Three accomplished women took centre stage at the 2018 Victorian Manufacturing Hall of Fame Awards on 29 May.
The State Minister for Industry and Employment Ben Carroll presented the inaugural Woman Manufacturer of the Year award to Vanessa Kearney from Viva Energy and Jill Walsh from Actco Pickering Metal Industries at the awards ceremony, held at Crown Palladium in Melbourne. The Young Manufacturer of the Year Award was taken out by another female trailblazer, Vanessa Katsanevakis, who won the award for her leadership at Sussex Taps. Katsanevakis guided the business through a major rebrand and a period of exponential growth.
The Hall of Fame Gala Dinner was attended by hundreds of industry stakeholders, and recognised outstanding manufacturing businesses and individuals. The Manufacturer of the Year (Large Business) was awarded to Bosch Australia, while Siemens took out the new Leader in Industry 4.0 award and PACCAR Australia was awarded the 2018 Leader in Workforce Skills Development.
A number of other companies were also recognised with awards for excellence in some of Victoria’s key growth sectors, including:
- Creature Technology – Medium Business
- Osteon Medical – Small Business
- Entegra Signature Structures – Construction Technologies
- Albins Performance Transmissions – Defence Technologies
- Chobani – Food and Fibre
- Leica Biosystems – Medical Technologies and Pharmaceuticals
- Keppel Prince – New Energy Technologies
- Bombardier Transportation Australia – Transport Technologies
- Boeing – Company Hall of Fame Inductee
“Victoria’s manufacturing industry is powering ahead and it is people like Vanessa Kearney, Jill Walsh and Vanessa Katsanevakis who are helping lead the way,” said Minister Carroll. “Manufacturing has a bright future and the Andrews Labor Government will continue to support this important industry to create jobs and boost Victoria’s economy.”