The Queensland State Government is offering grants between $5000 and $1 million to manufacturers in the greater Townsville region through its $13.5 million Manufacturing Hubs Grant Program.
The grants will be administered through the Townsville Manufacturing Hub, a state industry initiative aimed at creating jobs and maximising local manufacturing strengths like metal and food production.
Member for Mundingburra Coralee O’Rourke said the grants were flexible and could help build advanced manufacturing capability in Queensland through technology adoption, skills and training and business development.
“They can be used to purchase an innovative piece of equipment, a smarter operating system, or to assist workers in gaining industry accreditations,” Mrs O’Rourke said.
“All these things come back to helping more great local businesses expand and employ, which is good for our city and our state.”
Member for Thuringowa Aaron Harper urged Townsville manufacturers to take advantage of the funding on offer.
“Our government it invested in manufacturing and we’ll continue to make significant investments needed to grow the local sector,” Mr Harper said.
“Whether a manufacturer wants to introduce a new high-tech piece of technology into their operations or simply train and upskill their staff, these grants will help them deliver on those goals.”
Minister for Manufacturing Cameron Dick said funding is provided on a co-contribution basis, with the state covering 75 per cent of capital expenditure for grants between $5000 and $500,000, and a further 50 per cent for grants up to $1 million.
“We promised to connect our regional manufacturers with world-leading technologies and processes, and to create more jobs in our regions, and that’s exactly what we’re doing,” Mr Dick concluded.
Businesses interested in applying for the Manufacturing Hubs Grant Program can do so at qld.gov.au/manufacturinghubsgrants.
Successful applicants can also use grant funding to access services offered through Australia’s first advanced robotics hub for manufacturing, which is on track to open in the first half of 2020.
