The Australian Composites Manufacturing Cooperative Research Centre (ACM CRC) has announced that its board has appointed highly experienced engineering manager and entrepreneur Luke Preston as the new full-time CEO, as the CRC builds on the successful first three years of its ten-year term. 

Preston’s career includes roles as Head of Engineering and Drone Operations at Quickstep Group and Industrialisation Director at Carbon Revolution–both leading Australian companies in composites manufacturing–as well as Manager, Manufacturing Engineering-General Assembly at Tesla Motors in the United States. 

He has been acting CEO since January, following the departure of Dr Steve Gower. 

“It’s an absolute privilege to be appointed as CEO. I began my career in manufacturing at Ford Australia, being given opportunities that may no longer exist. I feel a responsibility to re-create pathways for Australians to contribute through manufacturing,” said Preston.  

“The CRC is three years into our 10-year journey. We have established strong foundations and are well positioned to lean into the fast-changing landscape in AI-enabled manufacturing. 

“Australia is blessed with strong capability through the skills and smarts of our workforce, combined with an abundance of resources to refine and manufacture into products for Australians and the world. ACM CRC is excited to accelerate the R&D required to enable the execution. 

“This Australian value creation and self-sufficiency allow Australia to navigate the changing economic order, where products will be made by the smartest nations, not those with the lowest cost of labour.” 

ACM CRC began operations in January 2023, and has supported and successfully executed industry-led projects with applications including surviving the incredibly high temperatures in orbital rocket launches and hypersonic flight, automating manufacture of smart surfboards, and structural health monitoring for offshore structures. 

The CRC involves over 30 partners, and has long-term goals including transforming Australia’s established composite technologies capability into a world-class, highly automated, digitally enabled network of designers, manufacturers and service providers, as well as enabling $8.3billion of direct economic benefit and 1,500 new jobs. Its research priorities are transport, energy, advanced manufacturing and Industry 4.0. 

“Through the composite sector we are leading the transformation of Australia’s manufacturing into digital environments, embracing tools such as digital twins to optimise capital returns and to train AI-enabled robotic and agentic AI to analyse the large and complex datasets of Australia’s advanced manufacturers, optimising decision making,” said Preston. 

“As the world moves towards sustainable abundance, we must ensure that Australia embraces the change, locking the value in for Australia and ensuring that we all share in the productive advantages. The alternative, if we lag behind, is a model where our costs are high and we cannot compete, driving Australian dollars offshore where the abundance will be enjoyed. 

“ACM CRC is committed to growing Australia’s manufacturing industry, and as such we would love to hear from manufacturers who want to join us on this mission.”