Best of the week — the five most popular stories among readers, November 25 – November 29, 2024

What were the five biggest stories of the week? Here’s what visitors to @AuManufacturing were reading.

5) Monash betadine battery breakthrough begets new company

Engineering researchers from Monash University have formed a new lithium sulphur (Li-S) battery startup, armed with chemistry inspired by an over-the-counter antiseptic and initially targeting drone applications.

According to a statement from the university on Tuesday, the team behind Ghove Energy has “overcome one of the last remaining barriers to commercialisation” for the battery type. Li-S batteries have better energy density, are cheaper, and are environmentally gentler than the more mature lithium ion chemistry, but suffer slower charging speeds.

Ghove predicts that the breakthrough – the subject of a new paper in Advanced Materials – could be demonstrated in drones within a year.

4) Government talks up energy, pre-fabrication with investors

The Treasurer Jim Chalmers and the Minister for Industry and Science Ed Husic have announced the establishment of an Investor Council to help unlock more private sector capital in key areas like housing and cleaner and cheaper energy.

An outcome of an Investor Roundtable on Friday, the council support better coordination of investment in national priorities under the government’s Front Door for investment, which will be up and running by September 2025.

According to a statement by the Ministers: “It will enable better information sharing, coordination and identification of barriers to investment by regularly convening key government agencies and investment vehicles.”

3) Future Made in Australia tax breaks introduced

The federal government has scheduled to introduce the Future Made in Australia (Production Tax Credit and Other Measures) Bill 2024 to Parliament today, with its focus the global net zero transformation.

The legislation implements the government’s production tax incentives for renewable hydrogen and critical minerals, and also expand the role of Indigenous Business Australia.

The legislation establishes two tax incentives that apply for up to 10 years per project.

2) Government shortlists frigate builders – but will they build locally?

The federal government has down-selected two shipbuilders, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems, to progress designs for Australia’s future general purpose frigates under the SEA 3000 programme.

In May, Defence released an approach to market to five shipbuilders, with Defence now planning to work with the two industry partners to further develop the proposals for the Mogami (pictured) and MEKO A-200 frigates.

Up to eleven general purpose frigates will replace the Anzac Class frigates and will be equipped for undersea warfare and local air defence in order to secure maritime trade routes and Australia’s northern approaches.

1) Holden pivot wins for Walkinshaw

The one-time crown jewel of the Holden world has been transformed into the future of car-making in Australia.

Walkinshaw Automotive is now a ‘remanufacturing’ powerhouse with direct links to six major carmakers – and more on the way.

Its core business is right-hand drive conversions of full-sized pick-up trucks from the USA, but it also does enhancement work for a number of smaller one-tonne utes. Paul Gover speaks to CEO Ryan Walkinshaw.

And in case you missed our podcast…

Episode 105 of @AuManufacturing Conversations is part of our annual Australia’s 50 Most Innovative Manufacturers campaign. In it, we are joined by Optera Solutions founder/CEO Jonathon Wolfe and by Don Wright, Executive Director, Enterprise at Western Sydney University. Wolfe tells us about the benefits of neuromorphic engineering and where they might be commercially useful, why the way dragonflies catch mosquitoes is so impressive, and why it’s his duty to wash bottles as a founder/CEO.