June 2024

Advanced, energy efficient computing cluster speeds up science

Australia’s national science agency, CSIRO, has worked with Dell Technologies to build a high-performance computer (HPC) system which will speed up scientific discoveries and help grow Australia’s industry and economy. Named Virga, the HPC system is built on state-of-the-art Dell PowerEdge XE9640 servers and is the first deployment of its kind in Australia, designed to optimise artificial intelligence (AI) workflows while also being power-efficient using direct liquid cooling. Professor Elanor Huntington, CSIRO’s Digital, National Facilities and Collections Executive Director, said Virga will provide the critical computing infrastructure needed for machine learning and AI to grow Australia’s industry and economy. “CSIRO is proud to be a steward of some of Australia’s most important pieces of research infrastructure,” Professor Huntington said. “AI is used in practically all fields of research at CSIRO, such as developing world-leading flexible printed solar panels, predicting fires, measuring wheat crops and developing vaccines, just to name a few. “High-performance computing systems like Virga also play an important role in CSIRO’s robotics and sensing work and are crucial to the recently launched National Robotics Strategy to drive competitiveness, and productivity of Australian industry.” The HPC cluster, which is housed at CDC’s Hume Data Centre in Canberra, is named Virga after the meteorological effect of rain that evaporates before it reaches the ground and was named in recognition of CSIRO’s decades of research into cloud and rain physics. CSIRO’s new, powerful and energy-efficient high-performance computer (HPC) Virga (below)is speeding up science, working alongside THE other HPC Petrichor. Dr Jason Dowling from CSIRO’s Australian e-Health Research Centre said the increase in medical imaging data coupled with the growing complexity of diagnostic techniques has led to an urgent need for advanced computational power and data processing for medical image analysis. “The new HPC facilities will allow researchers in our Australian e-Health […]

DroneShield Pyrmont Global Headquarters AUS MN

DroneShield triples sovereign defence R&D and manufacturing capacity to $400m with new global headquarters

Following DroneShield’s recent $115m capital raise, the new site in Pyrmont, NSW, cements and scales DroneShield’s fully sovereign R&D and manufacturing capabilities DroneShield (ASX:DRO) has opened its new headquarters, tripling its research and development (R&D) and manufacturing capacity to more than AU$400 million in hardware and software per year as the company works to convert a sales pipeline of over $500 million. The new site is located in Pyrmont, NSW, where the company’s 120 local staff are based. The facility includes a dedicated floor for high-tech R&D, engineering and manufacturing to fulfil orders from government, defence and commercial customers in 70 countries. Funded by DroneShield’s recent $115m capital raise ($30m of which is subject to shareholder approval), which positions DroneShield – with around $700m current market capitalisation – as the second largest publicly-listed defence company in Australia, the new headquarters enable the company to expedite the build-up of inventory to support strong demand from high-quality customer opportunities. This includes a pipeline of over $500m with more than 90 qualified projects at different stages and $27m in orders currently being fulfilled. “The threats that drones can pose are finally being taken seriously,” said Oleg Vornik, CEO at DroneShield. “Whether it’s due to the turmoil they can cause on the battlefield, or the countless ways they can disrupt everyday life – at airports, prisons and public events, for example – drone deterrence is now a priority for government agencies and authorities, in Australia and abroad. “We are seeing a major push for comprehensive counter-drone and counter-UAS capabilities – predominately from the US, but broadly across Five Eyes and allies, and slowly but surely in Australia. However, our equipment is sophisticated, AI based technology that can take up to four months to build, containing up to 200 components that must be manufactured, assembled […]

