CSIRO has scooped the pool at the prestigious KCA Awards, for creating and commercialising a special X-ray to find gold and a varnish to preserve priceless artworks.
The Awards celebrate world-class research commercialisation that turns brilliant ideas into products and services to help humanity. They have the potential to save millions of lives and create thousands of jobs in our knowledge industries.
“Australian research is among the best in the world, but it takes skilled commercialisation professionals to translate it into valuable products to benefit society,” Chair of Knowledge Commercialisation Australia, Dr. Erin Rayment, says. “The KCA Awards recognise those who bridge the gap between research and industry.”
Among the finalists were The University of Queensland’s vaccine candidate and a high tech app for patients in pain, developed by Curtin University.
“Although a small proportion of the staff, technology transfer professionals are key to industry engagement and real-world impact,” Dr. Rayment says. “They facilitate the arduous journey from idea to reality, maximising social and economic benefits that result from billions of public dollars spent each year on research.”
Sponsored by Phillips Ormonde Fitzpatrick, the Awards were judged by commercial leaders of innovation:
“As the world recovers from the damage of COVID-19, the role of KCA in helping deliver the benefits of public sector research to our economy, and more broadly to our society, is more important than ever,” Ross McFarlane says.