International

According to Reuters, Japan’s October core machinery orders rose for the first time in three months to beat expectations- a tentative sign of a pickup in capital expenditure. Core orders, a highly volatile data series regarded as an indicator of capital spending in the coming six to nine months, rose 4.1 per cent in October … Continue reading Japan machinery orders on the up as global manufacturing starts to recover →

Some $6.12bn worth of growth opportunities fall through the cracks of Australian mid-sized businesses every year due to insufficient or variable cash flow, according to research released by American Express today. More than one-third (40 per cent) of mid-sized CFOs admit their business has been delayed or unable to achieve a strategic business objective due … Continue reading Cash flow variables a business growth killer says study →

Faro Technologies, a global technology company that develops and markets computer-aided coordinate measurement devices and software, opens its new office in Brisbane, Australia. This move is part of Faro’s long-term growth plan and to increase its footprint in Asia Pacific. Faro’s customer base in Australia and New Zealand is growing. As such, this expansion is … Continue reading Faro expands into Queensland →

ThyssenKrupp, one of the world’s largest steelmakers, has revealed that it was the victim of a ‘massive cyberattack’ earlier this year. The company was targeted by attackers from southeast Asia in what it has described as “organised, highly professional hacker activities”. The hackers were trying to obtain “technological know-how and research results”, according to the … Continue reading Steelmaker loses data during brazen cyberattack →

A new-concept welding facility opened by BOC at its Rocklea site in Brisbane is set to be an exciting new hub for product applications and testing, research and development, and training. The facility will primarily be used to demonstrate the latest in welding, cutting and heating technology and automation and contains the latest generation digital … Continue reading BOC opens new Brisbane tech centre →

  According to a report in the Australian Financial Review (AFR),  well-known Australian businessman Andrew Liveris has been recruited by Donald Trump to help bring back American manufacturing jobs. The chief executive of US multinational giant Dow Chemical, Liveris was appointed chair of the President-elect’s American Manufacturing Council. Liveris has led the manufacturing giant Dow … Continue reading Australian CEO becomes Donald Trump’s new manufacturing ‘tsar’ →

Bluetooth 5 has been released (succeeding Bluetooth 4.2), with the upgrade focusing on IoT applications and improved functionality. When compared to the previous version, improvements include eight times the capacity, two times the speed and four times the range. Specifically, Bluetooth 5.0 has increased its data broadcasting capacity by 800 per cent, and doubled its … Continue reading Bluetooth 5 now available for manufacturers →

According to reports, a major naval shipbuilding program in Australia has taken a significant step forward with the appointment of Danish company Odense Maritime Technologies (OMT) to redevelop shipyard facilities in South Australia. The move follows the announcement of French company DCNS as the preferred partner for the design of Australia’s $50 billion Future Submarine … Continue reading Major naval shipbuilding program gains momentum in SA →

Brisbane based medical device company, Oventus Medical will launch their new Victorian 3D printing facility at CSIRO today. The additive manufacturing plant that uses titanium 3D printing technology to produce the customised O2Vent sleep apnoea device, is located at CSIRO’s Clayton site adjacent to their Lab 22 additive manufacturing centre. The state-of-the-art facility is the … Continue reading Oventus launches cutting-edge 3D printing facility →

A research consortium led by Bosch is developing a novel industrial manufacturing concept. The nine partners on the ReCaM project aim to create a highly versatile manufacturing system. Such systems are needed because production times in modern manufacturing are becoming ever shorter. In addition, demand for customized products is increasing, and the number of variants … Continue reading Bosch & Co retool manufacturing concepts →

The Westpac-Melbourne Institute SME Index (SME Index), which examines the economic health of Australian small and medium sized enterprises, has revealed a significant improvement in business confidence, shifting from 95.6 in Q3 2016 to 100.7 in Q4 2016. Westpac’s General Manager of SME Business Bank, Julie Rynski said, “The strong increase in business sentiment is … Continue reading Westpac finds SMEs are feeling optimistic about 2017 →

Whether or not this is down to the so-called ‘Trump Effect’, according to the Australian Financial Review (AFR), Foxconn Technology Group, the biggest assembler of Apple devices, is currently in discussions to expand the company’s US manufacturing operations. The news came only hours after an announcement by US President-elect Donald Trump and SoftBank Group’s Masayoshi … Continue reading Foxconn plants the seeds for US Apple manufacturing →

In June last year, it was announced that Australia’s manufacturing sector had achieved year on year expansion recording the longest unbroken period of growth in a decade. Although that sounds like good news, manufacturers now face another issue. How do they fill the open jobs with engaged workers who will drive the innovation required to … Continue reading Are millennials a manufacturing innovation opportunity? →

Pilz Australia launched its new website which incorporates a new E-Shop for its customers. E-Shop will allow customers to not only browse the company’s vast portfolio of products, it enables them to access the latest technical information, view product images, and download the most up-to- date technical data sheets. The new E-Shop covers the full … Continue reading Pilz launches new online presence →

Sounds like an object right out of a sci-fi movie but Seven Dreamers, CEO, Shin Sakane seems to have come up with the “perfect” solution to everyone’s weekend clothing chores. Bloomberg has reported that the Japanese inventor received six billion yen (A$71 million) from partners, including Panasonic, last month to advance what was coined “the … Continue reading Panasonic & partners to build laundry bot →

Australia’s innovations will grow into successful businesses with help from the CSIRO Innovation Fund, a $200 million fund to commercialise early stage innovations from CSIRO, universities and other publicly-funded research bodies. The CSIRO Innovation Fund, launched today, will support co-investment in new spin-out and start-up companies, and SMEs engaged in the translation of research generated … Continue reading CSIRO to spend $200m on Aussie innovation →

Senator Xenophon deserves a Christmas card from the nation’s steelmakers, after his negotiation with the government to deliver their Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC) legislation. The deal saw significant changes made to government procurement rules. The changes require that companies bidding for government projects worth more than A$4 million and will need to outline in … Continue reading ABCC amended local content rules will help Australian steelmakers compete against low-quality imports →

According to reports, Downer Rail has sub-contracted all manufacturing duties of 24 double deck Sydney A or Waratah class trains to joint venture partner, China’s CRRC Changchun Railway Vehicles Co, with Downer itself providing the maintenance support for a minimum of 25 years. The Australian Manufacturing Workers Union criticised the award of the contract, saying … Continue reading Sydney’s new trains to be made in China →

According to a new report by Forbes Insights in association with Hitachi Data Systems, titled “How to Win at Digital Transformation: Insights from a Global Survey of Top Executives”, changing customer expectations are the biggest external driver of digital transformation (DX) in Australia, cited by 58 per cent of respondents compared with the 35 per … Continue reading Forbes report finds companies failing to unlock the potential of their own data   →

Bonfiglioli has scored a Bulk Handling Awards hat-trick, taking out the Gears, Motors and Drives category for the third year in a row. This year, Bonfiglioli was recognised for its low backlash drives, which are designed for demanding applications like bulk handling where there are often lots of stops and starts during operation. The awards were … Continue reading Bonfiglioli wins again at the Bulk Handling Awards →