By CASEY NEILL
Manufacturers need to engage and collaborate.
This was the key message from South East Melbourne Manufacturers Alliance (SEMMA) executive officer Adrian Boden at the organisation’s 13th annual general meeting at Sandown Racecourse on Tuesday 26 July.
“Between our companies we have an incredibly diverse range of capabilities and technologies that could only benefit from more collaboration,” he said.
Mr Boden said SEMMA continued to engage with the CSIRO, Swinburne University and the Australian Synchrotron.
“This year has been one of collaboration and promoting the need for collaboration,” he said.
“The numbers do not lie.
“We perform very badly on the global indexes for business to business and business to research and development collaboration.
“It is the critical area where Australian manufacturing needs to improve.
“We will continue to develop opportunities and solutions to improve this situation but it can only be achieved with your engagement.”
Mr Boden said SEMMA would increase branding and marketing efforts over the next 12 months to boost its 200-strong membership base.
“We need to significantly expand our membership to make us even more relevant as well as financially secure,” he said.
“It is important that SEMMA is recognised as truly representative of the region.
“I think that this is now clear in our membership split between the different areas of our region, representing also diverse sectors within the manufacturing industry.”
He said the organisation could only be as good as its members.
“I can only encourage you to be as active as possible and to encourage your colleagues in other companies to talk to us about membership,” he said.
“We need to be able to count on you to inform us of the issues you are facing and possible solutions you could envisage.”
SEMMA President Simon Whiteley said the board had focused on how to engage with the government, research bodies, educators and the community “to support the emergence of the region as Victoria’s largest manufacturing base and the nation’s premier manufacturing centre”.
“The locally supported Smart Manufacturing ’16 event, in conjunction with Committee for Dandenong and Greater Dandenong Council, was one highlight of this direction, exposing the local businesses to beyond the south east and interacting with our future stakeholders of the region including the young future employees,” he said.
Incoming treasurer Markus Oswald delivered the financial report on behalf of Todd Hartley.
“Membership participation in SEMMA activities has grown, as has membership income and sponsorship,” he said.
Mr Oswald said Knox and Kingston councils came on board as new members.
Bombardier Transportation Australia managing director Rene Lalande joined the SEMMA board.
“Our collective presence here tonight demonstrates our joint commitment to growing the manufacturing footprint in this significant, thriving region,” he said.
“A region where every $1 spent in manufacturing creates $1.70 into the south-east Melbourne economy, a region that produces over 130,000 manufacturing jobs.”
