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This budget will only work if business and consumers play ball

-Michelle Grattan This is an extraordinary giveaway budget, driven by desperate circumstances that would have been inconceivable less than a year ago. The debt and deficit numbers are predictably eye-watering – but the gamble is whether they are big enough. The Morrison government is pleading. In particular, it is begging business to chance its hand and invest, so that activity and jobs can be restored ASAP. The incentives being handed to business are enormous. But it all comes down to that elusive necessity – confidence. It’s the old question about horses and whether they will drink when the water is shoved into the trough before them. Equally, the government is also appealing to individuals to spend, and then spend some more. There will be argument about whether it is making this pitch in the most effective way – the accelerated tax cuts have their critics. They’ll certainly give many people more ready cash over coming months. The unknown is whether in these uncertain times the purse strings will be loosened. The modest cash payments for pensioners – two lots of $250 – are also directed to boosting consumption. The first payment is December, nicely timed for some (modest) Christmas presents, to help the retail sector just when it needs assistance. In its subsidy for businesses to hire younger unemployed people the government is acknowledging the recession will particularly hurt this generation. It is imperative to get as many as possible of those thrown out of work back into the labour force as fast as possible. The motive is sound, but how effective the program will be is another matter. Much will depend on whether employers feel confident enough to take on staff. These younger people have to hope the employers respond, because the Coronavirus supplement that has enhanced JobSeeker is […]

Worldwide leaders of anchors and power tools unite under one brand

Pioneers in developing innovative construction solutions, iconic global brands, Dewalt and Powers have united under one brand, Dewalt Engineered by Powers, to deliver a complete anchoring and installation system for the construction industry, focused on performance and productivity. With construction work in Australia forecast to be $240 billion[1] in 2021, Dewalt Engineered by Powers will meet the ever-growing demands of the construction industry to provide complete solutions that improve efficiencies, are code compliant and provide safer practice solutions with a focus on performance. Both Dewalt and Powers products have been used in the design and construction of many of the world’s most iconic structures. Dewalt now brings anchors, power tools and accessories to the forefront of structural engineers, specifiers, builders, contractors and on-site trades, with an understanding of tools and fastening systems that provide cost effective and exceptional results for construction projects. “Dewalt is the trusted brand of choice for professional tradespeople, and Powers is a leader in the concrete and masonry fastening industry, so it makes a lot of sense to combine the expertise of these organisations to drive future innovation,” says Adrian Davis, Managing Director, Stanley Black&Decker. “The merger of the two brands positions us at the forefront of the construction and engineering industries in Australia and New Zealand. It also means that we can continue to support our products with expert solution and technical advice for all anchoring requirements, through our dedicated Enterprise Solutions Team. The team has been selected for their proven ability to respond to the demands of ever-changing industry requirements. The team is committed to adding value to our customers and projects, throughout the construction process,” he adds. Professor Emad Gad, Chairman of AEFAC (Australian Engineered Fasteners and Anchor Council) says, “From an industry body perspective, AEFAC is pleased that Dewalt Engineered by Powers […]

ASM produces heavy rare earth metal Dysprosium in Korea

Australian Strategic Materials through its partner Ziron Technology Corporation (Ziron Tech), has successfully produced 7.5 kg of a high purity dysprosium metal at its commercial pilot plant in South Korea. After producing 0.76 kg of the heavy rare earth metal last month, this second run confirms that it can be done at scale, marking the completion of the final key permanent magnet metals to be produced at the Ziron Tech facility. ASM has now produced neodymium, praseodymium, neodymium praseodymium alloy and dysprosium all key for permanent magnets through the commercial pilot plant using its innovative metallisation process. Work has commenced on the production of ferro-dysprosium zirconium metal. These are anticipated to be the final products metallised from material sourced from the Dubbo Project in central west NSW. ASM Managing Director, David Woodall said: “ASM is progressing further in its development to become an integrated mine to metal business, with the successful production of the heavy rare earth metal, dysprosium. With the production of these key permanent magnets metals and metal alloys, and the development of zirconium metal production, ASM is one step closer to converting all products from the Dubbo Project into value adding metals.” “Our focus is now on commencing the design and construction of a 250 kg per day continuous metal plant in Korea. This is the first phase of our strategy to develop a 3,000-5,000 tonne per year plant designed to meet some of the demand for critical materials in the Korean manufacturing sector. ASM continues to advance discussions for a potential partner in the metal business,” Mr Woodall said.

Preventure new product features to help employers with remote safety

Australian wearable technology startup Preventure has today announced the launch of a range of new product features, including free services for Australian businesses hit hard by the financial impact of Covid-19, which will help employers who are struggling to provide their workforce with enough health, safety and HR support remotely. The newest addition to the Preventure.Live smartphone app uses AI technology to automate the delivery of safety training, helping to prevent injuries in the workplace. Development of this feature was accelerated when Covid-19 hit, to provide existing Preventure customers with an alternative to face-to-face training. It completes Preventure’s risk identification/behavioural change loop, whereby wearable sensors record worker movement patterns, live feedback is provided around injury risk, and now, customised training modules are delivered in response to that risk. In addition, core Sports-themed injury prevention modules are accessible to businesses, and the team is generously offering a free version of the app, that includes these modules, to any business and their workers during these challenging times. Off the back of the lockdown which has seen most of Australia working from home for the last 6 months, the team at Preventure also built and launched a posture-monitoring product, aptly named ‘Office Coach’, that utilses a single back sensor (for manual handling, an arm sensor is also used). This is the team’s first foray into the corporate wellness space and the product can be described as a B2B wellness app, and a consumer posture product, rolled into one! Businesses who are concerned about employee home workstation setups, or looking to engage their remote teams, can purchase an account, sensors and monthly app subscriptions. The app provides slouch alerts, and stretch alerts, to reduce the risks associated with sustained posture, and also tracks steps, to encourage movement at a time where our incidental activity […]

Stainless steel bearings respond to need for maintenance-free options

he latest stainless-steel sliding-guided bearings from Hercules Engineering respond to expanding demand for long-term, no-maintenance protection for buildings, plant and infrastructure against structural disruption from shock, impact, vibration and thermal movement. The 316-grade stainless steel bearings – which are also particularly applicable to aggressive, damp, chemically laden or salty environments producing rust – are custom-fabricated developments of Hercules’ proven HLD-SG bearings, used throughout Australasia and the Asia-Pacific in applications ranging from commercial, civil and steel and concrete beam infrastructure projects, including small-span bridges, conveyor overpasses and pipeline supports. The long-life stainless bearings align with new international moves to ensure building resiliency under the impact of climate change, with the Australian Building Codes Board teaming up with The National Research Council of Canada, the New Zealand Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment and the International Code Council (US) to launch a Global Resiliency Dialogue. Stainless HLD-SG bearings enclose a sandwich of Teflon on mirror-finish stainless steel bonded to a special grade rubber sub-stratum. They are engineered to offer optimum no-maintenance lifespans of decades for developments in aggressive environments, such as marine, oil and gas, mining, ports, power plants and water and waste water infrastructure, says Mr David Booty, Manager, Hercules Engineering (a division of Cut To Size Plastics). They also respond to construction engineers’ and specifiers’ ongoing need to help protect structures against disruption from sources as diverse as subterranean shock and vibration, rust, chemical ingress and greater thermal movement of structures with climate change. Examples of uses include: Buildings and plant located near increasing sources of urban vibration and shock, including civil engineering projects such as tunneling and foundation excavation as cities grow more crowded and projects move closer together. Mining, oil and gas structures, ranging from conveyors and bridges to buildings such as mill houses and plant subject to […]

