Accelerate Manufacturing Conference 2025

Next date: Wednesday, 21 May 2025 | 08:30 AM to 03:00 PM

After huge success in 2022, 2023 and 2024 the Accelerate Manufacturing Conference is returning to the Western Downs for its fourth year on Wednesday, 21 May 2025.

This free conference will bring together government officials, industry experts, investors, and innovators across Queensland to exchange the latest information ideas, showcase cutting-edge technologies, navigate government policies, funding and programs, discuss operational performance and business efficiency, and how to thrive in an industry enduring constant change and technological advancement.

This is a one-of-a-kind opportunity to accelerate industry growth, identify and enable opportunities that facilitate industry leading trials and cross-sectoral networking.

Accelerate Manufacturing 2025 Registration Form

Keynote Speaker: Martin G. Moore

Martin G Moore_edited.jpg

Martin, with an extensive leadership background will discuss valuable insights on 'No Bullsh!t Leadership'.

Martin is a global thought leader, whose wisdom was forged in the cauldron of high-performance leadership.

A university law school dropout, he worked his way up to hold corporate executive roles in Strategy, Technology, Finance, and Sales & Marketing.

As CEO of multi-billion dollar company, CS Energy, he drove a remarkable performance turnaround, growing EBITDA from $17 million to $441 million in just 5 years.

In 2018 he left the corporate world to establish Your CEO Mentor, the business he founded with his daughter, Emma Green. Since then, his direct, cut-through approach has made No Bullsh!t Leadership one of the top leadership podcasts globally, with over 6 million downloads in 150+ countries, and his book debuted at #2 on the Wall Street Journal bestseller list.

His sole purpose is to improve the quality of leaders, globally.

Conference Details

Networking Event Details

Western Downs Regional Council in collaboration with Dalby Chamber of Commerce will host a networking event the evening before the conference. Light refreshments will be provided.

Please register for this event below:
Register for May Business After Hours Event

Program of Events

8.30am	Doors Open & Sign In
9.00am	Event Commences
9.15am	Official Welcome - Mayor
9.30am	Keynote Address and Q&A - 'No Bullsh!t Leadership' (With Martin G. Moore)
10.30am	MORNING TEA
11am	Panel 1: Sustainable Energy and Energy Saving in Manufacturing
11.45am	Panel 2: Disruptive Technologies in Manufacturing
12.30pm	LUNCH
1.15pm	Western Downs Manufacturing - Shaping the Energy Future Program (With Ali Davenport)
1.30pm	Panel 3: Manufacturing for the Primary Industries
2.15pm	Panel 4: Skilling, Industry Pathways and Employment in Manufacturing
3.00pm	Close of event

Panel Topics and Speakers

An exciting panel of industry experts will drive discussion on a range of interesting themes including:

Sustainable Energy and Energy Saving in Manufacturing

Strategies for sourcing clean and sustainable energy enabling regional manufacturing at scale.

Michael Lucy

Manager - Economic Development

Department of Natural Resources & Mines; Manufacturing; and Regional & Rural Development

Panel Moderator | Mike is the manager for the Toowoomba based manufacturing team within the Queensland state governments department of Natural Resources & Mines, Manufacturing, and Rural & Regional Development. His team supports the 1200 manufacturers located in southern Queensland with a range of support services that include the adoption of advanced manufacturing technologies, sustainability, skills development & training for manufacturers and promotion of career pathways in manufacturing.

Mike has previously held positions within the Department of State Development & Infrastructure in this region and also worked in the private sector as a vegetation management specialist.

James McIntosh

Owner/Business Transformation Specialist

McIntosh Specialised Consulting

Panellist | James McIntosh is a skilled consultant, specialising in maximizing profit, capacity and unlocking production efficiency. James is a professional engineer with over 25 years’ experience in production system design, continuous improvement tools and rapid interventions.

He has wide-ranging experience in the Australian automotive industry, implementing Lean and other world class practices across the supply chain: Parts and Accessory, Tier 1 Supply and Vehicle Plant. This inspired James to share the benefits with other industries including all forms of manufacturing and production including fabrics, fabrication and electronics since his return to Queensland in 2005.

Paul Hodgson

Executive Director Regional Futures - Energy Transitions

CQ University

Panellist | Paul is Executive Director Regional Futures – Energy Transitions, and Director of the Centre for Hydrogen and Renewable Energy at CQUniversity; and Chair of Queensland Manufacturing Institute. Prior to joining CQUniversity earlier last year, Paul was Interim CEO of a bid for a Scaling Green Hydrogen Cooperative Research Centre, developing a 10-year $AU 213m research and training program with the support of 97 partners from 12 countries. Between 2017 and 2021, Paul was General Manager Innovation and Stakeholder Engagement (East Coast) for the Australian energy industry growth centre, NERA, where he led the development of a national network of regional hydrogen technology clusters. Paul was listed as one of The Australian newspaper’s Top 100 Green Energy Players in 2023 and 2024. He has a Master of Sustainable Development and Bachelor of International Business.

Ali Davenport

CEO

Queensland Manufacturing Institute

Panellist | Ali is the CEO of Queensland Manufacturing Institute (QMI), a not-for-profit organisation that has been providing support for manufacturers across the state for over 30 years. As the Queensland licensee for ICN, the QMI team also provides connections for local businesses to major projects Australia-wide.

Previously, Ali held the role of CEO of Toowoomba and Surat Basin Enterprise (TSBE), an organisation focused on linking local businesses in Toowoomba, Western Downs and the Maranoa to opportunities. Ali knows and loves the Western Downs and is looking forward to working with local manufacturers to deliver support and enable growth.

Disruptive Technologies in Manufacturing

Exploring the impact of disruptive technologies in manufacturing and how to leverage change.

Cori Stewart

CEO/Founder

ARM Hub

Panel Moderator | Industry Professor Cori Stewart is a Board Member of Industry Innovation and Science Australia (IISA) appointed by the Prime Minister of Australia and contributes to a range of committees and boards in an advisory capacity. In 2020, Cori founded the highly successful Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing (ARM) Hub and is the company’s CEO. In this role, Cori has nurtured hundreds of businesses across sectors to validate, commercialise and modernise using cutting-edge technologies, design thinking, new IP and workforce development strategies.

Jeremy Phillips

Manufacturing Manager

SwarmFarm Robotics

Panellist | Jeremy is the Manufacturing Manager at SwarmFarm Robotics, headquartered in Wellcamp, just outside of Toowoomba. With a clear vision for innovation and efficiency, Jeremy is leading the charge in vertically integrating SwarmFarm's supply chain. His current focus lies in adopting advanced manufacturing technologies—particularly robotics—to enhance the company’s fabrication and painting capabilities.

Rouz Fard

Associate Director

UniSQ

Panellist | