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Advancing Manufacturing

Victorian company first to develop nanotubes

A VICTORIAN business will be the first in the world to commercially develop one of the strongest fibres in existence – a product with applications in the aviation, automotive, aerospace, power, electronics and health industries.

BNNT Technology has received a $1.4 million Advanced Manufacturing Growth Fund grant to help produce its Boron Nitride Nanotubes on an industrial scale.

So far the super fibres have only been produced in small laboratory-scale quantities. 

Federal Minister for Industry, Science and Technology Karen Andrews, said BNNT was one of 15 small and medium-sized businesses that will receive grants in the second and final round of the Advanced Manufacturing Growth Fund.

“These grants will help companies transition from traditional, heavy processes to advanced manufacturing of higher value products, creating new opportunities and new jobs,” Ms Andrews said.

“Nearly $19 million is being distributed in Victoria and South Australia to help industries adjust in the two states most affected by the closure of vehicle manufacturing.

“This is expected to result in an additional investment of $45 million from the successful businesses.

“These businesses show the potential of Australian manufacturing: our firms and our workers can make high-tech, high-value products that can compete in a global market,” Ms Andrews said.

“These grants are an example of business and government working together to ensure that our nation is at the cutting edge in the rapidly evolving manufacturing sector.”

Other successful applicants in the second and final funding round include South Australian companies Micro-X and Bickford’s and Victorian company Rutra. 

Micro-X is a manufacturer of novel x-ray products for medical and security applications. The grant to Micro-X is to help develop locally produced components.

Bickford’s is a beverage manufacturer. The company will use the grant to help develop a liquid batching process that will enable faster flows and greater volume flexibility in production.

Rutra’s project will use 3D digital manufacturing in the production of custom-made orthotics in its Footwork Podiatric Laboratory.

Companies which received funding in the first round of grants have already started buying advanced manufacturing equipment and designing and preparing their factories for the changes.

For example, Redarc Australia, a defence supplier in South Australia, is already installing equipment it has purchased.

The Federal Government’s $47.5 million Advanced Manufacturing Growth Fund was established in the 2017-18 Budget as part of a $100 million package to support advanced manufacturing.

www.business.gov.au/amgf-grant-recipients.

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Taipan helicopters maintained in Melbourne

ITALIAN helicopter manufacturer Leonardo has selected Fisherman’s Bend in inner Melbourne as the site for its Australian helicopter repair and overhaul facility.

Defence Minister Christopher Pyne said the facility will be capable of servicing Australia’s Multi-Role Helicopter, Taipan, as well as foreign military and certain civil helicopter main gear boxes.

“The facility will commence operation in mid-2020 and employ at least 15 technical staff for 30 years or more, with 25 or so staff employed indirectly,” Mr Pyne said. 

“Previously we had to send the gear boxes back to Italy for maintenance – now we’ll be able to do that work here, faster and cheaper, while transferring skills and know-how to Australian industry.”

Mr Pyne said the Federal Government was investing about $16 million in the facility, with a similar amount being committed by Leonardo. It is said to be the only facility of its kind in the southern hemisphere, and is expected to generate new opportunities for local defence industries in the regional aerospace market.

“This project is a true win-win situation for both Defence and local defence industry, creating more defence industry jobs in Victoria and leading to greater helicopter availability for operations,” Mr Pyne said.

www.defence.gov.au

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CRC Australia celebrates 50 years of innovation

THE PROBLEM-SOLVING ‘mechanic’s friend’ spray cans of innovator CRC Industries Australia are celebrating a half-century of service to Australian motorists, engineers and manufacturers this year.

CRC Australia’s registered brands also include Kitten, So Easy, RE-PO, Trefolex, Aerostart, Maniseal and the CRC Greenlight food safety program

It is a remarkably special milestone for the Australian division of the global CRC Industries company – manufacturing in Australia since 1969. 

CRC Industries today enjoys the status of being an iconic local manufacturer, supplying speciality products for maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) professionals across a wide array of industries including automotive, industrial, mining, food and beverage, utilities and defence.

While CRC was first established in 1958 in a small Pennsylvania, USA, garage, the company started manufacturing in Australia after being incorporated as a proprietary company of Australia on October 13, 1969. Previously, US-made CRC products made the journey ‘Down Under’ throughout the 1960s thanks to the Balfour Buzzacott Division of Email Limited, a company which which also distributed products of the well-known Dymo Labels brand.

Following the incorporation of CRC Industries Australia, the business model switched to a focus on manufacturing and facilities at North Ryde in Sydney were established. By 1974, the installation of aerosol and bulk filling lines were completed, allowing locally manufactured CRC products to be sold throughout Australia and the rest of the Asia-Pacific region.

The company enjoyed such growth that by 1980, a larger facility was needed and was opened in Castle Hill in Sydney’s north west region.
Progress continued steadily for the company and, in 2004, CRC Industries Australia acquired iconic Australian auto care brand Kitten to join its growing stable of products.

