Manufacturing news briefs - stories you might have missed

The Australian Council of Recycling (ACOR) has released a new report that it says “demonstrates the immense economic value of the recycling sector.” The Economic Contribution of the Australian Recycling Industry, authored by Australian Economic Advocacy Solutions, estimates that over the past year, the recycling sector contributed almost $19 billion in economic value and 94,000 jobs in Australia. “The Australian recycling industry contributes billions of dollars in economic value, while delivering environmental benefits such as resource efficiency and diversion of material from landfill. One job is supported for every 430 tonnes of material recycled in Australia,” said ACOR’s CEO, Suzanne Toumbourou. The report can be accessed here.

QLD companies awarded Defence and Aerospace Industry Development Fund grants

Twenty-four Queensland businesses have been awarded funding through round three of the state government’s $1.5 million Defence and Aerospace Industry Development Fund (DAIDF). The DAIDF is designed to SMEs obtain internationally-recognised certification, to help them compete more strongly in Australian and global space supply chains. Grants included $30,000 to Chinchilla’s MFE, which provides manufacturing, maintenance, project and refrigeration services; $30,000 to Toowoomba’s JRS Manufacturing Group, which supplies pipe and structural steel fabrication and welding services; and $7,150 to Shine Precision Industries, an engineering and manufacturing business, complete with state-of-the-art manufacturing and automated quality inspection equipment.

The Western Australian government is attending the international ThaiFex Anuga 2023 trade show this week with a collection of the state’s food and beverage businesses. ThaiFex Anuga is Asia’s largest food and beverage trade show, with more than 60,000 attendees and 2,700 exhibitors expected at this year’s event. The Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development has taken a delegation of 12 WA businesses to the Bangkok event, running from 23 to 27 May, and cites Thailand as a promising export market with a rising disposable income and a large visitor market. The value of WA agrifood exports to Thailand was approximately $114 million in 2020-2021. “Thailand is an emerging market with increasing consumer demand for premium seafood, meat, dairy, strawberries, and value-added products,” said food minister Jackie Jarvis.

NOIA, Engineers Australia form partnership

The NIOA Group and Engineers Australia have announced a new partnership, which they says reinforces a “commitment to develop a pipeline of weapons and munitions professionals ‘mission ready’ to support sovereign capability.” NIOA Australia General Manager – Engineering Rudi Bekker said the company’s newly minted Engineering Workforce Credentialing (EWC) partnership with EA will create a pathway to membership and follow-on chartership including fellow and executive membership for eligible engineers. “NIOA’s EWC partnership with Engineers Australia reinforces our commitment to develop a sustainable and growing workforce to answer to the government’s call for acceleration in areas of strategic capabilities,” said Bekker “It will provide both membership and Chartered recognition for Professional engineers, Technologists and Associates across the NIOA Group of companies.”

Nicci Rossouw, CEO and founder of service robots company Exaptec, has been named the new CEO of Robotics Australia Group, a not-for-profit group established in 2020 to support, promote, grow and advocate for the robotics industry in Australia. In a statement on Linkedin this week, the group said Rossouw has been “noted as one of six women who ‘rock’ robotics in Australia, [and] is a passionate educator of how robots can augment your life for the better. Exaptec was one of Westpac’s 2018 top 200 Businesses of Tomorrow winners, Nicci was noted as ’30 women you need to know about in robotics’ in 2020 and is the Co-host of Women in Robotics Group Melbourne Chapter.” Rossouw also hosts the podcast Let’s talk robotics, on which @AuManufacturing editor Brent Balinski was a recent guest.

The global CEO of defence giant BAE Systems, Dr Charles Woodburn, toured the company’s Osborne naval shipyard in Adelaide last week to meet with the company’s people and ‘steel a glance’ at progress on the Hunter Class Frigate Program. The company is building nine Hunter anti-submarine warfare frigates at Osborne. The company demonstrated its advanced manufacturing technologies producing steel brackets that will be used in Hunter’s first schedule protection block. This block will be capable of being used in the first ship, the future HMAS Hunter.

Australian high speed ferry manufacturer Incat Tasmania has handed over its latest building project, the 76 metre high speed passenger catamaran El Dorado Express which is now on her delivery voyage to new owner Daezer Ferry of South Korea. The bespoke new ferry, Incat Hull 099, is predominately a passenger craft with ramp and cargo space forward. She will operate for Daezer Ferry on the crossing between Pohang and Ulleung, an island 117 nautical miles off the eastern coast of South Korea supporting the needs of local residents and providing a service for tourists to the Islands. Incat Tasmania Chairman Robert Clifford said Incat had delivered its first vessel to the region in 1995, the Sunflower. Clifford said: “The Sunflower served Ulleung island for 25 years and was only recently retired by Daezer in compliance with Korean ship age limits.”

Medical device manufacturer OncoSil Medical has announced the first patient has been treated in Italy with its solution for the treatment of locally advanced pancreatic cancer. OncoSil is a targeted radioisotope (Phosphorous-32) which is implanted directly into a patient’s pancreatic tumour via an endoscopic ultrasound. Treatment with OncoSil delivers more concentrated and localised beta radiation compared to external beam radiation. The patient was treated at the SanCamillo-Forlanini Hospital. OncoSil has approval to be marketed in the EU and the United Kingdom. OncoSil CEO Nigel Lange said: “It is a significant achievement to treat our first treatment in Italy and we look forward to providing hope to patients in this country with a poor prognosis from cancer of the pancreas.”

Biotechnology company Avecho has signed a licensing and development agreement with Arthur Group LLC to develop cancer drugs utilising the company’s TPM (Tocopherol Phosphate Mixture) drug delivery system. TPM is a form of Vitamin E. The TPM technology improves the solubility and oral, dermal and transdermal absorption of drugs. Arthur Group will fund the development of five oncology products utilising TPM delivery. Avecho will receive 40 percent of any revenue from licensing and 30 percent of the net profit from commercialisation of these products. Completion of product formulation is expected to tale 12-18 months.