Victorian Trades Hall Council. The voice of Victorian workers since 1856.Victorian Trades Hall Council. The voice of Victorian workers since 1856.

Is the Future of Australian Manufacturing Secure?

1 April 2008
By Brian Boyd, VTHC Secretary
Recently the Geelong Manufacturing Council and the Australian Industry Group held an evening function to hear a speech from Senator Kim Carr, the new federal Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research.  Buried inside these four responsibilities is “manufacturing”.
It is now not trendy to talk about the Australian manufacturing industry by name.  Over a year ago the Victorian Government scrapped the Ministry for Manufacturing portfolio and created the Minister for Industry and Trade.
The VTHC and the AMWU protested to the ALP Victorian Government at the time, claiming such a move signaled that we were giving up on ‘manufacturing’ and that globalisation had won.  No. No, we were told.  It was a re-emphasis, an adjustment!
The new federal government says it is taking the issue seriously.  At the Geelong forum Senator Carr said amongst other things:
“Do I support manufacturing?  You bet I do.
“Do I think it’s vital to the Australian economy and Australian society?  Absolutely.
“Do I think governments should create an environment in which manufacturing can flourish?  No question.
When Kevin Rudd said he wanted Australia to remain “a country that actually makes things, I cheered,” Senator Carr told the audience.
The manufacturing sector employs over a million Australians, generates over $40 billion worth of exports a year, and accounts for two-fifths of all business expenditure on research and development.
One of the first actions of Senator Carr as Minister was to launch four major reviews.
The four investigations are:

·        A review of the national innovation system chaired by Dr Terry Cutler

·        A review of the Cooperative Research Centres program chaired by Professor Mary O’Kane, which is part of the innovation review.

·        A review of the automotive industry conducted by Steve Bracks.

·        And a review of the textiles, clothing and footwear industries conducted by Professor Roy Green.


There will be five new manufacturing centres in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth and Burnie.
There will also be five dedicated innovation centers – a Creative Industries Innovation Centre, a Clean Energy Centre, a Remote Enterprise Centre in Alice Springs, a Mining Technology Innovation Centre in Mackay, and an Innovative Regions Centre in Geelong.
Senator Carr confirmed that the Innovative Regions Centre for Geelong will be located at Deakin University – a critical component of what is already a strong regional innovation system.
The National Institute of Economic and Industrial Research ranks the Geelong region third in Australia for the supply of research and development services.
The Geelong Technology Precinct conducts high-tech research in advanced materials, intelligent systems, medical advancement and other fields.  It is also a model of the kind of networked research the federal government is trying to encourage, with partners including Deakin University, Ford, General Motors-Holden, CSIRO and Barwon Health.
Are these initiatives good enough?
Is this a real turn around for Australian Manufacturing?
The trade union movement will monitor these developments carefully.

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