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Silicon
Valley ramps up with Satyam
Deakin University’s “Silicon
Valley” has received a further boost with the announcement of a
partnership project with Satyam Computer
Services Ltd.
Satyam will establish a software development and learning centre on a 10 hectare site at Deakin’s GTP (Geelong Technology Precinct) located at its Geelong Campus at Waurn Ponds.
The project, in cooperation with the Victorian Government and the City of Greater Geelong, will create at least 2,000 new jobs in the Geelong region within eight years.
The Vice-Chancellor of Deakin University, Professor Sally Walker said: “This is a highly significant partnership. Satyam’s decision to establish its facility at Deakin will add further impetus to Deakin’s Silicon Valley.”
“Deakin is immensely grateful to the Victorian Government for facilitating this co-location.
“With this project, Deakin accelerates new employment in the Geelong region, including employment for Deakin’s graduates, while the Relationship Agreement creates real value for Deakin University, its staff and students.”
Under the Relationship Agreement Satyam will engage in a range of collaborative activities with Deakin including staff exchange, a work integrated learning program for students, a graduate employment program, joint research activities and scholarships and prizes.
The announcement is the latest to expand the scale and scope of activities at Deakin’s GTP and the “Silicon Valley” concept. In early 2008, in partnership with the Victorian Government, Deakin announced the building of a proof of concept facility.
More recently, the Federal Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, Senator Kim Carr announced that the Innovative Regions Innovation Centre for Australia would be located at the GTP.
Satyam Computer Services Ltd is a global consulting and IT services company with a presence in 61 countries. Headquartered in India, it is listed on the Bombay, New York stock exchanges and on EuroNext. Company revenue for the financial year 07-08 was approximately US$1.44 billion; projected revenue for 2008 is $2 billion.
Satyam has over 50,000 employees globally and its development and delivery centres in the US, Canada, Brazil, the UK, Hungary, Egypt, UAE, India, China, Malaysia, Singapore, and Australia serve 630 clients, including more than one third of the Fortune 500 organisations.
Universities and the Regional Economy
By Professor David Stokes, Deputy Vice-Chancellor, (Research), Deakin University.
Senator
Kim Carr, Australia’s new Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science
and Research, said recently that: “Brazil has legislated to provide
incentives for research cooperation between universities, research institutes
and private companies … if Brazil can get the public and private
sectors sharing research staff, funding and facilities, why can’t
we?"
I agree. And surely we can take this initiative even further. It is time for Australia to have another go at providing new incentives for universities and industries to work together.
The potential for more industry ready graduates, more focussed research and more benefit to regional economies is enormous.
At Deakin University in Geelong we have been building a strong portfolio of discovery and applied research in advanced manufacturing. This includes research in new materials, composites, nanotechnology, biotechnology and intelligent systems.
We have also been building opportunities for industry to co-locate and collaborate with Deakin researchers at our Geelong Technology Precinct – more than 40 partnerships are already in place.
Deakin University’s Geelong Campus at Waurn Ponds sits on a 360-hectare site, with ample room to accommodate the widest range of new research facilities and co-located industries.
Space is one of the advantages that we have over universities on inner-city sites where most of the land has long been built out.
The innovative nature of Deakin’s approach was recognised in late March when Senator Kim Carr announced at the annual dinner of the Geelong Manufacturing Council that the Innovative Regions Innovation Centre for Australia would be located at the GTP. “The Innovative Regions Centre in Geelong will be a cornerstone of Enterprise Connect, with $20 million in funding over four years,” Senator Carr said.
“It will help SME’s (Small and Medium Sized Enterprises) with benchmarking, technical assistance, process improvements and sourcing new technology.
“The Innovative Regions Centre will serve the whole country, giving people in Geelong with good ideas and special expertise the chance to hook into the national network of Enterprise Connect sites – and, more importantly, a national network of SME’s.”
Needless to say, Deakin University is delighted to be chosen by the Australian Government for the Innovative Regions Innovation Centre under the Enterprise Connect scheme.
