BY OKONKWO ANTHONY UCHE
Innovative Australian maritime technology will be at the forefront of this year’s Indo Pacific International Maritime Exposition with the launch of the 2023 Innovation Awards.
Organiser, AMDA Foundation Limited (AMDA), presents the Awards in three categories which this year include a boosted cash prize of $50,000 to each of the SME and Young Innovator winners.
The Innovation Awards are open to Australian companies or the Australian subsidiaries of overseas parent companies. The innovation could be a new product or service, or a new approach to business and will be judged on originality and understanding of user needs.
The Awards will be presented at Indo Pacific 2023 in the following categories:
- Indo Pacific 2023 National Innovation Award
- Indo Pacific 2023 SME Innovation Award, including a $50,000 cash award (previously $15,000)
- Indo Pacific 2023 Young Innovator Award, including a $50,000 cash award (previously $15,000)
The Indo Pacific Innovation Awards are part of AMDA’s greater Innovation Program which is also presented at the Land Forces International Land Defence Exposition and Avalon Australian International Airshow.
Since the program’s inception in 2013, AMDA has awarded $585,000 worth of cash prizes and presented awards to some 75 Australian companies and researchers.
AMDA Foundation CEO Justin Giddings said the AMDA Foundation Board recently moved to increase the award cash prizes to encourage local innovation at a critical time in Australia’s industrial and strategic development.
“The AMDA Foundation board believes that now, more than ever, Australia needs a strong, resilient industry sector to support the Australian Defence Force and be a pillar of a smarter, stronger national economy. That sector needs to be innovative and export-minded as well as efficient,” Mr Giddings said.
“A sum like $50,000 can make a significant impact on an SME’s operations or the professional development of a young innovator.”
Entries close Monday 14 August 2023.
Meanwhile, a panel of innovation experts will judge the Indo Pacific 2023 Innovation Awards with representatives from leading Australian Defence and research outlets including Austrade, Defence Science and Technology Group and CSIRO.
The panel of eight judges will have the difficult task of reviewing the entries and then awarding the winners across three award categories: National, SME and Young Innovator. The Indo Pacific 2023 Innnovation Awards Judges are:
- (Head Judge) Mr Tony Quick – Chair DMTC Ltd
- Dr Reece Clothier – Principal, Global Safety and Regulatory Affairs, Boeing
- Professor Regina Crameri – Head of Critical Technologies at the Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade)
- Dr Gregor Ferguson, Ph.D – Innovation Coordinator and founder of AMDA Foundation Limited’s Innovation Awards Program
- Andrew Garth – Advocate, Advisor, and promoter of Defence SME development
- Dr Anita Hill, FTSE – Honorary Fellow at CSIRO, Past Executive Director of CSIRO, Office of the Chief Executive Science Leader and Chief of CSIRO Process Science and Engineering
- Paul C Johnson MBE, MSc, Dip Eng (AE), MAICD, independent adviser to Minister for Defence Industry for innovation programs submitted through Defence’s Innovation hub
- Dr Ian Sare AM FTSE, Associate, aadi Defence Pty Ltd
Head Judge, Mr Tony Quick said the judges will evaluate the submitted innovations against three key criteria:
- Commercial Success or Demonstrated Market Potential
- Understanding of user needs
- Originality and innovation
“The Innovation Awards are designed for practical innovators: people and companies who intend to bring a new product, service or business process to market,” Mr Quick said.
“An innovation can be defined very broadly as a new idea that is adopted and used so treat your entry for these awards as, in some ways, a test of your business case, your creativity and technological mastery: if somebody wouldn’t buy it, then why should it be a candidate for these awards?”
