July 2019

A Perth based electrical contracting firm has enjoyed a spectacular increase in sales and productivity, thanks to a simple shift in business strategy. A deliberate shift to local manufacturing has provided Avid EPG Group with new opportunities in the energy sector and helped increase its workforce. The company’s strategy means it can provide products to the local market as much as 10 weeks faster than if customers ordered products from Asian markets. Instead of looking to overseas suppliers, the company has concentrated on assembling more products in Western Australia. The flow on effect for Avid is that it has kept business in the local economy, as well as created jobs for local workers. The companies Forrestfield workshop, near Perth Airport, has become a hive of activity. Staff numbers have jumped by around 15 per cent because of the opportunities the business strategy has provided. Business Development Manager Aaron Teo said the jobs and productivity boost was part of the company’s deliberate shift in thinking globally and acting locally. “Avid EPG Group is very much part of the global economy and has partnerships with some of the world’s leading electrical manufacturing companies,” Mr Teo said. “But as a business based in Perth, we also have a responsibility to the local Western Australian economy. “Where possible, we design, engineer and assemble our own high and low voltage equipment rather than simply buying finished products directly from overseas. “We are certified to provide one of the world’s safest and reliable modular switchboards system, which is customised to our local Australian standards right here in our Perth workshop. “It’s meant we have had to expand our operations and take on more staff, including electricians, specialist engineers, project managers and apprentices. It’s an exciting time to be in our industry.” By keeping manufacturing local Avid’s […]

Far from a future fantasy, University of South Australia Professor of Sociology, Anthony Elliott says the Artificial Intelligence revolution is right here, right now. Co-author of a report – The effective and ethical development of artificial intelligence – commissioned by the National Science and Technology Council and Australia’s Chief Scientist and released in Canberra today, Prof Elliott says Australian governments and industries need to integrate an understanding of the impacts of AI into their planning swiftly.  “We are already witnessing the spread of advanced AI which is mobile, situationally aware and adaptive and is in real-time communication with other intelligent machines,” Prof Elliott says.   “Robots move boxes in factories as well as conduct shelf-auditing in supermarkets, and complex algorithms complete tax returns and trade on financial markets – this is all happening now.  “We have to be much more interventionist, and craft policy-thinking to cope with the unexpected, unanticipated shifts stemming from the digital revolution.”  The report, undertaken by the Australian Council of Learned Academies and supported by the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, the Australian Research Council, and the Department of Industry, Innovation and Science – sets out a far-reaching series of findings seeking to improve Australia’s economic, societal and environmental well-being.   Author of a major new book The Culture of AI, Professor Elliott, says theACOLA report will be highly significant for the governance and harnessing of AI for 21st-Century Australia.   “Australia has come to this review quite late – most advanced countries have already completed government-sponsored reviews of AI,” Prof Elliott says.   “In the UK, the House of Lords Select Committee on AI really set the bench-mark for the kind of policy-rich analysis that governments require.”   He says now that the ACOLA report has been delivered it is an important start for public discussion […]

A world-first in commercial viability and agility, and a new capability for the Australian Government, the product enables army personnel to successfully engage practice targets using remote SMArt155 Precision Guided Munitions. The new REDARC Thermal Signature Enhancement Kit (RTSEK) ensures weapon sensors can distinguish target vehicles as being operational without the need for complex or hazardous infrastructure. The solution also minimises risk to the environment and those using the equipment. It is the result of a collaboration between two Adelaide companies – REDARCand Form Cut – and New South Wales-based Intelli Particle. The partnership last week won the Teaming Award at the 2019 Defence Teaming Centre Awards. Establishing realistic thermal vehicle signatures to guide the SMArt155 to its practice target would have typically required a generous time frame to both acquire and set-up an expensive system of high-voltage heat mats and large generators. But the RTSEK delivers an innovative solution without all the complex infrastructure and additional costs. South Australian automotive electronics company REDARC has established itself as a key SME in the Australian Defence sector over the past five years. REDARC identified a potential solution and partnered with New South Wales start-up Intelli Particle, which manufactures carbon and graphite formulations that produce heat under electrical charge. Through local in-house testing, the combined REDARC and Intelli Particle team discovered that a new controlled thermal signature identifiable to weapon sensors could be created. REDARC approached manufacturer Form Cut with the solution, having previously collaborated with them commercially. REDARC Managing Director Anthony Kittel said the Lonsdale company was well positioned to support unique Defence requirements now and into the future. “The award is a great acknowledgment of what can be achieved when successfully combining the technologies of multiple SMEs,” he said. South Australian industrial design and manufacturing company Form Cut has scheduled more production of the controlled thermal […]