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Ph: (03) 9794 8337 Welcome to the July
This month’s Manufacturer Focus explores how Crusader Caravans is redefining caravan manufacturing with composite
Our Engineering Focus follows Vaxxas in its push to commercialise needle-free vaccine technology by
Additionally, a comment from AMGC’s Dr Jens Goennemann warns that without strong sovereign manufacturing, Australia risks losing the ability to build homes, create jobs, and maintain economic resilience.
Finally, in July’s Decision Maker column, Baxter Healthcare’s Brendan Cummins highlights the importance
chain.
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Investing in Australia’s sovereign potential
Following what has been an action-packed 2025, Australia’s manufacturing sector continues to innovate and evolve, defying the notion that it’s a dying industry.
One consistent thread throughout major industry events is the changing nature of the sector. While some interpret this shift as decline, those within the industry see it as a necessary and positive evolution. From thriving sectors like medical technology and pharmaceuticals to the rise of cutting-edge manufacturing technologies, this month’s edition of Manufacturers’ Monthly reinforces the value of a strong, sovereign manufacturing base in Australia.
This was on full display in late May, when Australian Made Week 2025 celebrated the sector and its contributions to the national economy.
Led by ambassador Ariarne Titmus, the campaign spotlighted local manufacturers including Volvo, Nissan Castings, Capral and Summer Land Camels. Within this issue, Ben Lazzaro, chief executive of the Australian Made Campaign Limited, speaks to the campaign’s purpose in elevating ‘Australian makers’ into the future.
One such ‘Australian maker’ from an emerging sector that is making headlines in 2025 is Queensland-based biotech company, Vaxxas.
The company exemplifies the evolving nature of the industry through its needle-free High-Density Microarray Patch (HD-MAP) vaccine technology.
Advancing through clinical trials with plans for commercial rollout by 2028, the technology aims to improve immunisation accessibility, reduce cold chain dependency, and eliminate needlerelated risks.
Innovative approaches are also taking root within traditional industries. Crusader Caravans is transforming Australian caravan manufacturing by using lightweight composite materials in a lean, continuous-flow production facility. In this edition, managing director Michael Paidoussis and general manager of operations, Erkut Fevzi, discuss the company’s commitment to quality, efficiency, and modern manufacturing methods.
Additionally, in a comment from Australian Manufacturing Growth Centre (AMGC), Dr Jens Goennemann builds on this sovereign message in a more serious manner. Here, he warns that Australia’s future prosperity hinges on revitalising its manufacturing sector. Without it, the nation risks losing the capability to build homes, create jobs, and sustain economic complexity. While local manufacturers consistently demonstrate their potential – seen through Vaxxas and Crusader Caravans ¬– Goennemann believes outdated programs and sluggish support mechanisms are holding them back. To secure a resilient and self-reliant future, manufacturing must be recognised and treated as a strategic national asset.
Maintaining this spotlight on manufacturing success is crucial as we enter the second half of the year. A key event doing just that is the Endeavour Awards, returning in 2025 to honour innovation, leadership, and resilience across the sector. This issue previews the event ahead of its gala celebration on 13 November in Melbourne. With new categories recognising the evolving nature of the industry, such as health technology, transport, and aerospace, the awards offer a valuable platform for industry recognition.
Capping off this issue is insight from one of the industry’s leaders. Brendan Cummins, vice president and general manager ANZ of Baxter Healthcare, outlines how the company is building healthcare resilience through local manufacturing and advanced technologies to ensure a reliable supply of critical IV fluids. Cummins stresses that for any manufacturing business, building a supply chain capable of withstanding disruption is key to delivering better outcomes.
We also hear from association partners including Weld Australia, CSIRO, and WorldSkills Australia, which recently held its 2025 National Skills Championships.
Australia’s manufacturing sector is not just surviving – it’s transforming, diversifying, and driving national capability. As 2025 progresses, recognising and investing in this evolution is vital to securing a resilient, sovereign future.
A Winning Combination for
Following on from AMW2025 where for the first time Lorch and OTC Asia came together under the DAIHEN Corporation banner we are now seeing Lorch power sources being combined and adopted on Lorch Cobotronic and OTC Daihen Industrial robots.
COMMENT
It’s time to back our welding and fabrication industries
Weld Australia is calling for government intervention to prevent the collapse of Australia’s local welding and fabrication industry. It is warning that without action on the use of non-compliant, imported fabricated steel, businesses will continue to shut down – leaving the nation without the capability to deliver critical infrastructure projects.
Australia stands at a crossroads. We face a unique opportunity to revitalise our manufacturing base, grow sovereign capability, and build a pipeline of high-quality jobs for generations to come. But we’re in danger of squandering that opportunity by allowing cheap, substandard imported fabricated steel to undercut local suppliers – many of whom are operating at best-in-class levels.
The time has come for government, industry and the public to demand better. Fabricated steel used in Australian infrastructure must meet rigorous international quality standards. Imported products must be inspected upon arrival. And every publicly funded project must include enforceable local content requirements that create real, lasting benefits for Australian workers, businesses and communities.
Because right now, the system is broken.
A harsh reality for local manufacturers
In the last 18 months alone, an estimated $282.9 million worth of fabricated steel, or 62,866 tonnes, has been imported into Sydney from overseas. That’s hundreds of millions of dollars flowing offshore – undermining Australia’s local manufacturing industry, costing valuable Australian jobs, and having a huge impact on our economy.
In real terms, $282.9 million worth of fabricated steel equates to 12 months’ worth of work for 400 full-time welders, or approximately 16 mid-sized local Australian fabrication businesses.
You don’t have to look far for examples of how our current procurement system disadvantages local industry.
One experienced Weld Australia member, based in Sydney, has completed major fabrication contracts across defence, infrastructure, and commercial construction. They hold AS/NZS ISO 3834 welding certification and actively support welder training and apprenticeships through strong partnerships with TAFE and industry. Despite meeting every benchmark for quality,
compliance, and capability, this fabricator has experienced a 40 per cent drop in business over the past 18 months – as contracts continue to be awarded to overseas suppliers.
This is a textbook example of what’s wrong with the current system. When local manufacturers with a proven track record of excellence lose out to low-cost overseas suppliers, it erodes confidence, jobs and safety. Worse, there’s no requirement to inspect imported fabricated steel upon arrival.
To remain competitive, local manufacturers are being forced to lower their prices to remain afloat, despite the fact they are supplying higher quality products that adhere to safety standards. This directly impacts their profit margins. The reduced pricing power limits their ability to invest in new technology, staff training, and other growth initiatives.
These concerns are not isolated. In recent years, we’ve seen imported fabricated steel fail to meet minimum specifications in several high-profile projects. In many cases, local contractors are left to carry out remedial works or accept the risk of structural defects – at a cost to public safety, taxpayers and our industry.
The cost of non-compliance
The consequences of using low-cost, noncompliant fabricated steel are significant. Faulty welds, inadequate materials and missing documentation don’t just cause delays – they create long-term risk in infrastructure that must last decades. Whether it’s roads, bridges, hospitals, trains, schools or defence facilities, Australians deserve infrastructure built to withstand time, stress and the unexpected.
That’s why Australia has some of the world’s best welding and fabrication standards, including AS/NZS 5131 for structural steelwork and AS/ NZS ISO 3834 for welding quality. But unless we enforce those standards consistently, they’re meaningless.
Weld Australia’s proposed solution is
straightforward: any imported fabricated steel must be inspected upon arrival by accredited professionals to ensure compliance with Australian or equivalent international standards. The organisation is also calling for legislation that holds importers accountable for the safety of the goods they bring into the country.
If products are made in Australia, they must comply with Australian Standards. Local manufacturers know this, and they build accordingly. If a water heater is made here, it must pass strict compliance checks. If VicRoads or Transport for NSW commissions a bridge or road, it is subject to local inspection throughout the build. So why is it that goods manufactured offshore are not subject to the same scrutiny once they arrive?
Local content isn’t a handout – it’s a smart investment
There’s a misconception that local content policies amount to protectionism. In reality, they are smart, strategic investments in national capability.
When work goes to Australian fabricators,
Weld Australia is calling on all levels of government to act immediately to protect Australia’s fabrication industry.
the economic benefits ripple throughout the community. Jobs are created. Apprentices are trained. Skills are retained and strengthened. Companies reinvest in innovation, technology and training. And critically, the taxpayer sees a return through better outcomes, greater accountability and safer, longer-lasting infrastructure.
Local content requirements also drive higherquality procurement outcomes. If we want to build a modern economy – one capable of meeting the challenges of energy transition, population growth, and global competition –we must build it with high standards, not just low costs.
A call for policy reform
Weld Australia is calling on all levels of government to act immediately to protect Australia’s fabrication industry by implementing the following critical measures:
• Enforce mandatory local content requirements on all government-funded projects, with explicit reference to Australian-fabricated steel.
• Mandate that at least 50-60 per cent of all steel
used in government-funded projects is fabricated locally by qualified, certified Australian welders, unless a genuine, documented exception applies.
• Require compulsory inspection of all imported fabricated steel prior to erection, to verify compliance with Australian Standards and protect public safety.
These measures are not radical. They are the logical next steps if we are serious about building a strong, safe, and sovereign Australia.
The human side of the story
Behind every welding and fabricated steel contract are real people – skilled tradesmen, engineers, apprentices, and business owners. When local work is offshored, we lose more than just economic activity, we lose capability, identity, and the opportunity to shape our own future.
It’s demoralising for local manufacturers to know that they’ve done everything right – invested in quality, trained our staff, supported apprentices –and still can’t compete with low-cost imports that don’t face the same requirements.
Weld Australia members across the country
report similar stories. Talented people leaving the trade. Workshops forced to reduce headcount or shutter their doors entirely. Young people unsure if a career in fabrication has a future. These are consequences we can – and must – avoid.
We can’t afford to wait
The resurgence of Australian manufacturing is underway. The energy transition, infrastructure investment, and defence spending offer unprecedented opportunities. But these opportunities must not be squandered by outdated procurement practices and an over reliance on offshore supply chains.
By enforcing quality standards, inspecting imported products, and backing local industry, we can futureproof our economy, ensure infrastructure safety, and give the next generation of Australian tradespeople a reason to stay and grow.
We can do this. But we must act now before another workshop shuts its doors, another apprentice is turned away, and another taxpayerfunded project becomes a missed opportunity. Let’s build it right. Let’s build it here.
INDUSTRY UPDATE
New $112.6 million pet food factory takes shape
Minister for Industry and Advanced Manufacturing
Colin Brooks visited Wodonga to inspect progress on Mars Petcare’s $112.6 million expansion of its pet food manufacturing facility.
The new 7,800 square metre fit-out will enable Mars to produce more than 290 million single-serve cat food pouches each year for the Australian and New Zealand markets, across popular brands such as Whiskas and Dine.
“We’re proud to back Mars’ expansion
in Wodonga, which is boosting advanced manufacturing, creating local jobs, and strengthening regional Victoria’s role in Australia’s pet food supply chain,” said Brooks.
Supported by Victorian Government investment, the expansion will create around 60 new jobs, increasing Mars’ Wodonga workforce to nearly 500 people.
It will also bring cat food pouch production onshore, with operations at the new facility
expected to commence early next year.
The expanded factory is set to enable Mars to meet the growing demand for trusted pet food brands and the rising rate of cat ownership in Australia.
Mars Australia’s Wodonga facility – originally opened in 1967 – is the largest Mars Petcare supply site in the Asia-Pacific region.
Within two years, the site is also planned to become the first of its kind in Australia to operate using a 100 per cent renewable energy solution.
The Western Australian Government has allocated $100 million in the 2025–26 State Budget to freeze TAFE WA course fees in 2026.
This investment supports the government’s commitment to ensuring all Western Australians have access to affordable, high-quality training – no matter where they live.
“We recognise that TAFEs play a vital part in growing our state’s workforce, ensuring they are wellskilled for the jobs of tomorrow,” said WA premier Roger Cook.
“Our Made in WA plan will continue to diversify and strengthen the economy, meaning there will be local jobs for these well-trained students when they graduate.”
TAFE fee settings will remain unchanged in 2026 for both fee-free and low-fee courses, helping to increase training opportunities across the state.
As of the end of April 2025, there have been:
• 28,464 enrolments in fee-free qualifications and skill sets; and
• 35,010 enrolments in Lower fees, local skills courses, which reduce fees by up to 72 per cent.
WA TAFE fee settings will remain unchanged in 2026 for both fee-free and low-fee courses.
This investment is boosted by an additional $21.9 million to expand access to fee-free training in the building and construction sector.
Through the Made in WA plan, the State Government is driving growth in key economic
sectors – including housing, renewables, clean energy, advanced manufacturing, and defence. It is doing so by investing in the next generation of skilled workers, as well as those seeking to upskill or reskill.
Mars’ $112.6 million expansion in Wodonga is set to produce more than 290 million cat food pouches annually.
Image: Kyta
$16.5 million in Defence Industry Development Grants revealed
Among grant recipients is manufacturer of counter-drone technology, DroneShield.
The first round of the Defence Industry Development Grants program has concluded, with 58 grants totalling $16.5 million awarded to Australian Defence suppliers across four key streams: export, skilling, security, and sovereign industrial priorities.
Recipients include Nu Metric Manufacturing, Black Sky Aerospace, DroneShield, Alfatron, Elysium, AML3D, Arex, and Australian Performance Vehicles.