Geelong has long been the home of Victoria’s manufacturing industry.
Many of Australia’s traditional industries, and not just those in Geelong, are facing intense competition from overseas manufacturers. Innovation in current practice as well as innovation in future design are both essential in the survival of these industries.
If existing industry is to make an ongoing contribution to regional economies, national economies and the global knowledge economy, it will need to become involved in clever, creative partnerships with academia and governments.
To encourage these partnerships, shifts in policy setting for all parties will need to be made.
Senator Carr has set the ball rolling. He has announced reviews into Innovation, the Clothing, Textiles and Footwear Industry, the Auto Industry and the Co-operative Research Centre Program. These developments are occurring at time when Higher Eduction in Australia is also going to be reviewed.
Universities in regional economies have a key role to play in the value adding chain.
Universities are not commercial enterprises in the sense that SMEs and large companies are commercial enterprises, but there is a real opportunity for industry and universities to work together in partnership, each benefiting from the other in areas of their core business.
Strong universities and strong industries can then jointly make new contributions to regional, national and international ventures.
This is at the heart of the Deakin approach. Some of our established partnerships are in applied research. In other cases, Deakin is providing companies with opportunity to co-locate and to collaborate.
Recently the Victorian Government provided $6 million to add a “proof of concept” space at the GTP. This is a facility in which ideas can shelter, grow and be fully tested, before taking their chance in the commercial world.
Research Services Division:
Geelong Campus at Waurn Ponds
Pigdons Road, Geelong, Victoria 3217 Australia
Telephone: +61 3 5227 2673 Facsimile:
+61 3 5227 2175
Email: dvc-research@deakin.edu.au
www.deakin.edu.au/research
Deakin Research Updates - back copies
Back issues of Deakin Research Updates are available at: www.deakin.edu.au/research
International research coup for Deakin
Deakin researchers Jo Salmon, David Crawford and Clare Hume have been asked to take part in a major program in Europe to help combat obesity – the ENERGY project which is receiving close to three million Euros in funding from the European Union.
“The aim of the ENERGY project is to examine the influence of existing programs on health behaviours in different populations and settings,” said Associate Professor Jo Salmon.
“This will then allow us to develop an evidence and theory-based approach for promoting physical activity and healthy eating among youth in transition from childhood to adolescence.
“The results of this project will be translated into practical strategies and knowledge that can be used by schools, policymakers, health professionals and the general public both in Europe and Australia.
“For Deakin to be selected as the only non-European based participant reflects very positively on the work we have been doing at here, particularly within the Centre for Physical Activity and Nutrition.
Holy Grail – this way
Deakin researcher Dr Ilchat Sabirov has taken metallurgists ever closer to their Holy Grail – high strength nanostructured metals with good ductility.
It has long been known that ultra-fine-grained (UFG) metals and alloys possess excellent mechanical strength.
However, their commercial application has been hampered by poor ductility – the amount of deformation a material can sustain before breaking.
A paper published - with Dr Sabirov (above) as the lead author - in the prestigious Acta Materialia has created a better understanding of the relationships between the mechanisms of plastic deformation and tensile ductility of UFG alloys.
“To a lot of people, this might all sound very technical,” said Professor Peter Hodgson, head of the Centre for Material and Fibre Innovation at Deakin University who is Dr Sabirov’s supervisor.
“However, it is very important because it may provide some clues into mechanisms that would help metallurgists achieve their Holy Grail.
“We have all been searching for high strength through heavy grain refinements but with good ductility.
“We are all very excited at the way Ilchat has taken things forward.”
Dr Sabirov says the new strategy for alternating the mechanisms of deformation could prove highly advantageous to the space and aviation industries.
“They are always interested in lighter materials, particularly high strength aluminium alloys,” he said.
“This new approach allows us to keep the same strength while increasing the ductility.”
Dr Sabirov is a prize recruit for Deakin. Originally from Russia, he completed a Masters at UFA State Aviation Technical University.
Deakin's voice at the 20/20 Summit