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GE Additive and the University of Sydney entered into a strategic five-year agreement to form a high-tech hub, ushering in a new era of advanced manufacturing in Australia.
The agreement will establish capabilities in metal additive manufacturing technology at the Sydney Manufacturing Hub, a space for training specialists and academics working in additive manufacturing, and the incubation of small to medium manufacturing enterprises.
The hub will enable advanced alloy design and applications to support medical and other sectors to support manufacturing in New South Wales and Australia.
Sam Maresh, Country Leader at GE Australia, said, “This is a breakthrough for Australia’s advanced manufacturing industry. Via the Sydney Manufacturing Hub, Australian manufacturers and small to medium enterprises (SMEs) will now have ready access to GE’s own production-grade additive technology.”
University of Sydney Director of Core Research Facilities and Faculty of Engineering academic, Professor Simon Ringer, said that the recent COVID-19 crisis had exposed the country to vulnerabilities due to dependence on complex, ‘just-in-time’ supply chains, which can be improved with additive manufacturing.
“Pre-COVID-19, a national focus on manufacturing resilience was generally regarded as a nice thought. We have long believed this needs to be a critical national priority, and COVID-19 has raised the stakes. GE Additive and the University of Sydney, working alongside government and Australian SMEs, will be at the forefront of delivering this capability,” said Professor Ringer.
