$40 million for nine new research hubs and training centres

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Research industry partnerships will be strengthened further following the announcement of $40 million for nine new ARC Research Hubs and Training Centres.

Minister for Education and Training, the Hon. Christopher Pyne MP, announced the funding outcomes for the most recent Australian Research Council (ARC) Industrial Transformation Research Programme (ITRP) round while visiting The University of Adelaide in May.

A total of $18.7 million will fund four new Industrial Transformation Research Hubs over the next five years, with research in areas such as sustainable agriculture, offshore oil and gas and the future fibre industry.

A total of $20.9 million will see five new Industrial Transformation Training Centres commence operations, covering research areas such as mining, forestry and biosecurity.

In his media statement Minister Pyne said that the ARC ITRP was helping to deliver the Government’s commitment to boost the commercial returns of research.

“These new research hubs and training centres will see Australia’s best researchers work collaboratively with industry to deliver important outcomes that would not be achieved working independently.

“The training centres will also equip our future generation of researchers by supporting Higher Degree by Research students and postdoctoral fellows in gaining real-world practical skills and experience through industry placements.”

The Minister made the funding outcomes announcement at the launch of the ARC Training Centre for Innovative Wine Production based at The University of Adelaide. This particular ARC Training Centre was funded under a previous ITRP funding round.

ARC Chief Executive Officer, Professor Aidan Byrne, who also attended the event in Adelaide, said the new hubs and centres were powerful tools for connecting research and industry.

“Strong research partnerships between academia and industry can provide the competitive edge for products, processes and services.

“These research partnerships also provide unique training environments to provide a highly-skilled national workforce and offer new job opportunities for PhD and postdoctoral researchers, specifically through the Training Centres.

“The ARC now has a total of 18 Research Hubs and 16 Training Centres, which have received almost $114 million in funding, and who are developing solutions for current industry challenges.

“This scheme is positively embedding itself into the Australian research landscape and will deliver important outcomes well into the future,” Professor Byrne said.

A list of the four new research hubs and five new training centres is below. For more information about the ARC ITRP, please visit the ARC website. For detailed information about these new projects please view the Funding Announcements page in the ARC Research Management System (RMS).

Funding outcomes for ARC Industrial Transformation Research Programme