The Manufacturing Futures Competition Program is a six-month innovation program that brings together industry, academia, government and young innovators to rapidly develop new innovative manufacturing products and processes to help the Australian manufacturing sector thrive amid technological changes. The program aims to address the declining manufacturing sector, which faces its biggest challenge of innovating or losing out to fast technological changes and international competition.

1. Manufacturing Futures Competition Program is an inspiring six month innovation process
designed to ignite the manufacturing sector.
Drawing together industry, academia, government and next generation thinkers the
program looks to rapidly develop key new innovative products and processes and assist
Australian manufacturing to thrive in a technology driven world.
Manufacturing is an integral part of the Australian
economic landscape. Worth over $30bn the sector
is the second largest employer nationally and the
largest full time employer in Victoria, however
the sector is declining and today manufacturing
is facing its greatest challenge – innovate or
continue to lose out to rapid technological change
and a competitive international environment.
Manufacturing Futures Competition Program
Why the Manufacturing Futures
Competition is so vital
Igniting an
Inspirational New Era
Over the last 10 years
Manufacturing’s share
of GDP has fallen the
most sharply of any
industry sector.
The Australian Industry Report 2015
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2. Dr Anita Hill - Executive Director, Future
Industries, CSIRO
‘CSIRO supports the Manufacturing Futures
Competition and looks forward to exploring
prospective collaboration opportunities,
particularly in relation to industry connected
challenges for our ON Accelerator and extending
opportunities for participating in commercialisation
projects with industry.’
Professor Stephen Gray - Victoria University
Institute for Sustainability and Innovation
‘At Victoria University, serving the tertiary
education and research needs of communities
across the western metropolitan region of
Melbourne, we are acutely aware of the current
and looming impacts of major disruptions to
the local manufacturing sector. As head of the
Victoria University Institute for Sustainability
and Innovation, I am intensely aware of both the
challenges and opportunities ahead of us.
The Manufacturing Futures Competition is an
excellent initiative for fast-tracking new advanced
manufacturing in Victoria.’
Dr Colin Long - State Secretary, NTEU on
behalf of the Victorian Trades Hall Council
‘The Manufacturing Futures Competition provides
a strong process for rapid development of new
local advanced manufacturing projects and the
quality jobs these projects will generate. The
competition also encourages a commendable
building of more effective collaboration between
business and university researchers and students.
From a union perspective, this is an excellent
initiative and we commend it.’
Bill Petreski – Director, Innovation,
Brand & Innovation, KPMG
‘The Competition is a great way of addressing
a key gap in the current manufacturing startup
ecosystem. Using the hackathon and accelerator
concepts, involving partners (sponsors) from
universities and business as well as government,
and exposing participants to different investors will
give them a solid foundation to commercialise their
product or process. This is unique in the sector and
worth supporting.’
Shane Infanti –
Chief Executive Officer, AMTIL
‘AMTIL are committed to supporting activities
that promote innovation and encourage our next
generation of entrepreneurs to “have a go”.
By combining the concepts of Hackathon,
Accelerator and Competition and with its focus
specifically on manufacturing, the Manufacturing
Futures Competition provides a unique support
to this sector and a means of creating new jobs
and businesses at a time of significant losses. I am
happy to support this and commend it.’
Peter Sanbrook – Director, OPTIM
‘I am particularly supportive of the
Manufacturing Futures Competition(MFC) initiative
which offers an excellent program to support rapid
product and process innovation, to initiate new
advanced manufacturing projects, strengthen local
business innovation capabilities and create jobs.
As a business innovation and improvement
facilitator working in regional Victoria (with OPTIM)
and a successful entrepreneur and manufacturer, I
strongly recommend this MFC Proposal.’
www.manufuturescomp.com.au
Testimonials
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To discuss partnership opportunities please call
Carolyn Hughes on 0417 785 875 or John Lawrence on 0408 096 447