New funding boost for space traffic radar project
Silentium Defence has secured a $3.2m contract from the Australian Department of Defence to advance, deploy and demonstrate its passive radar system for monitoring traffic in space.
Lion to close Adelaide’s iconic Westend Brewery
Brewer Lion has announced that it will close the Westend Brewery in Adelaide in June next year and supply the once-iconic beer from its interstate operations. The brand has a 160 year history but sales have been fading in recent years. However the decision by Lion, part of Japan’s Kirin, to close the Port Road…
Tomago to get lithium ion battery factory
Energy Renaissance has announced that construction will begin at Tomago, NSW at a site it hopes will reach “gigafactory” volumes within the decade. Renew Economy and others report that Energy Renaissance has announced a $28 million factory at the site of the Tomago smelter. Construction is scheduled to begin within weeks, and the company plans…
Shoalhaven selected as site for ‘copter manufacturing
Three SMEs and aerospace and defence company Raytheon Australia will manufacture a rotary wing unmanned aerial system in the Shoalhaven should the group will an army contract. With ten SMEs involved in the overall bid to provide the UAS, based on Schiebel Pacific Limited’s CAMCOPTER S-100 UAS (pictured), three will be involved in manufacturing and…
De.mem wins seawater desalination contract
Water and wastewater treatment company De.mem has won a $2.6 million contract to provide a seawater desalination plant for innovative fruit and vegetable grower Sundrop Farms. The plant, which will utilise ultrafiltration and reverse osmosis membranes, will be manufactured at De.mem’s Brisbane plant. Sundrop, a world leader in the use of solar concentrator electricity generation…
Western Australia commits to local train manufacture
The Western Australian budget includes a record $5.7 billion investment in Perth’s METRONET rail services, including the first tranche of funding for local pasasenger train construction. The budget includes spending of $1.7 billion on rail projects in 2020-21 for the the Forrestfield-Airport Link and the Thornlie-Cockburn link now under construction. Three other rail line extensions…
Efficiency drive saps Orica profit
Explosives manufacturer Orica has outlined the short-term costs of an efficiency drive and investment programme which has been underway for several years. The Melbourne company has delayed its reporting of full year results by two weeks and told investors that underlying earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) would be ‘slightly above $600 million.’ Chief executive…
USQ composites research recognised with top Australian ranking
The University of Southern Queensland has topped a national ranking of institutes for composites research.
$28 million for defence innovation goes to nine new contracts
The Defence Innovation Hub has announced its latest round of grants to industry worth $28 million, with grant funds going to nine new contracts and two existing projects. Two of the recipients, BlueZone Group and QinetiQ, were awarded contracts to further develop promising technologies that have previously received grant funding support. BlueZone Group won a…
Sage Automation proves bag-drop units at Singapore’s Changi airport
Following success of bag-drop units and screens at Singapore’s Changi Airport, Adelaide’s Sage Automation has seen success penetrating other global aviation markets. The company was approached by ICM Airport Technics, an Amadeus company, to identify improvements to the self-service bag drop solutions in provides for airports and airlines all over the world. The units are…