Factory of the Future at Adelaide's Tonsley Innovation District aims to keep Australia at 4.0 Industry edge
The Factory of the Future concept for Adelaide's Tonsley Innovation District was an initial partnership of Flinders University and BAE Systems Maritime Australia, with laster financial backing from the South Australian and Australian governments. The future factory will be reconfigured to use the latest digital and robotic technologies (inset).
A Factory of the Future for Adelaide’s Tonsley Innovation District aimed to place Australia at the forefront of Industry 4.0 change to help accelerate advanced manufacturing companies and jobs.
The Australian and South Australian governments’ funding backed the Factory of the Future (or Australian Centre for Innovative Manufacturing) concept, initially led by Adelaide’s Flinders University. It began with a temporary pilot pop-up factory developed by the university with BAE Systems Maritime Australia, involved in building the Hunter Class frigates at Adelaide’s Osborne shipyards.
Australia’s first reconfigurable future factory would connect Australian companies with the latest digital, robotic and other manufacturing technologies/research and provide training to modernise workforces. It would promote growth in areas of strategic importance to Australia including defence and aerospace, construction, medical devices/assistive technologies, wine and food and minerals and energy.
Professor John Spoehr, Flinders University’s pro vice chancellor/research impact, and Australian Industrial Transformation Institute director said advanced technologies were transforming manufacturing around the world, fuelling the growth of new and existing companies and generating thousands of well-paid and rewarding jobs: “Step change strategies are needed to enable Australia and South Australia to be at the centre of this technological revolution.”
The initial focus of the factory would be on collaborative research and training to maximise the engagement of South Australian companies and workers in the federal government’s $90 billion shipbuilding program in South Australia. Future stages would support a broad range of industries to adopt high tech manufacturing.
Government funding allowed the Factory of the Future to be backed by a manufacturing growth accelerator programme that will engage with more than 200 small and medium-sized companies.
