Who would have thought that the global shutdown could actually revive Australia’s manufacturing capabilities?
Yet, that is the outcome being forecast by a group of leading industrial players at the centre of Australia’s defence manufacturing sector. So how would this actually come about?
In earlier blogs, we touched on the possibility of the current crisis, although grave in so many respects, having an upside in manufacturing. Now this conjecture is becoming more of a reality as the world changes in response to developments.
This is against the backdrop of a Japanese Government intervention to aid the relocation of manufacturing in-country as opposed to sourcing elsewhere in Asia, could this be a route that other countries follow – in particular Australia?
A group of defence primes brought together by the University of South Australia discuss the potential for greater importance being placed on Australian provenance.
The key to it all lies in the reliance of supply chains on imported components and materials which the current crisis has exposed as Australia’s vulnerability.
It could lead to a re-focus on local manufacturing. It could also lead to us re-evaluating Australia’s industrial capability with an emphasis on end-to-end manufacturing.
Historically, Asia has won contracts based on price but now there is a higher priority being given to a guarantee of supply which has altered the dynamic.
View the following article for a fuller account of the positions expressed….