News Archive

Late last year 200 industry guests and UWA Engineering staff met for the UWA Engineering Research and Innovation Showcase, the first ever to be held at The University Club. The Showcase gave attendees the chance to network and view over 50 different research projects from all areas of the Faculty.

Sponsored by UWA’s Engineering Foundation, the Showcase enable collaboration between research and industry and highlighted the broad range of excellent research undertaken at the University.

In his welcoming address, UWA Vice-Chancellor Professor Alan Robson said the Showcase demonstrated how researchers, often in collaboration with industry, were addressing complex, real world engineering problems. “It’s a clear demonstration of the types of issues that can be resolved when committed and likeminded people go forward in a cooperative and collaborative manner,” Professor Robson said.

Case studies of successful industry-university partnerships were also presented. For instance, Mariusz Martyniuk of the Eureka Award-winning Microelectronics Research Group and Roger Jeffery of ST Synergy Limited described their work on digital cinema, a project which aims to develop technology to overcome the US$8 billion lost to the film industry each year through piracy. The digital cinema project is funded through the Government’s ARC Linkage Project scheme.

Also late last year, the outcome of the prestigious national competition for ARC Discovery Project grants was announced. Members of the Faculty were awarded 14 grants, showing a success rate of 32.8%, well above the national average. In the most recent ARC Linkage Project round, 4 out of 5 Faculty projects were funded, again well above the national success rate of 49%.

The Research and Innovation Showcase was proudly supported by The University of Western Australia and the UWA Engineering Foundation Industry Members: Alcoa World Alumina Australia, Alan Moyle & Co, BG&E Consulting Engineering Pty Ltd, Clough Limited, GHD Pty Ltd, Hatch Associates Pty Ltd, HIsmelt Corporation Pty Ltd, Kerman Contracting Pty Ltd, Leighton Contractors Pty Ltd, Main Roads WA, Monadelphous Group Limited, Sinclair Knight Merz Pty Ltd, Woodside Energy Ltd and Worley Parsons.