Industry News

109 of the best and brightest minds from countries such as the United Kingdom, United States, China and Germany are coming to Australia to undertake their world-class research, thanks to the Australian Research Council’s fellowships and rewards.

Highlighting the importance of attracting and retaining world-class research talent, ARC Chief Executive Officer and Advisory Council Chair Professor Margaret Sheil said ARC fellowships and awards were helping Australia grow and maintain a skilled and talented research workforce.

“The new Discovery Early Career Researcher Awards scheme has attracted 109 promising early career researchers to Australian shores this year—this includes citizens of 30 countries and Australians returning from six countries,” Professor Sheil said.

“These 109 researchers represented 40 per cent of the Awards announced last November,” she said.

At their meeting, the ARC Advisory Council spoke of the importance of attracting research talent from across the globe to help Australia address national issues such as industry transformation, and global issues such as our changing climate.

The Council of Financial Regulator has released its recommendations on reforms to the oversight of the country’s financial market infrastructure to ensure continued protection for investors, businesses and market participants.

The main recommendations include:

• new powers to require certain market infrastructure to have key aspects of their operations located in Australia, where deemed appropriate, and be managed and governed by 'fit and proper' persons;
• enhanced 'step in' powers for regulators to intervene in the event of infrastructure experiencing substantial difficulties; and
• strengthened and clarified powers for regulators to give directions to operators of key market infrastructure and impose appropriate sanctions where licensees and their officers fail to comply with directions or licence conditions.

The Council, whose members include the Governor of the Reserve Bank, the Secretary of the Treasury, and the Chairs of both APRA and ASIC, advise that these changes are desirable to underwrite the continued stability of market infrastructure and robust oversight.

“I asked the Council to advise on potential reforms last year following my decision to prohibit the acquisition of ASX Limited by Singapore Exchange Limited,” Treasurer Wayne Swan said. 

The Federal Government has appointed Brian Wilson as the Chair of the Foreign Investment Review Board for a five-year term starting on 16 April.

Mr Wilson will replace John Phillips who will retire from the Board at the end of his term having served in the role for 15 years.

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank Mr Phillips for his outstanding contribution to public policy over many years. Mr Phillips' invaluable leadership of the FIRB follows a very distinguished career in the public, finance and business sectors, including in his role as Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) between 1987 and 1992,” Treasurer Wayne Swan said.

Mr Wilson has been a member of the FIRB since 2009 and possesses what Mr Swan calls ‘extensive financial services experience’, having worked with both the funds management and investment management sectors.

“ In his 33 year career as an investment banker, Mr Wilson specialised in corporate financial advice, advising many of Australia's top 100 companies and numerous international groups. He is a former Australian managing director of the global investment bank Lazard and a former vice chairman of Citigroup Australia,” Mr Swan said.

The Australian and New Zealand Productivity Commissions have released a joint issues paper for their inaugural study on options to further enhance integration between the Australian and New Zealand economies.

The two Commissions have been asked to provide further advice on how the two countries would benefit from further economic integration.

The study is being headed by the Commissions’ chairmen, Gary Banks and Murray Sherwin, together with Commissioners Jonathan Coppel (Australia) and Graham Scott (New Zealand)

“New Zealand and Australia are close neighbours that already benefit from significant economic integration. Our job is to advise on potential ways to further enhance that integration for the benefit of both countries. We have been asked to look at options for boosting productivity through reducing the regulatory burden on business, increasing competition and encouraging closer economic cooperation”, he said. “We encourage anyone interested in these matters to have their say by putting in a submission,” Mr Sherwin said.

A draft report is due for release in early September, with the final report being delivered to the two Governments by 1 December, ahead of a meeting of the Prime Ministers in early 2013.

Further information on the study and the issues paper can be viewed on the study website at Issues paper

ANZ has announced Peter Davis as the company’s new CEO in Japan, following his promotion from Global Head of Utilities and Infrastructure at ANZ.

Mr Davis will report directly to Gilles Planté, CEO of ANZ Asia.

“With his extensive institutional banking experience and broad knowledge of the global infrastructure market, Peter is exceptionally well qualified to lead our team in Japan,” Mr Plante said.

Mr Davis replaces Robert Bell, who was recently appointed ANZ’s Head of Super Regional Business Development within ANZ’s Commercial business in Melbourne. Mr Davis will assume his new role from 1 May in Tokyo.

Before joining ANZ in 1999, Mr Davis spent 10 years with Credit Lyonnais in Asia and Australia, including leading its Project & Asset Finance business in China.

Clean Global Energy has announced it has appointed Michael Curnow as the company's new Non-Executive Director, effective immediately.

Mr Curnow has extensive experience in the resources sector, specifically in gold, platinum and mineral sands exploration. He has been involved in the ownership and management of a wide range of companies both in Australia and South Africa, having founded Gallery Gold and acted as a founding Director of Adamus.

Mr Curnow will replace Alison Coutts following her resignation from the roles as CEO and Managing Director. 

The City of Melbourne and C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group have announced that Melbourne will lead a new global network on Sustainable Urban Development.

The development will be chaired by Melbourne Lord Mayor Robert Doyle and with the support of C40, will allow Melbourne to share key ideas and learn from other global cities, including Johannesburg, London, San Francisco and Sao Paulo that are embarking on similar efforts.

“Through this new network of cities, we will also engage key stakeholders and partner with the private sector to deliver on-the-ground, practical solutions to the challenges associated with sustainable urban development,” the Lord Mayor said.

C40 Chair and New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg said, “Every city is made up of communities, whose infrastructure, buildings and population can interact to create a sustainable way of living.  The Sustainable Urban Development Network C40 is being launched and will strengthen how local government practitioners work together to make sustainable communities possible in cities around the world; and I commend Lord Mayor Robert Doyle for stepping up to lead this effort. What cities do individually, and collectively through the C40, is increasingly setting the agenda for the entire world,”

The Melbourne workshop has been the first of its kind to actively engage the private sector toward the delivery of large-scale infrastructure and sustainable development projects.

Earlier this month, C40 launched networks on sustainable infrastructure finance and green growth, respectively led by the Cities of Chicago and Copenhagen.

Also announced at the C40 Workshop were plans by Lend Lease, in partnership with the City of Melbourne, to create a carbon-neutral sustainable community as part of its participation in C40’s Climate Positive Development Program, delivered in partnership with the Clinton Climate Initiative (CCI).  

The Climate Positive Development Program aims to create a model for large-scale urban communities that reduce greenhouse gasses and serve as urban laboratories for cities seeking to grow in ways that are environmentally sustainable and economically viable.

“Victoria Harbour will become a blueprint for cities, developers and governments to work together to create strong, sustainable communities,” the Lord Mayor said.

“Our work in sustainability over the past two decades has focussed on reducing our impact and adapting our city to a changing climate. Victoria Harbour continues that work and sets a standard for the future.”

In a first for Australia, the City of Melbourne received a 2012 Visionary Award from Energy Efficiency Global in recognition of its energy efficiency leadership.

In an Australian first, Sydney has begun installing the first batch of energy-efficient LED street and park lights.

As part of a $7 million three year project, the joint venture of GE and UGL Limited (UGL), selected by tender, has installed new LED lights on George Street, in front of Sydney Town Hall.

Lord Mayor Clover Moore said the rollout of LED lights, following a successful 18 month trial in Alexandria Park, Kings Cross, Martin Place and Circular Quay, would reduce emissions and halve the energy use.

"Replacing 6,450 conventional lights will save nearly $800,000 a year in electricity bills and maintenance costs," the Lord Mayor said.

"Sydney will be the first city in Australia to install the new LED street and park lights across its entire city centre, and joins other major cities such as Berlin, Barcelona, Los Angeles and San Francisco."

In a public survey conducted by the City after the 18 month trial, more than 90 per cent of people reported finding the new lighting appealing, and three-quarters said it actually improved visibility.

The City of Sydney is one of the largest users of street lighting in NSW with 22,000 lights - 13,500 maintained by Ausgrid (formerly Energy Australia) and 8,500 by the City.

