Watch the full live stream playback here.
Friday 15TH October 2021 marked an evening with a difference for the Hunter Manufacturing Awards that was held virtually for the first time in HMA’s 17-year history. With the theme ‘Made for the Future’, the event was possible thanks to today’s technology, with entertainment provided by the region’s youth, artists from NSW Department of Education’s Star Struck. Aaron Kearney once again did a brilliant job as Emcee and with live crossings to guests at home enhancing the buzz and vibe of the night.
Chair of HMA, Steven Smith said – “For the first time in 17 years, we’re unable to get together and enjoy each other’s company. However, that won’t stop us acknowledging and celebrating the successes of manufacturers across our region – from the Central Coast to the Mid North Coast and from Newcastle to the Upper Hunter. The diversity, ingenuity and determination exhibited by our manufacturers never cease to inspire us at these awards and I am sure tonight’s finalists will be no different”.
Appreciation and thanks were extended to Downer, Major Sponsor for the fourteenth year and it was reiterated that without companies such as Downer, it would be difficult for HMA to continue to provide the recognition the region’s manufacturers deserve.
Steven Smith continued – “The Hunter Manufacturing Awards would not exist without the commitment we have from our various sponsors, partners and supporters, some of which have been with us for many years and some more recently. We do not take that support for granted. There was never any doubt that HMA would hold the 2021 HMA – just an on-going adaptation of the plan, as restrictions became tighter and more protracted. Fortunately, we have not only the technology, but an extremely dedicated and professional production crew that allows us to deliver an awards’ program to you wherever you may be, and where we can, we try to bring some of you into our presentation.”
Helloworld Business Travel, Newcastle, HMA’s Travel Partner, was thanked for their on-going support. Despite the turmoil encountered by the travel industry, helloworld Business Travel Newcastle has continued to be the Partner of the Incentive Prize which is a trip for 2 people to any city in Australia or New Zealand and all 2021 finalists had an opportunity to win the prize.
Winners of the Manufacturer of the Year Awards – 50 Employees or More Award and Less Than 50 Employees’ Award are both rewarded with an overseas trip to a country of their choice to visit other companies, a trade fair or event that will enable their company to further their business or make important contacts in an endeavour to grow and develop their company.
2021 AWARD WINNERS (with judges comments)
MANUFACTURER OF THE YEAR 50 EMPLOYEES OR MORE AWARD – MOLYCOP
A deep, long-standing commitment to innovation and the creation of high quality products and has enabled Molycop to weather many storms since the development of its first heat-treated grinding ball in the 1930’s. The business continues to not only win contracts against cheaper imports but to expand its reach into overseas markets. Molycop’s partnership with UNSW provides access to world leading research facilities, equipment and researchers to sustain the drive to sustain its position as the leader in its chosen markets. Molycop complements its technical excellence with a strong commitment to community and environment demonstrating a strong, cohesive set of values that keeps driving the organisation forward. A long-standing member of the Hunter community, showing the way forward in challenging times. A worthy winner of the MOTY award for organisations with more than 50 employees for 2021.
MANUFACTURER OF THE YEAR LESS THAN 50 EMPLOYEES’ AWARD – BRAIN INDUSTRIES
This Australian business demonstrates a resilient & flexible approach to compete & succeed on the world stage. Their submission reflected a well thought out business strategy supported by capital investment & key partnerships. Brain Industries has forged a pathway we hope many more Hunter Manufacturers will follow in the years ahead. With a strong and growing percentage of revenue coming from sales overseas, courageous investment in innovation, quality and value-adding partnerships driven by a leadership culture that values and recognises the input of workers, Brain Industries shows how bright the future of manufacturing in the Hunter can be.
RISING STAR AWARD – SONIA JAMES – ARMORGALV
The 2021 Rising Star Award was given to Sonia James is employed by ArmourGalv of Thornton as a Technical Development Engineer. Limited opportunities for females in engineering in her home country of India saw Sonia take the brave step of moving to Australia to complete her Masters in Engineering Science in Brisbane. Then came a move to the Hunter just over 12 months ago and a start with ArmourGalv as a graduate Engineer. Sonia quickly stamped her personality on the position and her input has changed a number of processes within the company that both benefit the company and clients. Sonia has proven to be very versatile and works well with all team members at all levels. She is a champion of the newly formed safety committee and is constantly highlighting potential improvements. Sonia has now been given the responsibility of managing all Research and Development within the company and she has already identified a number of projects. Sonia has developed a strong interest in Australian standards and was recently selected for the Standards Australia NEXT gen program for 2021-22 for young leaders.