To this day, Kitten sits amongst a full range of CRC products which are produced and packaged in the Castle Hill factory including market-leading products such as CRC’s famous 5.56, Brakleen, Penetr8 and CO Contact Cleaner.

CRC Australia has also established export agreements with more than 15 countries throughout the Asia-Pacific region. 

“What an exciting time this is for all involved in CRC Industries Australia,” CRC Industries Australia managing director, Shona Fitzgerald said.

“Fifty years of manufacturing is a tremendous milestone and one that we are very proud of. From the establishment of a small operation in Sydney in 1969 just 11 years after the global beginnings of the company, CRC Industries Australia has experienced exponential growth to today be a market leader and a key contributor to the global success of CRC Industries.

“Our mission is to satisfy the needs of our customers with the highest quality speciality chemical products while always remaining customer focused. We do this in a forward-thinking and creative manner and with a keen focus on innovation and R&D.  

“We empower our employees and support our communities which has allowed us to prosper where many others have failed,” Ms Fitzgerald said.

“Our growth and longevity here in Australia is a true testament to the efforts, dedication and skill of all involved in CRC Industries Australia and I send my thanks to our employees, our suppliers, our distributors and our partners for the roles they have played in bringing us to where we are today.

“The future certainly looks bright and we can’t wait to see what we can achieve over the next 50 years.”

CRC Industries is a global supplier of chemical specialty products; manufacturing more than 1,300 items and developing specialised formulas to meet the unique needs of its customers. The company operates 26 facilities throughout the world. 

Family-owned investment management company, Berwind, acquired CRC Industries in 1981. With its roots dating to 1886, Berwind has evolved from its beginnings as a coal mining company to a diversified portfolio of highly successful manufacturing and service companies, which are leaders in their respective markets.

www.crcindustries.com.au

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Bell engineers new generation four-in-one distillery

UNIVERSITY of Queensland chemical engineering and business graduate, Alex Bell, may have started a revolution in Australian rum distillation with the creation of a ‘four-in-one’ liquor still. 

Hoping to reinvigorate Australia’s passion for rum, Mr Bell has combined his engineering and business nous to create a new kind of micro distillery capable of producing a range of spirits including rum – superseding traditional stills that are usually limited to a single product.

“The distillery consists of a single still that performs the same function as four dedicated stills and is capable of producing several thousand bottles a year of a variety of marques and spirits,” Mr Bell said. 

“The distillery has been designed with versatility in mind, while minimising its size.

“It’s essentially four-stills-in-one: a dual retort Jamaican rum still for producing heavy rums; a column still for producing light rums; a regular pot still for brandies and traditional rums, and a gin still that will be using to create a range of spiced rums and aperitifs.”

Mr Bell said his system allowed for each product to be designed from scratch and able to be reproduced exactly, no matter the scale.

“This is achieved by directing the flow of vapour via several valves,” he said.

“Each fermenter is temperature controlled, allowing full precision of fermentation temperatures to allow for consistency between batches, but also to encourage the microorganisms to produce the desired compounds at the right time.

“The distillery also has the ability to produce our own ginger beers without affecting production volumes of spirits.

"All the design work and problem solving involved in the distillery was a direct result of the tool set the engineering degree provided me,” Mr Bell said.

The Brisbane-based entrepreneur’s revolutionary idea was nurtured and developed through UQ Idea Hub, a startup pre-incubator for aspiring entrepreneurs.

“The UQ Idea Hub also gave me the opportunity to bounce my ideas around a vast number of experienced people from a range of industries, which helped continually refine my idea,” Mr Bell said.

“In 2017, I participated in the Shanghai Startup Adventure, a UQ Idea Hub program that provides students a one-month internship in Shanghai, and this was one of the greatest experiences I’ve ever had.

“I learnt how hard and fast you have to work in a startup.” 

UQ Idea Hub director, Nimrod Klayman said the UQ Idea Hub innovation and entrepreneurship workshops and Startup Adventures were great opportunities for students, UQ staff and alumni looking to broaden their entrepreneurial mindset and gain a global perspective.

The new micro-distillery is operating at The Malecón Bar in Milton, Brisbane. Mr Bell plans to expand the business in the future.

www.ideahub.uq.edu.au/shanghai-startup-adventure

www.uq.edu.au

 

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Bosch Australia is large Manufacturer of the Year

BOSCH AUSTRALIA has been named Large Business Manufacturer of the Year in the Victorian Manufacturing Hall of Fame Awards, just as the company celebrates 110 years in Australia.

Bosch Australia manufactures about 20 percent of global automotive diodes and supports other Australian manufacturers through its  capabilities in making special purpose machines.