“This investment by the Federal Government in
local businesses and jobs will provide vital support to people who are making a critical contribution to our national security and a future made in Australia,” said minister for Defence Industry, the Hon Pat Conroy MP.
“The new Defence Industry Development Grants initiative creates one cohesive program, contributing to a stronger and more resilient sovereign defence industry that is able to meet the challenges of the future.”
These initiatives include producing components for submarines, aerospace, guided weapons, and explosive ordnance programs.
Grant funding will support the production and acquisition of an array of components and enable workforce upskilling in areas such as rocket motors, armoured vehicles, radar and surveillance systems, communications, drone and counter-drone technologies, robotics, submarines, and cyber security.
More than 200 employees in defence businesses are set to receive new technical training through the skilling stream of the program. Several companies will upgrade their physical, personal and cyber security capabilities to meet Defence requirements under the security stream.
Under the sovereign industrial priorities stream, four businesses – based in South Australia, Queensland, Western Australia, and Victoria – have each received $1 million to support manufacturing projects.
The competitive program remains open for applications year-round and offers matching grants of 50 per cent through to 2028.
For the full list of grant recipients, visit: https://www. minister.defence.gov.au/media-releases/2025-05-23/ albanese-government-investment-defence-industryprovides-critical-support-local-manufacturing-jobs
Hanwha Defence Australia (HDA) appoints new CEO
Ben Hudson has been appointed CEO of Hanwha Defence Australia (HDA).
Hudson brings experience from both Europe and Australia, positioning him well to lead HDA as it progresses with defence projects. These projects include the LAND 8116 Phase 1 Protected Mobile Fires (Huntsman family of vehicles) and the Redback Infantry Fighting Vehicle (IFV) under LAND 400 Phase 3.
“I am pleased to be joining the team at HDA during such an important point of the company’s growth,” Hudson said.
“With this leadership transition, we are strengthening our commitment to supporting the growth of Australia’s defence industrial base and further enhancing the nation’s sovereign capabilities,” added Mike Coulter, CEO of Hanwha Aerospace Global Defence.
Hudson is a veteran of the Australian Army and has held senior roles at BAE Systems, Rheinmetall, and General Dynamics.
His leadership is expected to support the company’s continued expansion in Australia.
Outgoing acting managing director Dean Michie, who will now take on the role of general manager corporate, welcomed the appointment after serving in the acting role for the past 12 months.
Locally manufactured trains one step closer for NSW
The NSW Government has launched industry engagement for its Future Fleet Program aimed at replacing the ageing Tangara trains by early 2027.
The program includes a target for at least 50 per cent local content in the design, construction, and maintenance of around 450 new suburban passenger carriages. The initiative is expected to generate thousands of skilled jobs and boost the state’s economy.
Transport for NSW has commenced a market analysis and engagement campaign to consult with manufacturers and suppliers. The goal is to gather insights, identify key considerations, and shape future engagement as the program progresses.
“NSW had a long and proud history of rail manufacturing, and we are delivering on our commitment to revitalise the industry and create new jobs and economic opportunities,” said Camilla Drover, Transport for NSW deputy secretary of Infrastructure Projects and Engineering.
“By establishing a rail manufacturing pipeline, we will start the critical work of
rebuilding skills and confidence in our manufacturing capability.”
Sydney Trains chief executive, Matt Longland, emphasised the legacy of the Tangara fleet and the importance of its replacement.
“The Tangara fleet was built in Newcastle and has served us well for more than 35 years,” he said. “We want to ensure our future fleet will stand the test of time and support local jobs and local manufacturing.”
Ben Hudson has been appointed CEO of Hanwha Defence Australia as the company advances key defence projects.
Image: Hanwha Defence Australia
The NSW Government plans to replace its ageing fleet with locally manufactured trains under its Future Fleet Program.
Detmold Group to relocate
The Detmold Group has announced plans for a new global headquarters at Regency Park in South Australia. The three-level, 3,500 square metre facility is set to unite up to 240 employees from eight sites across Brompton, Hindmarsh and Regency Park under one roof by the end of 2026.
Staff from the Detmold Group’s corporate functions, including Detpak, PaperPak, Detmold Medical and Cup & Carry, will relocate to the new head office, located alongside existing manufacturing and warehousing facilities. The headquarters will be delivered in partnership with fellow South Australian family businesses: builder Centina and architects Studio Nine.
Designed for connection and comfort, the building will feature open-plan workspaces, breakout zones, formal and informal meeting areas, on-site parking, end-of-trip facilities, and a café opening onto an outdoor terrace designed to accommodate all-staff town halls. The incorporation of green design features is set to enhance natural lighting, ventilation, and shading, supporting energy efficiency, wellbeing and overall comfort.
Detmold Group CEO, Sascha Detmold Cox, said the Group’s new headquarters represents a strategic investment in the future of the Detmold Group.
“Purpose-built with sustainability, collaboration and employee wellbeing in mind, our new corporate home integrates contemporary design with environmentally responsible solutions and an open-plan layout that supports collaboration and innovation,” she said. “Bringing our Detmold family under one roof will help foster stronger connections, knowledge sharing, and a unified culture aligned with our core values.”
The Detmold Group manufactures paper and board-based packaging products.
Demtold Group produce a variety cups, cartons, bags, napkins, trays, wraps and more for the food service, retail, and industrial sectors.
A crusader for Australian caravan manufacturing
Manufacturers’ Monthly explores how Crusader Caravans is using advanced composites and a streamlined manufacturing line to deliver high-quality caravans.
Founded in 2001, Australian manufacturer of caravans, Crusader Caravans, has been through a journey of ups and downs to reach its current brand presence within the industry. Known for its lightweight composite material vehicle structure, the company prioritises a focus on innovation, quality and durability to deliver a range of products – from luxury tourers to offroad adventurers – that provide comfort, safety, and performance.
While currently manufactured using advanced construction techniques in a modern facility, Crusader Caravans emerged from humble beginnings through pure grit and determination. In 2016, when the company’s current business and executive structure came together, it was producing little caravans a week from an antiquated Victorian facility in Dream Haven,
Epping. While proud of the hard work and capability that went into the facility, managing director Michael Paidoussis said a 2022 move to a new purpose-built facility was essential for the company’s growth.
“We were really proud of the Dream Haven facility because we grew from seven vans a week up to 20 vans a week,” said Paidoussis. “However, our new facility in Chadderton Boulevard, Epping is purpose-built for us and is 17,500 square metres, with 15,000 square metres under cover.”
Paidoussis said the facility has the fingerprints of colleague and general manager of operations, Erkut Fevzi, all over it. Fevzi – who has a passion for manufacturing production running through his blood – dreamed the company would one day operate in a facility such as this.
“The amount of work Erkut put into building
and purpose-designing this facility for lean manufacturing was a credit to him,” said Paidoussis.
Thriving in an environment built for productivity
Fevzi emphasised the advantages that Crusader’s current facility has over its former.
Crusader previously used batch production, with multiple vans on the line and teams working on each simultaneously. This wasn’t where the company needed to be to reach an efficient manufacturing capability.
“Manufacturing like that causes excessive downtime, lots of waste, and you don’t have capability or control in your manufacturing process,” he said.
In response to this, Fevzi used a value stream
Images: Crusader Caravans
The appearance of the company’s caravans is “unmistakably Crusader”, both externally and internally.
mapping lean tool to understand suppliers, inputs, processes, outcomes and get the company’s operations where they need to be. This resulted in the design of its current production line as a continuous flow, one-piece production line.
“Think automotive – think Ford, Holden, Toyota – it’s one big assembly line with a designed cycle time, where the line moves at a scheduled sequence all the time,” he said. “We may be the first OEM to introduce a continuous flow assembly line into caravan manufacturing.”
This production line, alongside a more spacious facility, has resulted in 22 workplaces totalling 181 people on the production floor that together produce one caravan every 54 minutes.
“That 54-minute cycle translates to eight caravans a day – we’re producing 40 a week right now, with plans to ramp up to 50 by September,” said Fevzi. “Each workplace is designed to complete all work activities and component assembly in that time.
“We’ve set up supermarket racking with all parts at the workstations, so operators can spend nearly 100 per cent of their time building caravans.”
The 54-minute cycle includes building the furniture, conducting electrical work and assembling the roof and walls. Crusader has developed numerous processes to be able to achieve a rapid production cycle that isn’t easy.
“To be able to do this efficiently, we’ve had to design lots of sub-assembly stations that are offline,” he said. “That gives you the ability to produce parts and assemble them to a certain point where they can stay in WIP (Work in Progress) or your buffer stock.
“A team of material handlers will then get that material and support that production line to move in the allocated time all day.”
Paidoussis agreed, saying to address and keep up with this complexity began in the line’s design phase, which required a detailed theoretical analysis of every assembly at each workstation, followed by determining the right labour components.
“There are basically 500 parts that go into every caravan. It’s a very complex process because it’s very different from cars. There are increasing levels of automation, but it’s still very much done by hand,” he said. “The theoretical
analysis ensures that by the time you perform the operations, it cannot exceed 54 minutes.”
Emphasis on quality control and waste minimisation
Alongside a scrutinised production line, Fevzi insists that quality control and safety assurance is also a top consideration. To ensure a high level of Quality Assurance and Quality Control (QAQC) is maintained, Crusader utilises statistical process control tools. This allows the Crusader team to identify issues and which station they originate from.
“Once we understand what those defects or recurring issues are, we can identify which workstation those defects are coming from and why my quality management system hasn’t detected that recurring problem,” he said.
Once this data is provided, the team scrutinises everything that is critical to quality at each of the workstations in question – focusing on certain assessable aspects.
“We assess it in terms of severity, recurrence, and whether there could be a critical safety issue to the customer – like brakes, fires, gas, electrical
The current range of Crusader caravans includes five different vehicles that are catered to different consumer preferences.
MANUFACTURER FOCUS
compliance,” said Fevzi.
This standard inspection process sheet is now automated and digitised on iPads, enabling operators and QAQC coordinators to carry out inspections at every single workstation.
“Any rework or defects that are detected – we have full traceability on them,” said Fevzi. “We know what the issues were, which products they came from, and what corrective actions we need to take to fix them.
“By the time it gets to station number 22, we want the rework list to be addressed and actioned.”
Alongside QAQC, the company also looks to minimise waste as a part of its focus on lean manufacturing. This involves understanding how different wastes from transport, inventory and downtime could be reduced.
“If a van hasn’t been built to a certain standard, I know that process will have some form of waste. We then start understanding what the bottlenecks are – whether it’s people, not enough labour at a workstation or the supply chain,” said Fevzi. “We look at all of that waste every single day in order to ultimately minimise it.”
Another waste minimisation strategy surrounds locking in the exact specification of what a caravan looks like to ensure the sustainability of materials. Fevzi said this is due to several factors that prevent the loss of stability and control that comes the moment you start changing a product or process.
“As soon as a new model is designed, it goes through extensive R&D and validation processes. Once we’re satisfied with the results, we lock that product specification in and that doesn’t change for another 12 months,” he said. “We want control
over our product, design, and materials so we don’t deviate from the market specification given to our customers.
“And most importantly, we want to achieve a really sustainable and efficient production line.”
Scrutinising production to result in innovation
The emphasis put on this production line ultimately ensures the quality, safety and sustainability of the manufacturing process. Far from a traditionally built caravan, Crusader Caravans are national pioneers of complete composite construction. This reality started just before COVID, as the company launched a revamped Compact Recreational Vehicle (CRV) range.
“The key differentiator is the fact that they were fully composite, which wasn’t necessarily the norm in Australia but had been in Europe for many years,” said Paidoussis. “Before that, we had been working with composite materials, but not the entire van. For example, the roof was composite, the floor was composite – but the walls weren’t.”
Managing director of Crusader Caravans, Michael Paidoussis, has seen Crusader Caravans grow since 2001.
Crusader Caravans’ home in Chadderton Boulevard, Epping, is a 17,500 square metre purpose-built facility.
Paidoussis said the composite structure poses many advantages in size, strength, weight and thermal efficiency. This results in a product that is more fuel efficient and is more suited to maintaining a comfortable temperature.
“Think about where composites are used – take aerospace, for example. If it’s good enough for airplanes, it’s good enough for caravans,” said Paidoussis. “We’ve made a number of innovations to make our product even stronger and more durable than most composite manufacturers out there.
“Composites are the future of caravanning.”
Fevzi added that another benefit of the composite structure is its resistance to rotting. If a leak or water ingress penetrates a wall or roof of a traditional timber or stick-and-tin van, over time the material will rot and result in faults.
“With composite construction, you’ve got an extruded polystyrene core and an external and internal fibreglass skin. Even if there is water ingress, the van won’t rot,” he said.
Crusader Caravans offers a range of fi ve caravan models with this structure, from compact CRVs ideal for first-time towers to the value-focused Lifechanger range designed for practicality. For those seeking comfort and style, the Musketeer and Excalibur lines provide luxury features, while the rugged Cross Country range caters to offroad adventurers.
Laying the groundwork for what’s next
Crusaders’ Caravans are set for an exciting few months ahead, beginning with the company’s attempt to take home the ‘Excellence in Caravan and RV Manufacturing’ award at the Caravan industry Victoria awards. A win here would be
monumental for the company, however Fevzi insists that the company’s place as a finalist three times in the last fi ve years is a reward in itself.
“It’s the reward for all the hard work, the pain, the problems, the issues,” he said. “This journey hasn’t been easy, especially moving from an old brownfield site where we were producing 20 vans a week. We’ve doubled productivity from 20 to 40 vans a week, and we did that within 12 months.
“There were lots of lessons learned, lots of issues, lots of weekend work, lots of overtime. My team went through a really challenging time where they were stressed and overworked. But they stayed on the path – they believed in the vision.”
Another development in the company’s pipeline is its appearance on a renowned televised program. This will see Crusader’s Designer Series showcased on Better Homes and Gardens, a recognition of the caravan’s quality and appearance.
“The Designer Series has been put together by interior designers,” said Paidoussis. You get the ruggedness needed for taking the caravan offroad, but that doesn’t mean you have to rough it internally. You still get a beautiful interior akin to a luxury apartment.
“It’s reached the point now where we’re being asked – and will accept – to be in Better Homes and Gardens. They’re going to feature our interiors because they believe they’re so beautiful.”
Driven by purpose precision, Crusader Caravans is reshaping the way Australia builds and experiences caravans. From one-piece composite structures to an optimised production line, innovation remains the road forward for the company.
Crusader Caravans’ production line consists of 22 workplaces and 181 people that together produce one caravan every 54 minutes.
RSM MANUFACTURING PLAYBOOK: WHERE EXPERTISE MEETS
A sector at the crossroads of innovation, pressure, and promise
Louis Quintal, national manufacturing leader at RSM Australia, outlines how the manufacturing sector must navigate FY2025-26 by balancing modest growth and innovation with rising costs, workforce gaps, and global uncertainty.
Australia’s manufacturing sector is entering the 2025–2026 financial year with cautious optimism, tempered by persistent structural challenges and global uncertainty. While government initiatives and technological advancements are driving transformation, the sector must navigate rising energy costs, workforce shortages, and geopolitical volatility to remain competitive.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), the manufacturing sector employed approximately 902,000 people at the end of June 2024, a one per cent increase from the previous year. Industry Value Added rose from $132.6 billion to $134.8 billion, reflecting a 1.6 per growth – a modest but positive sign amid broader economic stagnation.
However, earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation for manufacturing declined by $3.6 billion, highlighting profitability pressures. This contrasts with sectors like construction and professional services, which saw stronger growth.
Energy costs and decarbonisation: a balancing act
Energy remains a critical concern. The sector is heavily reliant on stable and affordable energy yet faces rising costs and policy uncertainty. The Australian Energy Statistics show that electricity prices for industrial users rose by 6.3 per cent in 2023-24, driven by supply constraints and the transition to renewables.
The Federal Government’s “Future Made in Australia” initiative is providing grants and incentives aimed at fostering green manufacturing practices. These efforts support projects focused on waste reduction, carbon-neutral production, and the adoption of advanced sustainable technologies. For manufacturers, this represents both an opportunity and a challenge.
While these incentives offer a pathway to modernisation and competitiveness in global markets, the transition to greener operations requires substantial upfront investment, which could strain already tight profit margins for smaller enterprises.
It’s also worth noting that industry leaders continue to emphasise the importance of a
cohesive national energy strategy to complement these sustainability efforts. Without this strategy, including provisions for long-duration energy storage, diversified renewable sources, and grid reliability, manufacturers face heightened risks of energy insecurity. The lack of affordable and stable energy options hampers their ability to plan for long-term growth and adopt energy-intensive innovations, such as hydrogen fuel cells and large-scale battery systems.
The ripple effects of this energy uncertainty are significant. Manufacturers reliant on high energy consumption – such as those in chemical production, food processing, and heavy machinery – may be forced to cut costs elsewhere, potentially impacting workforce growth, research and development efforts, or operational expansion. For manufacturers to fully leverage government incentives, policymakers must address these systemic gaps to ensure that the sector can thrive in a changing energy landscape while maintaining resilience against economic and geopolitical pressures.
The skills gap widens
The sector’s digital transformation is being slowed by a widening skills gap. Roles such as robotics engineers, data analysts, and CNC machinists are among the hardest to fill. The ABS reports that job vacancies in manufacturing rose by 8.2 per cent year-on-year, with many positions remaining unfilled for months.
Key challenges include high training costs, limited access to upskilling opportunities for SMEs, and employee resistance to change.
To address these issues, manufacturers are encouraged to form partnerships with TAFEs and
Australia’s manufacturing sector is undergoing a critical transformation, with many key priorities emerging to navigate the challenges of FY2025–26.
universities to better align educational curricula with industry needs.
Investing in simulation-based training and virtual reality tools can enhance workforce capabilities. Furthermore, leveraging government grants for workforce development provides an opportunity to bridge the skills gap and prepare employees for the sector’s evolving demands.
Investment trends
Investment in the manufacturing sector has seen notable growth across several strategic areas. Advanced manufacturing technologies, including robotics, artificial intelligence (AI), and 3D printing, are revolutionising production processes by boosting efficiency, precision, and competitiveness in global markets. These innovations are not only enabling manufacturers to meet evolving consumer demands but are also reshaping traditional practices, making them more adaptive to modern challenges.
Green manufacturing is another critical focus area, driven by the global shift toward sustainability. Companies are increasingly developing low-emission products and implementing circular economy models, which emphasise waste reduction, recycling, and responsible resource use. This transition aligns with broader environmental goals and positions manufacturers to tap into the growing demand for eco-friendly solutions. However, such initiatives often require substantial capital investment and long-term commitment, posing challenges for smaller enterprises aiming to stay competitive.
Workforce development remains central to these efforts, as industry demands for skilled labour continue to outpace availability. Upskilling
programs, supported by both public and private funding, play a pivotal role in bridging this gap. Collaboration with educational institutions, virtual training technologies, and governmentsupported initiatives are helping equip workers with the skills necessary to thrive in a rapidly transforming sector.
Additionally, research and development is receiving heightened attention, particularly in materials science and process optimisation. Breakthroughs in these fields promise to unlock new efficiencies, reduce manufacturing costs, and create innovative solutions that set companies apart in competitive markets.
The National Reconstruction Fund, initially proposed as a $15 billion injection into the sector, has faced criticism for its slow implementation and uneven allocation. While the program was designed to provide robust support for vital projects, stakeholders have expressed concerns that much of the funding remains unutilised. The Coalition has suggested reallocating remaining funds to targeted infrastructure development and tax incentives, which could potentially yield faster and substantial benefits for manufacturers seeking to modernise their operations and enhance their market presence.
Supply chain resilience and localisation
The COVID-19 pandemic and geopolitical tensions have exposed vulnerabilities in global supply chains. In response, manufacturers are reshoring operations and investing in local suppliers. Sub-sectors such as food processing, medical technology, and renewable energy are leading this shift.
Digital supply chain tools – such as predictive analytics and real-time tracking – are being adopted to improve resilience. However, challenges remain including high logistics costs, limited domestic supplier networks and regulatory red tape.
Strategic priorities for 2025–2026
Embracing Industry 4.0 technologies, such as advanced robotics, AI, and the Internet of Things is essential to enhancing operational efficiency and driving innovation. Workforce development should focus on fostering lifelong learning and implementing training programs aligned with industry needs to address skills shortages and prepare for future demands. Energy resilience must also take precedence, with investments in renewable energy diversification, storage solutions, and sustainable practices that mitigate risks associated with policy fragmentation. Additionally, manufacturers must engage in policy advocacy, pushing for cohesive, longterm industrial strategies that integrate energy, education, and infrastructure reforms. By adopting these measures, the sector can build robust foundations for resilience while positioning itself to play a pivotal role in the nation’s economic prosperity.
A sector in transition
Australia’s manufacturing sector is not just adapting – it is evolving. With the right mix of innovation, investment, and policy support, it can become a cornerstone of national resilience and prosperity. But this requires bold leadership, strategic foresight, and a commitment to longterm reform.
RSM Australia helps manufacturers grow through business advisory, tax, and digital solutions.
Integrated welding cobots arrive in the South Pacific
Lorch South Pacific has launched its next-generation welding cobots, offering manufacturers a smart solution to Australia’s skilled labour shortages and rising demands for precision and quality.
As the regional arm of German manufacturer Lorch Schweißtechnik GMBH, Lorch South Pacific provides high-quality arc welding solutions across Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific. The Australian-based subsidiary offers advanced MIG, TIG, and electrode welding systems, refined since the founding of its German parent company in 1957. Lorch South Pacific helps deliver optimised products with European precision, durability, and energy efficiency alongside local support, training, and service.
“It’s premium quality and German-engineered technology that’s locally backed and supported,” said managing director of Lorch South Pacific, David Wilton.
In line with its mission, the company has launched a new range of welding collaborative robots (cobots) that integrate Lorch’s power source, welding equipment, and Cobotronic software with the UR10e cobot from Universal Robots (UR). Wilton insisted that Australia’s highmix, low-volume manufacturing model presents an environment where these “cobots come into their own”.
“Cobots fit our industry well because they allow lower-skilled operators to achieve high-quality
welding results,” he said. “You don’t need a robotic engineer to run a cobot system – a good welder can manage multiple cobots and still be hands-on in the workshop.”
These user-friendly robotic welding systems are a response to key industry trends. While fewer people are entering the welding trade, customer expectations are becoming more demanding and precise.
“Welding automation is certainly a growing sector, and I think it’s being driven by a clear shortage of welders,” said Wilton. “There’s also increasing pressure on quality requirements – more consistency, more guarantees of quality and integrity.
“We’re not going to stop welding – we just have to find new ways to do it, and automation is a key solution.”
While Wilton emphasised that more automation is vital to the future of Australia’s welding industry, he noted that as a nation, Australia has fallen well behind in welding technology adoption when compared to other regions around the world.
“Across Australia, we’re miles behind in adopting cobots, industrial robotics and automation in general. It’s sad because we’ve got so much capability, but something is holding us back,” he said.
To overcome this reality and adapt to the growing role of automation technologies within the industry, Wilton believes businesses must be proactive in their investments and decision-making. This requires looking beyond a reliance on third-party investment to make a move.
“It seems like companies are more likely to move forward with automation if there’s a government grant involved,” said Wilton. “That mindset – only investing when the funding comes from elsewhere –isn’t really the way it should be.”
Differentiating a product of the future
In line with this proactive attitude, Lorch’s welding cobots present a trusted way for Australian manufacturers – particularly small to medium-sized enterprises – to address workforce and quality challenges. This trust emanates from the Cobot line’s fully integrated and proven systems built on a relationship that dates back over a decade.
“Over ten years ago, the owner of Lorch Schweißtechnik identified cobot systems as a game changer for the world,” said Wilton. “From here, the owner aligned the company with Universal Robots with a high-end alliance in the welding space to codevelop the best fully integrated welding solutions.
“Lorch knows welding and automation, and UR knows cobot technology. When those two come together, you get a fully integrated, best in class welding systems.”
With the two companies working closely together to achieve the best possible integrated solutions comes the elimination of a middleman. This differs from many cobot systems, which Wilton said are put together from various parties with numerous operating systems.
“The key is to align with a strong brand and make sure there’s local backup and support,” said Wilton. “It’s not about today – it’s fi ve years from now. When something goes wrong with the Cobot, who do you call that’s going to repair it in 24 hours? That’s what matters.”
Translating integration into versatile performance
Lorch’s welding cobot system has numerous features that help deliver high-quality, flexible, and safe automated welding. These include plug-and-
Image: Lorch
South Pacific
Using arc seam tracking and seam pilot Lorch cobots can produce a premium quality result.
play integration, intuitive programming through Cobotronic software, and compatibility with MIGMAG and TIG processes. The systems also have advanced capabilities including arc seam tracking, seam pilot lasers, fume extraction, multi-pass welding, customisable linear slide tables, and integrated turntables. A large part of enhancing welding performance and quality, however, comes from Lorch’s power source.
“What you’ve got with Lorch is a German-made, advanced digital waveform control technology machine that’s at the highest possible level for manual welding,” said Wilton. “The welding quality and performance are at the highest level of weld integrity, with all the advanced capabilities you’d expect from a high-tech power source.”
Lorch’s cobot system also has a wide range of configuration options to ensure that businesses can tailor it to specific application needs and volumes. The cobot’s core purpose is to be a flexible and easily programmable way to handle different kinds of small to medium production runs. This makes it well suited to typical Australian manufacturing processes, with systems such as industrial robots more suited to high-volume production, as seen in the automotive industry.
“A small to medium enterprise is generally broad in what it does, and that’s exactly where cobot fits,” said Wilton. “These businesses aren’t building hundreds of thousands of parts – they’re doing a job one month and something completely different next month.
“Using advanced features like through-the-arc seam tracking and seam pilot, the system can produce a premium quality result and is very easy to set up and program.”
The systems also include unique, proprietary welding processes – like SpeedUp – designed for
out-of-position welding and SpeedPulse XT for high speed Pulse welding.
“With the SpeedUp process, you don’t need sophisticated jigs, fixtures or tooling – you can weld vertically up, out of position and SpeedPulse XT is for high-speed Pulse welding delivering premium, high productivity welding,” said Wilton. “That kind of process delivers real cost savings across the entire system.”
Given that these are complex systems, Lorch offers training and ongoing support for companies that may find implementing cobot welding daunting or challenging. This is facilitated by a strictly trained and accredited distribution network that provides an initial three-day training program upon installation and delivery of the machines, alongside ongoing training.
“We’re very selective in picking capable people. They’ve been trained either in Germany
or Australia,” said Wilton. “We’ve got dealers in pretty much every Australian state who can set up systems and demonstrate.”
So far, Wilton said the majority of the cobot systems sold in Australia have ended up in general fabrication and some into the defence sector, something he noted as a large validation of the quality and performance Lorch offers.
Facilitating further innovation
Building on its high-performance welding equipment, Lorch has also undergone an exciting acquisition by billion-dollar Japanese conglomerate Daihen Corporation. Wilton believes the acquisition is a “match made in heaven”, bringing together the best in industrial robotics and welding power source technology.
“Daihen Corporation is the biggest industrial welding robot producer and supplier in the world,” he said. “Now you’ve got dozens of high-level R&D engineering teams in Japan and Germany that are working together to develop the next generation of industrial welding automation systems.”
Backed by German engineering, local support, and a growing global partnership, Lorch South Pacific continues to help Australian manufacturers embrace the future of welding automation. With a clear focus on integrated welding cobots, the company’s technology presents a solution to rising quality demands and a shrinking skilled workforce.
“In the cobot space, Lorch is the real deal,” said Wilton. “There’s not much we can’t do in this space, and we will continue to push the boundaries.”
If your interested in talking further about cobot welding and would like to arrange a visit from one of Lorch’s Cobot partners to see how they can drive your shop floor productivity, reach out to david.wilton@lorch.eu
Lorch’s welding collaborative robots integrate Lorch’s power source, welding equipment, and Cobotronic software with the UR10e cobot from Universal Robots.
Lorch has been acquired by Daihen Corporation, opening up opportunities with now sister company and industrial robot manufacturer, OTC.
PRODUCT SHOWCASE:
Celebrating ten years in the testing industry
Test Machines Australia marks a decade of innovation under its current name, building on more than 25 years of industry experience. To celebrate its 10th anniversary, the company is unveiling a range of new products designed to meet the evolving needs of the testing
High Capacity Compact Electronic Compression Tester
Engineered to deliver up to 600kN of compression force within a compact footprint, this new model offers a leak-free, maintenance-free alternative to traditional hydraulic systems. With whisper-quiet operation and precision speed and force control, the tester ensures accurate and repeatable results. Full PC integration allows for reporting, including Excel export
Compact Desktop Universal Testing Machine
Designed for educational and laboratory environments, this 500N-capacity universal tester combines a space-saving design with robust functionality. It offers complete PC control, flexible programming, and seamless desktop reporting, making it ideal for training and low-force testing applications.
Expanded Custom Machines and Fixtures Division
Test Machines Australia has grown its custom design division, offering bespoke testing solutions tailored to any requirement. From one-off fixtures to custom-built systems, the team provides tools to unlock the full potential of universal testing machines – ensuring they live up to their name.
Images:
Test Machines Australia
ADVANCED MANUFACTURING
Advancing manufacturing for local industry
APS Industrial’s new Adelaide Manufacturing Centre is one of the industries most advanced manufacturing facilities, combining Siemens ACB customisation, automated machining, and cutting-edge engineering software.
APS Industrial’s Manufacturing Centre in Adelaide forms a new Australian benchmark for advanced manufacturing, value-add devices and customised solutions.
By combining the latest hardware and software technologies, APS has successfully leveraged digitalisation to set a benchmark in speed, efficiency and performance. Whether it is ACB adaptation or print services, through to terminal rail assembly or automated panel assembly, APS pride themselves on their value-add services within the facility. The company understands that to be competitive in the local industry, its customer base needs high levels of customisation and delivery.
Designed to meet those demands, the facility supports local industry by reducing lead times and costs and showcasing digitalisation to improve competitiveness and quality, as well as increasing their capacity to supply DBs and ACBs. The centre also features a world first in Siemens Air Circuit Breaker (ACB) customisation via a Siemens-certified ACB Adaptation Centre – the first non-Siemens facility worldwide to adapt and assemble Siemens air circuit breakers.
Through this facility, APS Industrial, alongside their manufacturing partner Siemens, have contributed to South Australia’s Advanced Manufacturing Strategy. Housing a portfolio of local technology and equipment, the enhanced local capability includes:
ACB adaptation
ACBs are a critical component of energy transition across industries. They help provide a safe power supply, protecting valuable equipment at manufacturing sites, built environments, mine sites, commercial buildings and any other infrastructure requiring a safe and secure source of electricity. This facility will enable APS to accelerate the delivery of Siemens SENTRON ACBs to switchboard builders and electrical contractors who install and serve the Australian and New Zealand markets. By adapting and assembling Siemens air circuit breakers locally, APS Industrial achieves up to a 50 per cent reduction in delivery times to the Australian market.
By combining the latest hardware and software technologies, APS’ new facility has set a benchmark in speed, efficiency and performance.
DB manufacturing floor
APS Industrial also offers a complete family of ‘DB’ distribution boards that are custom designed for the demands of Australian industry and feature advanced technology and innovation. The ‘DB family’ of distribution boards are exclusive to APS Industrial and purpose-built for compatibility with Siemens circuit breakers. The DB Ultimate, within the DB family of distribution boards, features a unique removable one-piece assembly that enables full assembly and wiring independent of the enclosure itself. This feature provides flexibility in design, assembly, installation, commissioning and future retrofitting.
Automated drilling and machining
The on-site Rittal Perforex Milling Terminal at the facility accelerates throughput times when machining anything from the smallest enclosures and enclosure panels through to large enclosures. Hole-drilling, thread-tapping and cut-outs in all machinable materials such as steel, stainless steel, aluminium, copper and plastic. Profitability and process acceleration from a batch size of just one.
Efficient engineering software
Further solidifying its role in the industry, APS Industrial has also announced its new agency agreement with Eplan. Eplan optimises processes across electrical, automation, and mechatronic disciplines. This partnership allows APS Industrial to provide advanced software solutions that streamline engineering tasks, enhance accuracy, and ensure compliance. This collaboration positions APS Industrial to apply Eplan’s capabilities on a large local scale in Australia, enhancing customer communication and workflow efficiency and transforming the engineering landscape.
These initiatives reflect APS Industrial’s commitment to supporting the Australian electrical industry’s local manufacturing capability. By focusing on innovation and efficiency, APS is contributing to a future where local manufacturing and engineering can thrive, ensuring that the industry remains competitive and responsive to the demands of a rapidly evolving global market.
To find out more about the newly opened APS Manufacturing Centre, visit https:// apsindustrial.com.au/manufacturing-centre
APS’ new facility reduces lead times and costs, improves competitiveness and quality, and increases capacity to supply DBs and ACBs.
APS Industrial offers a complete family of ‘DB’ distribution boards that are custom designed for the demands of Australian industry.
awards come when there has never been a more important time to champion local manufacturing and support those who drive the sector forward.
“Recognising innovation and leadership through
Returning with revamped categories, the 2025 Endeavour Awards better reflect the diversity of Australia’s thriving industrial sectors. Alongside prizes now synonymous with the ceremony like
devices, digital health platforms, biotechnologies, and pharmaceuticals.
• Innovation in Aerospace – Acknowledges advancements in aerospace technology,
Images: Prime Creative Media
including new materials, vehicle breakthroughs, applications, advanced manufacturing techniques, or digital solutions.
• Innovation in Food & Beverage Manufacturing – Recognises advancements that enhance food and beverage production, including innovative processing, packaging, automation, or sustainability solutions.
• Innovation in Transport – Highlights innovation in transport, focusing on enhancements in vehicle manufacturing, public transport, or sustainable mobility solutions.
• Leader of the Year – Honours a senior individual (executive, manager, director, or equivalent) in a private, not-for-profit, or government organisation who has effectively shaped their business’s success.
• Manufacturer of the Year – This prestigious award is chosen from the winners of the other award categories and is not open for direct nomination. Sponsors already confirmed for 2025 include Weld Australia, supporting the Technology Application Award, and BDO, sponsoring Leader of the Year Opportunities remain to support the celebration of excellence through sponsorship.
Lindo – A 2024 Endeavour Award standout
One example of standout innovation came from the 2024 Outstanding Start-Up Award winner, Lindo. The company develops UV-C and antimicrobial blue light technologies that eliminate up to 99.99 per cent of pathogens in air and on surfaces across healthcare, transport, and defence sectors.
“Lindo develops lighting systems to reduce the spread of disease and reduce the growth
of pathogens in enclosed spaces,” founder and CEO Robert Gangi said. “We use the power of antimicrobial blue light to reduce the growth of bacteria, viruses, mould, and fungi.”
Lindo’s 2024 victory marked its second consecutive Endeavour Award, following a win in 2023 for Safety Solution of the Year.
“It’s actually the second time I’ve been nominated for Endeavour. Someone from the Victorian Government put me onto it,” Gangi said. “The first nomination was for our disinfection chamber developed for Ambulance Victoria to use with patient stretchers.”
In 2024, the winning concept was LindoTube. Developed in response to ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) – a serious healthcare concern – LindoTube combines an endotracheal tube with antimicrobial blue light to reduce the condition’s mortality and morbidity.
“When you want to innovate, there needs to be a problem to solve. Then you have to develop the technology to solve it – and, importantly, someone needs to buy it,” Gangi said.
The device was Gangi’s “proudest project of the year” and led to a co-development agreement with the renowned Mayo Clinic in the United States.
“I’m not an engineer. I don’t come from a medical background. But having that outside view has allowed me – and now the team ¬– to create a pretty novel device,” Gangi said. “We’re now manufacturing a proof of concept for Mayo Clinic to test.”
Attending the 2024 ceremony was a rewarding experience for the team. While nervous walking in, Gangi said the award was a powerful recognition of the work behind the scenes.
“You try to back yourself, but anything can happen
on the night,” he said. “When we won, it was a just reward for the incredible work the team has put in. Everyone – from admin through to the engineers and advisory board – goes over and beyond. It was thrilling.
“It was great to share the moment with the team, to bring the plaque and the actual award back to the office. We’re proud of it, and it’s a great conversation starter when people visit.”
After back-to-back wins at the Endeavour Awards, Gangi encouraged fellow manufacturers and innovators to nominate, saying the process alone can uplift a team.
“Nominate yourself or other people – it can’t hurt.
Even just being in the running really boosts the team,” he said. “When you’re trying to manufacture, innovate, and create something novel, it’s hard work – and these little wins really help.
“I’ve seen it with my own team – it has put a pep in their step.”
Call to action
Don’t miss your chance to be part of Australia’s premier celebration of manufacturing excellence. Join us on 13 November in Melbourne as we honour the innovation, resilience, and leadership shaping the future of Australian industry.
“Now is the time to step forward and showcase the achievements shaping the future of Australian manufacturing,” Rocks said.
Whether nominating by Thursday 2 October 2025, event attendance, or sponsorship, we invite all industry leaders and associates to get involved via https://endeavourawards.com.au/ get-involved/
Lindo’s 2024 Outstanding StartUp win followed its 2023 Safety Solution of the Year award.
This year’s awards gala will take place in Melbourne on 13 November, starting at 6:30pm.
ENGINEERING FOCUS
Taking the sting out of vaccinations
Vaxxas’ needle-free vaccine delivery technology is gaining traction as it progresses through clinical trials on route to a proposed commercialisation date.
Founded in Queensland more than 13 years ago, Vaxxas is a clinical-stage biotechnology company advancing a novel, needle-free vaccine delivery platform based on its patented High-Density Microarray Patch (HD-MAP) technology. Smaller than the size of a postage stamp or mobile phone sim card, the HD-MAP features thousands of microscopic projections coated with vaccine that deliver it beneath the skin.
Chief technology officer at Vaxxas, Dr. Angus Forster, said that the technology presents a potentially more efficient, effective and accessible way to deliver vaccines. This includes overcoming challenges associated with needle-and-syringe vaccination, like hesitancy and cross-infection.
“It doesn’t have a needle, so for people with hesitancy around needle-based vaccinations, it removes anxiety from the process and makes it more patient and vaccinator-friendly,” he said. “By removing the needle, you also eliminate the safety risk of cross-infection from reused or improperly handled needles.”
Another barrier the technology is built to address is usability. Forster said the technology is designed to be simple and intuitive in nature, opening the opportunity for lower-skilled vaccine administration. This is crucial in hard-to-reach or low-resource settings where trained nurses or doctors aren’t readily available.
“We run extensive human factors and usability
studies to support use by lower-skilled personnel and for potential self-administration,” he said. “Our technology is ready to use and can’t be reused. It’s disposable, and comes pre-packaged – you just remove the seal, apply it to the skin, press the back, count to ten, and remove it. Vaccination complete.”
Additionally, by using a dried vaccine, the Vaxxas device potentially offers greater thermal stability than liquid formulations, helping to extend vaccine reach, minimise wastage, and simplify distribution.
“A liquid vaccine might be stable between 2 to 8°C, but our product can potentially be stable at 25 or even 40°C,” he said. “That enhanced thermostability allows for new distribution channels and reduces reliance on refrigerated transport.
“Also, mRNA-based vaccines need to be stored at -80 or -20°C, so our technology could help overcome distribution barriers for these vaccines in many low- and middle-income countries, without huge investment.”
Forster said the technology also has the potential to improve immunogenicity – a vaccine’s ability to produce an immune response within the body. It does this by delivering the vaccine directly into the immune cells in the skin.
“The skin is the body’s natural barrier. By targeting it, we can potentially use a lower dose of vaccine to get the same or even a faster and broader protective response,” he said.
Aside from the potential to overcome these barriers, cost efficiency is also a potential benefit of the Vaxxas technology. By eliminating hidden expenses tied to vaccine delivery in remote or resource-limited settings – like cold storage – and the need for trained personnel to administer injections, the system could reduce overall expenditure.