Powerful new energy technology fits old spaces to futureproof MLC centre

Sydney’s 67-storey MLC tower has upgraded a series of switchboards, to ensure continued reliable supply as tenant power requirements continue to change and accelerate. Lead electrical contractor on the MLC upgrade project, Barnwell Cambridge, chose Australian-manufactured Fuji SMBE Macquarie switchboards due to their reliability and modular construction. “We were contracted to replace the main switchboards, generator switchboards and PLC switchboards, and they needed to suit the tight confines and unusual shape of the room,” explained Mr Peter Silsby, Director, Fuji SMBE Macquarie. “The existing switchboards had been operating reliably for years, but as more and more tenants moved in, and electronic needs continued to change and advance, MLC was forward-thinking enough to look at the future and make sure reliable supply, as well as back-up power, was always available,” said Mr Silsby. “New switchboard technology has the ability to monitor every circuit via a high level modbus interface utilising the latest Schneider Micrologic 5.3E circuit-breakers, which provides benefits to building and facility managers, as well as tenants,” he said. “There were installation challenges, with components having to go through a load-limited goods lift, and the switchboards reassembled inside the switch room. It took a lot of cooperation between stakeholders for it all to come together successfully.” Compact, modular switchboards Fuji SMBE Macquarie specified its iNTELECT G3 switchboard systems, because they are compact and modular, allowing them to be reassembled on site. The iNTELECT G3 system is the 3rd generation of the company’s iNTELECT system, and it has been engineered in Australia for Australian conditions. Major advantages over previous technologies include adaptability, versatility, safety, strength, and compact size. “MLC’s Switchboard components were unloaded in the loading dock and Barnwell Cambridge used specialised hydraulic furniture movers that fix to each side of the switchboard tier. This meant that they could be moved […]

ASM produces dysprosium metal in Korea

Australian Strategic Materials, through its partner Ziron Technology Corporation (Ziron Tech), has successfully produced high purity dysprosium (Dy) metal in its laboratory at the Ziron Tech facility. This work using the ASM metallisation process has confirmed ASM’s ability to produce the key permanent magnet metals (dysprosium, praseodymium and neodymium) and alloys that will be sourced from its Dubbo Project in central west NSW. ASM Managing Director, David Woodall said: “This is a significant result given the temperatures required for the production of dysprosium metal. Our team has now successfully produced the key permanent magnet rare earth products (dysprosium, praseodymium and neodymium metals and alloys) which will be supplied from our Dubbo Project.” “Now that the protocol for the production of dysprosium metal has been completed, our team led by Professor Lee, will focus on the production the ferro-dysprosium alloy, which is key in the production of high-temperature NdFeB magnets. Our focus now is to produce zirconium metal by the end of September, Mr Woodall said. The ASM metallisation process uses significantly less energy and has less impact on the environment than existing industry-standard metallisation processes. This innovative process has been used to produce metals of the planned products from ASM’s Dubbo Project including zirconium, hafnium, and rare earths for permanent magnet alloys in the laboratory. Titanium and the key rare earth permanent magnet metals neodymium and praseodymium have been produced in the commercial pilot plant with dysprosium and zirconium scheduled for later this month. ASM and Ziron Tech continue to finalise the detailed documentation in relation to the acquisition of Ziron Tech with the transaction expected to be completed by the end of October 2020.

