Four cutting-edge projects have each received $150,000 under the latest round of the Defence Innovation Partnership’s Collaborative Research Fund (CRF).
The initiatives, which involve collaboration between South Australian and national partners across Defence, industry and academia, promise to deliver advanced technologies for Defence applications, while generating economic benefits for the state.
Among the successful projects, is research that seeks to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of naval port operations by addressing challenges posed by the accumulation of microorganisms, such as algae, on naval ships and docks.
The biofilm project, led by Flinders University, ultimately aims to develop an intelligent, predictive tool to demonstrate how quickly marine growth appears and attaches to vessels according to different conditions such as water temperature and other environmental factors.
Marine growth can cause problems such as reduced efficiency of the vessel, increased maintenance costs and potential environmental issues.
The following projects have been successful in securing funding under round 8 of the CRF:
1. Understanding environmental impacts on biofilm growth at key naval ports
Lead Organisation: Flinders University
Partners: University of South Australia, QUT, DSTG, Australian Naval Infrastructure (ANI)
2. Distributed multi-agent TEWA (threat evaluation and weapons assignment) algorithms for force-level battle management: a scalable approach for real-time decision-making in dynamic combat environments
Lead Organisation: University of Adelaide
Partners: Flinders University, DSTG
3. Developing an underwater recharging station to maximise the endurance and mission effectiveness of autonomous/uncrewed underwater vehicles
Lead Organisation: Flinders University
Partners: University of South Australia, DSTG, EfficientSee
4. A tool for simulation-based evaluation of human-driven processes for critical infrastructure operations resilience (HDP-CIOR tool)
Lead Organisation: Flinders University
Partners: University of South Australia, Priori Analytica, DSTG
The CRF provides up to $150,000 per project to support collaborative research and development activities.
Funding applications are rigorously assessed on their alignment with Defence priorities, the viability and feasibility of proposed activities, and the strength of collaboration.
The Defence Innovation Partnership is a collaborative initiative of Defence SA, Defence Science and Technology Group (DSTG) and South Australia’s three public universities, the University of Adelaide, Flinders University and the University of South Australia.
For more information about the CRF visit Collaborative Research Fund
Quotes attributable to Stephen Mullighan
South Australia is at the forefront of defence innovation, and the projects funded under this latest round of the Collaborative Research Fund demonstrate the extraordinary talent and capabilities of our research institutions and industry partners.
These initiatives not only address critical Defence priorities, but also enhance our state’s economic prosperity through high-value research and development.
Quotes attributable to Dr Tamar Jamieson, Postdoctoral Research Associate, ARC Training Centre for Biofilm Research and Innovation, Flinders University
I am delighted to have led a successful application with colleagues from the ARC Training Centre for Biofilm Research and Innovation at Flinders, with Dr Andrew Scardino (DSTG) and Professor Sophie Leterme (Flinders) and Dr Ehsan Arzhagi (QUT).
In collaboration with Dr Nick Fewster-Young (UniSA) and Mr Paul Shinks (ANI), this project will develop a better understanding of how environmental conditions and antifouling materials affect biofilm growth by integrating existing knowledge and real-time field data into an intelligent predictive tool.
This innovative tool will facilitate developing data-driven decision-making for maintenance of maritime assets which will enhance the availability of existing and new platforms. It is anticipated that the results of this project will provide direct benefits for AUKUS partners interested in asset management and sustainment.