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UNSW Nuclear Innovation Centre launches

The University of New South Wales (UNSW) Nuclear Innovation Centre was officially opened, accelerating the future of Australia’s nuclear engineers for the AUKUS workforce.

With Australia’s only nuclear engineering program, UNSW is the country’s premier research centre for nuclear energy.

The Centre is a cross-disciplinary, cross-industry hub for advancing Australia’s nuclear science industry and skills, which includes interests in medicine, irradiated materials, waste management, space exploration and mining.

The opening of this centre will be especially relevant for Australia’s AUKUS commitments.

The centre was officially opened by the Hon Pat Conroy MP, minister for defence industry, minister for international development and the pacific.

With a $7.5 million donation from the Sir William Tyree Foundation, this funding gifted to the Nuclear Innovation Centre will establish research scholarships in nuclear engineering including Masters and PhDs.

Manufacturers’ Monthly spoke with Pat Conroy regarding the launch of the UNSW Nuclear Centre.

“This centre will be critical to us delivering the nuclear power conventional armed submarines, AUKUS pillar one is the biggest industrial undertaking this country has every attempted it will drive 20 thousand well paid, high skilled jobs,” said Conroy.

“It will contribute to the modernisation of Australian manufacturing, and as part of that we need to train lots of nuclear scientists and engineers, and this Centre will have a great role in that.”

The centre was established in November 2023 to bring together experts from various disciplines to foster collaborations, drive innovation, and contribute to the advancement of the nuclear science and engineering field in Australia.

The UNSW Nuclear Innovation Centre was officially open on Thursday 22 February 2024, with other distinguished officials including associate professor Edward Obbard, director UNSW Nuclear Innovation Centre, Hon Matt Thistlethwaite MP, assistant minister for defence, assistant minister for veteran affairs, assistance minister for the republic and Jasmine Diab, president of women in nuclear Australia.

“At the Nuclear innovation centre we will be advancing Australia’s nuclear technology for global impact. We are going to connect our research to industry applications, and we are going to invent results of our research back into our education programs, so that these programs continually involve, and our research will be used,” said Obbard

“We are going to advocate for the disciplines of nuclear science and nuclear engineering because we are growing a workforce here in Australia grounded in academic excellence, diversity and social inclusion, which in turn are actually the foundations for nuclear safety culture in all of Australia’s nuclear activities.”

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