DESIGN BLOg

Australian Made Camper Trailers
Innovation, durability and functionality are the hallmarks of Australian Made products, and it’s no different for camper trailers.

All About Fabrication – Facts and Stats
One of the key components of our fabrication capacity is our welding team. Our highly skilled welders have plied their trade for a collective total of some 100 years.

Australian Manufacturing Facts and Stats
Here’s a series of Australian Manufacturing facts and stats to give you an insight into the current state of Manufacturing in this country and across

Young Designers Visit Black Lab Design
“The power of collaboration to accelerate young talent.“ Of the 63,000 students that received a High School Certificate in 2021, 3,347 of them undertook Design and

Digital Signage: Not Just For Retail
The benefits to advertisers can no longer be ignored and with the constant improvement of the technology and reduction in up-front installation costs, it has become the choice method for reaching mass audiences outside of social media.

Past Projects: Bannister Downs Dairy
The Bannister Downs Creamery Facade was an iconic, intricate, and individual project that Black Lab Design was honoured to be a part of.

Are We Doing Enough to Fix the Skills Shortage?
When the usually steady supply of skilled workers ceased at the outset of the pandemic, it became abundantly clear that Australia did not internally possess the adequate number of technically proficient workers that the manufacturing, mining, construction and technology sectors demand.

Australian Design Spotlight: RØDE Microphones
For this edition of our Australia Design Spotlight, we have RØDE Microphones in focus. RØDE is a truly unique story of success in the realm

What to Know About Installing Solar
Whether you’re considering installing solar for your home or for your business, or you already have it, there’s a LOT to know. A strong understanding of solar technology and energy generation is vital when making the investment.

Good Store Design Boosts Retail Sales
One of the most valuable solutions for recession-proofing a retail business is to invest in the physical stores. Creating, developing or improving the presence of a store is the tried and tested answer to bringing in new customers and encouraging continued loyalty from the existing base.

Content Management Systems and Device Management Systems Explained
Digital Signage systems can be as complex or as simple as you like. The extensive adoption of digital signage in supermarkets, offices, campuses, restaurant franchises

Design-Led and Design For Manufacturing
DFM represents a crucial element of design-led manufacturing and it’s impossible to take a design-led approach without optimising the production process per the principles of design for manufacture.

Is an LED or LCD Display Best for my Business?
One of the most common questions we’re asked when assisting businesses establish their digital signage systems is whether an LED or an LCD display is best for their business. The answer is always contextual to the clients’ needs. It starts by clarifying what the difference between the two actually is. Â

What Advanced Manufacturing Really Means
‘Finding smart ways to make dumb things’ is the most simple yet all-encompassing explanation I have relayed when trying to explain the characteristics of advanced manufacturing to others.

The 5 M’s of Manufacturing Success in 2022
This time last year, whilst Australia was still navigating pandemic lockdowns, vaccination rollouts and economic recovery, we shared our Survival tips for Australian manufacturers. During

An Australian Made Decade
The Australian Made Week wrapped up last week. The initiative, in its second year, gives exposure to those going against the grain to prove our

Australian Made Week – Product Feature 2
Years of experience, innovation, and product iterations have been drawn upon in the design and manufacture of Rota Cota’s Calibre Paint Brush range. The brands’ next challenge is executing their go-to-market.

Australian Made Week – Product Feature
With an increased focus on ranging local products in their stores such as Australia’s globally renowned wines, wealth of craft beers, and up-and-coming whisky’s, Dan Murphy’s have supported this initiative with an Australia-centric approach to sourcing in-store fixtures.

7 Reasons Why Buying Australian Made Products is Important
Buying Australian made products is so important for our sustainability and supply chain security.

Australian Design Spotlight: Digital Radio Concentrator System Â
Rapid development in communications technology defined the late 20th century, and by 1980, it was the Outbacks’ turn to reap the rewards of modern telecommunications. Leading the connection of the outback to the rest of Australia, and the world beyond, was Telecom Australia – the predecessor to Telstra. Â

Amazon’s Electric Fleet Under Threat
The electric-vehicle startup is suing one of its seat suppliers, Commercial Vehicle Group Inc. (CVG), over a breach of contract regarding seat unit price.

Reducing the Environmental Impact of Sheet Metal Fabrication
When a fabrication facility reduces the environmental impacts in sheet metal fabrication – costs go down because there is less waste and productivity increases due to efficiency.

Conventional Retailers Pursue E-Commerce Success
The global e-commerce market is expected to total $5.55 trillion in 2022. The explosion of the sector has been largely fuelled by American consumers and companies, with five of the top ten e-commerce companies in the world headquartered in the US.Â

The Cost of Unreliable Supply Chains
Time is money. When it comes to running a business these days, that adage becomes harder to ignore by the day. Customer expectations have moved with the pace of innovation and globalisation to demand rapid response and expeditious delivery.

Global Innovator Marks 150 Years in Australia
Siemens’ involvement in Australia began in 1872 with the commission of the historic Overland Telegraph Line, one of the most important pieces of infrastructure at the time.

