Today in our editorial series – Towards 3% R&D – Turbocharging Australia’s Innovation Effort – Serena Ross contrasts innovation to be new to the world, and continuous improvement – the lifeblood of her company, Circuitwise Electronics. Australia’s innovation effort can be improved by a greater focus on ‘ordinary’ innovation. In contrast to deep-tech or R&D-focused…
The federal government has signed a $500 million contract with Lockheed Martin Australia to deliver the next phase of the Joint Air Battle Management System that synchronises air and missile defence operations across air, sea and land operations. LMA was named in October as the strategic partner to deliver the project, known as AIR6500, which…
Akula Tech which aims to design and build a constellation of satellites to detect natural disasters and conflicts and analyse the information in space has qualified to join the XPRIZE Wildfire competition’s Space-based Detection and Intelligence Track (Track A). XPRIZE is a four year international competition to develop and demonstrate fully-autonomous capabilities to detect and…
New Zealand-headquartered energy projects business Hiringa Energy has launched a green hydrogen refuelling network in its home country, which it says will “act as a blueprint” for efforts in Australia. In August last year Hiringa was announced as a partner with Sundown Pastoral Co on the Good Earth Green Hydrogen and Ammonia (GEGHA) project. GEGHA…
Sicona Battery Technologies has chosen the south-eastern United States near the heart of battery and electric vehicle manufacturing for the development of its first commercial production facilities. By leveraging low cost and abundant silicon metal, Sicona claims its SiCx battery anode materials technology increases the energy density of lithium-ion batteries by 20 percent. Having recently…
The federal government has launched its Environmentally Sustainable Procurement Policy, which will be phased in from July and initially see companies bidding for government construction services contracts needing to meet agreed sustainability outcomes, including products with recycled content. In an announcement from environment minister Tanya Plibersek (pictured on right) on Wednesday, two phases of the…
The federal government has announced $330 million in grants for clean energy and emissions reduction projects at heavy industrial sites around the country. The government’s Powering the Regions Fund is supporting nine projects ranging from powering mine sites with renewables, eliminating the use of coal in iron pellet production, trialling the use of biocarbon in…
Today in our editorial series – Towards 3% R&D – Turbocharging Australia’s Innovation Effort – we turn to the role of national industry policy. Here Roy Green points to innovation and the success of a Future Made in Australia as intertwined. While lacking detail at this stage, the significance of Prime Minister Albanese’s Future Made…
Sparc Technologies raises $2.25 million Graphene and green hydrogen developer Sparc Technologies has received firm commitments from sophisticated and other professional investors to raise $2.25M through a share placement. New and existing investors strongly supported the placement. Sparc Technologies Managing Director Nick O’Loughlin, said: “Sparc is very pleased with the strong support it has received…
RMIT University and Visy have partnered up to develop energy-efficient bricks, which switch out clay for recycled materials and show promise in boosting energy-efficiency. The new bricks contain a minimum of 15 per cent waste glass and 20 per cent combusted solid waste (ash), as substitutes for clay, according to a statement from RMIT University…