Public lighting accounts for a third of the City of Sydney's annual electricity use and 30 per cent of its greenhouse gas emissions. The new LED lights will slash these emissions, which is equivalent to 2,861 tonnes or taking 940 cars off the road.

Managing Director of GE Lighting Australia and New Zealand, Nathan Dunn, said: "LED technology will transform lighting as we know it - saving up to 75 per cent of energy compared to incandescent light sources, while lasting up to 25 times longer. This will have a profound impact on how we think about lighting in the future."

UGL's managing director and CEO, Richard Leupen, said: "Partnering with the first city in Australia to introduce energy efficient lighting is an important milestone as our country transitions to a lower carbon future."

The Victorian Government has released enhanced Implementation Guidelines for the Victorian Code of Practice for the building construction industry.

The new Guidelines will aim to help make major infrastructure projects more affordable, leading to greater investment and employment opportunities.

Premier Ted Baillieu and Minister for Finance Robert Clark said the new Guidelines would improve compliance with workplace laws, promote productivity and help prevent the sorts of massive cost blowouts that characterised Victorian Government projects under the former Labor Government.

The Guidelines, which have been finalised following public release of draft guidelines last October and extensive stakeholder consultation, will assist the construction industry to achieve behavioural change on Victorian building sites.

The Guidelines will apply to all construction projects funded by the Victorian public sector that are the subject of an expression of interest or request for tender on or after 1 July 2012.

The enhanced Guidelines will:

• apply to all on-site public building and construction work undertaken in Victoria;
• be binding on contractors in relation to their future privately-funded work;
• prohibit parties entering into sham contracting arrangements or arrangements designed to avoid strike pay, right of entry or freedom of association obligations;
• prohibit coercion or pressure to make over-award payments;
• require tenderers for projects where the Victorian public sector contribution is above a threshold level to submit detailed plans which identify their approach to various matters including workplace safety, dispute resolution, response to industrial action, right of entry, management of subcontractors and communication and consultation with the workforce;
• require contractors to take all reasonable steps to bring any unlawful industrial action to an end, including by pursuing legal action where possible;
• identify practices that are inconsistent with freedom of association and require contractors to adopt policies to promote the right to join or not join a union; and
• impose criteria for the establishment of project agreements on sites in line with the National Guidelines.

The new Guidelines will be monitored by a new Construction Code Compliance Unit in the Department of Treasury and Finance, headed by newly-appointed Director, Mr Nigel Hadgkiss, who has previously been the Deputy Commissioner to the Australian Building and Construction Commissioner.

The move was welcomed by the Australian Industry group, who stringently opposed the abolition of the Australian Building and Construction Commissioner on the grounds that it would lead to unlawful industrial action.

"The leadership shown and the strong stand taken by the Victorian Government in today issuing its own industrial relations guidelines for the Victorian construction industry is very important. The Guidelines are set to play a major role in preserving vital workplace relations reforms that have been evaporating by the day," Ai Group Chief Executive Heather Ridout said.

The new guidelines can be found here

A report by the Municipal Association of Victoria (MAV) shows that some areas in Australia will be hit with a 3.3% council rate rise when the carbon price starts.

This data, taken from 3 councils around Australia, has shown lowered impacts on councils as compared to the 2009 proposed Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme.

“Excluded from the carbon price are heavy on-road fuel use, legacy waste and smaller landfills within a prescribed distance of larger landfills, which have all reduced the overall cost impacts for local government,” said Cr Bill McArthur, MAV President.

“If all council cost increases were to be collected through rates, which is unlikely, it would result in a median 1.5 per cent increase – or around $22 a year or 42 cents a week.

“However, for over a decade Victorian councils have been actively working to lower their greenhouse gas emissions, and two thirds have adopted a formal greenhouse gas mitigation strategy.

“Actions have included changes to vehicle fleets, improved building and street lighting energy efficiency, landfill methane gas capture, green purchasing programs and use of GreenPower.

“This means that in many cases municipal expenses and any flow on impact to rates will be lower than our estimates, as councils find cost savings rather than pass on cost increases to ratepayers,” he said.

The carbon price is expected to primarily impact on local government’s electricity, gas and petrol costs; the generation of municipal wastes; and costs related to construction of buildings and infrastructure.

