City report
123-room luxury hotel and spa; along
with the $165m Adelaide Airport
development (2021), which is focused on
expanding the international terminal.
There is also a string of new
hotels in the pipeline, including a
Westin and Sofitel.
Australian Space Agency
Australia’s Prime Minister announced on
12 December 2018 that the Australian
Space Agency would be located at the
McEwin Building in the Lot Fourteen
innovation neighbourhood within the
redeveloped Royal Adelaide Hospital.
The South Australian Government is
also working to attract key space sector
organisations and start-ups to the Lot
Fourteen innovation neighbourhood to
create a ‘corridor of knowledge’.
While based in Adelaide, the Agency
will have a national focus, and all
Australian states and territories
encouraged to play their role in growing
the country’s space sector and opening
doors internationally.
The Head of the new Agency, Dr
Megan Clark AC, will operate from
Adelaide in interim facilities with some
support staff until the Agency becomes
operational when Lot Fourteen space
becomes available from July 2019.
It is hoped the Agency will drive
growth in Australia’s space sector and
open new doors for local businesses,
creating high tech, high paid jobs.
Eight hundred people are actively
employed in the sector and $61m has
been committed to South Australia’s
space industry through venture capital,
universities, industry and governments.
Industry is also using space
Damien Kitto,
Chief
Executive
Officer,
Adelaide
Convention
Bureau:
“The legacy
for South
Australia as a
result of
hosting the
IAC in
Adelaide
continues to
re-iterate the
importance of
a destination
hosting
business
events. The
announcement
that the
Australian
Space Agency
will be housed
in Adelaide,
within the Lot
Fourteen hub,
has seen a
distinct
increase in
interest from
similar private
enterprises
and industries
to be part of
this ecosystem.
Innovation is a
key focus for
us and we
expect Lot
Fourteen will
become a
desirable
destination to
visit and meet
with local
experts for
future business
event
delegates.”
technology and critical data to allow it to
optimise operations in sectors such as
agriculture, mining and marine.
In September 2017, the South
Australian Space Industry Centre
(SASIC) was created to drive space
industry innovation, research and
entrepreneurial development.
South Australia is also home to the
Space Forum series, a bi-annual space
forum, which has grown to more than
500 attendees and aims to promote
collaboration and networking in the
space industry.
Tonsley
Another tech hub near to Adelaide is
Tonsley, which is 10km south of the city’s
CBD and airport.
Tonsley offers ‘collision spaces’, which
it describes as, “a network of high quality
meeting places to support serendipitous
networking that can lead to the kind of
knowledge spill over that feeds
innovation”. It has been designed as
Australia’s first innovation district
uniting individuals, businesses and
researchers looking to collaborate, test,
build and grown in a flexible and
supportive environment. It can be
described as a 61-hectare collaborative
playground, with a specific focus on the
high value manufacturing sector,
The model for achieving the Tonsley
ISSUE 100
vision has been based around a triple
helix partnership between government,
university and industry.
This model incorporates the
development of high amenity, mixed use
urban development (physical assets)
populated with anchor businesses as well
as research and training institutions
(economic assets) in an environment that
supports entrepreneurial activity and a
culture of innovation (networking assets)
to create an innovation district.
Tonsley’s focus sectors are health,
medical devices and assistive
technologies, cleantech and renewable
energy, automation, software and
simulation and mining and energy
services reflect South Australia’s
economic strengths and opportunities.
The hub has seen Autonomous Vehicle
trials and a district energy scheme
generates 30% of Tonsley’s energy from
renewable sources.
Tonsley’s 2,000sqm Main Assembly
Building, known as the MAB, is the
main area where offices can be leased.
The innovation district also supports
an 11-hectare residential development
and a retail and entertainment precinct is
being developed.
The McLaren Vale and Adelaide Hills
wine regions are less than a half hour’s
drive from Tonsley, and the Glenelg and
Brighton beaches are even closer.
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