Best of the week – the five most popular stories among @AuManufacturing’s readers

What were the five biggest stories during the week just finished? Here’s what visitors to this site were reading.

A number of people contacted me last week after the remarks of Saul Griffith on television and in print media that have been reported as an attack on green hydrogen. I have responded individually but thought that it might be good to do so publicly too. By Paul Hodgson.

The bottom line is that I agree with Dr Griffith: let’s electrify everything! Now, I know that media wants to simplify things and make it into a fight. I have close experience of the so-called ‘Climate Wars’, particularly in my roles as Senior Adviser to the Australian Climate Change, Industry and Innovation Minister, as General Manager for NERA – National Energy Resources Australia and as Interim CEO of the Scaling Green Hydrogen CRC over the past decade.

However, the opportunity for Australia is so great and so easily squandered by faux division that enough is enough.

FLYING CARS RACE POINTS TO FUTURE

We have been told flying cars are coming since the days of The Jetsons TY programme, but they could be racing through our skies soon with an Australian flying vehicle company in the van.

Adelaide’s Alauda Aeronautics has built several 4.1 metre long flying vehicles (pictured) specifically for a new racing series called Airspeeder.

Aluda Aeronautics and Airspeeder chief executive Matt Pearson has already staged the first race around a one kilometre course in South Australia, according to a report by ABC news, and has big plans for the future.

DIGITAL OPPORTUNITY TO RE-BUILD MANUFACTURING

Manufacturing was transforming itself even before the Covid-19 pandemic, adopting digital solutions. But to regain leadership in manufacturing, new thinking is needed that builds on lessons from other sectors, argues Matthew McKnight

The boom in global trade, increasing inflation, and global supply chain disruptions from the Covid-19 pandemic have left Australia’s manufacturing sector in disarray.

The balancing act between rapidly modernising industries and skills shortages have meant many manufacturers are struggling to keep up despite significant efforts.

KONGSBERG GROWS ITS AUSTRALIAN PRESENCE

Norwegian defence contractor Kongsberg Defence Australia has announced a significant investment in a dedicated facility at Mawson Lakes in Adelaide to support the delivery and support of Defence acquisition programmes.

The company is involved in numerous Australian defence programmes, and in April the Commonwealth announced the accelerated acquisition of the Kongsberg Naval Strike Missile to replace the Harpoon missile on both of the Royal Australian Navy’s Anzac Class Frigates and Hobart Class Destroyers under Project SEA 1300.

This project will see this fifth generation precision strike missile enter service with the Navy from 2024.

CH4, SIEMENS SIGN TECH AGREEMENT TO DIGITALISE PRODUCTION OF METHANE-MINIMISING SEAWEED EXTRACT

Livestock feed supplement maker CH4 Global and engineering company Siemens have announced a technology cooperation to support commercialisation of seaweed extract made at a South Australian factory.

The MoU between the two companies, made public on Tuesday, would see CH4 make use of its partner’s “technological skills and capabilities in areas of digitalization and automation” as it scales up production.

CH4 is a Nevada, US-based company with subsidiaries in New Zealand and Australia, using IP on asparagopsis based on years of applied R&D by James Cook University, the CSIRO and Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA.)