MTPConnect Manufacturing Voucher Program launched
A program providing a total of $400,000 in vouchers to WA-based medical product SMEs is now accepting applications.
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Iluka Resources plans Australia’s first rare earths refinery
Iluka Resources has won Australian government backing for its proposal to build Australia’s first fully integrated rare earths refinery at its Eneabba monzanite deposit north of Perth. The company told investors that following a meeting with federal ministers in March, it had received a letter which indicated the government would look at ‘options for support’…
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Orbital develops UAV engine for Aerosonde
Perth unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) engine manufacturer Orbital Corporation has delivered an initial prototype of an 150cc engine it is developing for Lycoming Engines for eventual integration into Textron Systems’ Aerosonde system (pictured). Ironically the Aerosonde was originally an Australian development, completing the first trans-Pacific UAV crossing, and the inclusion of an Australian engine would…
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Record uptake of rooftop solar – CSIRO
Australia installed its highest ever number of rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) panels in 2020, according to Clean Energy Regulator data analysed by energy efficiency experts at CSIRO. The analysis shows that in 2020 in Australia more than 362,000 rooftop solar PV installations were issued with small-scale renewable energy scheme certificates (STCs) under the Small-scale Renewable…
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Orica profit down in challenging times
Chemicals and explosives business Orica has revealed a sharp drop in net profit after tax for the six months to 31 March as it faced headwinds from Covid-19, geopolitical issues and foreign exchange movements. The company’s NPAT was 54 per cent down to $77 million for the period according to a statement. CEO Sanjeev Gandhi…
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Steve of Romar Engineering is our first 2021 readers survey prize winner
Today we announce our first winner drawn from readers who have replied to our 2021 @AuManufacturing reader survey (see here). Steve from Romar Engineering wins a beautiful Australian-made A5 journal (pictured) from local designers and manufacturers Corban & Blair. Corban & Blair recently onshored the manufacture of its A5 journals, which are made from leather…
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Celebrating Australian Made – a resurgence in industry-building policy by Phillip Toner
@AuManufacturing continues our editorial series – Celebrating Australian Made – with a look at industry policy. Here Phillip Toner of the University of Sydney examines the legacy of the policies which have created today’s hollowed out industrial structure. During the past four decades the economies of advanced and developing nations have been radically transformed by…
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The federal budget signals that confidence is returning, but it should not be taken as job done
Through our usual good fortune as well as good management, Australia is set to successfully navigate its way out of the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2021-22 Budget signals that confidence is returning for households and businesses with the economy projected to grow 1.25 per cent this financial year, rising to 4.25 per cent over the next.
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Albanese promises support for young entrepreneurs to develop startups
A Labor government would provide support for aspiring young entrepreneurs to spend a business-focused year working with a university or private sector incubator to develop their startup enterprise or idea.
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Manufacturing news briefs – stories you might have missed
Electro Optic Systems sees the cash flow in Defence contractor Electro Optics Systems has reported cash flowing into the company on its biggest-ever contract which experienced delivery interruptions during the Covid-19 pandemic. The company maintained production rates of its order for weapons systems for the Middle East during Covid, which saw its inventory of finished…
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