LAND FORCES 2022 Innovation Awards now open

Australian innovators in the land domain have until 8 August to submit an entry for the prestigious LAND FORCES 2022 Innovation Awards.

The Awards will be presented at the three-day LAND FORCES 2022 International Land Defence Exposition at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre (BCEC) on Tuesday 4 October.

Awards will be presented in the following categories:

• LAND FORCES 2022 National Innovation Award
• LAND FORCES 2022 SME Innovation Award (including a $15,000 cash award)
• LAND FORCES 2022 Young Innovator Award (including a $15,000 cash award)

The awards are open to Australian companies or the Australian subsidiaries of overseas parent companies. The innovation can be a new product or service or a new approach to business. Entries will be judged on originality and their understanding of user needs.

“The ideal innovation award candidate provides a solution to a known problem, or an advance that will materially improve an existing process or capability,” said Justin Giddings, CEO of LAND FORCES organiser AMDA Foundation Limited. “The ideal candidate is already at a development level that could see it fielded in a reasonable timeframe.”

“In keeping with AMDA Foundation’s mission to promote industry development, the awards are designed to encourage and reward excellence by Australian companies and emerging engineers and scientists.”

The AMDA Foundation Innovation Awards program sees similar awards presented at the biennial Australian International Air Show and Aerospace & Defence Exposition at AVALON, and the INDO PACIFIC International Maritime Expo in Sydney.

The Awards program has awarded some $455,000 in SME Innovation Awards and Young Innovator Awards since first presented in 2013.

The 2021 award winners were:

• National Innovation Award: Micro-X(South Australia) – for developing the world’s first mobile, lightweight X-Ray machine.
• SME Innovation Award: SPEE3D (Victoria and the NT) – for developing a battlefield 3D printing system to shorten the Army’s supply chain.
• Young Innovator Award: Dr Brodie McDonald of Defence Science and Technology Group (Victoria) – for leading the development of computer models to predict how the armour on military vehicles will behave under the onslaught of an IED or land mine.

In addition, four Award contenders won a High Commendation:

• LAND FORCES 2021 National Innovation Award HIGH COMMENDATION: DefendTex (Victoria)
• LAND FORCES 2021 Defence SME Innovation Award HIGH COMMENDATION: Milspec Manufacturing Pty Limited (New South Wales)
• LAND FORCES 2021 Young Innovator Award HIGH COMMENDATION:  Mr Harry Veivers, DMTC Limited (Queensland); and Mr Mackay Whight, Cyborg Dynamics Engineering (Queensland)

Visit the LAND FORCES website to find out further information about the eligibility criteria or to submit an entry for the LAND FORCES 2022 Innovation Awards.