“One of the significant challenges still facing many municipalities is measuring and properly costing landfill waste emissions now and into the future.

“Up to 10 Victorian landfills could be directly included under the carbon price. Gas capture technologies and diverting waste from landfills will be a priority to lower councils’ costs and emissions liability.

“We welcome support the Australian Government will provide to help councils take advantage of opportunities under the carbon farming initiative,” he said. 

A high-tech autonomous robot will be sent into the depths of Brisbane's reservoirs to monitor the health of the city's drinking water.

The $200,000 underwater robot, which the Queensland University of Technology's Institute for Future Environments recently acquired, will enable researchers to take faster and more efficient water quality measurements.

Dr Ryan Smith from QUT's Science and Engineering Faculty said the vehicle used multiple sensors to monitor elements including dissolved oxygen, chlorophyll, salinity, temperature and pH levels in significantly less time than manual sampling.

"There are a lot of people examining issues of water quality, but the current technology is labour intensive and requires a lot of time," he said.

"We can do repeated, efficient, methodical monitoring with this underwater vehicle in a fraction of the time and at a reduced expense.

"Automated and efficient sampling and monitoring of freshwater reserves provides a necessary assessment of the quality and quantity of Queensland's drinking water supply."

The robot, which is also capable of taking underwater images, will be deployed in April on a trial run in Moreton Bay.

Dr Smith said it would hopefully be deployed into water reservoirs around Brisbane within the next couple of months.

Two computers are on-board the robot, one to operate the vehicle and its sensors, and the other to act as an intelligent 'brain' that processes the gathered information and makes navigational decisions.

Dr Smith said the vehicle could be deployed for up to eight hours at a time, and be programmed to follow the same route to compare with previous data collected.

"For example, in the Wivenhoe reservoir, if the temperature increases past a certain point will that support different aquatic organisms, or how is the water chemistry changing from increased run-off after a rain event?

"The ultimate question is, which factors play into the health of the water system?"

Dr Smith said QUT would like to collaborate with other research institutes and universities to ensure the vehicle was well-used.

"We have to save and protect the water that we have," he said.

"A lot of that comes down to monitoring and assessing what we have to try and mitigate future problems that may arise."

The Federal Government has committed $71 million for a new building and facilities at the Monash Health Translation Precinct (MHTP).

A partnership between Monash University, the Monash Institute of Medical Research, Southern Health and Prince Henry's Institute, the MHTP is focused on transmitting research outcomes into the clinic as quickly as possible. 

The new MHTP facility at Monash Medical Centre will include a series of linked, disease-themed laboratories and clinical research units, and will expand to 800 the number of laboratory and clinical researchers accommodated on the campus.

Monash University Chancellor, Dr Alan Finkel, said the funding will result in the development of an academic health science precinct that will integrate medical research, teaching and health care, resulting in better healthcare, more rapid introduction of innovation and the training of a highly skilled health workforce.

Director of Monash Institute of Medical Research, Professor Bryan Williams, said the new facility would provide an exceptional opportunity to translate basic laboratory observations to clinical practice.

“It will provide medical research scientists with ready access to clinicians and patients and expand the international reputation of medical research conducted at the MHTP,” Professor Williams said.

The Federal Government has launched MyUniversity, the first online service that allows potential students to compare and contrast different universities and the courses they offer.

Ranked by criteria such as course content, student satisfaction and post-study employability of its students, the service has been described as a ‘valuable tool’ by Minister for Tertiary Education Senator Chris Evans.

"We've provided for students to choose where they want to go without restrictions, to choose the courses they want to study, and part of empowering them is to give them good information about what their options are,"  Senator Evans said.

"We've got 39 public universities and other private institutions and we want to make sure that prospective students understand the choices available to them."

Although cautious of the accuracy of the data, the service has been welcomed by Universities Australia.

"Prospective students, making one of the biggest decisions of their lives, must have confidence that the information available to them presents an accurate and complete picture of the options they are considering," CEO of Universities Australia Belinda Robinson said.

