About

The ASI and Australian steel

The Australian Steel Institute (ASI) is the peak industry association representing the complete steel value chain. ASI provides representation, advocacy, technical and marketing leadership and an independent forum to facilitate steel promotion and industry competitiveness. ASI’s mission is to increase the awareness of the benefits of steel and promote Australian made steel and steelwork as the product of choice.

Steel is an important segment of Australia’s economy. Australia’s steel industry and associated service suppliers employs 100,000+ people and has an annual turnover in excess of $27 billion. Steel is used in a diverse range of applications including, buildings, bridges, structures, mechanical equipment, bins, silos, conveyors, resource projects, and to action our sustainability imperative, to name a few. The manufacturing of steel, steelwork and steel related products provides employment and, importantly, skilled training for the current generation, who form the basis of our future advanced manufacturing capability.

Steel is a strategic Industry and it is essential to support this industry for our security and reliability of supply into the future.

The ASI and Australian steel

The Australian Steel Institute (ASI) is the peak industry association representing the complete steel value chain. ASI provides representation, advocacy, technical and marketing leadership and an independent forum to facilitate steel promotion and industry competitiveness. ASI’s mission is to increase the awareness of the benefits of steel and promote Australian made steel and steelwork as the product of choice.

Steel is an important segment of Australia’s economy. Australia’s steel industry and associated service suppliers employs 100,000+ people and has an annual turnover in excess of $27 billion. Steel is used in a diverse range of applications including, buildings, bridges, structures, mechanical equipment, bins, silos, conveyors, resource projects, and to action our sustainability imperative, to name a few. The manufacturing of steel, steelwork and steel related products provides employment and, importantly, skilled training for the current generation, who form the basis of our future advanced manufacturing capability.

Steel is a strategic Industry and it is essential to support this industry for our security and reliability of supply into the future.

Innovation is the imperative

The steel supply chain is demonstrably in a time of transition. Numerous reports, both local and international, have underscored the importance of flexibility, innovation, collaboration and communication to the future veracity and vibrancy of steel manufacturing specifically and the steel supply chain in general. To be able to compete in a fast-changing global business, Australian industry understands that it must invest in more productive and efficient practices and embrace innovation.

It is important that we both learn and share ideas with our peers both locally and internationally. We must be able to capture and share the good ideas and emerging innovative concepts between all sectors of the industry and importantly with the Universities and research hubs that currently exist.

The need

There is a significant body of world-class steel related research being undertaken in Australia, through entities as diverse as our universities, manufacturers, private research institutes and industry bodies. Without an overarching view of our ‘innovation capital’, industry cannot hope to action the key initiatives articulated in the current Government National Innovation and Science Agenda – ‘Welcome to the Ideas Boom’ (http://www.innovation.gov.au/), which recognises the need for Australia to embrace innovation if we are to prosper and grow.

The ASI Steel Innovation Portal

The ASI ‘Steel Innovation Portal’ is a central web-based ‘library of ‘innovation capital’ principally associated with innovative steel-related research and development, both locally and internationally.

The Steel Innovation Portal:

• Allows universities, research organisations and manufacturers, to post structured details of the research projects being undertaking in a format that is standardized and egalitarian across the range of projects and institutions involved;
• Allows posting of researcher bio’s in a structured format, with linkages to the relevant research projects;
• Allows searching and data mining by the local and international community on the range of projects and researchers in the portal;
• Facilitates connectivity and communication between industry and the organisations/researchers involved, both locally and internationally;
• Allows easy updating and editing of details to ensure information currency;
• Supports matching of innovation ideas to research capability;
• Facilitates international communication and collaboration between stakeholders on steel related innovation by providing awareness of the broad range of Australian steel related research.

Portal Implementation Guide

Guidance for ‘Content Champions’, Researchers and users of the ASI Steel Innovation Portal is provided in the ‘Portal Implementation Guide‘, available here: ASI Steel Innovation Portal – Implementation Guide V2018.1

We thank our friends, supporters and sponsors who have made this portal possible, and look forward to the opportunities that this portal brings to the Australian steel community!