‘Not keeping pace’: Australia continues slide down world digital rankings

By Denham Sadler Australia has slid to its worst ever recorded performance in terms of digital competitiveness, coming in at 20th in a global study after dropping five places since last year. The IMD World Digital Competitiveness Ranking, a study of 64 countries by Switzerland-based International Institute for Management Development (IMD), was released by the Committee…

Manufacturing news briefs – stories you might have missed

State of the art bionic device prototyping centre opens in Melbourne Neo-Bionica, a Bionics Institute and the University of Melbourne joint venture lab, was officially opened this week by Victorian innovation minister Jaala Pulford. Located at St Vincent’s, the new facility aims to give researchers and engineers the tools to create medical-grade devices rather than…

Micro-X signs two US Department of Homeland Security contracts

Cold cathode X-ray machine manufacturer Micro-X has signed two technology contracts with the US Department of Homeland Security to develop its small, lightweight, low power consumption X-ray emitter for passenger screening at airports. The two contracts, worth a total of $5.5 million (US$4 million), will see the company design and manufacture a prototype miniature CT…

Research looks at additive manufacturing opportunity for Australian agriculture

A new report has found agricultural industries could benefit by adopting 3D printing, though there are limitations such as a lack of well-known examples and concerns about the strength and durability of printed parts.  Additive manufacturing opportunities for Australia’s agriculture, fisheries and forestry sectors was released by AgriFutures Australia on Wednesday. It found that on-demand…