Hon Tim Ayres’ visit to ARM Hub, UAP
Senator the Hon Tim Ayres, Minister for Industry and Innovation and Minister for Science was joined by ARM Hub Chairman Emeritus Prof Roy Green on his visit to ARM Hub to see the work happening across our tenant and partner community.
Across the Hub’s tenants and partners, the Minister saw complex automation solutions, AI tools built for small business, and engineering innovations ready to scale into global markets. The tour reinforced that Australian innovation is world‑class, and solving real problems for workers, communities and industry.
Highlights of the tour included -
ProTx founder John Ferguson on the Arresta 100, a road safety barrier designed to reduce fatalities and serious injuries at Australian worksites. Launched to market earlier this month, the Arresta100’s journey is a clear example of what it takes to get from prototype to market.
The Air-Conditioning & Mechanical Contractors Association (AMCA) are piloting an AI project to help HVAC businesses access faster, more reliable compliance guidance.
Dr Roozbeh Derakhshan walked the Minister through a tool that works like a trusted digital librarian, drawing on verified source data rather than generative AI. For HVAC workers, that means less time on paperwork, a safer work environment, and more time at home for the things that really matter.
Propel-AIR 2025 winner Dominic Lindsay provided an outline of Nexobot's low-cost parcel sorting system. Built for regional and small-scale logistics, the system provides access to operators who have never been able to afford automation before. Nexobot were the winners of last year’s ARM Hub A Adopt Centre program Propel-AIR, which connects Australian robotics and AI to a global community through Boston’s Mass Robotics. (More about Propel-AIR below).
The UAP visit included a tour of the operation and a look at the Badjgama Ngunda Whuliwulawala (Black Women Rising), soon to be a permanent landmark at Circular Quay in Sydney.
Dr Troy Cordie outlined how welding data can be captured on the factory floor, build a sovereign dataset, and train robots for new applications to meet the demand facing Australia’s genuine shortage of welders.
The tour concluded with an update on several flagship robotics projects housed at ARM Hub. The Minister also checked in on the Fish Girl Scampi Caviar robot project, explored the latest developments from Australian Droid & Robotics, and heard from Dominic Spooner on new advances in battery storage systems (see story below).
Together, these projects show how ARM Hub brings industry, researchers and entrepreneurs together to de-risk innovation and keep advanced manufacturing jobs in Australia.