$51 million for CRC-P industry research collaborations

The federal government has committed $51 million to support collaboration between industry and researchers under Round 15 of the Cooperative Research Centres Projects (CRC-P).

The 21 grants support industry-led projects with promising commercial potential that solve a wide range of community and economic challenges, from diagnosing life-threatening infections more quickly to innovative environmental recycling processes.

Successful projects include:

• EQ Plastics Pty Ltd has received $3 million to develop its innovative upcycling system to convert plastic and tyre waste into high-value graphene a material with extensive applications in electronics and renewable energy sectors
• Optiscan Imaging Ltd has received $3 million to continue the development of a miniature digital probe that will allow clinicians to conduct real-time endomicroscopy examinations and initiate immediate medical intervention if abnormalities are detected
• And NEXSEN BioTech has received $3 million to further develop its biosensor device for the rapid and accurate diagnosis of Group B Streptococcus bacteria, protecting newborns and expecting mothers from serious complications.

The 21 projects involve 91 project partners across Australia, including 60 Australian industry partners of which 49 are small or medium enterprises, as well as 26 Australian research organisations.

Since the CRC Program commenced over 30 years ago, the Australian Government has committed more than $5.8 billion to establish 238 CRCs and 253 CRC Projects, leveraging a further $17.4 billion in cash and in-kind contributions from collaborating partners from industry, research, government and community organisations.

Other recipients are:

• New Frontier Technologies, Geodrones Australia and Australian National University (ANU) for a digital manufacturing platform for composite structures
• Q-CTRL, CMG Operations and ANU novel for technology for airborne gravity surveys that leverages advances in quantum sensors and signal processing
• Advanced Navigation, University of Technology Sydney and CMG Operations to develop a navigation sensor measuring velocity in 3D
• 1414 Degrees, the University of Adelaide, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, Vulcan Steel (Australia) Pty Ltd and Woodside Energy Technologies for a clean hydrogen production technology “SiPHyR”, featuring a patent-pending reactor that uses stored green heat
• Filamon, Macular Disease Foundation Australia, University of New South Wales and Jun Zeng to develop a drug to treat wet age-related macular degeneration
• AMSL Aero, the University of Sydney, Mission Systems and Pay’s Air Service Holdings to develop the Vertiia electric Vertical Take off and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft drone as an autonomous firefighting drone
• Avicena Systems, Biopoint, Department of Defence, St Vincent’s Care Service Ltd, Healius Pathology and UNSW to develop a platform precise detection of infection in symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals
• The Trustee for JWR Group Trust, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, CSIRO, Vinyl Council of Australia, Welvic Australia, Bygen Pty Ltd and Ouroboros to develop a PVC recycling system
• Nexsen Biotech, RMIT, Atomo Diagnostics and Northern Health for the development and clinical validation of StrepSure, an innovative, low-cost sensor technology for ultrasensitive, accurate and rapid diagnosis of Group B Streptococcus (GBS) bacteria
• KGM Services, Circular Solar Solutions, Deakin University, the University of Newcastle and C & C Bruin Enterprises to commercialise sustainable end of life (EoL) solutions for solar PV panels
• Oxleigh Pty Ltd, UNSW, Scimita Operations, Envirostream Australia and Worley Services to develop a novel process for recycling lithium-ion batteries
• Ace Infrastructure, Sea Electric, Fleet Plant Hire, RMIT, Swinburne University of Technology, Siemens Ltd, ARRB Group and Net Zero Stack Pty Ltd for the development of a an embedded dynamic wireless power transfer technology into roads to power electric heavy vehicles
• Remagine Labs, the Trustee for AK Clinical Trust, University of Melbourne and Monash University who are developing a Smart Wearable Drug Delivery System for epilepsy
• OZ Build Construction, Oranik OZ Build Construction, Oranik Pty Ltd, UTS Sydney, ITI (Victoria) Pty Ltd and Holmag AG to develop an advance manufacturing facility for production of dowel laminated timber (DLT) for fully sustainable building construction
• Ionize Pty Ltd, Cybermerc and University of Canberra to develop a solution streamlining cyber threat detection, network defence, response and recovery for Defence and critical infrastructure SMEs
• PV Industries, Resource Pty Ltd, UNSW and Spark Renewables to develop a large-scale, high-volume solar panel testing and recycling process
• And Symex Labs, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, Monash IVF Pty Ltd and The Actuator Operations to develop a biosensor-based home-use device to replace blood tests allowing IVF clinics.

Picture: EQ Plastics Pty Ltd has received $3 million to develop its innovative upcycling system to convert plastic and tyre waste into high-value graphene