Manufacturing Tech Australia

From cold chain robotics to humanoid AI, what will actually deliver value on the warehouse floor in 2026 might surprise you. At CeMAT 2026, Shane and Paul sat down with John Sauer from OPEX , Daniele Farioli from Modula , Maryam Ziaee from Slimstock, and Adam Frank from SugarAI , along with a Daemon robotics showcase, to break down what’s real versus hype. In this episode, we cover: How next-gen A...

How Australian manufacturers can adopt Industry 4.0 using training, collaboration, and emerging robotics technologies. In this episode, recorded live at CeMAT 2026, Vikram Sachdeva from Swinburne University , Andrew Brown from the Association for Manufacturing Excellence , and Jun from Agibot share how Australian manufacturers can practically adopt Industry 4.0 and AI. Paul covers: How Swinburne’s...

Food manufacturing is Australia’s largest manufacturing sector, yet it’s under pressure from every direction, squeezed margins, rising costs, global competition, and ongoing underinvestment.  In this episode, Paul sits down with Angeline Achariya from Innovation Gamechangers to unpack what’s really happening inside the industry and why it matters far beyond food.  They explore why manufacturers ke...

Australian Manufacturing Week 2026 delivered more than just machines on stands. It surfaced the real conversations manufacturers are having about productivity, automation, software, skills, and how to stay competitive.  In this episode, Paul Mason and I speak with a cross-section of exhibitors and industry leaders on the show floor, capturing what is actually resonating with Australian manufacture...

Australian Manufacturing Week 2026 has landed in Brisbane for the first time ever — and we're recording live from the show floor. Part 1 of our AMW 2026 coverage brings you six exhibitor interviews covering robotics, autonomous material handling, ERP, 3D metrology, automation hardware, and the grant landscape for Australian manufacturers. Paul Mason and Shane Williams are joined by locals Phil...

Manufacturers keep investing in automation, ERP, AI, and capital projects, yet many still struggle with cost, resilience, and execution. The problem is not the tools, it is fragmentation. In this episode, Shane Williams and Paul Mason are joined by  Oliver North  and  Warren Proctor , Partners at Argon & Co , to unpack why siloed projects quietly destroy manufacturing competitiveness, and what...

Most manufacturers do not need another AI tool. They need better decisions from the ERP and data they already have.  In this episode, Graeme Evans and Ian Macdonald from Epicor explain how embedded AI is helping manufacturers move ERP from a system of record to a system of action, helping them get more from the systems they already use every day. We explore practical use cases across scheduling, s...

Four real AI use cases in Australian manufacturing and the hardware decisions behind moving from pilot to production.  In this episode, Troy Smithells from Xenon Systems (Australia's only Nvidia Elite partner) walks through where AI is actually earning its keep in Aussie manufacturing, and why production workloads often need to leave the cloud. We cover:     Hand-drawn to CAD file conversion:...

Authentic storytelling cuts through AI-generated noise and drives real change in manufacturing teams. In this episode, Gabrielle Dolan, storytelling expert and author, shares her Story Intelligence framework and why it matters more than ever for manufacturers leading change. We cover: - Why authentic stories outperform data and slides when overcoming resistance to change - How to use storytelling...

Australia's robotics sector is scaling fast — here's what manufacturers need to know and do first in 2026. In this episode, Nicci Rossouw, CEO of Robotics Australia Group, returns to unpack how the ecosystem has shifted and what's driving the most investable robotics businesses today. We cover: - The National Robotics Strategy and why funding alone doesn't solve the scaling challen...

From Industry 4.0 to Industry 6.0 — agentic AI, humanoid robots, and what's already happening on factory floors today. In this episode, Nick Doyle, Head of Manufacturing at ANCA Manufacturing Solutions in Thailand, walks us through the roadmap from where manufacturers are now to where they're heading. We cover: - Why Thailand is becoming a major production hub and what that means for Austr...

A practical guide to the grants, incentives, and support programs Australian manufacturers can actually use in 2026. Shane Williams and Paul Mason step back from the detail to map the landscape of federal and state funding programs available to manufacturers this year. We cover: - The biggest funding opportunities for 2026: Made in Queensland, National Reconstruction Fund, ARENA, and more - Why R&...

AI that augments — not replaces — your workforce: practical steps for manufacturers starting today. In this episode, Murali Sastry, learning and AI strategist, shares a grounded framework for AI adoption in manufacturing that keeps humans in the loop. We cover: - What vibe coding is and how frontline workers are using it to build dashboards without IT - Learning in the flow of work: low-risk AI au...

