Developing the next generation of skilled workers in Australia’s life sciences industry

The Australian Research Council (ARC) Chief Executive Officer, Ms Judi Zielke PSM, has launched the ARC Training Centre for Next-Gen Technologies in Biomedical Analysis in Western Australia.

Led by the University of Western Australia, the ARC Training Centre will deliver a workforce trained in the development of transformative technologies that will rapidly expand the Australian pharmaceutical, diagnostic and defence sector.

Ms Zielke said the ARC Training Centre will boost Australia’s manufacturing capability by fast tracking screening, and integrating 3D printing, advanced sensing, big data analytics, machine learning and artificial intelligence to deliver optimal solutions in diagnosis, treatment and wellbeing across the life sciences industry in Australia.

“What this means for the Australian community is precision healthcare enabled by rapid diagnosis and predictive analysis, allowing healthcare practitioners to analyse data more efficiently.

“Potential applications include the development of the world’s first point-of-care sensor for mother’s milk to inform mothers about the nutritional changes in their breast milk, and bringing genomics-based healthcare technology to the community,” Ms Zielke said.

Training delivered through the Centre’s university-industry partnership will boost early-stage scale-up and accelerate the sector’s supply chain, which is pivotal for Australian industries to maintain a competitive edge.

“The ARC Training Centre’s vision to empower the Australian life sciences industry through innovation and skilled workforce development will have enduring impacts on the health and wellbeing of all Australians,” Ms Zielke said.

The ARC Training Centre connects industry partners with interdisciplinary researchers and students as future research leaders through a structured, intergenerational research and translation environment, working collaboratively with 7 research partners and 14 industry partners.

The ARC is investing $4 million over 4 years in the Training Centre for Next-Gen Technologies in Biomedical Analysis, supported by $12.6 million in funding and in-kind support from other university and industry partners.

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