“A vaccine might cost $0.10, but the vaccination could cost many dollars once you factor in administration, logistics, and waste disposal,” said Forster.
Sustainability has also been a key consideration throughout the design of the device that itself removes the emissions associated with cold chain logistics and the need for sharps waste disposal.
“Potentially, the patch can be removed from the unit and disposed of separately, so the aluminium itself can be recycled like an espresso pod,” said Forster.
Proving the feasibility of a ‘game changer’
While these outcomes would be ideal for vaccine delivery, Vaxxas still needs to prove the outcomes in key non-inferiority and superiority trials against traditional needle-and-syringe delivery. So far, Vaxxas has conducted multiple Phase I clinical trials involving more than 500 participants, testing vaccines for diseases such as COVID-19, influenza, and measles and rubella.
Vaxxas’ 5,500-square-metre biomedical facility in Brisbane was born to demonstrate manufacturing scale to partners and advance the company from R&D to commercialisation.
Images: Vaxxas
“We’ve run fi ve first-in-human vaccine studies in Australia, involving about 500 to 600 participants across small early trials through to larger ones,” said Forster.
One of Vaxxas’ most important trials is underway with funding from BARDA (the United States Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority). This is the first U.S. IND-enabled Phase I clinical study for a HD-MAP pre-pandemic influenza vaccine, involving more than 250 participants.
“We’re now aiming to move into the next stage of clinical trials where we’ll assess the quality of the immunogenicity data and compare it with traditional needle and syringe delivery,” said Forster.
Another clinical study with global ties that Vaxxas is currently working towards is focused on The Gambia. This study will test the device’s suitability with a measles and rubella vaccine and is funded by the Gates Foundation.
“The Gambia study will be in paediatric populations and managed by the Medical Research Council in The Gambia, with Vaxxas supplying the product,” said Forster. “For lowand middle-income countries, ease of use, thermostability, lower cost, and potentially needing less vaccine per dose could be game changers.”
The Vaxxas device was developed to overcome numerous challenges associated with needle-and-syringe vaccination, like hesitancy, crossinfection and expensive cold chain storage and distribution requirements.
The foundation of a potentially global entity
Despite its global potential, Vaxxas’ technology began like many start-ups – in a research lab at The University of Queensland’s Australian Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology. Once enough preclinical data was obtained there, the team raised the finance needed to form what is now Vaxxas in September of 2011. Forster joined Vaxxas in 2012 after being approached to become the company’s first employee focusing on the early stages of commercialising its technology.
“The company had huge potential to transform lives around the world and to make vaccines more efficient, more effective, and more accessible –but it was still pretty early days,” he said.
The company’s original investors included two Australian venture funds, one international investor, and The University of Queensland’s commercialisation group UniQuest. Since then, the company has grown through a series of different studies, investments, and milestones. In 2015, the company moved into the Translational Research Institute to prepare for its first clinical studies. Then operations started to heat up in 2020 during the COVID pandemic, when “vaccines suddenly became everybody’s favourite word”. In this period, Vaxxas received significant investment from the Queensland and Australian
Government to drive growth and development of the technology.
“Our focus expanded from generating strong clinical data and running late-stage clinical studies to also figuring out how to manufacture the technology at scale,” said Forster. “It’s essential to make it scalable and commercially accessible to compete with comparators like needles and prefilled syringes.”
Adopting this commercial mindset required developing solutions to manufacture the needlefree alternative at scale to be readily available to big pharma.
“You have to be able to produce tens or even hundreds of millions of doses annually, particularly for pandemic preparedness, stockpiling, and global rollout,” said Forster. “That’s what we’ve been working on for quite a while.”
An
evolving
capability a decade in the making
Since 2012, Forster’s team has scaled manufacturing and secured funding from global philanthropies, pharma giants, and governments that have led Vaxxas to its new 5,500-square-metre biomedical facility in Brisbane. Now pushing toward Phase II and Phase III studies, the facility was born to demonstrate manufacturing scale to partners of the company.
Chief Technology Officer at Vaxxas, Dr. Angus Forster, has been at Vaxxas since 2012.
ENGINEERING FOCUS
“Our new Brisbane manufacturing and R&D facility is just outside Hamilton on the Northshore,” said Forster. “We’ve got about 160 staff working across R&D and commercialisation.”
This purpose-built facility has seen the company bring together medical device production and pharmaceutical process ideologies to create a demanding manufacturing profile for what are complex devices with numerous intricate components. The production of the devices sees manufacturing split into two parts – the device component – which includes the patch and applicator – and the pharmaceutical component, when the vaccine is added to the patch.
On the device side, the applicator is made using scalable low-cost technology and sealed packaging, whereas the patch itself is slightly more complex.
“Most of the parts are made from scalable, low-cost technologies – aluminium for the shell, moulded plastic components,” said Forster. “The patch itself features microprojections moulded by a long-term partner in Singapore.”
This manufacturing output for the devices themselves is currently manual, but is set to reach an impressive number that will grow as plans develop and the company transitions to a fully automated assembly and production line.
“We’re developing an automated process that can assemble components into a unit under clean but not sterile conditions,” said Forster. “We’re working with automation companies in Switzerland to scale that up.”
The manufacture of the pharmaceutical component is currently exclusively manual and takes place in a Grade A/B cleanroom environment, although Forster explains Vaxxas is progressively approaching automation of this process too which sees the vaccine added to the patch and sealed to lower risk.
“Highly trained operators work in an aseptic zone to handle the vaccine solution, following strict SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures) and passing competency testing,” said Forster. “The manual process supports volumes of about 500 to 1,000 units a day, sufficient for early-stage clinical studies.”
The next step is a semi-automated process that could take the current capability from 1,000 to about 10,000 units per day. While this number could support late-stage clinical trials or small product launches, the ultimate goal is to scale processes to increase capacity to around 60,000 units per day. This would require a further capability upgrade.
“We’d need to construct a new building for a fullscale manufacturing line – it would be near our site, but require major investment,” said Forster.
A dedicated control on product quality
Forster emphasised that while manufacturing scale is a considerable challenge, so is the demonstration of what is being produced. This includes a range of criteria a product must meet when being released to market, like sterility, endotoxin, and activity.
“Every time you have a new product embodiment, you’ve got to find new processes to manufacture and new ways of controlling that manufacture,” he said. “A lot of that is done through in-product testing, but you don’t want to waste a lot of products during a batch.”
To meet specification and prevent waste, Vaxxas prioritises having control of its manufacturing process quality. This includes using optical systems for drop dispensing onto the microprojections, a printing-based system for applying vaccine to the patch, and pump and electronic feedback to track liquid volume and determine how well patches should be coated.
The company is even starting to look towards how they can utilise AI technologies to learn and adapt analytical technologies to specific challenges.
“These manufacturing processes ensure we know exactly how much vaccine is on the patch and where, so we know the end-user is receiving the correct vaccine dose,” said Forster.
The company’s proprietary HD-MAP features thousands of microscopic projections that deliver a vaccine to immune cells beneath the skin.
Additionally, it’s important for Vaxxas to continually monitor the environment of manufacturing to make sure it’s clean, using touch plates and inline particle monitoring systems.
Actively pursuing a commercial end date
With commercial plans and manufacturing capabilities constantly evolving, Vaxxas has identified a 2028 date to reach its first product shipment, or ready for market, entry status. Forster said this depends on having all agreements in place.
“We’ve been operating since 2011, so it would be great to see this progress. But it’s a difficult business – long lead times are just part of it,” said Forster. “We’re working hard to meet that timeline, focusing on manufacturing scale-up and the TGA licence we need to move to the next stage. Once in place, we can complete the studies and push forward.”
Vaxxas has advanced its needle-free vaccine technology from concept to scalable production, supported by clinical data and global partnerships. As it enters larger trials and expands manufacturing, the company is more focused than ever on redefining vaccine delivery worldwide.
Vaxxas has around 160 staff working across R&D and commercialisation in its Brisbane facility.
The Vaxxas device comes pre-packaged – you remove the seal, apply it to the skin, press the button, count to ten, and remove it. Vaccination complete.
AUSTRALIAN MADE WEEK
Championing a sovereign manufacturing capability
Fresh from Australian Made Week 2025, chief executive of the Australian Made Campaign Limited, Ben Lazzaro, joined Manufacturers’ Monthly’s Jack Lloyd to explore the ongoing success and importance of the campaign in championing sovereign manufacturing.
Held from 19 to 25 May, Australian Made Week returned in 2025 to spotlight the role of Australian manufacturing in strengthening the nation’s economy and identity. The week served as a reminder for many Australians of the ongoing importance of buying local and supporting domestic industries wherever possible. Chief executive of the Australian Made Campaign (AMCL), Ben Lazzaro, was impressed at how the week-long celebration was able to build off and improve on a successful 2024 outing.
“Every Australian Made Week gets bigger than the last, so we’re really happy and satisfied with how the week went,” he said.
This year’s national celebration of local craftsmanship, innovation, and resilience was notably fronted by Australian Olympic swimming champion, Ariarne Titmus. Lazzaro said he and his team were enthusiastic by Titmus’ Australian Made Week presence that ultimately kicked off at its launch at Volvo Group’s facility in Brisbane.
“Volvo named an Australian-made Volvo truck
‘Arnie’ after her, and she drove in with it in the green and gold colours – that was a highlight,” he said. “Ariarne Titmus was a wonderful ambassador who really aligned with our values of hard work and determination.
“She had a close association with a number of the businesses that make and grow things in Australia, and that came through in the way she conducted herself in interviews.
“We’ve had great ambassadors – Jessica Mauboy and Ash Barty were fantastic in the
Held from 19 to 25 May, Australian Made Week returned in 2025 to spotlight the vital role of sovereign manufacturing and growing. Images:
last couple of years, and this year Arnie was exceptional. We continue to align with highquality individuals who embody our values.”
According to Lazzaro, a particular source of traction and engagement during the event week surrounded social media. This coverage included AMCL’s own Australian Makers video series as well as online championing of Aussie products by influencers.
“All our social media activity centred on looking for the logo and championing your local businesses – your local makers and growers,” he said. “We received a lot of great feedback through our digital channels, and we shared many stories from our licensees.
“Our Australian Makers video series took people behind the scenes to show how things are made and helps consumers understand more about what goes into making Australian products.”
Lazzaro also said government involvement as a highlight.
“We had government involvement towards the end of the week with the new minister for Industry and Innovation, Tim Ayres. He participated alongside Arnie at the closing event, which was a business Sydney breakfast,” he said. “We were very pleased.”
A week spent addressing a cause vital to Australia
For a campaign event that celebrated Australian manufacturers and growers for seven whole days, Lazzaro said there were several standout stories that emerged as a part of Australian Made Week 2025. Some of these stories even featured on a platform with a reach to capture a majority of the nation.
“We featured a number of businesses during the week through a whole range of stories on The Today Show, where we championed our Australian makers,” he said.
One industry that was on display during the week and often flies under the radar is the sovereign manufacturing of trucks. At the front and centre of this was one of the industry’s leaders in Volvo Group and its subsidiary, Mack Trucks.
“You’ve got Volvo and Mack Trucks being made in Queensland – they’ve produced more than 80,000 trucks out of that facility,” said Lazzaro.
“Not only are they making a product that many thought wasn’t being made here anymore, but they’re employing hundreds of people.
“They’re now going to be making electric trucks here in Australia in line with a recent partnership with Linfox.
“That was a great company to champion. They’re constantly looking to the future.”
A second example of a company that embodies the values of Australian Made Week was Nissan Castings, which launched its association with AMCL during the event.
“They’re making tow bars and other components for a range of automobiles that are ultimately made overseas. They’re employing hundreds of people and doing a great job out in Dandenong,” said Lazzaro.
Additionally, another new licensee on board with AMCL was Capral Aluminium. Lazzaro noted that despite being in its infancy, the relationship between both parties is a “very strong one”.
“Their participation in Australian Made Week was fantastic. They were one of our panellists at the Friday event with minister Ayres and Business Sydney. They made a wonderful contribution,” he said. “There’s a lot going on in the aluminium
Chief executive Ben Lazzaro (left) and Olympic champion Ariarne Titmus were present as Australian Made Week kicked off at Volvo Group’s facility in Brisbane.
AUSTRALIAN MADE WEEK
space globally, so it makes perfect sense that businesses within domestic markets would want to tell everyone they are indeed Australian.”
Yet, the focus wasn’t entirely on industrial products. While Lazzaro admitted that industrial products are perhaps best at illustrating the ‘Australian made’ point to certain audiences within sectors like manufacturing, for a broader social awareness, spotlighting everyday consumer goods are largely beneficial.
“Manufacturing comes in all shapes and sizes, and the more consumer-focused elements of the campaign highlight health and beauty products, pet products, sporting goods – things that people can buy every day,” he said. “Our logo is registered across all 34 classes of goods, so our job – particularly during Australian Made Week – is to drive home the point that we make things across all sectors.”
An example of a left-field business featured throughout the week was Summer Land Camels.
“They aren’t necessarily an industrial or B2B business, but they’re making all sorts of health and beauty products from camel milk,” said Lazzaro. “It’s an interesting Australian-made business that’s selling products all over the world.”
A week reliant on collaboration
For a week with countless moving parts, Lazzaro said that collaboration – between manufacturers, retailers, attendees and government agencies – was integral for success.
