17 Australian businesses will share in almost $2.8 million in funding under Round 2 of the Federal Government’s Automotive Innovation Lab Access Grants program to undertake a range of design, prototype and testing activities and fast-track their innovative products to market.
Among the successful recipients is Adelaide-based Lightforce Australia, which has been awarded $200,000 to develop a cutting-edge driving light that improves visibility by integrating advanced sensors and controls to automatically adapt to driving conditions.
Victoria’s Innovative Mechatronics Group was also named among the successful applicants and received $103,000 for its project to develop Australia’s first national-scale hybrid battery aftermarket service for the reuse and recovery of retired batteries from hybrid-electric vehicles.
Industry Minister Karen Andrews said the investment was ‘more critical than ever’ as the automotive industry looks to bounce back and chart its COVID-19 recovery.
“We’re backing businesses who back themselves to expand their high-value product offerings to local and global markets,” Ms Andrews said.
“This represent our Government’s ongoing commitment to supporting automotive manufacturing operations in Australia, particularly in niche areas.”
“Innovation and testing new ideas are key hallmarks of the nation’s advanced manufacturing sector and it is this Aussie ingenuity which is vital to growing our economy and creating jobs.”
The full list of recipients under Round 2 of the Automotive Innovation Lab Access Grants program is available at https://business.gov.au/Grants-and-Programs/Automotive-Innovation-Lab-Access-Grants/Grant-recipients
