Politicians state and federal have been revelling in photo opportunities with that innovative coterie of manufacturers who have risen to the challenge of making personal protective gear (PPE) and medical ventilators that were formally imported. The latest was SA Premier Steven Marshall who visited the Detmold facility in Adelaide with Stephen Wade MLC (pictured), a…
Analysis by Peter Roberts One of the features of new methods of production that are emerging as part of the industry 4.0 revolution is the fact that Australian industrial machine manufacturers are coming to the fore. @AuManufacturing has reported on the several companies that are making innovative 3D printing industrial machines locally from SPEE3D to…
Comment by Peter Roberts On a day when the federal government announced some bad news for university students the Prime Minister, Scott Morrison called a press conference to denounce cyber attacks on Australia. Manufacturers have been hit in recently weeks by crippling attacks that cut production. First BlueScope Steel was forced to shut down some…
The Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman Kate Carnell says small businesses will play a critical role in the post COVID economic recovery, calling on the federal government to establish a small business procurement panel. The panel, proposed in ASBFEO’s COVID-19 Recovery Plan, would require Government contracts with a value of up to $10…
In recent weeks, we have reported on manufacturers applying their expertise to developing Covid-19 tests. Brent Balinski spoke to Samantha Ollerton of GreyScan, which is building a trace detection device for surfaces, where the virus can linger for days. March was a month where everything changed. Whatever your business, it was time to rethink…
The success of @AuManufacturing’s new deal plan for manufacturing crowd sourced from readers raised hopes that the lessons of the Covid-19 pandemic really could lead to a permanent change in the fortunes of the sector. The new deal plan has since gone to the manufacturing task force of the National Covid-19 Coordination Commission and key…
Comment by Peter Roberts Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has extended companies abilities to instantly write off newly purchased assets worth up to $150,000 in an attempt to boost cash flows as the economy recovers from the Covid-19 pandemic. The instant write off applies to businesses turning over up to $500 million a year and will remain…
Have you seriously considered the implications of the apparent recognition that remote working can, and will, be a greater part of the employment mix in a post corona world? There is a loud noise that ‘everything will change’ reverberating, an echo chamber of that view amplified by digital tools. It seems to me that human…
Zip Industries is preparing to begin manufacture of Covid-19 point-of-care tests at a site in Collingwood. Brent Balinski spoke to company founder William Hopper about creating domestic capacity for diagnostic tech for this and emerging infectious diseases.
There is no doubt that COVID-19 has plunged our country, and the world, into economic chaos. The impact of the virus has truly challenged the old order and we are being forced to decide what we want the future of Australian manufacturing to look like.
As the fourth largest industry in Australia, manufacturing is critical to rebuilding the health of our economy.
Industry Minister Karen Andrews has recently stated that although COVID-19 highlighted a number of serious sovereign capability gaps, total domestic self-sufficiency shouldn’t be the goal for our future. I agree and believe instead we must mature those niche opportunities that draw on Australia’s own resources and R&D strengths and focus on the manufacturing and broader industrial races we can win, both locally and globally.