"Getting it right is also essential for the reputation of universities operating in an increasingly competitive market brought on by the demand-driven enrolment system.

"We don't believe the MyUniversity website is there yet, particularly in relation to attrition rates, staff: student ratios, the entry score cut-of search function, course mapping and searchability.

However, the National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) has slammed the service, accusing the Government of failing to learn from the short comings of the MySchool website, which was universally condemned.

“While the Minister claims the MyUniversity website is intended to lift performance and quality, the reality is that the information it is based on is at best limited, and at worst inaccurate and misleading,” said  NTEU President, Jeannie Rea.

“The use of indicators, including cost of library photocopying, whether your university has a swimming pool and the number of car parking spaces on campus, fails to address the real quality issues in higher education, such as insufficient government funding and a highly casualised workforce.”

The site can be found here

The National Water Commission (NWC) has released two annual reports on the performance of Australia’s urban water utilities and rural water service providers.

Releasing the two reports, Parliamentary Secretary for Sustainability and Urban Water, Senator Don Farrell said the wet conditions of the last two years, following severe drought, demonstrates the challenge of delivering water services in Australia.

"The urban report shows that the water industry is performing well in delivering water and wastewater services to 18.7 million Australians, including very high quality drinking water.

"The rural report demonstrates that investment in infrastructure renewal to modernise irrigation networks and install new metering technologies is boosting efficiency and reducing water losses."

The report found that water availability had increased dramatically over the 2010-11 period, with major flooding offsetting the prolonged period of drought suffered by the country.

Acting Chair of the National Water Commission, Stuart Bunn said, "Australia's water service providers and jurisdictions provide vital leadership in developing these reports.

"The Australian water sector has a chance to take stock before storages are again tested by drought. Although considerable gains have been made, we need renewed and forward-looking reform to ensure our water supplies remain safe and reliable.

"In particular, the Commission believes there is scope for further reforms that set clearer water security objectives, promote better customer choice, and send clearer price signals."

The report found that the period of intense drought, which preceded last year’s wet conditions prompted further infrastructure spending in the water sector, which has greatly contributed to water security and availability.

The full annual report can be found here

http://www.nwc.gov.au/publications/annual-reports/2010-11

The Reserve Bank of Australia has announced it has kept the country’s official cash rate unchanged at 4.25 per cent, citing recent information surrounding the world economy.

In his statement on the monetary policy decision, RBA Governor Glenn Stevens said that while the world economy is set to grow at below-trand pace this year, he does not expect any deep downturn.

Mr Stevens said moderate growth in China, a softening Asian economy and a recent dip in inflation all contributed to the RBA leaving the rates unchanged.

Citing modest credit growth and interest rate levels, Mr Stevens said the rate decision was informed by the stabilisation of housing prices.

“The Board eased monetary policy late in 2011. Since then, its judgement has been that, with growth expected to be close to trend, inflation close to target and lending rates close to average, the setting of monetary policy was appropriate,” Mr Stevens concluded. 

Scientists at the University of Newcastle have shown the potential of a simple blood-based test to identify people in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease, before any symptoms appear.

Spending a year studying data from the international Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative database, the Newcastle team assessed the levels of 190 proteins in blood from 566 people with either Alzheimer’s Disease, mild cognitive impairment or normal cognition. Their studies showed that measuring a panel of 11 proteins in blood can provide a predictive test with more than 85 per cent accuracy.

Monitoring the change in blood protein levels over time could increase accuracy above 90 per cent.

The study was funded by the University of Newcastle and the Hunter Medical Research Institute, and its findings are published in the prestigious PLoS ONE journal.

Senior author Professor Pablo Moscato said the results were likely to be significant for the way Alzheimer’s was diagnosed.

“Currently, Alzheimer’s disease diagnosis is based on clinical observations and testing of cognitive capacity and memory loss,” he said.

“The only reliable and accurate biological markers so far identified for early diagnosis require measurement by either expensive procedures such as brain imaging, or invasive procedures, for example spinal punctures.

“Our study makes a considerable step towards cheap, non-invasive testing by identifying a blood

protein panel to predict Alzheimer’s disease in its early stages.”