Over 30 trades represented at 47th WorldSkills International

The refrigeration industry will be among over 30 trades represented at the 47th WorldSkills International tournament, a global movement dedicated to promoting the skills excellence of young tradespeople playing a crucial role in the visibility, development, and empowerment of tomorrow’s experts. WorldSkills Australia competitor, Bailey Loenneker, a fourth-year refrigeration apprentice from the Sunshine Coast, and his Expert Carl Balke will represent Australia in the Refrigeration and Air Conditioning category on the global stage in Lyon, France in September to compete against the best young apprentices in the world. The contingent of apprentices, trainees, and students, known as the Skillaroos, is the largest delegation of competitors, trainers, officials, and team management ever sent to an International Competition. Refrigeration represents a crucial yet often overlooked trade. Despite the vital role refrigeration tradespeople play in maintaining the cold chain essential for food safety, healthcare, comfort cooling, air quality, and numerous industrial processes, their numbers are significantly lower compared to other trades on offer. This is one of the reasons that the WorldSkills Australia initiative is supported by Refrigerant Reclaim Australia (RRA) and like-minded organisations committed to the promotion and development of skills excellence in Australia. Kylie from Refrigerant Reclaim Australia says this disparity highlights the need to elevate the profile of refrigeration professionals, by increasing awareness and appreciation for their specialised skills.” “Our longstanding partnership supporting WorldSkills helps to Promote the importance of refrigeration tradespeople and underscores their contribution to public health, safety, and the economy”. Carl, WorldSkills Australia Expert, emphasises the transformative impact of the competition on young apprentices and highlights the importance of the competition in promoting refrigeration apprenticeships to the wider sector. “The competition is not only great for the young apprentices coming through, but it also lifts the profile of refrigeration apprentices which historically has remained unseen”. In addition […]

Kemppi Australia’s Art of Welding Competition is on again

Kemppi Australia has launched its Art of Welding Competition for 2024. The competition showcases “welding art” which can take the form of a welded sculpture, pattern design, a motif or an object. The welding process involved to create the art piece can be manual or use more advanced techniques such as robotics, lasers or friction welding. Now in its fifth year, the competition is keenly contested by both professional artists and amateurs alike. “It’s great to see the artistic talent that is flourishing not just among professional metal artists but also welders, apprentices, teachers, tinkers and hobbyists,” said Mark Shaw, Managing Director, Kemppi Australia. This year, the competition again features a dedicated amateur category. Entrants can win from a pool of four great prizes. The prizes include state-of-the-art Kemppi welding equipment and helmets, as well as clothing and gloves. The competition will run until Monday 30th September and is open to anyone in Australia and New Zealand over the age of 18. For more information on how to enter visit the Kemppi Australia Facebook, Instagram or LinkedIn pages or message Kemppi Australia’s social media pages directly. Alternatively, email skettos@skettos.com.au for a copy of the competition flyer.

Fine Food Australia returns in September

Visitor registration is now open for Australia’s largest food B2B event for the foodservice and hospitality industry, Fine Food Australia. Fine Food Australia will return to Melbourne’s Convention and Exhibition Centre on Monday 2nd of September, spanning over four days until Thursday the 5th of September, 2024. As the trade event celebrates its 40th anniversary in 2024, the show is set to be more expansive than ever, already featuring more than 425+ Australian and international exhibitors representing the food industry, across categories including foodservice, hospitality, catering, bakery, retail, import, export, distribution, and manufacturing. With the show floor already 85% sold out, Fine Food is set to be sold out soon. Reflecting upon the event’s 40th Anniversary, Diversified Communications Managing Director, David Longman remarks “As we celebrate Fine Food Australia’s 40th year, we reflect on how it has evolved, embracing innovation, trends & challenges of the culinary industry here in Australia. From humble beginnings to a large-scale international trade event, this milestone symbolises not just longevity but resilience & adaptability of the Australian food industry. “Fine Food Australia is testament to the enduring spirit of culinary excellence and the platform’s role in shaping the future of food in Australia. With the unwavering commitment of the food industry, we look forward to honouring this journey and embracing the opportunities ahead as we continue to elevate the gastronomic experience for another 40 years and beyond.” Fine Food Australia Commercial Product Manager, Sinead Kavanagh, added “We are so excited to deliver Fine Food Australia 2024. With over 40 years of connections and stories to tell it’s going to be a huge edition where we celebrate the people and businesses in this incredible industry. We’re also excited to be launching two new features to the show that will enhance the experience for our visitors and help their businesses thrive, […]

