News

Digital Uplift for NSW Business

Recently, DMTC Limited completed an innovative six-month pilot project supported by the NSW Government to improve business’ technology uptake and digital literacy for companies across the Illawarra and Shoalhaven regions.

The NSW Government provided financial sponsorship to support local companies to participate in the Smart Enough Factory pilot project delivered by DMTC Limited.

The businesses selected through an EOI process for the NSW pilot included Air Affairs Australia, Bisalloy Steels, Quickstep and Nowchem along with the University of Wollongong’s Industry 4.0 Hub.

Representatives of the participating companies met in Nowra in early July to share insights on the key outcomes of the project.

Using simple cost-effective technology, the project demonstrates the adoption of the fundamentals of Industry 4.0 in a way that is relevant to small businesses, improving the digital literacy of the entire company, from machinery operators through to senior management.

The project demonstrates that even small process changes and advances in digital literacy can make equipment ‘smart enough’ to collect performance data, improve traceability and inform decisions on investments in better ways of doing business. These are improvements that are important for companies looking to participate in defence supply chains.

Companies gain an understanding of the value of data to their business, the importance placed on digitalisation for quality and certification by Defence Primes and the need to be cyber secure in order to participate in defence projects.

Darren Bramley, Production Manager of Nowra-based Air Affairs commented:

“The Smart Enough Factory is enabling Air Affairs to digitise critical legacy equipment. This enables the business to access data directly from this equipment allowing qualification of processes and generation of conformance reports.

“Real time data is essential for our business which we’re achieving through combining current capability with Industry 4.0 outcomes.”

DMTC Chief Executive Mark Hodge said the project will offer workshops, site visits, one-on-one support from digitalisation subject matter experts and defence and cyber-security briefings.

“Having had the experience that our program provides, small businesses will be better placed to consider their own ambitions and future strategy for digitisation, and contribute more significantly to sovereign defence capability,” Dr Hodge said.

Consistent with DMTC’s approach to industry capability development, the Smart Enough Factory project facilitates meaningful internship opportunities. In this project, two undergraduate students from the University of Wollongong are providing support to the participating companies.