“The hurdle isn’t in building enthusiasm for Aussiemade – it’s in coordinating efforts, bringing everyone together, and making sure there’s enough opportunity to go around for everyone who wants to get involved,” he said. “Media interest, industry partners – whether they’re business groups or industry associations –everyone really gets behind Australian Made Week. “Additionally, attendees at all the events have been nothing but positive. People genuinely like to get behind locally made and locally grown products.”
While AMCL undoubtedly spearheaded the campaign week, Lazzaro emphasised that partners who shared their stories, and manufacturers who opened their doors to host events, were to thank for bringing it to life.
Ariarne Titmus got behind the wheel of Australian-made Volvo truck ‘Arnie’ as it dawned the iconic green and gold colours.
Nissan Castings’ association with AMCL was launched as a part of Australian Made Week.
“This year, we increased collaboration with partners and licensees,” said Lazzaro. “For example, Harvey Norman really pushed an Australian Made sale during Australian Made Week, which was a huge boost for the campaign. Harvey Norman is incredibly passionate about Australian-made products, especially bedding and furniture.”
Lazzaro said that these factors have resulted in positive early indications – from metrics like social platform views, website visits, and engagement – that show the week will easily exceed last year’s results.
“The numbers are looking strong thanks to increased collaboration and growing interest in what we’re trying to achieve at Australian Made,” he said. “Every year the campaign is growing.”
Looking to a sovereign future
Looking to the future of what is becoming a week synonymous with the Australian manufacturing calendar, Lazzaro insists that the AMCL team will continue to approach the annual event enthusiastically. With a financial commitment and funding support from the government, Lazzaro envisions next year’s campaign to be “quite the showstopper”.
“Every year we build more, get better, and deliver a stronger program. With this unprecedented government support, we’re really enthused about what we can achieve – not just during Australian Made Week but throughout the entire year,” he said. “We will be better resourced than ever before to truly fly the flag for Aussie manufacturers.”
In finishing, Lazzaro insisted that Australian Made
Week, and AMCL, are at the heart of an important message to the nation’s future – “having sovereign manufacturing capability is absolutely paramount”. This message is one that he believes is quickly becoming obvious to many people.
“There are clear indicators that underline the need to be able to make things in Australia –especially essential products linked to logistics or other critical aspects,” he said. “We saw it coming out of COVID, and we’re seeing it again with the complicated trade arrangements evolving globally.
“It’s pleasing to see that understanding is starting to cut through – not just with those of us in the business, but with everyday consumers and other business owners too. The bottom line is manufacturing matters.”
Running alongside the campaign week, Harvey Norman ran an Australian Made sale.
INDUSTRY COLLABORATION
‘Passing’ the spotlight to QLD manufacturing
A new partnership between the Queensland Government and the North Queensland Cowboys is set to promote careers and regional talent in manufacturing.
For the 2025 NRL Women’s Premiership, the North Queensland (NQL) Cowboys return to the field in Townsville with a renewed sense of purpose. Alongside their courage and skill on the field, the team is a part of a new message aimed at driving Queensland’s manufacturing future.
“The Queensland Government has partnered with the North Queensland Toyota Cowboys to use their strong community connection and growing female fanbase to get more women thinking about careers in the manufacturing sector,” said QLD Minister for Manufacturing, Dale Last.
The initiative follows an April announcement of a partnership between the Queensland State Government and the NQL Cowboys. The campaign is an extension of Queensland’s Women in Manufacturing initiatives that aim to showcase the achievements of manufacturing trailblazers and open new doors to career pathways and regional business development.
“Queensland women are kicking goals in manufacturing, and the best way to encourage more women into the industry is by promoting the trailblazers,” said Last. “There are exciting career opportunities for women and girls, designing and
The campaign will amplify its message through in-stadium commercials, match-day and digital promotions and player appearances.
Townsville contributes around $1.3 billion to the State’s economy.
making products that solve real-world problems.”
This collaboration aims to harness the energy and reach of the NRL to inspire more women to pursue careers in one of the state’s most critical sectors.
Among those leading by example is Cowboys NRLW player Makenzie Weale, who off the field works as a qualified diesel fitter.
The message will be amplified to a broad regional audience throughout the season using a range of in-stadium commercials, match-day and digital promotions, player appearances, community engagement, and an on-field activation.
“Our aim is to attract and retain more women in the industry. There are lucrative, stable, and exciting
career opportunities for women in the manufacturing sector,” said Last.
The Cowboys will lead the campaign’s publicfacing efforts with match-day promotions, community engagement, and support through in house programs. North Queensland Cowboys chief executive, Jeff Reibel, said the partnership’s shared focus on initiatives that improve women’s economic opportunities excites him.
Why manufacturing, why now?
The partnership comes with the QLD Government’s recognition of manufacturing as one of the state’s biggest industries, contributing almost $27 billion to
the state’s economy annually. Townsville itself is a large piece of this puzzle.
“Townsville is the third biggest manufacturing region in Queensland (by Gross Value Add) and contributes around $1.3 billion to the State’s economy,” said member for Townsville Adam Baillie.
“From food and textile production to high-tech robotics or servicing the defence and aeronautical sectors – Queensland and Townsville manufacturers do it all.”
To further consolidate the importance of manufacturing to the state, this partnership is aimed at complementing its current workforce, which at current is 25 per cent female.
“About 180,000 Queenslanders work in manufacturing – but only a quarter of them are women,” said member for Mundingburra Janelle Poole. “We want that number to grow because the result will be greater innovation and productivity, not just in Townsville, but across Queensland.”
While the 2025 campaign focuses on the North Queensland region, the Government’s broader Women in Manufacturing Strategy suggests that initiatives could roll out across the state in future.
With the Townsville Manufacturing Hub already in place, this partnership is set to help further solidify Queensland’s future by harnessing the exposure of sport to inspire the manufacturing industry.
Cowboys chief executive Jeff Reibel, Cowboys player Makenzie Weale, and Minister of Manufacturing, Dale Last.
One of Cowboys’ own NRLW players, Makenzie Weale, is a diesel fitter herself.
WORLDSKILLS UPDATE
Honouring Australia’s top skill competitors
The 2025 WorldSkills Australia National Championships & Skills Show brought together more than 600 of the nation’s top young competitors in Brisbane for a record-breaking celebration.
Australian skills and trades showcase –the 2025 WorldSkills Australia National Championships & Skills Show – wrapped up in mid-June. The event drew record crowds and awarded the nation’s best young apprentices, trainees and students with medallions that celebrate craftsmanship and unity. One of the largest National Championships in WorldSkills Australia’s 44-year history, the 2025 event shined a national spotlight on the role trades and skills play in Australia’s economic future.
“This has been one of the biggest and best National Championships in our history – and a true celebration of what’s possible when young people, educators, government, and industry come together to back skills,” said WorldSkills Australia CEO, Trevor Schwenke.
Held at the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre from 12-14 June, the event drew more than 35,000 visitors, who witnessed more than 600 competitors from every state and territory go headto-head across more than 60 skill categories.
“Brisbane was an incredible host, and it was fantastic to walk the floor and witness the outstanding level of competition, as the nation’s best young skills talent gave it their all,” said Schwenke.
“Their passion was inspiring and I’m sure many visitors are now considering where a vocational career could take them.”
Manufacturing had a large showing at the event, with the Manufacturing & Engineering Technology cluster showcasing numerous sectors, including:
• Additive Manufacturing;
• Construction Steel Work;
• Electrical Control;
• Fitting;
• Industry 4.0;
• Mechatronics;
• Sheetmetal Technology;
• Turning;
• VETiS AR Welding;
• VETiS Metals & Engineering; and;
• Welding.
This year’s event was supported by the Queensland Government, TAFE Queensland and a nationwide network of industry, education, and community partners.
“We’re grateful to the Queensland Government, TAFE Queensland, our partners and the entire Brisbane community for embracing this event and helping us raise the profile of vocational education nationally,” said Schwenke.
Taking home the top honours
After three days of competition, New South Wales was crowned the overall winner, topping the medal tally with outstanding results across multiple categories.
Among the standout achievements were the following top awards:
• Best of Nation – Lily-Grace Toohill, Victoria –Jewellery, recognised as the highest-performing competitor across all categories.
• VETiS Shield – NSW, awarded Best Performing State for Vocational Education and Training in Schools.
• Evatt Shield – Melbourne East Region, awarded Best Performing Region.
Competitors who excelled in WorldSkillsrecognised international skill categories may now have the opportunity to be selected to join Team Australia, better known as ‘The Skillaroos’. Here, they will represent the nation at the 48th WorldSkills International Competition in Shanghai, 2026.
“I congratulate our latest medallists and all
New South Wales was crowned the overall winner of the 2025 WorldSkills Australia National Championships & Skills Show.
competitors who gave up their free time to hone their skills, and who put themselves forward to compete at the highest level, on the country’s biggest skills stage,” said Queensland Minister for Finance, Trade, Employment and Training, Hon Ross Bates MP.
A showcase of skill, dedication and possibility
Alongside active competitions, hands-on Try’aSkill stations proved a drawcard for students, families and career seekers. Additionally, thousands visited the co-located Brisbane Careers and Employment Expo to connect directly with training providers, industry leaders, and employers.
International interest was strong, with more than 60 Asia-Pacific delegates attending as part of a global knowledge exchange hosted by TAFE Queensland. Representatives from China and TimorLeste also took part as special international guests, highlighting the collaborative spirit of the program.
On the tools and in the spotlight
While the event was undoubtedly a success, it was the competitors who brought it to life. One such competitor was Jack Sheehan, representing Tasmania in Sheetmetal Technology. For Sheehan, the event was not only a great chance to meet new people and share ideas, but also to refine essential trade skills.
“Training for the competition’s really helped me focus on the key elements of the trade – the small things you don’t always think about, but that can make a big difference to the quality of your work,” he said. “I’ve already seen how much that attention to detail helps on the job.
“The skills I’ve picked up along my journey have come in handy outside of work too – I’ve helped
some mates out with their projects, and I even built an outdoor kitchen for my mum.”
Cody Harrington, who represented Queensland in Turning, said he found the opportunity by chance when seeking diesel fitting work experience due to his passion for tinkering and fixing things.
“Then my workplace happened to be looking for turning apprentices at the time. I ended up doing a few trial days and it just clicked – I knew straight away it was what I wanted to do,” said Harrington. “The training for the National Competition’s been tough, but I enjoy pushing myself and learning how to get things right down to the smallest detail. It’s a career that really rewards precision and problem-solving, and that’s what I love about it.”
Cooper Thonely, who represented the ACT in Welding , said his passion began at school, where he discovered a love for making things with his hands and working with metal.
“I’m really keen to carve out a career in fabrication, and I always try to produce the best quality work I can. WorldSkills has been a great way to push myself and connect with others in the industry,” he said. “The whole journey has opened my eyes to what’s possible in this field — and I’m ready for it.”
The 2025 WorldSkills National Championships was more than a competition — it was a showcase of dedication, talent, and the bright future of Australia’s skilled trades. As the next generation of professionals rise, events like this reaffirm the critical role of vocational education in building the nation.
The National Championships had a dedicated Manufacturing & Engineering Technology cluster.
Welding was on display alongside other manufacturing skills like additive manufacturing, construction steel work, electrical control, mechatronics and more.
Competitors who excelled in WorldSkills-recognised international skill categories may now have the opportunity to be selected in The Skillaroos.
Images: WorldSkills Australia
COMMENT
Lab22: advancing metal additive manufacturing in Australia
Lab22, CSIRO’s specialist facility for metal additive manufacturing, is driving Australia’s next phase of industrial innovation through cutting-edge equipment, advanced materials, and collaborative initiatives.
Lab22, owned and operated by CSIRO, Australia’s national science agency, is dedicated to introducing Australian industries to metal additive manufacturing. Located at CSIRO’s Clayton site in Melbourne, Lab22 was established to enable companies to explore additive manufacturing opportunities and assess their viability for their business operations. The lab has now been operating for a decade.
Over that time, metal additive manufacturing – known commonly as 3D printing – has gained traction in Australia, with several companies
integrating the technology into their internal processes. Additionally, multiple companies now offer additive manufacturing as a commercial service. In response to this growing adoption, CSIRO has been enhancing Lab22’s capabilities over the past two years, shifting its focus toward next-generation additive manufacturing equipment and optimised feedstock materials.
A $45 million partnership between universities and CSIRO is supporting the advancement of unique capabilities in precise manufacturing, thanks to the Australian Government’s Trailblazer Universities Program.
Materials optimised for additive manufacturing
During Lab 22’s early life, companies were open to adopting either a new manufacturing process with existing materials or new materials within traditional manufacturing methods. They were reluctant to simultaneously introduce two unknowns. Historically, alloys were developed to optimise properties for specific conventional manufacturing techniques such as rolling, forging or casting – none of which were tailored to the rapid cooling rates and heat cycles characteristic of additive manufacturing.
DR DANIEL EAST, GROUP LEADER ADVANCED MANUFACTURING AND METALS, CSIRO
Lab22 helps Australian industries explore metal additive manufacturing at CSIRO’s Melbourne-based facility.
Images: CSIRO
However, as additive manufacturing transitions from an emerging technology to a widely recognised process, industries are increasingly requesting alloys specifically engineered to take advantage of the conditions experienced during additive manufacturing.
To address this demand, CSIRO, in collaboration with the Resources Technology and Critical Minerals Trailblazer initiative, has invested in two pieces of advanced equipment: the Tekna Tek15 spheroidiser and MarkForged PX100 medium format binder jet 3D printer. This equipment is unique in Australia with the PX100 being only one of three globally.
