Industry News

Using an innovative and progressive business model, Flow Power tackles the issue of price and environment with a unique offering. Its renewable power, sourced from Ararat Wind Farm, can be used in real time to offset grid electricity consumption, potentially saving thousands of dollars in energy costs. ANCA, a market leading manufacturer of CNC grinding machines, will now buy its power from Ararat Wind Farm through a power purchasing agreement (PPA) to access fixed rates for long-term savings. While very common around the world, this deal is one of the first in Australia. The generation is offset against the business’s use, so that when ANCA uses more than what is generated in an interval, Flow Power sources additional electricity from the wholesale market to power the operation. When ANCA uses less, there is an option to selling the electricity back to Flow Power at an agreed price or back to the wholesale market. “At ANCA we are always looking for…

The free-to-attend event offers unrivalled access to renowned exhibitors and world-class speakers over three days. Themed ‘Where Innovation Meets Opportunity’ in recognition of the leads, lessons and partnerships formed at the event each year, NMW 2018 will focus on and explore the impact of digital transformation, innovative design and business management on the manufacturing industry. The exhibition area will showcase more than 150 exhibits by leading companies from around the world, across 12 Product Zones: advanced materials, additive manufacturing, automation & robotics, electrical, engineering, the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), machine tools, packaging and plastics, industrial safety, supply chain and logistics, warehousing and materials handling, and welding technology. This year’s speaker program also features a leading-edge series of seminars, showcases, workshops and networking sessions. The event will host 40 presenters including Dresden Optics Founder Bruce Jeffreys, Plastfix’s CEO Mario Dimovsk, Apollo Kitchens’ Managing Director Peter Bader, AusIndustry’s Director of Accelerating Commercialisation Larry Lopez, and SSS Manufacturing’s CEO Chris Brugeaud. “National Manufacturing Week is Australia’s only fully integrated annual manufacturing exhibition, and provides an unrivalled opportunity for delegates to…

The Tonsley Manufacturing Innovation Hub (TMI Hub) at Flinders University’s Tonsley campus in Adelaide is designed to accelerate the adoption of Industry 4.0 technology among high-tech and manufacturing businesses, as well as fostering research & development. The launch of the state-of-the-art facility comes at a time when the Australian economy is transitioning from a traditional manufacturing base to more digitalised, knowledge-based industries following the end of automotive manufacturing with the closure of Holden’s Adelaide plant late last year. The TMI Hub was officially opened on 9 February by South Australian Manufacturing and Innovation Minister Kyam Maher. The Minister said it was important to ensure the advanced manufacturing workforce and companies had the ability to compete globally in niche markets as the economy transitioned. “Industry 4.0 is the next technological wave that will create opportunities for South Australia’s advanced manufacturers to diversify into growth sectors such as defence, food and health,” said Maher. “The TMI Hub will further cement Tonsley’s reputation as a global centre of excellence for industry and research collaboration, with…

If successful, this cutting edge new technology could form part of the Government’s Future Submarines Program (SEA1000), the largest and most complex military program ever undertaken in Australia. SEA1000 involves the design and construction in Adelaide of 12 highly advanced submarines with a range in excess of 33,000km and capable of operating independently for up to 80 days. For a non-nuclear submarine those figures are already impressive. CSIRO and QinetiQ will work on making it even more so. “Together, we’ll be testing whether MOFs can allow submarines to remain submerged longer,” says CSIRO Project Leader Associate Professor Matthew Hill. “MOFs have the largest internal surface area of any known substance, which can be optimised to capture gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2). The more CO2 MOFs can capture and store, the longer a submarine can potentially remain underwater, undetected.” “If proven, MOFs could give Australian submarines an edge: a performance advantage…

The field of renewable energy and clean technology is highly diverse, encompassing everything from wind and solar power, through to technologies for improving energy efficiency and electricity storage. One area that is relatively undeveloped and has generated comparably limited media coverage is hydrogan fuel technology, but it is an area with enormous potential. Hydrogen Mobility Australia (HMA), publicly launched on 2 February, is the voice of Australian’s emerging hydrogen industry. With a membership comprising vehicle manufacturers, energy companies and infrastructure providers, it is a national body with a vision of a hydrogen society for Australia built on clean and renewable energy technology, including hydrogen-powered transport. HMA is also working in collaboration with the Australian Government on developing regulations, codes and standards for hydrogen fuel cells and hydrogen production. The organisation’s CEO, Claire Johnson has extensive experience in policy development across the public and private sector. Based in Melbourne, she recently led Toyota…

The Australian PMI has now extended its longest run of expansion since 2005 into its 18th month (readings above 50 indicate expansion in activity, with the distance from 50 indicating the strength of the increase). The previous record for the Australian PMI was 62.1 points recorded in May 2002. For the fifth consecutive month all seven activity sub-indexes in the Australian PMI expanded, with new orders (up 11.2 points to 66.6), employment (up 2.2 points to 60.0) and deliveries (up 10.6 points to 66.6) all recording record highs. Queensland manufacturing is performing particularly well, with a reading of 73.8 points in March. Respondents in Queensland reported increased demand from a broad range of sectors including construction, mining, agriculture and renewables. “The ascent of manufacturing reached new heights over the past month with strength evident across the sector in what is continuing welcome news for the industry,” said Ai Group Chief Executive Innes Willox. “Production grew beyond the strong levels recorded in February on the back of higher…

