Last month, we took a number of our industry stakeholders for an inside look at the Australian National Fabrication Facility - South Australia (ANFF-SA) – a cutting-edge micro and nanofabrication facility at the University of South Australia's Mawson Lakes campus.
The ANFF-SA forms one of eight nodes under the Australian National Fabrication Facility (ANFF) and is a unique, open access facility helping businesses and researchers to test their ideas and get them to market with the help of highly trained technical experts.
Established under the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy
(NCRIS), the ANFF-SA is co-located at the University of South Australia and Flinders University.
The facility provides access to more than $20 million of equipment, tools and facilities in design, fabrication and testing of micro-scale devices. Cutting-edge equipment can be used to draw patterns, etching, deposition, 3D printing, additive manufacturing, prototype testing, and more.
The facility is also home to the Precision Engineering Centre which houses lab-on-a-chip technology, micro and nano-machining equipment, advanced sensing and state-of-the-art precision optics capabilities and expertise. It is the only one of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere, placing Australia at the forefront of advanced manufacturing.
Node Director Professor Craig Priest says the ANFF-SA works closely with industry and research clients to achieve great research outcomes that have the potential to become commercial products.
“We work with businesses, entrepreneurs, engineers and researchers to support the development and commercialisation of their idea or product using ANFF technology,” he said.
“Often one of the missing parts of the commercialisation journey is sourcing the know-how. ANFF-SA offers access to a unique and robust knowledge pipeline which bridges the divide between research and commercialisation. These resources can contribute to the development of compelling business cases which are pivotal for attracting investments.
“By leveraging the expertise of ANFF-SA’s technical professionals, we support businesses to develop functional prototypes, conduct experiments, and scale up production processes.
“We guide their ideas through the innovation cycle while safeguarding the integrity and ownership of their intellectual property.”
The ANFF is a National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy (NCRIS) facility, which provides critical research infrastructure for researchers and businesses to develop new products, services and solutions to major health, environmental and economic challenges.
Investment for ANFF-SA includes support from the South Australian Government, through the 2023 NCRIS Co-Investment Grant, Federal Government and UniSA.