MANUFACTURING LEADER AWARD – STEVEN DEE – DEEPS ENGINEERING
From humble beginnings in a garage in Nelson Bay Steve has shown exceptional leadership to build a successful manufacturing business. Steve strengths include his focus on employee engagement, communication, teamwork, safety and innovation. Steve’s focus is now on coaching and mentoring the next generation of manufacturing leaders.
EXCELLENCE IN SUSTAINABLE OPERATIONS – MOLYCOP
The changes and direction Molycop are taking are tangible sustainable improvements that not only affect their business but provide improvements in waste streams that have been historically difficult. The integration of the waste, recovery and recycling business into Molycop 360 demonstrates genuine commitment at all levels of the business. The changes are long-term and require subsequent investment and support from leadership and employees.
COLLABORATION PARTNERSHIP AWARD – STEBER INTERNATIONAL, AMPCONTROL, UNIVERSITY OF NEWCASTLE
This team comprising Steber, AmpControl and The University of Newcastle, exhibited tenacity in collectively pursuing the end goal of prototyping and demonstrating an electric hybrid vessel. Continually pivoting to explore funding assistance, and bringing on and mentoring new talent, the team continued to pivot the solution to maintain future relevance and market appeal for the end product. Maintaining communications with potential early adopters, the team are well positioned to take what they have learned for handoff to commercialisation. This team are worthy of the Collaboration Award as they provide a fantastic example of multiple entities collaborating as “equal” partners.
EXCELLENCE IN INNOVATION – SWITCHDIN
SwitchDin enables virtual power plants and microgrids by creating a common language for different brands of products such as inverters, batteries, and then managing those assets to meet a range of energy goals all while bringing a monitoring & control platform to end users. SwitchDin is already playing a critical role in energy transition by making distributed energy resources such as solar PV and battery storage smart, visible and controllable.
SwitchDin has a validated product with strong early sales, an impressive partner list, and is paving the way for the integration of more renewables into the world’s energy system.
EXCELLENCE IN MANUFACTURING CAPABILITY AWARD – ELECBRAKES
Elecbrakes have grown as a company during a time when many industries have suffered. A sudden increase in caravanning and trailering when overseas travel was limited led to high demand for their brake control technology and they stepped up their manufacturing capability accordingly.
EXCELLENCE IN BUILDING WORKFORCE CAPABILITY FOR THE FUTURE AWARD – MORGAN ENGINEERING
This Australian business has successfully developed their workforce with targeted capabilities, improving business performance along with employee & customer satisfaction. Their submission reflected a well thought out and executed business strategy.
EXCELLENCE IN PRODUCT DESIGN – AMPCONTROL
The judge of the Excellence in Product Design commented that the quality of all submissions in this year’s Product Design category was very impressive, not to mention only a handful of marks separating the top 5 of the finalists.
Ampcontrol have shown what it takes to do product design well, “The Solar cube” solves a significant challenge of providing electricity to remote areas in a rapidly deployable and cost-effective solution. Ampcontrol have well met the needs of their customers with this modular system, with equal measures of both innovation and highly considered design details focusing on affordability, ease of use and safety for the public, installers, and maintenance staff.
OUTSTANDING START-UP AWARD – MGA THERMAL
Founded in 2019 MGA Thermal’s mission is to enable the shift to renewable energy by providing a new ways to store energy that is clean, economical, and scalable. MGA Thermal has shown a high degree of innovation in developing renewable energy solutions from IP developed here in the Hunter Region. This local innovation, along with a commitment to Australian based manufacturing and a strong focus employee engagement and culture makes MGA Thermal a worthy winner in this category
EXCELLENCE IN EXPORT AND GLOBAL SUPPLY CHAIN AWARD – CHAMBERLAIN GROUP
Congratulations to Chamberlain Australia Pty Ltd. Who demonstrated how a strong strategic approach in identifying and entering new markets has ensured a more sustainable Australian manufacturing facility. A stand-out strategy was the collaboration with a US global leader to support Chamberlains design and manufacture of a winching application for the USA poultry market.