SwitchDin chosen by EVO Power

EVO Power, an Australian energy storage system manufacturer, has chosen SwitchDin, an Australian energy management software company, to provide monitoring, management and advanced grid support functions for its PRIME energy storage systems, which are commercially available now. Developed for a wide range of grid-connect & off-grid applications, EVO Power’s PRIME series uses inverters from Australian manufacturer, Selectronic and battery technology supplied by LG Chem. Available in single and three phase solutions, the PRIME energy storage system is designed for high-end residential properties, regional properties that are prone to blackouts, off-grid residential and small scale commercial developments with energy storage capacities from 24kWh to 240kWh. Every EVO Power PRIME system comes with a SwitchDin Droplet allowing energy monitoring and management for all PRIME Power battery systems. SwitchDin’s Droplets also provides advanced data logging for warranty support and enables virtual power plant functionality. With EVO Power, SwitchDin demonstrates how manufacturers and their customers get the most out of their behind-the-meter assets by making them smart and visible to energy service companies. SwitchDin is delighted to welcome EVO Power to their ecosystem of more than 30 manufacturers from around the globe who rely on SwitchDin to manage and integrate their distributed energy assets on the vendor-agnostic technology platform. SwitchDin’s solar and battery vendor-agnostic platform supports product integrations with major manufacturers and integrators and connects them with many leading distribution networks and electricity retailers.

Corporate dysfunction on Indigenous affairs: Why heads rolled at Rio Tinto

Outraged investors have forced the board of Rio Tinto to sack its chief executive Jean-Sebastien Jacques along with two of the senior executives partially responsible for the destruction of the Juukan Gorge caves in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, which contained evidence of human habitation 46,000 years ago. Why did the company commit this egregious act? There are several layers to the answer. First, Rio Tinto’s iron ore division was under extreme production pressure. The iron ore in the vicinity of the caves was very high grade and the company needed as much of it as possible to mix with other grades so as to supply the market with its trademark Pilbara blend. Its reputation as a reliable supplier depended on it. Rio Tinto was siloed It was authorised under West Australian law to mine the area, even though this would destroy the caves, and it intended to exercise this legal right, regardless of any opposition. Second, Rio has a segmented organisational structure. It’s product divisions – iron ore, aluminium, copper and diamonds, minerals and energy – operate as autonomous business units with relatively little control from the corporate centre. When things go well, such an organisational structure is highly profitable for the corporation as a whole, because it leaves each product division free to take advantage of whatever opportunities there are in its particular market. But there is a downside. It leaves the corporation vulnerable to poor decision making by any one of its product divisions, decisions that may have disastrous human and environmental consequences that threaten the social license of the whole corporation. That is what has happened in the Juukan Gorge case. Organisational weakness Of course, Rio was aware of this downside of its organisational structure and had taken steps to deal with it. It had various functional lines – chains of command […]

Rio Tinto Executive Committee changes

Following the publication on 24 August 2020 of the Board Review of Cultural Heritage Management (the Board Review), undertaken in response to the destruction of the Juukan rockshelters in May 2020, the Board of Rio Tinto has engaged extensively with shareholders, Traditional Owners, Indigenous leaders and other stakeholders. While there is general recognition of the transparency of the Board Review and support for the changes recommended, significant stakeholders have expressed concerns about executive accountability for the failings identified. By mutual agreement, J-S Jacques will step down from his role as an executive director and Chief Executive of the Group. A process to identify his successor is underway. J-S will remain in his role until the appointment of his successor or 31 March 2021, whichever is earlier. This will ensure business continuity to maintain the strong performance of the Group’s global operations during Covid-19. Chris Salisbury will step down as Chief Executive, Iron Ore with immediate effect and will leave Rio Tinto on 31 December 2020. Ivan Vella, currently Managing Director for Rail, Port & Core Services within Rio Tinto Iron Ore, will replace him on an interim basis, following a handover period with Chris. Simone Niven will step down as Group Executive, Corporate Relations, and will leave the Group on 31 December 2020 after completing an orderly transition of her responsibilities. As previously announced, Rio Tinto is establishing a new Social Performance assurance function, reporting to Mark Davies, Group Executive, HSE, Technical and Projects, to strengthen oversight of communities and heritage practices and performance within the operations. In order to enhance Board engagement in Australia, Simon McKeon, non-executive director, is appointed Senior Independent Director, Rio Tinto Limited with immediate effect. This newly created Board role will complement the existing Senior Independent Director role, which will continue to be performed […]

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