Celebrating Australian sovereign capability – Procurement, Fuel and the NRF by Shane West

@AuManufacturing’s editorial series, Celebrating Australian sovereign capability, continues today with the vexed issue of our dependency on imported oil. Here, in part one of a two-part feature, Shane West looks at procurement policies, fuels and the National Reconstruction Fund. Having initiated and developed the Strategic Procurement MBA at the University of Canberra in conjunction with…

Australia’s electric vehicle numbers doubled last year. What’s the impact of charging them on a power grid under strain?

By Thara Philip, The University of Queensland; Andrea La Nauze, The University of Queensland, and Kai Li Lim, The University of Queensland The number of electric vehicles (EVs) in Australia doubled in 2022 and Tesla’s Model 3 emerged as the best-selling mid-size car, the first time an EV has held this title. Despite these headlines,…

Celebrating Australian sovereign capability – our hidden electronics industry by Ronald Grill

Our series – Celebrating Australian sovereign capability – has touched on the needs of the industries of tomorrow. Today Dr Ronald Grill warns us not to overlook enabling industry sectors such as electronics in our pursuit of glamour industries such as space. Here, he looks at the issue through the prism of Adelaide’s electronics sector.…

Celebrating Australian sovereign capability – 2023 is the year for liftoff

To begin the second week of @AuManufacturing’s Celebrating Australian sovereign capability series, Brent Balinski speaks to Adam Gilmour from Gilmour Space Technologies about the company’s planned orbital launch. If things go to plan, this year Gilmour Space Technologies will become the first Australian company to build a rocket and put it into orbit. The company,…

Celebrating Australian sovereign capability – the Covid woes and revival of Electro Optic Systems

Today in our Celebrating Australian sovereign capability editorial series we look defence, communications and space manufacturer Electro Optic Systems, one of a handful along with shipbuilder Austal of genuine Australian defence prime contractors. Here Peter Roberts interviews Matthew Jones, Executive Vice President of EOS Defence Systems. Australia has a lot riding on the success of…

Celebrating Australian sovereign capability – Nova Systems’ Jim McDowell puts the case for the defence

Our editorial series – Celebrating Australian sovereign capability – has focused on developing the wider manufacturing sector. However, in no sector is the need more important, nor more urgent, than in national defence and security argues Jim McDowell in this contribution from our sponsor. Is Australia ready for war? The question may be regarded by…

Australia hasn’t figured out low-level nuclear waste storage yet – let alone high-level waste from submarines

By Ian Lowe, Griffith University Within ten years, Australia could be in possession of three American-made Virginia-class nuclear submarines under the AUKUS agreement with the United States and United Kingdom. The following decade, we plan to build five next-generation nuclear submarines. To date, criticism of the deal has largely focused on whether our unstable geopolitical…

Celebrating Australian sovereign capability — the local leader in the advanced air mobility race

Today in our Celebrating Australian sovereign capability editorial series we look at advanced air mobility manufacturer AMSL Aero, which recently achieved its maiden flight. Brent Balinski speaks to co-founder and CEO Andrew Moore about their progress so far, the potential of electric aviation, and the importance of companies making final products in Australia. There are…

Celebrating Australian sovereign capability – our emerging mRNA vaccine ecosystem

The Covid-19 pandemic revealed Australia’s broken medicines value chains which are mostly wholly reliant on importation, especially for the newest mRNA vaccines. Today our series – Celebrating Australian sovereign capability – looks at the emerging vaccine ecosystem around the Monash-Clayton area of Melbourne. By Peter Roberts. It has long been a great Australian dream to…

Celebrating Australian sovereign capability – our burgeoning additive manufacturing sector

Our series – Celebrating Australian sovereign capability – turns to this contribution from our sponsor, Titomic. Dominic Parsonson looks at the possibility of adding value to raw materials through new manufacturing technology invented in Australia. Australia is home to a large reserve of titanium mineral sands, which can be found in various locations across the…