer tool life was achieved for these materials, which are typically used in the manufacture of turbine blades and turbine housings. Similar productivity gains were…

The Victorian Node is one of eight nodes in the national ANFF network. ANFF-VIC has tools and experts available for training or advice at the CSIRO, Deakin University, La Trobe University, the Melbourne Centre for Nanofabrication (MCN), Monash University, RMIT, Swinburne University of Technology, and the University of Melbourne. Both ANFF-VIC and ANFF national are headquartered at MCN, home to one of the largest open-access cleanrooms in the world. In February, Professor Nicolas Voelcker was appointed as Director of ANFF-VIC and Scientific Director of the MCN. With more than 300 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters to his name, he is a leader in his field of biomaterials engineering. Professor Voelcker’s aim is to increase the interaction between academics and industry drivers within the…

In this day and age where global competition is rife, productivity and cost-effectiveness are often the key differentiators that can allow companies in the manufacturing sector to stand out among their business rivals. Over the years, manufacturing processes have progressed steadily with the advent of technology, and one of the key aspects of production where metalworking plays an important role lies in the quality of the machinery that is employed. For many equipment manufacturers, sheet metal cutting is a common procedure in their factory. India-based Bharat Foils Limited is one such company. Established in 1975, the family-owned business has a long history in equipment manufacturing, and currently specialises in the production of equipment used in the grain milling industry, spanning the entire process from cleaning to drying, milling processing, and packing. With a strong presence across every state in India with machinery…

GP Graders has been designing and manufacturing turn-key grading and packing lines for apples and various other fruit at its factory in Melbourne since its foundation in 1963, with hundreds of packing lines in operations throughout Australia and the world. The multi-award winning company’s new system uses light spectrometer technology and takes 10 images sliced across each apple to detect internal browning and core rot wherever it is located in the fruit. “This cutting-edge technology will change the industry and strengthen the packer’s ability to provide defect-free apples to supermarkets,” said Stuart Payne, Managing Director of GP Graders. The technology doesn’t just shoot a beam of light through the centre of the apple to look at the core in isolation, it also analyses the entire mass of the apple, slicing the apple at 10 incremental stages in order to check for internal rot or browning wherever it is located through the fruit. This is a standout feature of the technology as older technology only took one light…

Michael Gunner, Chief Minister of the Northern Territory, said the printer, which the NT Government has invested in, would form the centrepiece of a new industrial research hub to be based at CDU’s Casuarina campus in Darwin’s northern suburbs. The hub would pave the way for the creation of jobs into the future for NT residents, as well as generating new economic opportunities in the NT. Gunner joined Vice-Chancellor Professor Simon Maddocks to announce a $400,000 NT Government grant for the purchase of the LightSPEE3D printer. “We want to partner with local enterprises to drive innovation here in the Territory,” Gunner said. “By diversifying the economy through innovation we are opening the door to new economic opportunities for Territorians – both now and into the future.” The 3D printer was invented in the NT by Steven Camilleri and Byron Kennedy, the co-founders of SPEE3D. It will be used to provide a new industrial transformation research hub for advanced manufacturing in the Territory, delivering new tools, skills and technologies,…