|
CSIRO Media Release |
|||
| Ms Wendy Parsons | (02) 6276-6615 | |||
| Mobile | (0419) 208-194 | |||
| Fax | (02) 6276-6821 | |||
|
|
||||
29 October 1998 |
Ref 98/255 |
|
|
Australia's vehicle industry has been warned it may not survive unless it fully integrates into the global market and exploits niche areas of technology.
The warning came today from leaders of the vehicle innovation industry as they addressed CSIRO's Science Briefing at the South Australian Parliament.
Mike Nagel, executive director of the SA Centre for Manufacturing,
says Australian components manufacturers will have to compete
in a world in which the auto giants are pursuing Global Sourcing
Policies
from large, low-cost systems suppliers.
Mr Nagel, a former head of Britax Rainsfords with 35 years experience in the automotive industry, says that the world's current automakers may shrink to as few as six major companies within the next decade. This will impact upon Australia, he predicts.
The SA Centre for Manufacturing is determined to help local manufacturers adjust to world competitiveness needs in order to ensure the survival of an industry which plays a vital role in South Australia's prosperity, he says.
David Lamb, chief executive of the Australian Automotive Technology Centre, says the vehicle industry's survival depends, in part, on its ability to be a technology leader and secure Australia's place as a preferred source of automotive products and services.
Mr Lamb, who's also chair of the DeBono Award-winning aXcessaustralia car project, told the Science Briefing Australia already has technologies which are "up with the best", but we must "set the pace for our products" and "export as much as we import".
At present, vehicle industry imports total $9bn compared with $2.7bn in exports.
Mr Lamb says the aXcessaustralia project, involving 130 companies, is an example of what Australia's vehicle industry can achieve. He says CSIRO is developing technologies suitable for local and Asian markets which will form part of a national project to demonstrate our expertise in hybrid car technologies.
"A car will be ready before the Olympic Games," he says.
One of the key technologies contributing to the Australian vehicle industry's goal of exporting $6bn by 2005 is die casting. The importance of die casting to the Ford Motor Company, for example, is illustrated by its investment in a Gladstone pilot plant utilizing a new process for magnesium metal production developed by CSIRO, Queensland Metals Corporation and others.
Dr Warren Thorpe, R&D manager of CSIRO's Light Metals Casting, says it is hoped the new process will stimulate formation of a large magnesium die casting industry in Australia. This could help give Australia's vehicle industry a competitive edge by reducing both the weight and cost of automobiles.
He told the Science Briefing that CSIRO's die casting improvements have had "tremendous international impact" in recent years and, through research in its Adelaide, Brisbane and Melbourne laboratories, is trying to give an edge to the automotive casting industry. CSIRO is collaborating with the industry and with university researchers through the CRC for Alloy and Solidification Technology - CAST.
"Scientists no longer work only in their laboratories for the sole purpose of seeking knowledge for publication in scientific journals. The research must be, and is, driven by the very real needs of the vehicle industry," says Dr Thorpe.
More information
Mike Nagel
(08) 8300 1500 business 0419 826 659
David Lamb
(03) 9662 7700 business 0417 302 230
Warren Thorpe
(03) 9662 7729 business 0418 329 886
(Australia's largest scientific research organisation)
Media Releases: [All] [1998] [Topics] [Search]
[CSIRO Search] [What's New] [Help] [Newsline] [CSIRO Home Page]
©Copyright 1998, CSIRO Australia
Use of this web site and information available from it is subject to our
Legal Notice and Disclaimer