Industrial Transformation Training Centres
(funding commencing in 2015)
A total of $20.9 million for five new Industrial Transformation Training Centres
ARC Training Centre for Mining Restoration (IC150100041)
Training Centre Director: Professor Kingsley Dixon
Administering Organisation: Curtin University of Technology
This training centre aims to deliver integrated research projects and industry-ready
professionals focused on the needs of the mining restoration industry. It aims to
improve the capacity of the industry to deliver improved financial, social and
environmental outcomes. Restoration sits at the heart of Australia’s ability to
sustainably and responsibly exploit its vast mineral wealth, and regulatory approval for
mining is dependent on effective restoration. However, the lack of cost-effective
restoration solutions at the scale required is currently a major impediment for
regulatory and social compliance. The centre aims to overcome this impediment by
establishing industry-integrated research training positions that specifically address
industry requirements for restoration.
Partner Organisations: Botanic Gardens & Parks Authority; Society for Ecological
Restoration Australasia; Rocla Quarry Products; Cliffs Asia Pacific Iron Ore
Management; Sinosteel Midwest; BHP Billiton Iron Ore; Karara Mining; Polaris Metals.
ARC funding: $4 961 622
ARC Training Centre for Liquefied Natural Gas Futures (IC150100019)
Training Centre Director: Professor Eric May
Administering Organisation: The University of Western Australia
This training centre aims to deliver projects and training to enable future Australian
Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) production from reserves in deep water, at small or
remote on-shore locations, with greater efficiency, less environmental impact, and at
lower cost than currently possible. This should be accomplished via research projects
undertaken by the PhD students and research fellows with guidance from the centre’s
industrial partners. The centre’s expected legacy is a unique research and training
facility, designed for future integration into a microscale LNG plant. The anticipated
research and training outcomes will help to ensure Australia plays a leading role in
future global LNG developments.
Partner Organisations: Chevron Energy Technology; Shell Development (Australia);
Woodside Energy; GE Oil & Gas Australia; Clough; Samsung Heavy Industries;
Guodian New Energy Technology Research Institute; Virtual Materials Group; Daewoo
Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering.
ARC funding: $4 571 797
ARC Training Centre for Advanced Manufacturing of Prefabricated
Housing (IC150100023)
Training Centre Director: Professor Priyan Mendis
Administering Organisation: The University of Melbourne
This training centre aims to unlock the potential for growth of Australia’s prefabricated
building industry by creating a sustainable training ecosystem including both industry
and universities. It seeks to enable the next generation of engineers and architects to
apply advanced manufacturing principles to prefabricated modular buildings. This
emerging highly trained workforce, driven by the needs of the customer, should identify
innovations in the use of advanced materials, designs for manufacturing, and
assembly. The centre aims to secure a competitive advantage for Australia in the
global value chain leading to local employment growth and increased exports of
prefabricated products and services.
Partner Organisations: Amoveo; Prebuilt; Pacific Nonwovens Holdings; Prefabaus;
Origination; Memko; Tektum; The Trustee for Richard Kirk Trust; CIMC Modular
Building Systems (Australia).
ARC funding: $4 000 000
ARC Training Centre for Forest Value (IC150100004)
Administering Organisation: University of Tasmania
Training Centre Director: Professor James Reid
This training centre aims to build capacity to transform the Australian forest products
sector by providing advanced training and research. In particular, it aims to train a
workforce capable of improving resource utilisation and creating value at all stages
along the forest-to-building supply chain. This should allow the sector to exploit
emerging markets in the use of renewable materials. The centre’s partners range from
forest managers to architects and engineers, to ensure a flow of information from forest
to design and manufacture. The centre’s research, and the industry-ready graduates
produced, should increase industry productivity, profitability and sustainability, and
enable increased returns from Australia’s forests.
Partner Organisations: Greening Australia (Tasmania); SFM Environmental
Solutions; Forico; Forestry Tasmania; Island Workshop.
ARC funding: $3 630 239
ARC Training Centre for Fruit Fly Biosecurity Innovation
(IC150100026)
Training Centre Director: Associate Professor Phillip Taylor
Administering Organisation: Macquarie University
This training centre aims to transform the way that horticulture industries combat
invasive fruit flies that threaten Australian crops, which are valued at $9 billion per
year. For generations, Australia has relied on insecticides to protect crops. Owing to
environmental damage and concerns for consumer health, the most effective
insecticides have recently been banned for use on many crops leaving no equivalent
replacements. Horticulture industries are unprepared for this change, and are in
desperate need of new sustainable practices to combat fruit flies. New researchers
who are trained in both scientific approach and practical application will be well placed
to deliver these new tools.
Partner Organisations: Department of Primary Industries; Department of Agriculture
Fisheries and Forestry; CSIRO; New Zealand Institute for Plant and Food Research;
Ecogrow Environment.
ARC funding: $3 732 019