Industry News

Victorian Minister for Industry and Employment Ben Carroll announced the opening of nominations on 31 January during a visit to Carbon Revolution in Geelong, a manufacturer renowned for its innovative carbon-fibre wheel technology. Manufacturing is worth $27.7bn to the Victorian economy and employs 286,000 Victorians across more than 13,000 businesses. In 2016, manufacturing experienced the fastest employment growth of any industry in Victoria with around 40,000 new jobs created. This year’s theme is Advancing Victorian Manufacturing, which highlights innovation and the strengths of Victorian companies in advanced manufacturing. The 2018 awards will feature a new award, Woman Manufacturer of the Year, to recognise outstanding women working in the manufacturing industry. Other categories include Young Manufacturer of the Year, Manufacturer of the Year and Leader in Workforce Skills Development and Company Induction. Awards will also be given to companies operating in high-growth manufacturing sectors: transport, defence & construction technologies; medical technology and pharmaceuticals; new energy technologies; and food & fibre. “I’m proud that this year’s awards feature the new Woman Manufacturer…

The plan is designed to boost Australian industry, increase investment, and create more jobs for Australian businesses. According to the Government, a strong, exporting defence industry in Australia will provide greater certainty of investment, support high-end manufacturing jobs, and support the capability of the Australian Defence Force. The Defence Export Strategy includes several new initiatives and investments, including: A new Australian Defence Export Office, which will work hand-in-hand with Austrade and the Centre for Defence Industry Capability to co-ordinate whole-of-government efforts, providing a focal point for defence exports. A new Australian Defence Export Advocate, who will provide high-level advocacy for defence exports and work across industry and government to ensure all efforts are co-ordinated. A new $3.8bn Defence Export Facility administered by Efic, Australia’s export credit agency. This will help Australian companies get the finance they need to underpin the sales of their equipment overseas. According to the Government, it will provide confidence to the Australian defence industry to identify and pursue new export opportunities…

The Thai Government understands that manufacturing will be a key driver of the country’s long-term economic growth and has been encouraging companies to establish facilities in their territories through tax and other incentives. As a result, the country today has flourishing automotive and aerospace sectors that require suppliers. SK Precision has around 50 people working two shifts servicing their traditional market of cutting carbide tools and PCD tools. “We have been operating for over 20 years and know the local Thai market intimately,” says Tibordee Srikul, President of SK Precision. “We saw an opportunity in the tap grinding segment as until now companies could only source taps from overseas suppliers and that means longer lead times of up to three months and higher cost. Our customers want just-in-time products so they can reduce stock and inventory costs. Having a local supplier who can deliver taps in a short period of time helps them achieve a more efficient supply chain. “Taps are…

Lapp Australia – headquartered in new 3100sqm premises at Eastern Creek, Sydney – will meet demand nationally for technologies used in future-focussed areas of industry, such as automation, robotics, energy management, data distribution and intelligent manufacturing, buildings, infrastructure and process engineering. Lapp Australia General Manager Simon Pullinger says the new facility – opening in February – will bring new levels of service and choice to the Australian market, offering more than 1,000 product lines onshore as well as direct access to more than 40,000 standard items from Lapp’s global ranges. “We are offering a one-stop shop for highly integrated, efficient and reliable systems which comply with the leading Australian, European and American compliance and quality standards, which are among the most demanding in the world,” says Pullinger. “In addition to major Lapp brands, Lapp Australia will focus strongly on world-class total solutions incorporating highly compatible components from the one source. This integrated approach will save customers time and money when assembling optimum solutions to their particular needs,…

Based in Tullamarine, Ferraro is a tight-knit family-run business that supplies more than 25 varieties to some of Australia’s leading food manufacturers including Arnotts, Paddy’s Pies and Goodman Fielder. As production of shredded mozzarella, shredded parmesan and grated parmesan increased, Ferraro needed larger volumes of nitrogen and carbon dioxide gas, which resulted in a new solution to support its modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) process. “Since moving to BOC, we’ve had no gas supply issues and can confidently increase our cheese production knowing that we have the right gas solution,” says John Ferraro, the company’s owner. “We don’t change for the sake of change – but BOC’s offer was competitive and they have really looked after us.” The challenge Ferraro had outgrown its existing gas system from a previous supplier, and now required more nitrogen and carbon dioxide gas flows and larger vessels to support increasing quantities of cheese packs being produced using a MAP process. “We have a single chamber and double chamber machines that need gas all day long,” says Ferraro.…

South Australian-based car battery handle supplier Rope & Plastic Group had a successful business in Australia and the United States before the automotive industry’s decline. However, the company has now begun manufacturing clotheslines. According to owner John Sutton the transition was an obvious choice. “We were supplying car battery company Exide with handles, cases and lids, so it was a very lucrative business,” he explained. “In the meantime about five or six years beforehand we got involved with a company called Mrs Peggs Clotheslines, and started to manufacture, warehouse and distribute clotheslines in China. “About the same time that Exide decided to close down their manufacturing operations, Mrs Peggs came to us and said they were going to take back the business and run it themselves. We had a double whammy.” With the automotive industry offering no real future, Sutton decided to draw on the company’s experience in clothesline manufacturing to design and manufacture his own washing line. The venture was assisted by a $200,000 grant through the SA…

