Uni of South Australia’s Peter Hoffmann wins ACGR award

An award-winning scientist has championed closer research collaboration between universities and corporate Australia.

Professor Peter Hoffmann from the University of South Australia has been awarded the Australian Council of Graduate Research award for excellence in industry engagement.

An award-winning scientist has championed closer research collaboration between universities and corporate Australia.

Professor Peter Hoffmann has won the 2025 Australian Council of Graduate Research award for excellence in industry engagement. As the Lloyd Sansom chair in biomaterials engineering and nanomedicine at the University of South Australia, Professor Hoffmann has commercialised patented biomarkers for the early detection of ovarian and gastric cancer.

The ACGR gave its award for his pioneering work in collaborative PhD programs with major corporate partners such as CSL Limited, in developing pharmaceuticals, and Coopers Brewery, in developing yeast cultures.

German-born and educated, Professor Hoffmann warned that Australian universities were generally not doing enough to commercialise their discoveries.

“It’s well known that Australia has very high-end research at universities, but the translation to high-end industry and to start-up companies is not there,’’ he said.

“One theory is that Australia makes enough money from mining, farming and tourism so doesn’t need to develop high-end products to make money. In Germany, universities are more involved with industry in applied research.’’

Two universities have ­announced new research projects through government and industry-funded Co-operative Research Centres.

At Flinders University, researchers will create 3D spinal implants, trial advanced manufacturing technologies and produce sustainable concrete through a $57.5m federal funding injection for a national additive manufacturing CRC.

The University of Queensland will host a $238m CRC named Solutions for Manufacturing Advanced Regenerative Therapies (SMART).

The ACGR on Monday announced that Peter Anderson, from Griffith University, had won its inaugural award for graduate research in Indigenous excellence and empowerment.

Samantha Bennett from the Australian National University won the ACGR’s leadership award, while Vijay Kumar Mallan from the University of Otago was awarded for his leadership in doctoral supervision.

Brett Paull from the Univer­sity of Tasmania won the award for excellence in graduate ­research supervision.