Tag: Opinion

Micro-optics — tiny lenses, beam-splitters, prisms, light pipes, and similar optical components — play a critical role in the miniaturization of optical applications across various industries.

Priorities in the supply chain are expanding, moving away from cost as the main driver behind purchasing decisions. Now, sustainability and ethical sourcing are grabbing a portion of the spotlight.

Australian consumers value safety and reliability. When they buy a product, whether it’s food, appliances, vehicles, or hardware, they expect it to perform as promised and meet acceptable quality standards. 

Across today’s ever-changing manufacturing landscape, automation is no longer a luxury — it’s a necessity. The field of additive manufacturing (AM) is no exception.

The industrial machinery and heavy equipment manufacturing sector is critical not only for its direct outputs, machines, and equipment that pave the way for construction, agriculture and manufacturing but also for its crucial role in economic development and innovation. 

In the past year, artificial intelligence (AI) has surged forward like a digital renaissance, echoing the rapid and transformative rise of the Internet in the late 1990s. It has revolutionised industries and redefined our daily lives with extraordinary speed – and its impact is set to grow even more substantially in the coming years.

The Australian manufacturing sector is in a state of emergency. Insolvencies have tripled in two years since 2022, and the industry is battling a perfect storm of labor shortages, supply chain disruption, and skyrocketing inflation. 

 Mining is often seen as a traditional, slow-moving sector, but right now it is undergoing a high-tech revolution. Innovation is not just a matter of staying technologically ahead; it is crucial for ensuring the safety of workers and enhancing operational efficiency.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that 15 per cent of the world’s population, or over one billion people, live with some form of disability. In Australia, 18 per cent or 4.4 million people have a disability and 90 per cent of those have an invisible disability, according to a recent report by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.

In today’s volatile economic climate, marked by rapid technological advancements and unpredictable macroeconomic headwinds, the role of the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) in the manufacturing sector has never been more critical.