Eilbeck Cranes – Lifting capabilities A third-generation family-owned business in its 110th year in operation, Eilbeck Cranes is now Australia’s largest and most advanced crane manufacturer, towering over the Australian crane market due to its engineering and manufacturing excellence. Today Eilbeck has manufacturing facilities in Sydney, Western Australia, Mackay in Queensand, and a new facility currently under construction in Melbourne, as well as service centres around the country. Eilbeck Director Tom Eilbeck took the bold move in 2015 and invested massively into the development of the Eilbeck Heavy Machining Centre. This daring decision was not only aimed at gaining competitive advantage, but also an investment in the future of Australian manufacturing and the security of future Australian jobs. Investment over the last two years has been significant for this company, with the installation of the Okuma MB8000H CNC horizontal machine centre with OSP P300M control in 2016, followed this year by an Okuma Genos…

Throughout its long history, turning in the conventional direction – namely starting at the end of the workpiece and working longitudinally towards the chuck – has prevailed. Although this technique has proved successful, as the process has matured, ongoing advances in productivity and profitability have been increasingly difficult to achieve. Many are bound by the limitations of traditional turning. For instance, while experienced operators are aware that factors such as small entry angles permit increased feeds, they are restricted to around 90 degrees in conventional turning in order to reach the shoulder and avoid the long, curved chips that small entering angles characteristically provide. In recent years, the advent of…

Based in the town of Arch, DPRM regards itself as a watch manufacturer that is mainly focused on the bar turning of micro parts that constitute the working features of a watch. The company also performs all peripheral activities in the fields of production, quality control and even assembly. Established in 1947 under the name ‘ASKA’, DPRM has been built upon a unique knowledge base that its employees have gained during the course of time. Using bar turning and gear cutting technologies, the company can develop and produce all kinds of components that meet the requirements of the high-end watch market. Today, DPRM is a part of the Dubois Dépraz Corporation, a famous manufacturer of exceptional watch components. To manufacture components that set the benchmark in the watchmaking industry, DPRM utilises 44 machine tools. Besides specialised machines for blanking, burnishing, decoration, thermal and surface treatment, the Swiss company employs seven EvoDeco machines, four…

In high and low-wage countries, interest in the many benefits of industrial robots has never been higher. Released last year, the International Federation of Robotics (IFR) Industrial Robots report showed unit sales figures in 2015 up 15% on the year before, reaching an all-time high of 253,748. Since 2010, technical improvements in robots and automation have turbocharged investment, according to the report. Furthermore, double digit percentage growth is predicted to continue every year up to 2019 . However, within CNC machining, robotics applications have been dominated by machine tending. Overall, the benefits enjoyed by industrial users of robots – such as accuracy, productivity and capacity utilisation – have been under-realised by machine tool users. According to 2012 IFR research, only 1.5% of machine tools were being automated in conjunction with robots . Nonetheless, this trend is starting to shift, with robots becoming increasingly affordable and easy to program – making the technology more accessible to the CNC grinding market. Global influences are also having an impact, such as the South…

Manufacturing companies today are embracing more cutting-edge technologies than ever before. In fact, global market intelligence firm IDC predicts that by 2019, 75% of large manufacturers will have updated their operations and operating models to incorporate the Internet of Things (IoT) and associated software applications to help mitigate risk and increase efficiency. This increased connectivity of IoT devices, robotics, and human-machine interfaces as a way to improve automation means that there are now an overwhelming number of connected devices and technologies within manufacturing that need to be monitored 24 hours a day, seven days a week to ensure they are delivering top performance at all times. For organisations in the manufacturing industry, a high-performance network is becoming a basic ‘must have’ in this automated world – particularly when it means ensuring a functioning IT infrastructure is properly maintained. To ensure smooth operating procedures, all processes in the production line should run without complications, as…

Based in Artarmon, NSW, KBW is a family-owned and managed business with over 30 years of experience in vehicle repairs. KBW caters for both vehicle repair insurance and private work as well as specialising in car and motorcycle custom and restoration work. Dedicated to completing work at the highest standards, KBW keeps its team trained in an evolving industry while investing in state-of-the-art machinery to ensure each motor vehicle leaving the shop looks better than ever. From powering air tools to the spray paint booth, compressed air is integral to the operation. Just over a decade ago, an ageing compressed air system prompted KBW’s Manager Charles Koudsy to contact the company’s longstanding compressed air partner Fracks for a solution. Fracks – an authorised Kaeser partner – recommended and subsequently installed an Airtower 11 from Kaeser. The Airtower was a compact compressor solution that incorporated a rotary screw compressor and refrigeration dryer within one housing. This series was…

AMT: Tell us firstly about the Cumberland Business Chamber and its membership. Craig Hingston: Cumberland Business Chamber was formed 30 years ago in the Smithfield-Wetherill Park region of western Sydney, which is home to the largest industrial business park in the Southern Hemisphere. This is a strategic hub representing a board cross-section of the manufacturing and engineering sector. There are over 20,000 people employed here and many of these businesses have been here for decades. Because we are an industrial-centric chamber, as opposed to a strictly geographical one, we attract people from all over Sydney. Our members range from CEOs and management at multinational corporations to owners of SMEs and micro-enterprises. They represent manufacturing and the many sectors which support it. Our purpose is to encourage and stimulate business growth. We are advocates for ‘Support Australian Industry. Buy Australian Products.’ AMT: What sort of services and projects does the Chamber…