Comment by Peter Roberts It has been a long time coming, far too long, but a federal government has finally taken action on the high price and lack of supply of gas in the eastern states. The tripling of prices was brought about by Canberra in the first place when the former Labour government approved…
There has been a series of successful IPOs for high-tech Australian manufacturing companies in recent months, including Carbon Revolution, K-Tig and Amaero Engineering. 3D printing bureau AML3D hopes to add to this, with a place on the ASX planned for March. Founder and managing director Andy Sales agrees that investors are keen on sophisticated manufacturers…
Two new instruments to be built for Australian radio astronomy facilities have the potential to create new spin-off industrial opportunities. Australian Research Council Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities (LIEF) grants have been awarded to develop a new receiver for the Parkes radio telescope, and a new digital signal processor for the Australia Telescope Compact Array…
By Andrew Blakers, Professor of Engineering, Australian National University In the 1980s, a global race was underway: to find a more efficient way of converting energy from the sun into electricity. Some 30 years ago, our research team at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) came up with a breakthrough, called the PERC silicon…
The future of yet another Australasian aluminium smelter is coming under threat because of unsustainable energy prices, according to media reports. The owners of Australia’s largest aluminium smelter at Tomago in NSW have warned the NSW government that rising energy prices could have a significant impact their operations. Tomago Aluminium Company, a jont venture of…
Glaciem Cooling Technologies is to demonstrate its refrigeration, thermal energy storage and heat transfer technologies which are designed to integrate with solar PV electricity generation. The Adelaide company has received $2 million in funding from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) as part of a $4.9 million trial at three locations. The company will install…
Naval Group has signed nine different Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with Australian SMEs to manufacture its Canto anti-torpedo decoy system. Already in service with the French navy, Canto is being proposed as a torpedo-defence system for the Royal Australian Navy. Canto decoys generate high-level acoustic signals covering the full frequency range of an attacking torpedo,…
By Glenn S. Daehn, Fontana Professor of Materials Science and Engineering, The Ohio State University Although it may not be obvious, there’s a close link between manufacturing technology and innovation. Elon Musk often talks of the “machines that build the machines” as being the real enabler in both his space and automotive businesses. Using less-expensive,…
Construction has begun on a pioneering hydrogen production facility in Adelaide, which will play a major role in South Australia’s bid to become a global leader in certified green hydrogen.
Analysis by Peter Roberts One of the most innovative renewables projects planned anywhere globally has got a second lease of life with energy storage company 1414 Degrees (ASX: 14D) purchasing Solar Reserve Australia for a nominal price. For $2 million 1414 Degrees will take control of the company’s Aurora Solar Energy Project at Port Augusta…
