Australia’s 50 most innovative manufacturers

The search to discover Australia’s most innovative manufacturers has been completed and has revealed some amazing work.

@AuManufacturing and MYOB recently co-hosted a breakfast event in Melbourne to unveil the complete list.

There were 74 nominations for the list and included some truly impressive entries.

Keynote speaker Dr Simon Poole, who has been involved in startups in Australia for 35 years, spoke about the importance of photonics and how they’ve become a key technology enabler throughout the manufacturing sector.

Dr Poole also discussed manufacturing automation and turning ideas into successful innovation, finding the market for these innovative ideas, and then executing those concepts in real life.

He listed the myriad challenges that Australian manufacturers face, namely supply chain complexity, a shrinking manufacturing base in Australia, and the global competition for manufacturing talent.

“We’re not producing enough home-grown manufacturing talent,” Dr Poole said. “There are huge opportunities in Australian manufacturing to grow new businesses; the costs of manufacturing in Australia versus the costs of manufacturing in China have narrowed.”

Challenging markets

On both sides of the Tasman, the manufacturing sector has been under pressure for many years.

In a highly competitive international market, rising costs like those seen in transport and labour have put Australia and New Zealand at a disadvantage – particularly compared to international manufacturing juggernauts like China and India.

However, our latest research into the mid-market manufacturing sector across Australia and New Zealand has highlighted that, despite the raft of challenges they have faced, our local manufacturers are resilient.

They are also performing solidly in a market that has remained uncertain, with prices for key inputs like energy and shipping that are wildly fluctuating.

Jobs, production standards, sustainability, even international human rights – there are many good reasons why we should support and celebrate a thriving local manufacturing sector.

But to build on momentum gained this year, manufacturers will need to keep making strides in their productivity journey, like increasing automation and further digitisation of their business and production processes

Unexpected innovation

Bruce Minty, Senior Product Manager for MYOB, spoke about the impressive array of entries as he presented awards to recipients.

“At MYOB, we’re constantly striving to innovate,” he said. “We understand the commitment and passion that fuels the entries in terms of ideation and product delivery.

“There is an abundance of new technology involved in all entries and innovation can come from unexpected quarters. Regardless of the technology you’re creating or using, people find avenues for improvement that may not be initially apparent.”

Australia’s 50 most innovative manufacturers 2023