New materials developer Lithium Australia has completed short duration glasshouse testing of fertilisers with added micro-nutrients derived from recycled alkaline batteries. The Perth company reported plant uptake of zinc and manganese was in line with expectations for oxide materials. More than 6,000 tonnes of alkaline batteries are consumed nationally each year, with 97 per cent…
Opposition leader Anthony Albanese delivered an address from Canberra today where he called for a revival in manufacturing, and greater investment in learning and education, technology, people and infrastructure. Here are his key messages in his own wrds. Anthony Albanese on manufacturing: “We must revitalise high value Australian manufacturing using our clean energy resources. With…
Sales by hearing implant manufacturer Cochlear plunged 60 per cent in April, confirming company predictions of the negative effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. The Sydney company reported that surgery cancellations as hospitals were emptied to prepare for the virus occurred as previously predicted. Cochlear implant sales declined 80 per cent in the month with most…
A small Australian boat builder is further demonstrating their workboat design and build capabilities with the delivery of another vessel to operate in the Port of Gladstone. Over the past twelve years, Queensland-based aluminium boat builder BTB Marine has built and delivered thirteen workboats, fast landing craft and other commercial vessels built specifically for marine…
A month into our campaign to crowd source a new deal plan for manufacturing, Lance Worrall finds we simply do not have an Australian industrial policy. But our new deal plan submissions show the way forward. The fight against Covid 19 is a fight for our survival. If, as politicians are telling us, this is…
Chemicals and explosives group Orica has reported strong sales and profit growth for the first half year barely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. The Melbourne company reported a statutory Net Profit After Tax (NPAT) of $165 million for the six months to 31 March 2020, compared to $33 million in the prior corresponding period. Sales…
Comment by Peter Roberts When I launched our campaign to crowd source a new deal plan for manufacturing on April 14 I was hopeful of a positive response. But I never expected the groundswell of ideas and innovations that we have published day by day since then. The Australian Manufacturing Forum and @AuManufacturing news and…
Deakin progresses sodium battery design Materials scientists at Deakin University’s Institute for Frontier Materials have discovered that super concentrated ionic liquids are key to achieving better batteries that utilise sodium rather than lithium. The new work by ARC Centre of Excellence for Electromaterials Science (ACES) PhD student Dmitrii Rakov, combines sodium metal anodes and safe,…
Major manufacturers BlueScope and CSL are among those companies which have moved to shore up their financial defences by securing new debt facilities. The two companies announced yesterday they had raised new debt and extended payment periods to carry them well past any likely end-date for the coronavirus Covid-19 pandemic. Biotechnology giant CSL, at various…
New materials developer First Graphene will supply its PureGRAPH graphene product to improve the performance of face masks (pictured) manufactured by planarTECH Holdings. The Perth company will supply the graphene coating to provide anti-static and bacteria resistant properties to the masks, as well as investigating the use of graphene in other personal protective equipment (PPE).…
