August 2022

Clean energy conference to tackle renewables, hydrogen

Global companies will gather in South Australia later this year to discuss how industry can transition to clean energy. Future Energy Week will bring about 400 delegates from national and international companies, governments and academia for the event in November. It’s the second year the Tonsley Future Energy Consortium has hosted the event, which is hosted at the Tonsley Innovation Hub in Adelaide, South Australia. On the table for discussion are topics around hydrogen energy, the future of mobility, food, energy and water and the “energy trilemma”, which refers to making energy affordable, sustainable and reliable. The Tonsley Innovation Hub is a 6.1-hectare site in Adelaide’s inner south that houses a wide range of companies wanting to rethink the traditional thinking around manufacturing. The energy consortium formed four years ago and comprises industry, government and education sectors to promote collaboration. The two-day event will involve keynote speeches and some panel and workshop sessions to allow delegates to collaborate. Engineering companies with national and international footprints, such as SAGE Automation and AZZO, will be represented at the forum. Founder and event director Quentin Roberts said Future Energy Week is not just another “talkfest”. Roberts said it was an opportunity for companies big and small to discuss some of the challenges facing the energy sector. Last year, Secretary General of the World Energy Council, Dr Angela Wilkinson, made a keynote address, and Roberts hopes the global forum will again take part. “They can get involved in helping to shape the future as well,” Roberts said. “We need that transition to clean energy to happen sooner rather than later, and this is really like a catalyst for that action to occur. “It’s important to create these spaces to have the dialogue because there might be challenges we need to try and meet, but […]

Namoi Cotton on the upswing post-drought

After three years of drought, including two years of pandemic-induced economic disruption, Namoi Cotton, Australia’s largest cotton processor, is back to ginning up new business, making a compelling case for cloud migration. The company has adopted Oracle’s OCI technology to help ramp up production and meet growing demand. Following drought and pandemic-induced economic disruption, cotton growers have ramped up production, pushing to near capacity Namoi Cotton’s 10 ginning facilities and three warehouses across New South Wales and Queensland. Namoi Cotton is aiming to gin 1.1 million to 1.2 million bales in 2022, 40% above its sustainable average volume. Prices for lint cotton—the raw fibre from the cotton plant after the ginning process removes the seeds and other unwanted material—are at their highest levels in years due to pent-up demand and the continued supply chain challenges stemming from the global pandemic. Namoi Cotton’s business, including its marketing and logistics joint ventures, is on the upswing, with the company reporting positive EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) last year. “We are in a good position at the moment…you don’t often see high prices and high volumes at the same time,” said Neil Johns, Namoi Cotton’s executive general manager of strategy and business development, on the company’s earnings call in late April. ‘Technical debt’ With Namoi Cotton’s business on the rise, so are the demands on its IT systems. Throughout the drought and into the pandemic, however, Namoi Cotton accumulated “technical debt”—systems it hadn’t upgraded in years because finances were tight. Exhibit A was the company’s core applications for managing accounts receivable, accounts payable, and spare-parts inventory. Those on-premises applications, part of the Oracle JD Edwards EnterpriseOne 9.1 suite, were past their end of life and thus were expensive to maintain and no longer eligible for security patches, bug fixes, and […]

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Shift to shared office and distribution centre model increases demand for security