High-resolution, cost-effective manufacturing
Tekna Tek15 Powder Spheroidisation Plant converts non-spherical powders – such as those produced through crushing or water atomisation – into spherical powders optimised for additive manufacturing.
The MarkForged PX100, a binder jet additive manufacturing tool, takes the powders produced by the Tekna Tek15 to produce small, geometrically intricate components to medium sized objects. This process involves depositing a layer of powder into the build chamber, after which a binder print head selectively applies a binder to form the geometry of the part being designed. The initial component, known as the “green part,” is subsequently transferred to a sintering furnace for final processing. This technology supports both metal and ceramic applications.
For components and applications where sintering is an appropriate manufacturing method, binder jetting may serve as a cost-effective and precise additive manufacturing solution. Similar to other additive manufacturing techniques, binder jetting facilitates complex geometric designs through its layer-by-layer approach, eliminating the need for traditional dies or moulds.
Advancements in multi-material systems
Selecting materials for manufacturing components typically involves trade-offs due to multiple performance requirements. Engineers must balance properties such as lightweight
construction, high strength, wear resistance, thermal conductivity and temperature endurance. Historically, these challenges are mitigated by producing separate components from different materials or incorporating specialised coatings. However, new investments in Australia are opening up brand new opportunities in the space.
In partnership with the iLaunch Trailblazer initiative, CSIRO has installed a Selective Laser Melting (SLM) multi-material laser powder bed system. This system features a 280mm by 280mm by 350mm build volume and enables the fabrication of complex geometries using a combination of two distinct alloys. Additionally, the system incorporates a magnetic separator for unmelted powder separation.
Initial trials have focused on high-temperature applications where copper alloy cooling channels are integrated into the hot side of the part, while steel alloy is used on the cold side to enhance mechanical strength.
Furthermore, CSIRO, supported by the Defence Trailblazer, has implemented a robotic laser wire/powder deposition system – the largest additive manufacturing cell within CSIRO’s facilities ideal for large-format 3D printing and prototyping using multi-material inputs. This system accommodates builds up to 3m by 1.5m in diameter, with a maximum weight exceeding 1000 kg. It precisely controls heat input, ensuring optimised microstructure in the deposited material. Additionally, using standard welding wire as feedstock enhances cost efficiency and deposition rates.
A second robotic system, equipped with a laser powder deposition head, applies protective layers to enhance heat and wear resistance.
And the build manipulation system enables 360-degree rotation and 180-degree tilting, facilitating complex multi-material fabrication processes.
Paving the way for the next phase of additive manufacturing
Through these advancements, CSIRO is positioned to drive the next evolution of additive manufacturing in Australia, transforming it into a mainstream industrial process.
CSIRO is actively engaged with the above Trailblazer programs and the soon-to-launched Additive Manufacturing Cooperative Research Centre. Interested parties are encouraged to connect with CSIRO directly or engage with these organisations for further access to facilities and expertise.
Read more about CSIRO’s Lab22 at https:// www.csiro.au/en/research/technology-space/ it/Lab22.
CSIRO’s binder jet additive manufacturing equipment is designed for producing small, intricate components.
Industries are increasingly seeking alloys engineered for the unique conditions of additive manufacturing processes.
EVENTS: WOMEN IN INDUSTRY AWARDS
Reflecting on a celebration of women in industry
The 2025 Women in Industry Awards was a night to remember for many who gathered in Melbourne to celebrate the contributions and achievements of women across various industrial sectors.
Last month, crowds spanning across various industries gathered at The Carousel in Melbourne to celebrate the 12th annual Women in Industry Awards. The event celebrated the achievements of exceptional women across numerous sectors within Australian industry. These sectors included manufacturing, engineering, mining, energy, transport, logistics, bulk handling, waste management, rail, construction and infrastructure.
The gala event evening shined the spotlight on those who have demonstrated exceptional leadership, innovation, and commitment to fields that span a variety of different operational roles. The night saw many different awards presented to remarkable individuals.
Awarding achievements with recognition
At the top of the extensive list of awards presented during the gala dinner was the Excellence in Manufacturing 2025 award. This award placed a particular emphasis on individuals who have made stand out contributions to their manufacturing business and the wider manufacturing community. After a splendid year, Naomi Elliot, co-founder of personal care product manufacturer, Concept
Labs, took home the award. She was particularly excited and proud to do so.
“This recognition reflects the work of my incredible team at Concept Labs, a family-owned and operated, women-led cosmetic manufacturing company based on the Sunshine Coast,” said Elliot. “For over 27 years, we’ve helped brands bring their ideas to life through quality, purpose-driven Australian manufacturing.
“For me, manufacturing is not just about processes. It’s about culture – a culture where women can lead confidently, where innovation is values-led, and where success includes impact, not just output.
“Thank you to Women in Industry for recognising leadership that’s inclusive, future-focused and redefining what’s possible.”
Next, the awards placed a particular emphasis on recognising individuals who work actively to improve safety within their industry. This recognition saw one of manufacturing’s own Mandeep Singh, take home the Safety Advocacy Award. Singh is the OH&S manager at Ego Pharmaceuticals, an Australian manufacturer of skincare and dermatological products.
“I’m truly honoured and deeply humbled to receive this award. Standing here among so
many accomplished and inspiring individuals is a moment I’ll treasure for a very long time,” said Singh. “I’m very lucky to be working for a very progressive company such as Ego Pharmaceuticals, where I started my health and safety journey.
“I’m very proud to represent Ego, and I’d like to also thank my incredible team – most of whom are here. You’ve challenged me, lifted me up. Every one of you, I’m truly grateful to celebrate this award with you.”
Another relevant category was this year’s Excellence in Engineering award. Taking home the prize that acknowledges individuals who have demonstrated leadership in engineering, technological excellence, and innovation, was Stacey Daniel. This milestone celebrated Daniels’ work as the founder of Board Presence, an organisation dedicated to providing boards, committees and directors with smarter solutions to optimise function and performance.
“It’s super exciting, and even better to be in a room of such amazing people – so much talent and lots of women, and especially those men who are here supporting,” said Daniel. “Thank you to Prime Creative Media and to all the sponsors for making tonight happen and for the award scheme, because
The gala event evening shined the spotlight on those who have demonstrated exceptional leadership, innovation, and commitment their in respective fields.
Images: Prime Creative Media
I think it is really important to be recognising the great efforts happening right across industry.
“The engineering profession is a really special one. It underpins the lifestyle we have, the way we live, and especially all of the industry.
“I’m really excited to see how industry caters for women these days, and how you can have a much better balance – not just for women, but for men who are parents as well.”
Beyond celebrating the industries driving Australia today, the gala also shone a spotlight on the brightest talents shaping its future. The 2025 Rising Star of the Year award acknowledged individuals who have shown significant promise within their chosen industry or who have reached new goals at the start of their career. The inspiring actions from Jennifer Clements, director of Consultex, took home this year’s award.
The evening ultimately culminated with the Women in Industry Awards’ ‘top gong’, the Woman of the Year award. Chosen from the winners of the other award categories, this particular award turns the spotlight to an individual whose contribution to their impacted industry can’t go unnoticed. To cap off an incredible night, the award was ultimately won by Tammy O’Connor from KingKira Group, a 100 per cent Aboriginal owned and operated business providing a range of safe, innovative services and solutions across the mining and resources sectors.
“Firstly, I’d like to acknowledge and thank my wife for coming and supporting me all the time, and always putting me on the straight and narrow,” said O’Connor. “It’s really good to stand here among all the other women and finalists. I think it’s important that women lead the industry.”
“Standing up here for the next generation means
a lot. Back in the day, growing up, my mum didn’t work, my grandmother didn’t work either.
“If my kids can get into the industry and see other girls and women in leadership – if they can see that women can do more than just the things we’re told we should be doing – that’s a big insight.”
The complete list of winners from the Women in Industry Awards 2025 are as follows:
- Business Development Success of the Year –Tammy O’Connor, KingKira Group
- Excellence in Construction – Isolde Piet, Suburban Connect
- Excellence in Engineering – Stacey Daniel, Board Presence
- Excellence in Energy – Suzanne Shipp, APA Group
- Excellence in Manufacturing – Naomi Elliott, Concept Labs
- Excellence in Mining – Becky May Felstead, Strong Minds, Strong Mines
- Excellence in Transport – Kirryn Crossman, SMEC
- Industry Advocacy Award – Eileen Breen, NTEX
- Mentor of the Year – Tash Fee, Clough
- Rising Star of the Year – Jennifer Clements, Consultex
- Safety Advocacy Award – Mandeep Singh, Ego Pharmaceuticals
- Woman of the Year – Tammy O’Connor, KingKira Group
A celebration facilitated by collaboration
Leading up to the awards night, the outstanding achievements and contributions made by these women were evaluated by a well-resourced panel of judges. This panel had representation from different associations and industry bodies including:
• Trades Women Australia
• Transport Women Australia
• Peter Norman Personnel
• RMIT University
• Women in Trucking Australia (WITA)
• iSTEM Co
• Austmine
For an event that showcased an array of excellence across Australian industry, the 2025 Women in Industry Awards owes much of its success to the support of its dedicated sponsors.
As a sponsor that has supported the awards night for over a decade, Atlas Copco Group continue to push for diversity and innovation within the many industries it serves. This year the company supported the Rising Star of the Year category, an award they believe to be vital in advancing gender equality in industry.
Another sponsor largely to thank is Fulton Hogan, a large infrastructure construction company based in New Zealand and Australia. Specialising in constructing and maintaining transport, water, energy, mining, and land development infrastructure, the company sponsored the Woman of the Year award. Additionally, with its rich 50-year history in the truck manufacturing industry, PACCAR Australia sponsored the Safety Advocacy Award at this year’s gala event. In line with transport, the final sponsor of the evening was woman-owned freight forwarding company, Keter. Known for its commitment to tailored logistics and service, the company supported the Excellence in Transport Award.
For another successful event, Women in Industry Awards shone a spotlight on the trailblazers redefining Australia’s industrial landscape. It was a powerful reminder that progress within these industries is driven by the dedication, innovation, and leadership of women across every sector.
Naomi Elliot, co-founder, Concept Labs, took home the 2025 Manufacturer of the Year award.
The 2025 Women of the Year award was won by Tammy O’Connor from KingKira Group.
Mandeep Singh, OH&S manager, Ego Pharmaceuticals, won the 2025 Safety Advocacy Award
We must fix one issue for a future made in Australia
AMGC’s managing director, Dr Jens Goennemann, explains that without a strong manufacturing base, Australia risks losing the very capability needed to build homes, create jobs, and secure its economic future.
Recently, I was listening to an address by the premier of New South Wales, Chris Minns, in which he said Sydney was a city without a future if the State failed to deliver more housing. He went on to say, “A city without young people is a city without a future, and the leading reason for that is we’re not building enough houses.”
While housing is crucial and the premier’s point is spot on, I believe New South Wales and the Nation at large faces a much more critical issue, one that means we risk not being able to build more homes, because we can’t make the basic materials required to support the industry in the first place. Moreover, we risk limiting employment and career opportunities to underpin the demand for housing and that is our ability to make things.
We hear that Australia is a lucky country, but the truth is we are squandering that luck by failing to turn potential into prosperity via manufacturing. Despite years of political speeches, policy papers, and promises, our country continues to fall behind where it matters most: the complexity, resilience, and sophistication of our economy.
The latest data from Harvard Growth Lab’s Economic Complexity Index (ECI) – which measures how advanced a country’s economy is based on the types of products it makes and exports – doesn’t lie. Australia has slid to 105th
place – down from 86th in 2019. We are now sitting between Botswana and Côte d’Ivoire. It’s a national embarrassment and it’s a warning. If we fail to fix this one issue, there is no Future Made in Australia.
And yet, we keep ignoring the one solution that could turn the tide: a more advanced capability to manufacture.
In June, prime minister Anthony Albanese laid out his second-term agenda at the National Press Club. He spoke about building national capability, investing in infrastructure, reducing emissions, and stabilising our place in the world. These are all important goals and none of these will be achievable without a strong industrial base.
Manufacturing is the spine of any advanced economy. It’s what transforms ideas into products – R&D into GDP, and potential into prosperity. In manufacturing, complexity is a feature – and complexity is what Australia lacks.
At AMGC, we have networked with more than 4,400 manufacturers – the majority are SMEs –who are proving that advanced manufacturing is viable in Australia, and it can thrive when given the right support.
These are local companies innovating and selling world-class products in med-tech, aerospace, food production, clean energy, and defence. They are
building things here, adding value here, employing Australians here.
But they are doing it despite their surroundings –not because of them.
Current government programs are slow, broad, and often out of reach for the small- and mediumsized enterprises that make up more than 90 per cent of Australian manufacturers. Many of these programs are geared toward big projects or generic innovation buckets. They miss the nuanced needs of real businesses trying to grow, export, and compete globally.
We hear a lot about co-investment. Yes, our manufacturers are ready to co-invest. But the current funding mechanisms are out of step with commercial reality, and time is money. If we can’t move fast enough to support businesses at the right moment, the opportunity is lost – either to overseas competitors or our domestic manufacturer moving overseas.
What frustrates me – and should frustrate every Australian – is that the solutions are not complicated. We know what works. We see it in other countries. We’ve seen it in our projects that mirror the success of those countries. When government partners with industry in a targeted, timely, and commercially minded way, we get results: productivity, exports, and sovereign capability.
