Industry News

Thanking Mark and Craig for their commitment, KAESER Australia Managing Director, Peter Eckberg said, “We are grateful for your dedication and long-standing loyalty to the company as well as the industry.” “It is unusual these days for people to remain with one employer for such a long period of time. Over 70% of the Australian workforce has been in their current position for ten years or less. So in this environment, for a person to reach 20, and then 30 years of service is absolutely outstanding.” In 1993, Mark Dudman was employed as a Sales Engineer for KAESER Australia. Based in the Sydney branch office, Mark progressed to the role of Branch Manager and then National Sales Manager. Decades of experience mean Mark is well-known and respected in compressed air circles. Asked about his time in the industry, Mark says the key to navigating the ever-changing market is to focus on the customers and always check that the product solves the problem. In that…

Markforged has revealed its newest industrial 3D printer, the FX10 at the Formnext Conference in Germany. Continuing Markforged’s heritage of reliable printers that deliver strong, precise parts, the FX10 is designed to supercharge manufacturing line productivity and profitability. The FX10 empowers users to print the right part when and where it is needed, reducing costs and cutting lead times from months to days compared to traditional manufacturing methods. “We engineered the FX10 to be the best tool for the manufacturing floor,” said Shai Terem, CEO of Markforged. “The FX10 allows manufacturers to slash original part replacement costs when compared to traditional methods and keep production lines running without worrying about supply chain issues or spare parts inventory. The FX10 can accelerate the digitization of the manufacturing floor by increasing the adoption of digital inventory to build supply chain resiliency.  Our customers now have the potential to save even more capital by reducing physical inventory and boosting production yields while decreasing operating costs.” Designed with flexibility in mind, the printer's modular systems are engineered to be…

Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS), is now a viable technique for large-scale analysis of geological materials with the ability to contribute to ore body knowledge and directly influence exploration geology programs and process metallurgy operations. The technique has some similarities to spark OES which has been used for many years in the metals industry to confirm or identify alloy grades. While LIBS is not a new technology, it really came to the fore in 2012 when NASA employed it on the MARS Rover Curiosity. Their LIBS system called ChemCam is mounted on top of the mast and can analyse materials as far as seven metres away, where it was used to determine the composition of Martian geology samples. In July 2021 it was reported to have collected over 800,000 spectra from more than 2,500 individual targets. In the process, it has been responsible for some of the Rover’s most significant discoveries. Main image: The NASA Curiosity Rover. The ChemCam LIBS system is housed in the module atop the mast (photo courtesy of…

International logistics and shipping leader Maersk is strengthening its omnichannel-fulfilment capabilities in Australia, with the opening of seven new facilities across the country. As the integrated container and logistics company celebrates its 30th anniversary in Australia, plans are in place to grow its already extensive operations and land-side capabilities.   The seven new facilities are being delivered over the 12 months to Q1 2024 as part of Maersk’s global integrator strategy with clear opportunities identified to expand the regional logistics landscape. This will bring the company’s total number of sites in Australia to eight in total, serviced by 550 full-time employees. Four sites opened earlier this year and three more are coming online between now and Q1 2024. Two of these facilities were integrated into the Maersk network as part of its acquisition of LF Logistics.  Maersk invited AMT magazine to the new Derrimut warehouse in Melbourne to meet with staff and view the complex matrix system on the occasion of the company's 30th anniversary in Australia. The huge network space was rolling with robots, pickers,…

Mineral exploration plays an important role in society. Today, with the drive for a low carbon economy there is pressure to discover mineral deposits such as nickel, lithium, cobalt, zinc and copper that are required to build renewable energy sources such as solar panels, wind turbines and batteries for homes, industry and electric vehicles. Without access to ‘green metals’ a low-carbon world won’t be possible. In support of mineral exploration are two technologies that offer improved mineral identification techniques through reliable analysis. One of these technologies is LIBS or Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy. A rapid minimally destructive chemical analysis technique used to identify and detect mineralogical samples. A leading laser system is the J200 LIBS instrument from Applied Spectra designed specifically to handle the most demanding trace element analyses — those requiring high sensitivity and accuracy. With a single-digit ppm (parts per million) level of detection (LOD) limit for many elements in the periodic table, the J200 LIBS is an ideal instrument for challenging quantitative elemental analysis with many sample matrices and capable of monitoring single or multiple elements of…

Originally founded in New Zealand in 1974 by Keld and Vivi Sorensen manufacturing specialised machine tools, Sorensen Engineering relocated to Sydney in 1981. Although continuing to manufacture machine tools until the early 2000s, this second-generation family business diversified into the production of precision component parts and assemblies in the mid-1980s and has continued to innovate and was recently recognised in the top 100 most innovative companies in Australia. Today, with a total staff of 30, the company is a highly competent precision engineering business with more than 40 years’ of experience. Sorensen services diverse markets such as mining, pump & fluid controls, film & TV equipment, and biomedical & scientific equipment. More recently, in response to the COVID crisis, they have been supporting critical projects with components for ventilators and PCR instruments involved in large-scale COVID testing. The first Okuma lathe was purchased by Sorensen Engineering in 2006 and today it has nine Okuma machines including CNC lathes, horizontal and vertical machining centres, plus automation and robotics. “The selection of Okuma machines came down to the precision and reliability of…

