Rachael Barritt from Dovetail Electric Aviation has been named Swinburne University’s first Founder in Residence, with a focus on “new ideas and ventures” related to aerospace and aviation. According to a statement from Swinburne on Tuesday, Barritt (pictured) would work closely with the team at its Aerostructures Innovation Research Hub (AIR Hub), which is involved…
The Monash Institute of Railway Technology (IRT), which is advising the development of the federal government’s National Rail Manufacturing Plan, hosted assistant manufacturing minister Tim Ayres on Monday. Ayres – who also visited cutter and grinder tool manufacturer ANCA yesterday to announce a a $3 million grant – is leading development of the rail plan. …
By Flavio Macau, Edith Cowan University Potatoes are among Australia’s favourite vegetables. However, we are facing a shortage of processed potatoes, especially of frozen chips. Coles introduced a two-item limit for shoppers seeking frozen potato products. Fish and chip businesses are under pressure and some are outraged McDonald’s is launching a new potato product in…
ASX-listed semiconductor company BluGlass has used the SPIE Photonics West industry conference in San Francisco to release their first collection of gallium nitride (GaN) laser products. In an announcement on Monday morning (Sydney time), BluGlass said the six products newly-available to commercial customers range across the 405, 420 and 450 nanometre wavelengths and had passed…
Coles has opened round 11 of its Nurture Fund, which has been running since 2015 and offers grants of up to $500,000 for manufacturers and primary producers to assist development of “new market-leading products and sustainable processes and technologies.” According to a statement from the company on Monday, companies must have fewer than 50 full-time…
Intermodal terminal offers safety, environmental benefits: federal, Victorian governments On Friday the federal and Victorian governments welcomed private sector investment to build and operate a $400 million intermodal freight terminal in Melbourne’s north. Intermodal Terminal Company (ITC) announced it will soon start construction of the Somerton Intermodal Terminal, which will be a key node in…
Brain imaging technology company EMVision Medical Devices has given an update on progress of its clinical trial and a Medical Research Future Fund-backed R&D program, with the latter seeing the company access a $600,000 milestone payment. The clinical trials are in the pre-validation phase and running to schedule, according to a statement from EMVision on…
NSW releases new guidelines for working with cobots The NSW government’s Centre for Work Health and Safety has released what it says is a world-first set of guidelines for working safely with collaborative robots (cobots). Guidelines for Safe Collaborative Robot Design and Implementation were developed in partnership with Centre for Advanced Manufacturing, University of Technology…
RMIT University engineers are investigating a combination of sound waves and the nanomaterial MXene that could triple the lifespan of mobile phone batteries. MXenes are a class of two-dimensional materials that are compared to graphene. They are highly conductive and are of interest in novel batteries, but suffer from rust issues. Distinguished Professor of Chemical…
A major $23 million upgrade to the Queensland node of the Australian National Fabrication Facility network was celebrated on Tuesday. ANFF-Q has state-of-the-art facilities, staff and equipment specialised in microfluidics, organic electronics and opto-electronics, biomaterials, novel semiconductor materials, and related testing. According to a statement from the Queensland government – which contributed $4.59 million to…
