Archived News for Industry Professionals

State governments will be eligible for massive incentives to sell-off their assets, under a new scheme announced by Federal Treasurer Joe Hockey this week.

Female execs bring price drops, the more the better

Companies save money on acquisitions for each female board member doing the buying, a new study says.

Leak pokes holes in NBN cost and capability

A leaked internal report by NBN Co says the Liberal government’s plan will make less money and cost more, reports say.

Boom enters calmer phase, some look for new fields

A key government authority has said for the first time that the resources boom is winding down, at the same time as a new study says most Australians did not benefit from it.

Motives questioned in Bishop's China air call

Australia’s foreign minister has felt the wrath of the waking dragon, upsetting the Chinese government with her claims over their air-space.

Online tax call falls to states

The verdict is down to state governments to decide whether more GST should be collected from online purchases, and minds should be made up by March.

More fines from North Queensland copper dump

A mining company has been fined $120,000 for the heavy pollution of waterways in Far North Queensland.

Office model to take the heat off commercial bills

A new system developed by University of Adelaide engineers can model and predict temperatures within a building, promising significant reductions in commercial energy use.

Santos spreads wells for knowledge

Australian oil and gas company Santos Ltd. is sinking eighteen water monitoring bores around its operations in New South Wales – saying that if water tables are diminished or damaged, they will know about it.

Study seeks to unpick conflicts, cut to core of land issues

A new project has been launched to find out exactly how the values of people in rural areas are affected by land use conflicts caused by CSG drilling, wind farms, irrigation and agriculture.

Twin spills spark nasty clean-up, closures

The Gold Coast City Council may need some extra toilet training, after raw sewerage was accidentally spilled twice in less than a week.

Unions look for careful planning in visa reform

The Australian Council of Trade Unions has proposed a re-assessment of certain visa rules, in an effort to help the very youngest members of the workforce.

BHP spends up for bigger loads

BHP Billiton has reached deep into its hip pocket, digging up $300 million to replace two massive shiploaders at its Nelson Point port operations in Western Australia.

Double-barrel build to link Abbot with Galilee

With partial approval recently given to Queensland’s Abbot Point coal port terminal expansions, GVK Hancock and Aurizon have announced a plan to start building the rail infrastructure that will move millions of tonnes from the Galilee Basin to coastal ports.

Glowing road could light path to cyclist safety

A high-tech and hauntingly beautiful new safety system is on trial in the UK, lighting up the night in the name of cyclist safety.

New NASA launch to peek behind Venus' veil

Biting at the heels of NASA’s latest launch, the space agency is preparing to send up a rocket to probe the atmosphere of Venus.

New stats show mine safety up but in poor state still

A report on mine safety in Queensland has shown that contract workers are still at greater risk of on-site death than full-time employees, despite injury levels dropping overall.

Noise complaints favoured, but could create congestion

Governments are too willing to put residents’ complaints ahead of industry access to roads, rail and ports - Michael Kilgariff says.

Students prep for real-world learning on track day

Some Australian universities are showing off their creations for the Formula SAE contest; a race to test students’ design and engineering skills.

Survey suggests aero-engineers' faith waning

A poll published by a finance news outlet has indicated a profound lack of trust in Qantas management from the company’s engineers and pilots.

Union won't see road safety scrapped

The national secretary of the Transport Workers’ Union says the Federal Government plans to close the Road Safety Remuneration Tribunal, showing contempt for the hundreds of families affected by transport industry road deaths, and callous disregard for the many pressures that drivers face.