Aussie innovators recognised at CSIRO’s ON Accelerate 8 Showcase

CSIRO, Australia’s national science agency, celebrated the progress and achievements of its latest ON Accelerate 8 cohort at a showcase in Melbourne yesterday. ON Accelerate breaks down the challenges that often prevent deep tech ideas and research from evolving into real-world applications and market-ready ventures. The showcase highlighted the impressive strides made by the 10 deep tech teams from the latest ON Accelerate cohort since commencing the three-month program. They were selected for their work in addressing critical areas of innovation; including global health challenges, championing sustainability through circularity and pushing the boundaries of advanced manufacturing and AI. CSIRO Chief Executive Dr Doug Hilton said the ideas, innovations and advancements delivered by this year’s ON Accelerate program were truly inspiring. “These researchers are working at the cutting edge of technology to tackle some of society’s greatest challenges,” Dr Hilton said. “CSIRO’s proud to play a pivotal role in unlocking success pathways that ensure the translation of ideas into real solutions, products and companies. “We are committed to continually breaking down barriers for researchers to foster the next era of Australian inventiveness.” Dr Grant Lynch of EMU Systems from the University of Sydney, and one of the Accelerate 8 teams, was announced as the recipient of the prestigious 2024 Stanford Australia Foundation (SAF) award scholarship. The scholarship provides ON Accelerate alumni with the opportunity to benefit from the Stanford Graduate School of Business Executive Education Program. Stanford Australia Foundation Chairman, Aaron Bilston said, “The SAF award scholarship will empower its ON Accelerate 8 researcher recipient, Dr Grant Lynch from EMU Systems, to advance their innovation and commercialisation skills, driving impactful solutions from research to real-world applications, ultimately boosting Australia’s global competitiveness and fostering economic growth.” Notably, Cytophenix Co-Founder Dr Christine Carson from the University of Western Australia was awarded the CSIRO Impactful […]

Evan Thomas, Channel Director, ANZ, Armis AUS MN

Securing OT key to unlocking Australia’s manufacturing vision in an ever-growing threat landscape

Evan Thomas, Channels Director, Armis The recently unveiled ‘Future Made in Australia’ heralds an exciting new chapter for local manufacturing. The Australian government is committing to partnership with the private sector to build new industries to protect against unreliable foreign supply chains. However, one critical area for success is the concurrent commitment towards manufacturing’s cyber resilience. Managing the cyber threat landscape is crucial to realise the potential of the FMIA vision and the future success of Australia’s manufacturing sector, as cyber threats continue to escalate with the industry’s dependence on Operational Technology (OT) and Industrial Control Systems (ICS). It is vital for businesses to deploy better cybersecurity, platforms and protocols if they are to mitigate the risk faced from cyber criminals. Securing OT and IT in ICS and Manufacturing environments The risk-based challenge with OT environments is that more recently, they are connecting to traditional enterprise IT and wireless networks. No longer being ‘air gapped’ or isolated, control systems are at higher risk of being compromised. This is because threat-actors now have the opportunity to breach OT systems through IT networks, particularly as OT typically lacks adequate security measures to protect from attack. To complicate matters further, OT devices in industrial and manufacturing environments have no built-in security. It is also not possible to install an agent on many of the legacy devices, as they were designed by manufacturers who were operating on the, now invalid, assumption that these devices wouldn’t be connected to any other networks. Unfortunately, the convergence of IT and OT means this is no longer the case, exposing OT devices to numerous threats. Without the right security capabilities designed with all types of assets (OT, IT, and IoT) in mind, practitioners are limited in their visibility into what devices are on their networks, what risks each device poses […]

Rio Tinto to develop BioIron R&D facility in WA to test low-carbon steelmaking

Rio Tinto will invest US$143 million (A$215 million) to develop a research and development facility in Western Australia to further assess the effectiveness of its low-carbon ironmaking process, BioIronTM, to support decarbonising the global steel value chain. The development of the BioIron Research and Development Facility in the Rockingham Strategic Industrial Area, south of Perth, follows successful trials of the innovative ironmaking process in a small-scale pilot plant in Germany. BioIron uses raw biomass and microwave energy instead of coal to convert Pilbara iron ore to metallic iron in the steelmaking process. When combined with the use of renewable energy and carbon-circulation by fast-growing biomass, BioIron has the potential to reduce carbon emissions by up to 95% compared with the current blast furnace method. The BioIron facility will include a pilot plant that will be ten times bigger than its predecessor in Germany. It will also be the first time the innovative steelmaking process has been tested at a semi-industrial scale, capable of producing one tonne of direct reduced iron per hour. It will provide the required data to assess further scaling of the technology to a larger demonstration plant. The plant has been designed in collaboration with University of Nottingham, Metso Corporation and Western Australian engineering company Sedgman Onyx. Fabrication of the equipment will begin this year, with commissioning expected in 2026. These works are expected to support up to 60 construction jobs. The research and development facility will employ around 30 full-time employees and include space for equipment testing to support further scaling up of the BioIron technology, while developing a workforce highly skilled in steel decarbonisation and supporting WA universities and research organisations. Rio Tinto Iron Ore Chief Executive Simon Trott said, “The world needs low-carbon steel to reach net zero, and we are working to make […]

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June 2024