Most warehouses haven't changed in 30 years. Here's how to automate without betting the business on a mega-project. In this episode, Rob O'Dea, founder of ShelfBot, unpacks the real blockers stopping warehouses from taking the first step into automation — and how to move past them. We cover: - Why SAP integration complexity and over-engineered solutions kill projects before they start - The 80/20...

Futurist Marcus Barber unpacks supply disruptions, skills shortages, and strategic blind spots shaping Australian manufacturing now. In this episode, Marcus Barber, foresight strategist and futurist, maps the real forces reshaping Australian manufacturing and what manufacturers should be doing about them. We cover: - The shift from just-in-time to just-in-case and its cash flow implications for SM...

Small, targeted automations connecting your ERP, CRM, and finance systems can add up to serious cash flow and productivity gains. In this episode, Harry Cribb and Paul Del Gigante from Inturing share a practical framework for AI automation in Australian manufacturing — one that starts with process, not technology. We cover: - How to connect CRM, ERP, finance, and project systems to eliminate low-v...

Culture isn't a values poster — it's how your team shows up when things get hard. Mike House explains why it's your biggest competitive edge.   In this episode, Mike House, leadership coach and culture strategist, shares what strong manufacturing culture actually looks like in practice — and the mistakes that kill it. We cover: - Why culture is defined by behaviour, not words on a wall - The bigge...

Dennis Savic is building Australia's first high-performance electric motorcycle brand without the supply chains of Europe or Asia — here's how. In this episode, Dennis Savic, founder of Savic Motorcycles, shares the engineering, manufacturing, and commercial challenges of building an EV brand from scratch in Australia. We cover: - The modular electric motorcycle design strategy and what bold perfo...

What does digital transformation really mean for manufacturers? An IT/OT deep dive with the hosts of Unplugged IIoT. In this episode, Ed Fuentes and Phil Seboa from the Unplugged IIoT podcast join Shane and Paul for a cross-podcast conversation on the practical realities of digital transformation in manufacturing. We cover: - Strategies for bridging the IT and OT gap in real-world plant environmen...

Poor data quality, silos, and misaligned metrics are costing manufacturers money. James Deck shows how to fix that. In this episode, James Deck, founder of Clevvi and a digital transformation specialist with over 20 years' experience, shares a practical framework for turning manufacturing data into real business outcomes. We cover: - The most common data mistakes manufacturers make: wrong data, ba...

Australia is uniquely positioned for advanced medical device manufacturing — here's what's driving that advantage. In this episode, Zeno Helm, Managing Director of Schott MiniFab, shares how Australian manufacturers are navigating the fast-growing MedTech sector. We cover: - Why Australia has a structural advantage in advanced medical device manufacturing - How agile design and manufacturing proce...

Brand trust, AI democratisation, and operational stability: a live panel from Industrial Transformation 2025 Sydney. Recorded live at Industrial Transformation 2025, Shane Williams hosts Glen, Sean, and Grant for a practical panel on rapid transformation and sustainable competitiveness in Australian manufacturing. We cover: - Grant's Ignite framework for brand trust and growth in a technology-led...

Robots-as-a-service, right-sized packaging, unified WMS/WES, and AI safety zones — CeMAT 2025 Part 3 floor coverage. Recorded live at CeMAT 2025 in Sydney, Shane speaks with four innovators redefining warehouse logistics and supply chain operations. We cover: - Kent Rogers from Locus Robotics on why robots-as-a-service is the smarter path for scalable warehouse automation - Emily Janssens and Neil...

ERP-driven selling, AI-powered forecasting, and mental health in the supply chain: CeMAT 2025 Part 2 floor coverage. Recorded live at CeMAT 2025 in Sydney, Shane speaks with five innovators shaping the future of manufacturing and supply chain. We cover: - Adam Frank from SugarCRM on how sales teams can finally unlock ERP data for smarter customer engagement - Michael Kemeny from KNAPP on AeroBOT —...

Geopolitical shifts and supply disruptions are reshaping Australian manufacturing supply chains — here are the strategies that work. Recorded live at CeMAT 2025, Shane speaks with Lawrence Christoffelsz and Monique Donaldson, both experienced supply chain strategists, about how manufacturers can build resilience in an increasingly unpredictable world. We cover: - How geopolitical shifts are drivin...