A shift in commercial real estate mentality is increasing the demand for security, to separate previously unconsidered areas, thereby ensuring the protection of all staff, visitors, equipment, and product. With e-commerce continuing to grow, and as more workplaces offer a flexible work from home balance, companies are beginning to combine their offices with their distribution centres, to add convenience and cost-savings to their operations. “These combined workspaces are often closer to employees’ homes, and companies can lease a single building, instead of having to lease two separate ones – it makes good economic and social sense,” says Boon Edam Australia Managing Director, Michael Fisher. “However, with this combination, comes risk. There’s a new need to separate people from product, or customers from a warehouse space. Having the right security in place will be essential to companies seeking smooth and safe operations at these combined facilities,” he said. Boon Edam Australia is a local leader in elegant architectural entrances and integrated security solutions for leading companies, including Fortune 500 companies in 27 countries where its reputation for quality and service is valued highly by architects and security specifiers. It is backed by the family-owned 150-year old Royal Boon Edam group. In addition to having one of the world’s most extensive ranges of revolving doors and security entrances integrated from one source, the other major consideration is appearance, says Fisher. “These combined facilities are often major brands and household names. They are seeking not only reliable and functional security solutions, but technologies that match the elegance and style of their brand,” he says. An elegant and secure solution A solution that seamlessly integrates elegance with security is Boon Edam’s Speedlane Lifeline range of speed gates. The Lifeline range has been a global market leader for years, and offers one of the slimmest […]

Clean H2 Steam for Australia

North America based Jericho Energy Ventures Inc. and Australia’s LINE Hydrogen (Australia) Pty Ltd (LINE Hydrogen) are bringing to Australia leading hydrogen boiler technology, DCC Boiler. Hydrogen Technologies, a wholly owned subsidiary of JEV, has patented a breakthrough method for burning hydrogen and oxygen in a vacuum chamber to create high-temperature water and steam with zero greenhouse gases. With the only by-product being water, the Dynamic Combustion Chamber Boiler (DCC Boiler) harnesses the power of hydrogen for commercial heating, hot water and industrial steam boiler applications. In an Australian first, LINE Hydrogen and JEV will collaborate to bring DCC Boilers to Australia. LINE Hydrogen will also provide JEV and customers with a priority supply of green hydrogen and look to enter into Offtake Agreements for the supply of LINE Hydrogen’s green hydrogen produced at the George Town Green Hydrogen Plant. It is expected that industry partners will be announced in the coming months with the first DCC Boiler expected to be installed and commissioned in Tasmania in 2023 to match LINE Hydrogen’s green hydrogen production. Brian Williamson, CEO of JEV, said “Change starts with the end-user, and our zero-emission DCC Boiler delivers immediate emission reductions that is the catalyst for decarbonisation hubs. “We’re incredibly excited to work with LINE Hydrogen as we continue to transition to a clean energy future. By partnering up with LINE Hydrogen, we can provide end-users with surety of supply to make the transition to clean energy a win-win.” Each DCC Boiler installed removes the CO2 equivalent of 2,500 cars per annum (or about 4,400 tons of CO2 per annum). The parties will build a consortium of end users. LINE Hydrogen will also investigate advanced manufacturing opportunities to manufacture the DCC Boiler in either Tasmania or elsewhere in Australia. LINE Hydrogen’s Managing Director, Gina Bozinovski, said […]

Gold Coast training academy established to support luxury marine industry

The academy at the Gold Coast City Marina and Shipyard (GCCM) will begin turning out an in-demand pipeline of skilled marine trades workers to fill labour shortages across the $80-billion industry, from marine labourers, to trade assistants, trimmers, fabricators, painters, electricians, carpenters, shipwrights and plumbers. GCCM CEO Trenton Gay said the marine sector had grown at an unprecedented rate, offering a massive spread of sophisticated and innovative job opportunities. “The marine industry is fast-paced, multi-layered and ever-evolving so for those seeking out new career paths, the academy is an ideal way to get the right advice and appropriate training,” Gay said. “Australia is being recognised internationally now for the quality of marine trades we offer, so it is important that we enhance the flow of job opportunities and talent within the industry.” Close to 40 superyachts have been brought into Australia in the past year, compared to around 10 superyachts in a “normal” year, with the Gold Coast and Queensland a key gateway to the influx. Among the lavishly appointed arrivals was 68-metre Lady Christine superyacht, worth $82 million, that arrived at the Gold Coast for a multi-million-dollar, six-month facelift. Owned by British billionaire, Lord Irvine Laidlaw who is a former member of the House of Lords and founder of the Institute for International Research, the craft was also used by George Clooney and Julia Roberts for their latest blockbuster, Ticket to Paradise, being filmed on the Gold Coast and around Queensland. The GCCM is part of the 250-hectare Gold Coast Marine Precinct, the largest refit and repair yard in the Southern Hemisphere. More than 90 businesses operate from the precinct, covering all aspects of marine refit, maintenance, and construction for vessels. Local employment and training specialists, DGT Employment and Training, will head the GCCM Marine Trades Academy program to deliver tailored support […]