Weld Australia's Excellence Awards are the most prestigious event on the welding industry calendar. The Awards showcase and celebrate the world-class work being undertaken by local welders, fabricators and industry educators.   This year, the awards were held at Waterview and saw the best and brightest from the ACT and New South Wales' welding industry come together to acknowledge the incredible calibre of work achieved over the past 12 months.   According to Weld Australia's CEO, Geoff Crittenden, "The 2023 New South Wales and ACT Welding Excellence Awards highlight the outstanding achievements of our local professionals while emphasising the industry's unwavering commitment to excellence. At Weld Australia, we are proud recognise both companies and individuals who are pushing boundaries in welding quality, safety, and innovation."   "Our celebrated winners this year represent both businesses and individuals dedicated to crafting innovative and sustainable strategies, prioritising safety, and enhancing the overall skill set in the welding community," Crittenden said.   NEPEAN Engineering & Innovation won the 2023 Company of the Year Award - Fabrication. Established in 1974, NEPEAN Engineering & Innovation has…

The new Allan Labor Government is on track to deliver the largest investment in locally-made trams in Australia’s history – supporting thousands of jobs and improving access to Melbourne’s iconic tram network. Melbourne’s locally made next-generation trams are one step closer after a life-sized model of a G-class tram was unveiled for testing and evaluation for the first time ahead of production ramping up. Minister for Public and Active Transport Gabrielle Williams recently visited Tullamarine to unveil the first life-sized mock-up of a next-gen tram for testing and evaluation – set to hit the network by 2025. The Labor Government is investing $1.85bn in 100 new G-class trams alongside a new tram maintenance and stabling facility when the fleet is ready. The more accessible trams will be built by Alstom in Dandenong using at least 65% local content and supporting up to 1,900 local jobs through manufacturing, the supply chain and construction. They will replace some of Melbourne’s longest-serving A and Z-class high-floor trams, making our public transport network more accessible for all Victorians. With greater capacity than the high-floor trams, they will…

Being stuck in the past has a cost. Manufacturers utilising legacy systems are hurting themselves with a lack of connectivity that inhibits production and response time. Manufacturers who have yet to modernise are those with the most to gain by upgrading their data management and automation processes. The Harvard Business Review points out that $1Tn is left on the table when companies fail to digitise. Various elements can exacerbate existing manufacturing and supply chain challenges: global unrest, COVID-19, war, climate change, and economic uncertainty. In 2022, the war in Ukraine impacted the global wheat supply, which trickled down to cause issues with food manufacturers around the world. When the disruption eventually reached consumers, there were product shortages and steep prices for the inventory that was available. COVID-19 also caused large supply chain disruptions by causing port closures and worker shortages. Inventory tracking became nearly impossible, as there was either no inventory to track or no one on-site to do so. This impact hasn’t disappeared but rather continues downstream in the form…

The RMIT University-led project – supported by the Australian Research Council, Austroads and 10 Victorian councils – will incorporate recycled plastic from consumer and industrial waste, including notoriously stubborn soft plastics, into asphalt as a performance enhancer. With Australians generating 2.6 million tonnes of plastic waste each year and landfill space expected to reach capacity by 2025, this project is helping to address an urgent challenge. Project lead, RMIT Associate Professor Filippo Giustozzi, said the team will also produce best-practice guidelines on the use of recycled plastics in asphalt roads. “These guidelines will enable local governments, which control 80% of the nation’s roads, to begin widescale adoption of this innovative recycling solution,” said Giustozzi from RMIT’s School of Engineering. The City of Melbourne and nine suburban and regional councils will lead the way, each having sections of recycled road up to 900 metres long paved over the coming months. The 10 project sites will use an estimated 21,000kg of recycled plastic, but the potential scale of this solution is considerable given the…

The new SPMT can eliminate the carbon footprint of site transport. This allows our customers to reduce the impact of large infrastructure projects on surrounding people, businesses, and infrastructure. It reduces noise…

The warehousing and manufacturing sector is undergoing significant transformation, largely driven by digitalisation and technological advancements. The process of moving materials within a warehouse or manufacturing site can drastically impact capital durability, inventory cost, worker safety, and overall operational efficiency. To remain competitive in an evolving market, organisations must make smarter, faster, and cheaper decisions, particularly when it comes to material handling. Traditionally, material handling has relied heavily on manual, time-consuming processes and rudimentary tools. However, digital transformation is reshaping industrial manufacturing, operations, and supply chain logistics like never before. Technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), digital twins, autonomous mobile robots (AMRs), and vehicle mounts are driving material handling innovation. For example, digital twins can reduce the transition time between physical and digital worlds, speeding up reaction time and enabling quicker adjustments in operations. Similarly, vehicle mounts shorten the physical distance between the operator and technology, making it easier to execute tasks with increased efficiency. These tools not only capture and analyse data in real-time, but also decentralise the digital interface,…

This article aims to explore the challenges being faced by manufacturing organisations across industries. A societal and cultural shift away from manual, craftsmanship-based roles, coupled with the perception of health risks in manufacturing occupations has led to a significant skills shortage in the sector. Various other challenges include regulatory pressures, unstable supply chains, and unprecedented uncertainties — all of which are exacerbating the situation and threatening the competitiveness of manufacturing enterprises. However, this article posits that the solution to these escalating issues lies within the realm of digitalisation and automation technology. Our analysis is rooted in the evolution of job market trends, and the opportunities presented by innovations such as Rivelin NetShape, a frontrunner in the digital revolution of manufacturing. By harnessing machine learning, advanced sensors, and proprietary algorithms, this technology transforms skilled manual tasks for post-processing and finishing metal parts and components into repeatable, traceable digital procedures that significantly boost productivity and reduce costs. The article will go on to present a future where the burdens of manual labour can be alleviated by robotics and AI and show…