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INDUSTRY NEWS
Volgren delivers first electric vehicles to Kinetic The first Volgren bodies are rolling off the production line in Dandenong and being delivered to Kinetic Australia’s largest bus body builder, Volgren, has delivered the first of two battery electric buses (BEBs) to Victoria’s Department of Transport and new Melbourne Bus Franchise operator, Kinetic. The BEBs are the first of 36 electric buses that will roll off the production line in Dandenong over the next three years to join Kinetic’s Melbourne fleet, an average of one per month. Thiago Deiro, CEO of Volgren, said the Department of Transport’s decision to prioritise green transport is already creating new jobs and demonstrates the trust that government has in locally manufactured buses. "Since the Melbourne Bus Franchise was announced last year we’ve created 30 new jobs. We hope to employ another 20 staff this year alone as production on BEBs picks up," Deiro said. "As has been the case for many years now, most of the content we use for these buses will come from the local supply chain. Australian manufacturing now offers the highest quality levels I’ve ever seen during my time in the industry. That comes from Volgren expertise, combined with the exceptional quality of materials and components
produced by suppliers throughout Victoria and Australia," Deiro said. Deiro said the state’s transition to electric vehicles under the current Melbourne Bus Franchise agreement enables Volgren to plan, invest and make sure the vehicles are delivered on time and on budget. "Of the 30 new employees, 11 have been enrolled in apprentice programs, including Automotive Electrical Technology, Automotive Manufacturing Technical Operations and Supply Chain. These new jobs and skills are future-proofing our business and delivering huge benefits to our community," Deiro said. Yuri Tessari, Volgren’s chief commercial officer, said the two vehicles took around six weeks to complete. He put the “extremely smooth” build process down to detailed preparation and planning, as well as clear direction from Kinetic. Ben Carroll and Gabrielle Williams met with some of Volgren's young apprentices who are being upskilled as a part of the rollout. “As we’ve stated before, when project planning is properly done, the outcomes are usually excellent and that’s been the
Thiago Deiro (Volgren), Adam Begg (Kinetic), Minister Ben Carroll and Gabrielle Williams (Member for Dandenong) with the Volgren bus delivered to Kinetic.
case as we’ve worked with Kinectic,” Tessari said. “With every BEB built, Volgren has improved its processes and we can comfortably say now that building an electric bus is second nature for our company. All three of our factories are fully prepared and can produce electric vehicles with the same speed as we produce buses using other technologies,” he said. Volgren is on schedule to deliver a further 12 BEBs to Kinetic by the end of this year. volgren.com.au
Deakin University hosts the Advanced Manufacturing Showcase Advanced Manufacturing Showcase highlights the future of manufacturing in Australia The future of advanced manufacturing was on display on March 30th in the successful 2022 Advanced Manufacturing Showcase at the Deakin University campus in Waurn Ponds, Geelong. Jointly presented by Deakin University, MEMKO and Dassault Systèmes, the event saw over 120 experts, manufacturers, engineers and key industry players gather at Deakin University. The event's key theme was supporting businesses by accelerating their ideas into innovative manufacturing solutions, while creating future manufacturing jobs through a sustainable, value-added economy focus that is commercially successful and positively impacts communities in regional Victoria. A key highlight of the event was the technology ‘playground’, featuring hightech manufacturing displays from seven different companies and displaying industry leading solutions for the workforce of the future. Mark Curnow, Deakin's ManuFutures Director, launched two new 2022 initiatives. ManuFutures Ignite, an advanced manufacturing program
AMT JUN 2022
to support entrepreneurs and startups to grow concepts into production, and ManuFutures Engage, a program that includes cutting-edge gap analysis using the highly-regarded futuremap tool to deliver a roadmap for emerging technologies and new business models. Both programs offer a doorway to Deakin’s advanced capabilities and equipment as
well as multidisciplinary experts and the multimillion-dollar ManuFutures facility. Miro Miletic and Brenton Dodd from MEMKO shared on the role of digital platforms in advanced manufacturing, and Nirajit Syamal, Dassault Systems, illustrated a day in the life of advanced virtual manufacturers. deakin.edu.au/research/researchpartnerships/manufutures