AMGC has networked with more than 4,400 manufacturers who are proving that advanced manufacturing is viable in Australia.
Yet, Australia’s overall economic trajectory remains dangerously simplistic. Our top exports are rocks, energy, and services. Meanwhile, the countries that once looked to us for raw materials are climbing up the value chain – fast. China ranks 22nd in the Economic Complexity Index. Vietnam is rising rapidly. Australia is going backwards.
The prime minister speaks of resilience, security, and economic independence. All of these rest on manufacturing. Do we really want to be dependent on foreign supply chains for our medical equipment? Our defence systems? Our clean energy components?
Australia must choose: do we continue to rely on digging up stuff and hoping the price holds? Or do we back our brains, our businesses, and our builders?
I’m tired of hearing that we don’t make anything in Australia. We may not have a billion people, but we have ingenuity, resources, and proximity to the fastest-growing region in the world. What we lack is courage and conviction to let industry lead the way.
Most of all, we need to start treating manufacturing as the strategic asset it truly is and stop treating it as an industry to “save”.
Australia is not short on ideas. We are short on follow-through. That gap between invention and commercialisation – that’s our economic Achilles’ heel. If we don’t bridge it, someone else will – and they’ll take the jobs, the profits, and the IP with them.
Goennemann believes we need to start treating manufacturing as the strategic asset it truly is and stop treating it as an industry to “save.”
The prime minister’s vision of national strength is compelling. But that vision will ring hollow unless it includes the people who make things, sustain things, and innovate in sheds, labs, and workshops across the country.
AMGC supported Helimods to enhance its digital manufacturing capabilities to support international growth.
This is a necessity. A nation that can manufacture is a nation that can thrive. If we fail to fix this one issue, there is no Future Made in Australia and certainly no new houses to save Sydney!
DECISION MAKER COLUMN
BRENDAN CUMMINS, VICE PRESIDENT & GM, ANZ,
Building supply resilience for Australian healthcare
Brendan Cummins of Baxter Healthcare outlines how local manufacturing, digital innovation, and empowered teams are key to building a resilient supply chain.
If you or a loved one have ever visited a hospital room, there’s a good chance you have interacted with a Baxter bag of intravenous (IV) fluids. These are sterile liquids administered directly into a vein to replace or replenish bodily fluids and electrolytes. Tens of millions of bags of IV fluids are used each year across Australia and
New Zealand, most of which are manufactured at Baxter’s advanced manufacturing plant in western Sydney.
Australia’s healthcare sector depends on reliable access to essential medical products including IV fluids. Throughout my 20 years in the medical device and pharmaceuticals industries, I’ve
seen firsthand how critical supply resilience is to ensuring patients receive timely, quality care.
In an era marked by global uncertainty and rapid change, building a robust supply chain is not just a “nice to have,” it’s essential. At Baxter, our mission is simple: to save and sustain lives. To ensure we can do this, we’re delivering high-quality products for the patients and healthcare professionals who depend on us.
Understanding supply resilience
Supply resilience means more than simply weathering disruptions. It’s about anticipating challenges, adapting quickly, and recovering faster, whether the disruption is a natural disaster, a surge in demand, or a global event. Australia’s geographic remoteness adds complexity, often placing us at the end of long, intricate supply lines and increasing our vulnerability.
True resilience requires more than backup plans. It demands robust systems, flexible processes, and a culture that empowers people to respond decisively. At Baxter, we’re committed to strengthening every link in our supply chain to support patient care.
Investing in local manufacturing
Baxter has operated at its Toongabbie facility in western Sydney for over 50 years. Each year, we
Tens of millions of bags of IV fluids are used each year across Australia and New Zealand.
Baxter believes supply resilience is no longer a “nice to have” for Australian manufacturers, it’s a must.
Images: Baxter Healthcare
produce more than 60 million units of intravenous and irrigation fluids, supporting both Australian and New Zealand health systems.
Our end-to-end manufacturing process, transforming raw materials into sterile, readyto-use IV bags on site, gives us greater control and agility. This capability is vital for responding to changing healthcare needs and minimising supply interruptions.
In recent times, we’ve seen historically high demand for Baxter’s critical IV fluids, causing us to run our manufacturing lines to capacity. While we are actively expanding our manufacturing infrastructure, we have also implemented shorter term strategies to increase capacity to meet the growing needs of the healthcare sector.
By upgrading equipment, adopting preventative maintenance programs, and integrating advanced automation technologies, we can identify potential issues before they escalate and respond swiftly to operational challenges. These investments not only enhance the reliability and efficiency of our production lines but also provide greater flexibility to adapt to fluctuations in demand.
Our production team is using sensor data to implement 24/7 monitoring technology to help detect anomalies and predict maintenance needs. They do this by continuously collecting real-time data from critical assets, allowing AI-driven systems to detect early signs of wear or failure so that we can schedule maintenance proactively. This reduces unplanned machine downtime and improves overall equipment effectiveness.
Looking ahead, we also recently announced a $40 million co-investment with the Australian
Government to expand our production of IV fluids. This will increase the overall capacity of our Australian operations, enhance our ability to respond to future disruptions, and further strengthen Australia’s supply of IV fluids. Ultimately, a proactive approach to infrastructure investment helps us deliver on our commitment to supply continuity for healthcare providers and patients across Australia and New Zealand.
Harnessing technology and data
Resilience is not just about physical assets; organisations must also leverage advanced analytics and predictive modelling to gain deeper insights into the supply chain. These tools enable us to identify risks early and take proactive steps to prevent shortages or delays.
At Baxter, we’re exploring emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), to drive greater transparency, efficiency, and sustainability across our operations. By working closely with suppliers and partners, we’re building a more responsive and responsible supply chain for the future.
Empowering people and partnerships
Supply resilience is a shared responsibility, and at the heart of our supply chain are the people who make it work. Investing in training and development ensures our teams have the skills and confidence to respond to challenges. Baxter fosters a culture of collaboration, encouraging creative problemsolving and strong and dynamic relationships between our teams, suppliers and customers.
An example of this is our Total Productive Maintenance program, whereby our machine operators work alongside our maintenance engineers to build their understanding of the machines they operate day in and day out. Operators can then use this knowledge to take greater ongoing care of production equipment. It also enables them to better articulate an issue to the maintenance team if one arises. With limited resources available, this program saves many valuable hours across our operations. By working together with a strong culture of collaboration and accountability, we are building a resilient supply chain that not only withstands shocks but emerges stronger from them.
The benefits are clear
A resilient supply chain delivers tangible benefits:
• Better patient outcomes – products are available when and where they’re needed.
• Enhanced reputation – demonstrated reliability builds trust with customers and stakeholders.
Looking ahead
Supply resilience is no longer a “nice to have” for Australian manufacturers, it’s a must. As the industry evolves, so too must strategies for managing risk and ensuring continuity.
At Baxter, we’re proud to be at the forefront of medical manufacturing in Australia, investing in local manufacturing, embracing innovation, and empowering our people. As challenges grow more complex, so does our resolve. By prioritising resilience today, we are strengthening the future of healthcare in Australia and New Zealand.
By proactively upgrading equipment Baxter can identify potential issues before they escalate and respond swiftly to operational challenges.
Most of Australia’s supply of IV fluids is manufactured at Baxter’s advanced manufacturing plant in Toongabbie, Western Sydney.
APLEX announce fanless and compact industrial panel
Backplane Systems Technology has announced the APLEX AUHMI-816BP(H), a 15.6-inch industrial panel PC that is designed for factory automation and industrial environments. Powered by Intel Celeron processors, this compact panel PC is equipped with a 1 x 260-pin SO-DIMM DDR4 slot, supporting up to 32GB of 3200MHz memory for optimal multitasking performance. The flat front panel touch-screen includes an IP66-rated bezel, ensuring durability against dust and water, ideal for rugged applications.
Its fanless design and DC 9-36V wide-ranging power input enhances reliability and energy efficiency. Additionally, the AUHMI-816BP(H) supports expansion through M.2 E-key and B-key slots, allowing easy customisation for specific application needs. The TPM 2.0 hardware security
offers advanced data protection, a key feature for secure industrial operations.
Optional high brightness of 1,000 nits improves visibility, especially in high-light conditions, while easy assembly mounting kits streamline installation. With its robust construction, the AUHMI-816BP(H) is suitable for a variety of industrial applications, including smart manufacturing, process control, and real-time monitoring. This cost-effective, high-performance solution combines rugged design with modern functionality, boosting productivity and reliability in demanding environments.
Key features:
• 15.6-incg industrial compact size panel PC.
• Intel Celeron processors.
• 1 x 260-pin SO-DIMM DDR4 slot, up to 32GB 3200MHz.
• Flat front panel touch screen with IP66 front bezel.
• Fanless design.
• DC 9~36V wide-ranging power input.
• Support expansion via M.2 E-key and B-key slots.
• Support TPM 2.0 hardware security.
• Easy assembly mounting kits.
• High brightness 1,000 nits for option.
Contact
Backplane Systems Unit 14/12 Yatala Rd, Mount Kuring-Gai NSW 2080 (02) 9457 6400 www.backplane.com.au
New Vecow workstation-grade fanless embedded system
The Vecow’s ECX-3000 Series is a workstation-grade Edge AI platform built to tackle intensive computing and rugged deployments. Powered by 14th Gen Intel Core i9/i7/i5/i3 processors (up to 65W TDP), the ECX-3000 delivers high-performance processing for applications demanding real-time decisionmaking. With up to eight independent 2.5G LAN ports including 4 PoE+, and Intel UHD Graphics 770 driven by Xe architecture, it’s suitable for high-throughput, vision-based workloads like AMR navigation, machine vision, and multi-camera AI analytics.
Designed for industrial and in-vehicle use, the ECX3000 supports wide 9V–50V power input, software ignition control, and fanless operation from -40°C to 75°C. This makes it reliable for harsh environments such as autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) in logistics, traffic monitoring, or AI-driven smart surveillance systems.
Integrated M.2 SSD trays, rich I/O including
6 USB 3.2 Gen 2, 16 isolated DIO, and 4 COM ports provide flexibility for robotics control and time-sensitive networking (TSN) use in factory automation or transport. Certified with Intel ESDQ, and compatible with OpenVINO toolkit, it supports AI model deployment and real-time inference at the edge – transforming industries from public security to intelligent transportation with scalable, responsive, and rugged edge AI computing
• Intel UHD graphics 770/730 driven by Intel Xe architecture with up to 32 graphics execution units (EUs) delivers immersive interactions with integrated graphics and accelerated AI performance.
• 8 independent 2.5G LAN with 4 IEEE 802.3at PoE+.
• 4 front-access M.2 SSD Tray, 6 USB 3.2 Gen 2.
• DC 9V to 50V power input, software ignition control.
• Optional VHub one-stop AIoT solution service supports OpenVINO based AI accelerator and advanced Edge AI applications.
• Certified Intel ESDQ (edge software device qualification) for autonomous mobile robots (AMR).
Contact
Backplane Systems
Unit 14/12 Yatala Rd, Mount Kuring-Gai NSW 2080 (02) 9457 6400 www.backplane.com.au
Help shape the future of Australian industry
Register now for the 2025 National Manufacturing Summit
With the theme Manufacturing Australia’s Future: Local Strength, Global Impact, the Summit is more than a conversation – it’s a call to action. It will gather leaders across business, government, unions, research, and education to drive a revitalised vision for Australian manufacturing, with a focus on longterm growth, resilience, and sovereignty.
“Despite its proud history, once contributing 28 per cent to the national GDP, manufacturing today represents just 5.9 per cent of Australia’s economy. The challenge is clear. But so too is the opportunity,” said Weld Australia’s CEO, Geoff Crittenden. “Australia is uniquely positioned to reindustrialise and lead in sectors essential to global competitiveness and national security: renewable energy, infrastructure, defence, and critical minerals.
“Manufacturing is at a crossroads. Without a strategic shift, Australia risks becoming increasingly reliant on global supply chains. But with decisive action – stronger local content requirements, better policy frameworks, and workforce investment – we can reclaim a position of strength. This Summit is about setting that agenda.”
Key focus areas will include:
• The critical role of enforceable local content policies in strengthening sovereign capability.
• Unlocking the potential of critical minerals through onshore processing and innovation.
• Building a future-ready workforce with targeted skills development in trades and technical fields.
• Driving industrial innovation to support the clean energy transition and major infrastructure projects.
Expect a high-calibre lineup of confirmed government speakers, including the Hon Tim Ayres, federal minister for Industry and Innovation, and minister for Science; the Hon Anoulack Chanthivong, NSW minister for Better Regulation, Industry, Innovation and Building; and Rebecca McPhee, Deputy Secretary, Investment NSW.
Industry experts will also add their voice to the important discussions, including Richard Denniss, executive director, Australia Institute; Rod Henderson, CEO, AMP Control; Simon Terry, CEO, Dux Hot Water; David Shankey, CEO, Net Zero
Economy Authority; and Tim Buckley founder and director, Climate Energy Finance.
The program is designed to deliver practical outcomes, not just dialogue. From policy reform to workforce strategy, participants will have the opportunity to influence the future of manufacturing in a tangible way.
Be part of the conversation that will set the future direction for this vital industry. For more information and to register, visit: https:// manufacturingsummit.com.au
With thanks to Major Sponsor, Investment NSW; and Sponsor, the Queensland Government.
