As voters contemplate a looming federal election plans are emerging for mega re-industrialising projects – not from federal politicians, but from elsewhere in the community. Over in the west the WA government plans to create five hydrogen hubs that electrolyse water using green solar pv and wind power in the Pilbara region by 2030. A…
The @AuManufacturing new deal plan for manufacturing was crowd sourced from more than 60 substantial submissions from readers and members of the Australian Manufacturing Forum Linkedin group in 2020. With an election in the air and industry policy again in the news this week, we present again the plan’s executive summary and core recommendations as…
By Peter Roberts The brand new $17 million factory of automation and systems integrator Bosch Australia Manufacturing Solutions (BAMS, pictured) is silent when I visit the factory located at Clayton in south-eastern suburban Melbourne. Workers have gone home for the day, allowing this journalist a Covid-safe tour of a production floor full to capacity with…
Prime Minister Scott Morrison talks of ‘can-do capitalism’ and last week offered a $2 billion sweetener to industrial research, while others talk of a ‘do-nothing government’. Here Lance Worrall looks at the policy changes forced on the nation by a pandemic, and what it means for a new industrial policy as not just sectoral support,…
Space services company Skykraft and composite materials manufacturer XTEK Limited have successfully completed the mechanical and vibration testing of a 500kg Payload Launch Stack which housed 24 representative Skykraft developed small satellites. Funded by a grant from the Australian Space Agency the stack is capable of supporting and deploying 24 small satellites and was tested…
The Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility (NAIF) has announced it will invest $255 million in infrastructure supporting the proposed $4.3 billion Perdaman Urea Project at Karratha in Western Australia. The investment in the form of loans will upgrade common-user infrastructure that will support the project, which will convert liquefied natural gas into about two million tonnes…
Australian wine exports dropped 30 per cent in value to $2.03 billion and in volume by 17 per cent to 619 million litres in the year ended December 2021, according to Wine Australia’s latest Export Report. The decline reflects tough market conditions with deposit tariffs imposed on bottled Australian wine imported to China, the impact…
The federal government has revealed there is still scope for food and beverage manufacturers to apply for grants of up to $25,000 each to save money on energy bills, improve energy efficiency and adopt new energy technologies under the latest $19.9 million round of the Energy Efficient Communities (EEC) program. The grants can be used…
Airservices Australia and space services company, Skykraft have partnered in the development of a space-based communication and surveillance air traffic management capability. Under the collaboration, Airservices will share its air navigation, technical engineering and air traffic management expertise to support design, development, and validation of the system, as well as support Skykraft to conduct space-based…
Hastings Technology Metals’ Yangibana rare earths project is set to join Lynas Rare Earths as Western Australia’s second major producer of critical metals markets currently dominated by China. The Yangibana project 250 kilometres east of Carnarvon has been granted a $140 million loan from the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility making it the first Australian rare…
