Drone services company Swoop Aero has expanded its African operations with the delivery of vaccinations and medical supplies to distant locations in central Africa’s Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The company’s drones replaced small aircraft in its efforts to extend access to healthcare to the remote and largely inaccessible places. Authorities in the Équateur region…
By Denham Sadler The federal government has spent a further $30 million buying imported rapid antigen tests for the aged care sector, as several Australian companies continue to wait to get local manufacturing off the ground. The Commonwealth has now spent more than $90 million this year on purchasing rapid antigen tests (RATs) manufactured overseas. These…
A UNSW Canberra military ethicist examines the arguments for and against the adoption of so-called “killer robots” in a new book. Associate Professor Deane-Peter Baker said that his time on the International Panel on the Regulation of Autonomous Weapons (IPRAW) from 2017-19 and further policy work have informed Should we Ban Killer Robots?, released on…
By Joseph Brookes The productivity gap between the most innovative companies in the world and Australian firms is growing, according to new analysis by economists at the federal Treasury, who found local companies are now slower to catch up to the “global frontier” than they were in the mid-2000s. The findings from a technical paper…
The revelation by @AuManufacturing news that the majority of the steel components for the Snowy 2.0 scheme will be built using imported steel shows that the federal government has no commitment to growing the Australian manufacturing industry, according to the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union NSW & ACT branch. The AMWU has long called for local…
The Deakin University’s Waurn Ponds campus-based startup hub, Manufutures, launched a new program for regional startups and entrepreneurs this week.
First Graphene has secured a UK patent protecting its process to coat silicon with graphene, which it believes will be an advantage in the fast-growing market for silicon battery anodes.
There are fresh calls for more strategic government procurement policies after a manufacturing inquiry heard the current rules and international trade deals are undermining the Australian industry.
By Peter Roberts The $45 billion Hunter Class frigate programme has reached a milestone in its development with the completion of a year-long System Definition Review (SDR) which studied how the special requirements of Australia’s defence department can be fitted into the ship’s baseline design. This review is crucial as the inclusion of the Aegis…
Australian companies will be able to bid for work on the European Southern Observatory (ESO) Technology Development Program, the federal government has said.