Alice Springs business wins manufacturing support with employment opportunities a bonus
The Territory Government is supporting manufacturing in its drive to grow a $40bn economy. This means positive outcomes for businesses and workers, experts say.
Northern Territory
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From a highest ranking of 55th in 1995, Australia has slumped to 86th in the global manufacturing measure.
For Jens Goennemann, the man chosen to lead Australia’s manufacturing revival as head of the Advanced Manufacturing Growth Centre, this is a bitter pill to swallow.
Worse, Australia’s now wedged between Paraguay and Uzbekistan as a global manufacturer.
With manufacturing making up about seven per cent of Australia’s economic output and contributing just 4.2 per cent of the Territory’s economy, Mr Goennemann sees plenty of potential to grow industries and jobs through developing business capability.
It will be a long road to chase down manufacturing leaders like the United States, Germany, Japan and Singapore but Jens says it’s a race worth entering.
“Manufacturing is about making complex things and the capability to make complex things defines a country’s ability and standing in the world as an economic power,” Mr Goennemann says.
“No matter whether you make these complex things in pharmaceuticals, in mining, in defence or space it doesn’t matter because in all of these you make something which means manufacturing is a capability not a sector.
“We say we are the lucky country based on our commodities – but manufacturing is the answer to transforming from dig-and-ship to adding value onshore to those commodities that we can then export.”
With Core Lithium preparing for production at its Finniss mine within weeks and a long-term plan to process the resource in the Territory instead of China, Mr Goennemann sees opportunities to value add the product at home.
“If you extract lithium there are five steps from lithium extraction to battery assembly and every step along that value adding process is a multiple of the previous step,” he says.
“It should not be us digging and shipping but rolling up our sleeves and add value to that, which is called manufacturing.”
The Northern Territory Government has committed $8.75m over five years to grow manufacturing through the Advanced Manufacturing Ecosystem Fund administered by the AMGC.
An air-powered side-tipping haulage trailer being developed by Alice Springs business AirTip is the latest project to be supported by the Ecosystem Fund.
The company is developing an air-powered side-tipping haulage trailer for use by the industry.
The Territory has committed $276,500 as a joint co-investment with AirTip to help develop the side-tipper.
AirTip is partnering with local businesses Ross Engineering and the Complete Group to scale up manufacture of the innovative haulage advancement project.
The total joint NT Government-AirTip co-investment into the project is $550,000.
Used for bulk transport, pastoral and mining, the side-tip trailer project could create up to 10 additional jobs.
AirTip founder and managing director Clarke Petrick says the grant will allow key works to be done in Alice Springs rather than out of the Territory.
“This co-investment will have broader implications across the Territory giving AirTip, Ross Engineering and the Complete Group the capability to design, engineer and fabricate componentry in Alice Springs – a capability once outsourced interstate,” he says.
“The addition of new robotic laser cutting and computer numerical control capabilities will enable us to test, develop and commercialise the AirTip system in shorter time-frames, reducing the lag effect of having to outsource core manufacturing processes.”
Advanced Manufacturing Minister Nicole Manison says she welcomes the additional jobs and innovation the grant will deliver.
“Advanced manufacturing is creating the jobs of the future, right here in the Northern Territory,” she says.
“AirTip will grow Territory-based design and engineering capability in Alice Springs.
“By making these important investments, the Northern Territory Government is growing industries, expanding exports, creating new opportunities for investors and securing exciting local jobs for Territorians.”
Australian Manufacturing Growth Centre NT director Charmaine Phillips says AirTip showcases the Territory’s capacity for advanced manufacturing.
“AirTip is proof that we have highly capable manufacturers in Central Australia willing to invest to grow their local, national and potentially international impact,” she says.
“Co-investment in AirTip’s haulage solution will ensure that an innovative product moves to commercialisation, while also building key manufacturing capability and services in Alice Springs, and the Territory.”
Two other Territory companies have received grants under the ecosystem fund.
Palmerston company Corosion Instruments received $110,000 to develop cathodic protection, monitoring and measurement equipment and automation manufacturer Diverseco received $450,000.
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Originally published as Alice Springs business wins manufacturing support with employment opportunities a bonus
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