Manufacturing in Australia
Join us on 6 May to explore the manufacturing headwinds we face as well as the opportunities for future economic prosperity, complexity and resilience.
Date
Tuesday 6 May 2025
Time
6:00 PM - 7:30 PMImportant information
Networking drinks and canapés: 6:00pm - 6:30pm AEST - Free
Presentation (In-person and Online): 6:30pm – 7:30pm AEST - Free
Optional in-person dinner: 7:30pm – 9:00pm AEDT - $38
Manufacturing in Australia peaked in the 1960s but has since fallen significantly in terms of domestic capability, export income and the number of people employed directly and indirectly.
In this seminar, three major thought leaders in the field of manufacturing will discuss the challenges and opportunities for Australia. They will explore the headwinds we face including scale, technology transfer, geo-politics & national policy as well as the opportunities in terms of future economic prosperity, complexity and resilience. Structural changes are needed to ensure we seize each of the opportunities ahead of us.
Join these three expert speakers to discover the challenges and opportunities shaping the future of Australia’s manufacturing and economic resilience.
This seminar will be moderated by Professor Matthew Cuthbertson FTSE.
This event is open to all.
Speakers
Managing Director, Dow Australia and New Zealand
Karen Dobson is Managing Director of Dow Australia and New Zealand, based in Melbourne, Australia.
Having joined Dow’s Australian manufacturing operations as a graduate chemical engineer from the University of Melbourne, Karen has over 35 years’ experience with the company. She has held a variety of technical, marketing and business management roles in that time, including global roles in Dow’s water treatment technologies and mining chemicals businesses, based over the years in Hong Kong, the United States and China.
Karen is the Chair of Chemistry Australia and serves on the Board of the Business Council of Australia. She is a member of the Australian Industry Group’s Victorian and National Advisory Councils, a Council member of the Royal Institution of Australia and an Advisory Board member of the University of Queensland Dow Centre for Sustainable Engineering Innovation.
Karen was appointed as a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering in 2024.
Having joined Dow’s Australian manufacturing operations as a graduate chemical engineer from the University of Melbourne, Karen has over 35 years’ experience with the company. She has held a variety of technical, marketing and business management roles in that time, including global roles in Dow’s water treatment technologies and mining chemicals businesses, based over the years in Hong Kong, the United States and China.
Karen is the Chair of Chemistry Australia and serves on the Board of the Business Council of Australia. She is a member of the Australian Industry Group’s Victorian and National Advisory Councils, a Council member of the Royal Institution of Australia and an Advisory Board member of the University of Queensland Dow Centre for Sustainable Engineering Innovation.
Karen was appointed as a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering in 2024.
Samantha Read
Chief Executive Officer, Chemistry Australia
Chief Executive Officer, Chemistry Australia
Samantha’s career spans more than 30 years across the chemicals, plastics, renewable fuels, automotive and steel industries.
Previously she was CEO of the Biofuels Association of Australia and held senior executive and board roles at GM Holden She was also a Non-Executive Director of the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries.
To provide the best outcomes for current and future generations, Samantha’s focus is on building sustainable and resilient industries, businesses and communities. She is a passionate advocate for Australian manufacturing and believes that our industrial base is critical for Australia’s economic health and community wellbeing, providing skilled and high value STEM jobs, investment and new technologies to meet our future challenges.
Previously she was CEO of the Biofuels Association of Australia and held senior executive and board roles at GM Holden She was also a Non-Executive Director of the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries.
To provide the best outcomes for current and future generations, Samantha’s focus is on building sustainable and resilient industries, businesses and communities. She is a passionate advocate for Australian manufacturing and believes that our industrial base is critical for Australia’s economic health and community wellbeing, providing skilled and high value STEM jobs, investment and new technologies to meet our future challenges.
Louise McGrath
Head of Industry Development and Policy, Australian Industry Group
Head of Industry Development and Policy, Australian Industry Group
As Ai Group’s Head of Industry Development and Policy, Louise provides strategic leadership and guidance for Ai Group’s policy agenda in building competitive industries through global integration, infrastructure development and innovation.
Leveraging her twenty years in international trade, Louise represents Australian Industry in several multilateral forums, such as the B20 Taskforces, Global Business Coalition, and the East Asia Business Council working group for the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership. She advocates for the interests of Ai Group members during Free Trade Negotiations and translates those agreements to support the strategic aims of members.
Leveraging her twenty years in international trade, Louise represents Australian Industry in several multilateral forums, such as the B20 Taskforces, Global Business Coalition, and the East Asia Business Council working group for the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership. She advocates for the interests of Ai Group members during Free Trade Negotiations and translates those agreements to support the strategic aims of members.
Moderator
FTSE
Chair, Victorian Clean Technology Fund and Deputy Chair, Solving Plastic Waste CRC
Chair, Victorian Clean Technology Fund and Deputy Chair, Solving Plastic Waste CRC
Professor Matthew Cuthbertson has held several significant and relevant career appointments, including serving as a board member with early-stage companies, research centres, a venture fund, and community organisations. He has held executive roles at two leading universities, served as CEO of two very different but equally successful Cooperative Research Centres (CRCs), and was Vice President of Research and Technology at SOLA International Inc.
