Media Release by AMGC
The Advanced Manufacturing Growth Centre (AMGC) has released its 2022 Project Report – demonstrating manufacturing transformation and revealing a significant positive industry impact.
The report provides an overview of the organisation’s 141 co-invested manufacturing projects and showcases the economic contribution from its first 31 completed projects.
Analysis of the organisation’s 141 projects provides evidence of real jobs and revenue growth generated from the initiative. Overall, the projects are expected to generate $1.62 billion in additional revenue and the creation of 4,288 new jobs. The returns are reflective of a combined industry and government co-funded pool of $137.2 million.
Of the 31 completed manufacturing projects, a total of 430 new or upskilled roles have been created while an additional $188 million in revenue was injected into the Australian economy via domestic and export sales. The revenue creation represents an average return on investment of 9:1, based on a co-funding investment of $20.26 million ($7.15 million derived from Federal funding and the remainder from industry in cash and in-kind).
Speaking of the Project Report’s impact, Federal Minister for Industry and Science, Ed Husic, said, “Since its inception, the Advanced Manufacturing Growth Centre’s (AMGC) contribution to Australia’s innovation landscape has been immense,
“Crucially, it [AMGC] has a focus on funding innovative projects that have the potential to make Australia’s manufacturing industry more productive and competitive, but might be in areas where companies may not have the capacity or expertise to tackle the task on their own,
“I am looking forward to seeing more AMGC success stories in the near future, as we all work together to cement Australia’s reputation as a smart, skilled, innovative nation.” Said Minister Husic.
AMGC’s portfolio of co-invested projects demonstrates the depth and breadth of manufacturing talent present in Australia, with projects addressing local and global needs in the areas of; value add to resources, agriculture, forestry, and fisheries; transport; medical sciences; renewables, and low emissions technology; defence, space and, enabling technology – such as AI and robotics.
Managing Director of AMGC, Dr Jens Goennemann said AMGC’s program successes was proof of the manufacturing industry’s readiness to invest, advance, scale, and export if highly targeted assistance is afforded to those who wish to commercialise and scale.
“AMGC knows what works, where opportunities exist, and how we can generate returns from investment. We can manufacture amazing things in Australia, provided we focus on being better, not cheaper, that we add value to our abundant natural resources, and we embrace advanced practices and processes – our 2022 Projects Report is proof that we can do so much better than Australia’s current ranking of 91st in global complexity rankings,
“If the past two and a half years have taught us anything, it is that we are resourceful, we are resilient and we are innovative when we need to be, now we must be. By focussing on capability and what we do best, Australia has the potential to transform from being a lucky country to a smart country,
“AMGC has demonstrated time and time again that by empowering manufacturers, through appropriately sized and supported initiatives, we can create prosperity for Australians and establish the country as a manufacturing powerhouse – we just need long-term commitment at all levels of Government to give the industry the confidence to invest where it matters”, said Goennemann.
AMGC’s expansive portfolio of projects encompasses smart shoe soles produced via additive manufacturing (3D printing) to green steel manufacture, a high-performance EV motorbike and bio-manufacturing of algae for food, agri and medical use, and Australia’s first locally manufactured lithium-ion batteries.
AMGC’s projects are underpinned by strong industry and research partners, with collaboration at the centre of their success. These projects serve as a guiding light to AMGC’s 4,000+ membership base, the broader industry, and state and federal governments.
KEY FORECAST IMPACT FROM AMGC PROJECTS
- 141 co-funded industry projects
- $137.5 million in co-funding investments
- ~4,288 direct and 15,436 indirect jobs are expected to be created
- ~$1.62 billion in estimated revenues generated
- 434 nation-wide collaborations
OUTCOMES FROM FIRST 31 COMPLETED PROJECTS
Upon completion of a co-funded project, participants contribute to a substantive finalisation process. The data collated revealed:
- Increased revenues of $188 million from local ($136M) and international ($52M) sales
- The creation, or upskilling, of 430 direct jobs
- Average Return on Investment (ROI) ~168%
- All participants reported an increase in
- Profit – 77 per cent of participants
- Range of products and services – 83 per cent of participants
- Productivity – 83 per cent of participants
- Profit Margin – 57 per cent of participants
- The majority of project participants reported improvements at all points along the manufacturing value chain (page# 7)
- Many project participants engaged in collaborative endeavours, with:
- 75.8 per cent of completed project participants rating working with research institutions as ‘positive’ or ‘very positive’
- Of the 31 completed projects, 89 per cent of participants increased activities around exports, niche or underserved markets
- All projects reported an increase in their business resiliency strategies
