UNSW projects net $4.6 million in latest Linkage round

Researchers at the University of NSW were awarded nine grants through the most recent Australian Research Council Linkage round, more than any other university, for projects including the manufacture of perovskite photovoltaics, chemical catalysts to decontaminate water, and fabrication of quantum devices. Funded projects were across Engineering, Science and Arts, Design & Architecture faculties, the…

Details

Manufacturing news briefs — stories you might have missed

SEMMA welcomes government payroll tax threshold Industry representative group the South East Melbourne Manufacturers Alliance (SEMMA) has said that it welcomes the Victorian government lifting the tax-free threshold on payroll tax from $900,000 to $1 million, but says raising it further to $5 million will provide further incentive for small to medium businesses to invest…

Details

Best of the week — the five most popular stories among readers, June 23 – June 27, 2025

What were the five biggest stories of the week? Here’s what visitors to @AuManufacturing were reading. 5) DroneShield announces record-breaking order worth $61.6 million Counter-drone business DroneShield has announced three standalone follow-on contracts, worth a total of $61.6, representing “the biggest single order” in its history and topping its entire revenue of $57.5 million for 2024. According to…

Details

DroneShield announces record-breaking order worth $61.6 million

Counter-drone business DroneShield has announced three standalone follow-on contracts, worth a total of $61.6, representing “the biggest single order” in its history and topping its entire revenue of $57.5 million for 2024.  According to a statement from the company on Wednesday, the contracts were from its privately owned in-country European reseller, to be distributed to…

Details

96 per cent of employees face barriers when hiring apprentices or trainees: new survey

The Australian Industry Group’s Centre for Education and Training has released new research on the experiences of the employers of Australian apprentices, showing they believe the system is “becoming increasingly costly and complex” at a time where the nation risks “falling well short of delivering the skilled workforce needed to lift our flagging productivity”. The…

Details

Researchers combine dung and duckweed in search of affordable biofuels

Research supported by an Australia’s Economic Accelerator (AEA) grant aims to convert waste from the dairy industry into renewable biofuels. According to a statement from University of Southern Queensland – which is part of the team behind the work – the project will develop “scalable technology” for turning nutrients from dairy manure “into high-volume biomass…

Details