Due to an unexpected number of high-quality contributions, @AuManufacturing’s Australia’s place in the semiconductor world editorial series has been extended again. Here Mike Nicholls writes that Australia has the opportunity to build a thriving semiconductor industry without investing $20 billion to build a fab. But we do need to get started. It’s hard to imagine,…
Agribusiness GrainCorp is co-leading a $12 million investment round into rural connectivity business Zetifi, to help plug the gap in digital connectivity for farmers in rural Australia. Zetifi is a Wagga Wagga-based company that seeks to eliminate coverage gaps by extending the use of existing Wi-Fi networks, utilising its hardware and software systems. The investment…
CSL opens its latest Victorian factory Biotechnology giant CSL has just formally opened its latest investment in Victorian pharmaceutical manufacture. The company’s $900 million Plasma Fractionation Facility (pictured) is the largest of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere. Talent acquisition partner at CSL Sam Edwards said: “This represents a nine fold increase in our production…
UNSW opens new hydrogen centre UNSW opened its new ARC Training Centre for The Global Hydrogen Economy earlier this week. The Australian Research Council awarded $4.9 million to “GlobH2E” in 2020, said the university, “to engage Australia’s best researchers to develop hydrogen technologies and innovations to aid the world’s transition to renewable energies”, with $3.5…
Xefco is moving to the pilot manufacturing stage for a new waterless dyeing and finishing process, which it says could cut energy and water use by 86 per cent and 88 per cent respectively versus conventional wet processes. The company’s Ausora solution is described as using a “plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition” method to apply dyes…
Matrix raises cash for expansion Perth’s Matrix Composites and Engineering has secured funding via a $7.5 million convertible note to fund major new contracts as it continues its emergence from a Covid pandemic low in business. The company, which manufactures buoyancy systems for underwater oil and gas infrastructure, has secured $30 million in orders since…
EMVision cashed up from three government and non-government grants Medical imaging company EMVision Medical Devices expects to receive $8.8 million in funding from three grant programmes in the current quarter. The company received in November $1.2 million in milestone payments from the Australian Stroke Alliance which is funding its development of a system utilising microwaves…
As our Australia’s place in the semiconductor world editorial series draws to a close, Steven Duvall and Glenn Downey provide the final part of their four-part feature. Here they propose steps to help build the semiconductor industry in Australia 1) Introduction This article concludes our four-part feature on semiconductors, continuing the themes from the three…
Xtek awarded $27 million defence contract for drones Xtek has received a $26.9 million purchase order from the Australian Department of Defence for new small unmanned aerial systems (SUAS), it announced on Thursday. The purchase took the value of orders in hand for its technology division to $35 million, with $47 million in revenue already…
Today in Australia’s place in the semiconductor world, Andrew McLellan illustrates a case where local innovation requires overseas fabrication, and why the situation is unlikely to change. While improvements in technology and knowledge have driven significant advances in life sciences and healthcare industries in recent decades, methods for identifying and tracking important biological samples stored…