Confident connections

Central Coast-based 4id Solutions opens the door to the true potential of the connected world – its leading-edge technologies enabling customers to track, trace, and protect important assets. Using intelligent labelling, credentials, wearables, and other digital identity technologies, 4id Solutions offers tracking capability to many sectors including healthcare and med tech; manufacturing, transport, and logistics; banking and finance; controlled substances; and entertainment management. 4id Solutions is a worthy nomination for the Hunter Manufacturing Awards (HMA) in three categories: Excellence in Innovation; Excellence in Manufacturing Capability; and Manufacturer of the Year – fewer than 50 employees. The Hunter Manufacturing Awards represents all businesses actively engaged in the manufacturing sector, including their allies, in the Upper Hunter, Lower Hunter, Central Coast, Lake Macquarie, Newcastle, Port Stephens, and Mid-North Coast regions. HMA has a loyal following thanks to its efforts of inspiring and encouraging vibrant and enduring manufacturing in these regions. A mission to promote best practices in manufacturing motivates the HMA. In highlighting the achievements of the best, it encourages and sustains the aspirations of those who want to join them. 4id Solutions is one such operation. 4id Solutions enables enterprises concerned with the wellbeing of people and the movement of material assets to validate, verify, and capture data with confidence. “It is accurate, secure, and reliable for the visibility you need – when you need it most,” says 4id Solutions Marketing Coordinator Michael Glenn. “Use cases include regulatory compliance, item traceability, supply chain security, product authentication, access control, and consumer engagement.” From industry-compliant labels and tags, radio-frequency identification (RFID) conversion and high-resolution printing, encoding and encryption, 4id Solutions has an answer. Powered by innovation, it offers unparalleled accuracy, and optimal cost effectiveness. High-quality labels and tags have various uses including asset tracking and logistics for highly regulated industries. Wristbands and wearables […]

Clamp nuts safely deliver repeatable force for Austube Mills’ steel slitters

A specialist supplier of steel tube and pipe, Austube Mills, part of the InfraBuild Group, is benefitting from a low-maintenance, time-saving, and safe hydraulic clamping solution for its steel slitters at its Acacia Ridge plant in Queensland. Austube Mills Acacia Ridge, which has been manufacturing and producing steel solutions since 1984, installed Technofast EziTite clamp nuts, which provide reliable and precisely repeatable force, on its steel slitters to allow the rotating slitter blades to cut through kilometres of black steel. Once the steel is cut to width, it is shaped into rectangular, square or round tubes on tube rolling mills, which are subsequently used in a huge range of applications in industries such as construction, manufacturing, mining, transport, and agriculture. “The Technofast solution is not just more reliable – it’s safer, too,” says Austube Mills Manufacturing Superintendent, Michael Thomasson, who has been working with the company for more than 30 years, starting as a fitter, and holding roles such as maintenance planner, maintenance superintendent and manufacturing superintendent. He has a Mechanical Engineering Diploma and Graduate Diploma in Maintenance Management. “I remember the old days when workers would use a C spanner and whack the nut with as much force as possible, which came with a much higher risk of hand injuries. Plus, it wasn’t easy to get the same clamp load each time when using manual force,” says Mr Thomasson. EziTite Hydraulic Nuts and Bolts are rapidly applied by being installed on bolt studs then hydraulically actuated, stretching the bolt to the precise tension required and then locking it in place mechanically with a locking device. The reverse procedure permits equally rapid disassembly when it is eventually required for maintenance. The globally available technology – which is proven in more than 30 years’ service in slitter applications – also curbs […]