TechTransfer Podcasts

Episode 25 – The bravery to act first and leading new product commercialisation with Shona Faber

Episode 25 – The bravery to act first and leading new product commercialisation with Shona Faber

Sep 28, 2023 | , , ,

In this episode, my guest is Shona Faber, Non-Executive Director of ARB Corporation, previously Managing Director CRC Industries, and General Manager of Specialty Gases & Chemicals at BOC. We talk about her experiences in bringing EDN, a novel fumigant chemical, licensed from CSIRO Entomology to market in her role at BOC. In discussing the journey that unfolded in this product coming to market, we touch on risk management and managing constant change as a new chemical is shepherded through various regulatory systems to market.

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Episode 24 – Regional Innovation Ecosystems with Elena Kelareva

Episode 24 – Regional Innovation Ecosystems with Elena Kelareva

Aug 31, 2023 | , , ,

In this episode we talk with Elena Kelareva, CEO and Founder of GippsTech, about her experiences in establishing innovation systems in regional areas, and her reflections on the behavioural and cultural settings behind successful regional innovation ecosystems. We touch on the definition of tech transfer and tease out a distinction between innovation translating scientific outcomes and entrepreneurship, the latter being more broadly around the establishment of ventures to address new opportunities.

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Episode 23 – Joining the dots and the secret sauce with Cameron Hibbert

Episode 23 – Joining the dots and the secret sauce with Cameron Hibbert

Jul 27, 2023 | , , ,

In this episode we had the chance to catch up with Cameron Hibbert, a long-standing colleague and friend who has been in global licensing roles at LyondellBassell Industries and Genomatica. We talk about when I first met Cameron at Montell and his journey to Germany through carrying responsibility for technology transfer at the Geelong polypropylene production plant. We explore his experiences moving from licensee to licensor in his role with LyondellBassell Industries taking responsibility for polyolefin licensing activities.

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Episode 22 – Leadership and Relationships with Paul Wood

Episode 22 – Leadership and Relationships with Paul Wood

Jun 29, 2023 | , , ,

In this episode, we were pleased to have a wide-ranging discussion with Paul Wood. We talk about his start at CSIRO and the pathway to his breakthrough in TB tests for cattle in the Northern Territory, and how it opened a pathway into animal and human health research leadership. We discuss a few ‘sliding door’ moments with Paul around Qiagen, Cellestis, CSL and Pfizer, and how he ended up with the ‘keys to the lolly shop’ with Pfizer Animal Health (now Zoetis) in North America.

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Episode 21 – Axon Instruments and the Relentless Commitment to Quality with Alan Finkel

Episode 21 – Axon Instruments and the Relentless Commitment to Quality with Alan Finkel

May 25, 2023 | ,

In this episode, I have the great privilege of chatting with Alan Finkel. We revisit key formative moments at Monash University and ANU, and the opportunities that emerged from the challenge of accessing and developing the best fit for purpose equipment. We discuss the difference between framing questions and solving problems through a discussion of the Engineering Method, an approach that underpins Alan’s career at Axon Instruments and beyond. Through instrument development, Alan recognises that development needs to be orientated towards needs, those spoken and those yet to be identified, and move past ‘what a customer wants’.

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Episode 20 – Hopium, Hydrogen & Scale with Paul Martin – Part 2

Episode 20 – Hopium, Hydrogen & Scale with Paul Martin – Part 2

Apr 27, 2023 | , , ,

In this episode we continue our discussions with Paul Martin exploring the challenges of clean hydrogen scale up, the market forces and Hopium driving current government and industry activity. We discuss distributed production of ammonia and urea and the impact of diseconomies of scale and consequences of parallelisation. We reflect on alternative feedstocks, such as lignocellulose, with a passing nod to our mutual colleague Paul Bryan, and how Wright’s Law of the cost benefits arising from increasing scale and experience may not apply as anticipated by many in the race to scale green hydrogen production.

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Episode 19 – Hiring for Start-ups: HR Due Diligence and ‘The Founder’s Dilemma’ with Lesley Lightfoot and Jeremy Wurm

Episode 19 – Hiring for Start-ups: HR Due Diligence and ‘The Founder’s Dilemma’ with Lesley Lightfoot and Jeremy Wurm

Mar 30, 2023 | , ,

In this episode we are delighted to have Lesley Lightfoot and Jeremy Wurm join us from Brooker Consulting discussing the challenges of building the right teams in the early stages of technology transfer and new ventures. We look at their philosophies and approaches on how to engage candidates for the dynamic roles associated with start-ups.

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Episode 20 – Hopium, Hydrogen & Scale with Paul Martin – Part 2

Episode 18 – Hydrogen, Hopium & Scale with Paul Martin – Part 1

Feb 23, 2023 | , , ,

In this episode we explore with Paul Martin, the challenges of clean hydrogen scale up, the market forces, and Hopium driving current government and industry activity. In Part 1 of our discussions with Paul, we reflect on the history of hydrogen as a fuel, which traces it way back to the 1990s, the rise of Hopium and the associated belief systems that don’t pay the attention to thermodynamics that they should!

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Episode 17 – From Start-up to Scale-up: Reflections on Australia’s Innovation System with Dr Katherine Woodthorpe AO

Episode 17 – From Start-up to Scale-up: Reflections on Australia’s Innovation System with Dr Katherine Woodthorpe AO

Jan 26, 2023 | , , ,

In this episode, Dr Katherine Woodthorpe AO joins us to explore the challenges of moving from start-up to scale-up. From addressing foundational tech transfer challenges such as articulating product benefits and identifying market needs, we discuss tech transfer as being the first step on a journey of technology commercialisation and business establishment.

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