Early detection of Alzheimer’s disease is considered vital for effective intervention as there is no cure. The only available treatments are drugs that improve the functioning of neurons but do not stop the disease progressing.

Alzheimer’s disease attacks the brain resulting in impaired memory, thinking and behaviour. It is the most common form of dementia, affecting one in 25 Australians aged 60 years and over.

The Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) have urged the Federal Government to reconsider its determination to see a budget surplus in 2012-13, saying it is risky to pursue the goal given the economic volatility.

The AICD conducted a survey for the April 2012 Director Sentiment Index, finding that almost 60 per cent of directors say that the surplus is not vital for the Federal Government, while only 26 per cent said otherwise.

The Index, which measures the opinions and future intentions of the director community, has ranked overall director sentiment as slightly pessimistic but there are signs of increasing optimism about the economy and greater confidence in the general business outlook.  

“The findings reveal that directors’ sentiment and their business’ prospects are less pessimistic than they were in November 2011, though they are still more pessimistic than they were at this time last year,” said CEO and Managing Director of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, John Colvin.

The high value of the Australian dollar (38 per cent) and industrial relations concerns (25 per cent) round out the top three economic challenges identified by Australian directors. The impact of the minority Federal Government has fallen from the number one ranked challenge to the fourth (49 per cent in November 2011 to 24 per cent this survey).

Rather than pursue a budget surplus, directors would rather the Federal Government to allocate greater resources in areas such as infrastructure, health, education and business regulation.

The survey also found a shifting opinion of the National Broadband Network, with 45 per cent saying that the NBN is a negative thing for the country, down from 55 per cent last year. While 43 per cent say its positive, up from 35 per cent last year.

There are also signs that directors’ concerns about the carbon tax are lessening, with significantly fewer directors (16 per cent in this survey, down from 31 per cent in November 2011) identifying the carbon tax as one of the main economic challenges facing business. Nevertheless, more than 60 per cent of directors still believe that the announcement and legislation of the carbon tax will impact their business negatively.  This is unchanged from the last survey.

The Productivity Commission has published a draft report examining the role of local government regulation on Australian businesses. The report found a number of areas of local government regulation that place ‘unnecessary regulatory burdens’ on Australian businesses.

Of most concern to business is the costs they face from local government planning and zoning assessment and building and construction regulation.

The Performance Benchmarking of Australian Business Regulation: Role of Local Government as Regulator was commissioned by COAG and examines the country’s local governments’ regulatory activities.

The Commission has identified a range of leading practices in the Australian states and the United Kingdom which, if implemented more widely, have the potential to lower the costs imposed on business while maintaining the outcomes sought by local government regulation.

Local governments interact with Australian businesses every day. While poor local decision making processes can place unnecessary compliance burdens on businesses, especially small ones, it is clear that the first step in addressing these is for the states and the Northern Territory to ensure the regulatory frameworks they require local governments to administer are fit for purpose,” Commissioner Warren Mundy said

“Given the huge diversity of local governments across Australia, it is vital that higher levels of government understand the capacity of local government to deliver the desired regulatory outcomes. Where resources are scarce, local government must be given clear guidance as to how to prioritise their regulatory activities,” Dr Mundy said.

The Commission has identified a range of leading practices to which all jurisdictions have contributed. They cover areas such as law making, legislative frameworks and capacity to regulate.

The Commission seeks comment on the draft report before finalising its report in July.

The full report can be found here

The Charted Institute of Logistics and Transport International (CILT) has appointed Kraft Foods senior Logistics Director Keith Newton as its new Secretary General.

Effective from 1^st May, Mr Newton will take over from Interim Secretary General, Colm Holmes, who will step down at the end of March.

Mr Newton’s appointment follows a comprehensive leadership and management restructuring led by the Trustees of CILT International in 2011.

Mr Newton brings a wealth of experience in the logistics sector, having held senior roles with Kraft and Cadbury. He has been an Institute member for 30 years and is an executive member of CILT’s Leaders in the Supply Chain.

Also appointed is Jon Harris to the role of International Professional Development Co-ordinator and Ceri Williams as the new Intenrational Administration Co-ordinator.