Manufacturing Success Hinges on Research and Development
Investment in research and development delivers enormous gains in a company’s technological growth, employee satisfaction and capabilities.

The Best of Australia By Design Innovations
Innovative design is all about finding and creating new ways to solve problems. Every one of the unique products shown in Australia by Design Innovations solves a different problem.

Australian Design Spotlight: One Central Park
It’s not always singular design innovations altering the projection of an industry or a product that characterise our design landscape in Australia, it is also the willingness to collaborate with global leaders in design to facilitate the creation of projects on our home soil that set new benchmarks.

Sustainable Design: A How To
It could be said that the only true sustainable or ‘green’ product is the one that’s never made. In this sense, we can only ever hope to make products more sustainable or more ‘green’. The most sustainable solution is to avoid making unnecessary items altogether.

Nurturing the Grassroots of Innovation
Solving the problems of the future requires a strong supply of critical thinkers with a taste for innovation, comprehension of new technologies and a penchant

Manufacturing Australia’s Low Emissions Future
As well as examining the numbers associated with industry transition, the report works to show why maintaining and growing Australia’s manufacturing capabilities through that transition is important to the nation’s longer-term economic sovereignty and security.

Can Climate Action and a Manufacturing Revival Coexist?
Climate Action and Manufacturing are not typically harmonious activities. With a focus on some existing examples of manufacturing related progress in Australia, we can get a glimpse of how a manufacturing revival can coexist with effective climate action.

3 Emerging Industries Australia Can Thrive In
When it comes to manufacturing in Australia we have witnessed a regression in the quantity of goods made here over the past few decades, increasingly relying on imports to serve our needs. The result has been a decline in our economic complexity

Australian Design Spotlight: Wave Piercing Catamarans
Despite the small population of this country, we over-deliver when it comes to game-changing design and innovation.

Australian Design Spotlight: The Winged Keel
Despite the small population of this country, we over-deliver when it comes to game-changing design and innovation.

Tritium Charges Ahead of the Competition
Their fast chargers boast individual capacities from 50 to 350 kilowatt, and is one of the world’s top sellers in the area.

The Rise of Women in Manufacturing
Australian manufacturing is transforming and is today one of the nation’s most dynamic industries. Yet, the industry’s potential is being hampered by an inability to attract enough women into the manufacturing sector.

7 Female Leaders in Manufacturing You Should Follow
In 2019/2020 the manufacturing sector’s workforce was 72.5% made up of men aged 20 – 74.

Australian Manufacturing | Bi-Monthly Blog Brief
Our view of what’s been happening in Australian ManufacturingNovember 2021 – January 2022 Welcome to the the bi-monthly wrap up of our top headlines. Catch

Micro Factories are the Future of Recycling
UNSW’s Professor Sahajwalla is a rubbish innovator who sees used materials as resources. She is testing putting micro factories in businesses to take on their own recycling journey and remanufacture the waste on site.

In-House Design is Key to Tesla’s Advantage
Despite the many disruptions of the recent past, predominantly with the global semiconductor chip shortage, Tesla has been able to maintain an impressive rate of production and delivery

When the Chips are Down – Lessons from the Semiconductor Shortage
While chips themselves are resilient, made to handle extreme temperatures, vibrations and other external shocks, the global semiconductor supply chain is relatively fragile, prone to disruptions from natural and man-made shocks.

Design-Led Manufacturing Makes Smart Solutions
As an industry, we are wasting money and resources figuring out how we are going to manufacture our designs too late into the process.

Innovative Aussie Companies You Should Know About
There are a diverse range of specialised companies designing and manufacturing brilliant products in every corner of this country. With a focus on manufacturing, here are some of the innovative Aussie companies you should know about.

Speed to Market is Critical for Today’s Retailers
In retail, speed matters. A decreased speed to market gives the competition the advantage when it comes to innovation, allowing them to reach your consumer first.

‘Local for Local’ Solves Supply Chain Woes
In the last quarter of 2021 as the Christmas buying-spree approached we saw global supply chains all but collapse under the weight of demand and

Is It Too Early to Buy an Electric Car?
As the end-of-year total vehicle sales numbers start to flow in, one might notice that electric vehicle (EV) manufacturers are still struggling to gain a

Australian Procurement and Supply Chain Management
In areas such as transport and health, where the federal government provides funding, a collaborative national approach is crucial to ensuring Australia can sustain itself through onshore supply chains and procurement.

Lessons in Job Creation through Automation from Amazon
The new Sydney-based Amazon Robotics Fulfilment Centre will reportedly create more than 1,500 local jobs working alongside advanced robotics.

5 Factors to Consider when Investing in Digital Signage
We are seeing digital signage more frequently in a wider variety of spaces every day. Transforming from mere advertising boards in shopping malls, digital signs

Closing the Loop: Will Australia Embrace the Circular Economy?
With the 26th Conference of Parties (COP26) Climate Change Summit wrapping-up earlier this month it seems that the news cycle is being once again dominated