Australian advanced manufacturing is undergoing one of the most exciting transformations in its history. The advent of new technologies, such as 3D printing with metals, advanced materials such as composites and graphene, digitalisation and the Internet of Things, has meant that there is a great deal of education, support and promotion needed to highlight the benefits of these technologies. Austech runs every two years in Melbourne, and is the only show specifically targeted at the metalworking, machine tool and ancillary market - being held in Australia in 2019. The product sectors covered by Austech include CNC machine tools, sheet metal fabrication equipment, special purpose machines, laser cutting marking and engraving, additive manufacturing & 3D printing, digitalisation, inspection & measurement, automation & robotics and general engineering. National Manufacturing…

The collaborative project, ‘Repair Bot’, will employ robotics and 3D printing, along with complex materials, to enable an automated rapid repair service for plastic car parts. Inspiration for the project stemmed from the need for a technology-driven solution to overcome numerous issues facing the automotive repair industry. These issues range from material wastage, complex and restrictive design elements, the limited availability of skilled labour, and the long lead times and inventory holdings for replacement parts. Tradiebot Founder Mario Dimovski believes the project’s potential benefits go far beyond just the automotive collision industry. “The ability to repair previously non-repairable parts using world-first technology will reduce overall repair times and repair costs,” explains Dimovski. “It will also create real and significant export opportunities and has flow-on benefits for the environment by reducing land-fill. Tradiebot will also deliver new future skills to the industry as more processes become automated.” Research the key to unlocking…

The Facility for Intelligent Fabrication (FIF) combines the knowledge and resources of the UoW, TAFE NSW and the Welding Technology Institute of Australia (WTIA). FIF was formed in recognition of the changing business climate, as the Illawarra transitions from large-scale heavy manufacturing, and the need for local manufacturers to innovate and adapt to remain competitive. The facility draws on decades of research-based welding and automation expertise and welding training at both UOW and TAFE NSW, enabling local firms with their own history of fabrication expertise to access specialised knowledge and skills in automation. FIF will develop and implement solutions to industry challenges and provide demonstrations of technology and proof-of-concept, including prototype development. It will also support the adoption of new technology with technical education, training and certification support. Gareth Ward MP, Parliamentary Secretary for Education and the Illawarra and South Coast, launched the facility on behalf of John Barilaro, Deputy Premier, Minister for Regional New South Wales, Minister for Skills, and Minister…

The Australian Advanced Materials Manufacturing (AAMM) facility in Edinburgh Parks in Adelaide’s North opened on 16 February to print metals including titanium, stainless steel, aluminium and cobalt chrome into complex metal parts. Part of the Additive Manufacturing Applied Research Network (AMARN), the facility is the only metal additive manufacturing centre in Australia available to industry on a commercial basis. It provides access to technology that removes significant costs and barriers for local manufacturers. One early user of the facility will be local medical device company Austofix, which will be able to produce commercial quantities of its revolutionary wrist fracture device Volar Radius Plate, enabling the company to take advantage of export opportunities. The University of Adelaide’s Institute for Photonics and Advanced Sensing (IPAS) and the Optofab Australian National Fabrication Facility, together with the Stretton Centre and CSIRO’s Lab 22 additive manufacturing centre, established the AMARN. They received a $1.4m state government grant through the Innovative Manufacturing CRC (IMCRC) to buy a number of UK-made 3D printers. David…

Formula SAE is a competition organised by the Australian branch of the Society of Automotive Engineers in which teams of students produce a prototype for a single-seat racing car and present it to a hypothetical firm for manufacture. The cars compete in a series of track tests. In addition, the teams are judged on the design and cost-efficiency of the car, and on a marketing presentation about their project. Along with the practical experience gained, the programme gives students the opportunity to work together in a dedicated, multi-disciplinary team to produce an impressive vehicle for the competition. The skills of the team are pushed to the limit to ensure that the design and the manufacturing methods used are innovative and robust. The team from Swinburne is made up of students in…

A common mistake by businesses is to treat inventory as a driver of business performance. The theory goes, reduced inventory leads to reduced working capital, which leads to improved return on capital. Unfortunately what usually happens is that reduced inventory leads to reduced customer service levels and increased firefighting in the supply chain, which then leads to lost business, increased costs and reduced profits! The problem with attacking inventory in isolation is that inventory levels are an outcome of how you run your business, not a driver! Good and bad inventory Of course all businesses have inventory they would rather not have. This “bad inventory” is made up of excess and obsolete inventory. Obsolete inventory is stock of products that you no longer make, while excess inventory is stock in excess of that required to maintain your target level of customer service (more about that later). Your business needs a process to manage excess and obsolete stock. The…

Based in Kingston, Queensland, Simply 3D provides a range of end-to-end 3D scanning and 3D printing services. The company was recently engaged by Stangfever International, a local business importing and converting US cars, to perform a conversion on a left-hand-driven 2015 Dodge Challenger Hellcat to right-hand drive. Converting a car for right-hand driving can be quite a complex task – one which unfortunately does not merely involve switching parts to the other side! For one, there are a lot of parts involved: for this specific project, Simply 3D’s Director Brad Jack worked on 15 different parts, including the dashboard, AC system, glovebox and centre console. While some can be “mirrored” then fitted in a relatively straightforward manner, others need further adaptation. Moreover, while there is a demand for such work to be performed, the case-by-case and model-by-model needs will never justify such parts to be mass manufactured in the automotive industry, so the components for right-hand driving will likely never be readily available. The project therefore was conducted as a “proof-of-concept” for Stangfever, one that could bring…