The Victorian Manufacturing Hall of Fame Awards, staged at Crown Palladium in Melbourne in May, were hosted by the Victorian Industry and Employment Ministry and the Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. 

The awards recognise outstanding achievements by local businesses and individuals across manufacturing and innovation in the Victoria region and beyond.

“Congratulations to the Bosch Australia manufacturing team for taking out the award for Manufacturer of the Year,” Bosch Australia president, Gavin Smith said.

“Our team has done a great job over an extended period to ensure our ongoing competitiveness and innovative strength. This award is recognition of that hard work and dedication.”

In 2017, Bosch Australia manufactured about 120 million automotive power diodes, all of which were exported. Bosch has made significant investments in manufacturing for the global automotive sector including A$8.5 million to increase diode production capacity in 2018.

Bosch Australia’s Manufacturing Solutions business, established in 2015, now supplies special purpose machines, manufacturing equipment and services to the Australian manufacturing sector and overseas.

In 2017, Bosch celebrated 110 years of activity in Australia and is investing in future oriented technologies including the Internet of Things, the Factory of the Future, Automated and Connected Mobility and a new initiative, Learn@Bosch, an outreach program to spark enthusiasm for science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) with primary school students. 

Bosch has had a presence in Australia since 1907, opening its first wholly-owned subsidiary, Robert Bosch (Australia) Pty Ltd, in 1954. The company was set up in Stuttgart, Germany, in 1886 by Robert Bosch (1861-1942) as what he called a “workshop for precision mechanics and electrical engineering”.

www.bosch.com

 

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Aussie body armour manufacturer trains sights on export

CRAIG International Ballistics, a leading Australian manufacturer of combat-proven body armour systems – which has supplied more than 100,000 soft armour inserts and hard ballistic plates to Defence and local police forces – is set to step up production to meet new export demands.

Craig International Ballistics has signed a joint venture agreement with the United Kingdom’s Cooneen Protection Limited to manufacture and sell composite ballistic protection to the UK, Europe and Middle East.

The joint venture, Cooneen Craig Limited, is the result of strong collaboration between the two companies. Together, they are already participating in tender opportunities to New Zealand, France, Singapore, Belgium and the UK.  

Defence Industry Minister Christopher Pyne witnessed the signing of the agreement at the recent Eurosatory defence and security international exhibition in Paris.

“This joint venture is a great example of the huge opportunities on offer for Australian businesses in the defence sector, and the strong and growing links that exist between the Australian and United Kingdom defence industries,” Mr Pyne said.

“With companies like Craig International Ballistics leading the charge for export success, the Australian sovereign defence industrial base we need will be more robust, more resilient and better able to meet Australia’s defence capability needs.

“Through the Defence Export Strategy and Australian Defence Export Office we are providing the confidence and support Australian business like Craig International Ballistics need to seize opportunities and pursue export success,” Mr Pyne said.

Mr Pyne said all defence exports would continue to be subject to approval according to Australia’s rigorous export control regulations.

http://www.defence.gov.au/Export/Office/

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Electronics innovation driven through ARC

AUSTRALIAN Research Council (ARC) chief executive officer Sue Thomas believes a new ARC Centre of Excellence will help to boost Australian manufacturing through accessing innovative research into ultra-low energy electronics. 

The ARC Centre of Excellence in Future Low-Energy Electronics Technologies (FLEET), led by professor Michael Fuhrer, was officially launched at Monash University recently. Monash University is receiving $33.4 million over seven years under the ARC Centres of Excellence scheme. 

Professor Thomas said researchers at this Centre of Excellence were collaborating with other researchers and partners around the globe to develop a new generation of ultra-low resistance electronic devices.

“This ARC Centre of Excellence will focus on addressing the global challenge of reducing the energy used in information technology and computation, to develop revolutionary electronics and communications technologies,” Prof. Thomas said.

“More efficient, low-energy electronics technologies and devices are critical to the future of computing and communication, to address the limitations of present technology.

“FLEET will develop novel methods of resistance-free electronic conduction that will meet the growing demand for computation that can operate at ultra-low energy consumption,” she said.

“Working collaboratively with other participating universities and its Australian and international industry partners, the Centre of Excellence will equip the next generation of researchers with the skills and industry experience to lead this field into the future,” Prof. Thomas said.

The Centre of Excellence led by Monash University is working with six other key universities: University of New South Wales; The Australian National University; RMIT University; Swinburne University of Technology; University of Wollongong; and The University of Queensland. It is also partnering with the National University of Singapore; Max Planck Institute for Quantum Optics, Garching, Germany; Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO); California Institute of Technology; University of Maryland; Johannes Gutenberg Universitaet Mainz; Columbia University, New York; University of Colorado, Boulder; Tsinghua University, Beijing; Synchrotron Light Source Australia Pty Ltd; University of Wuerzburg, Germany; University of Texas, Austin; and Joint Quantum Institute.

www.fleet.org.au

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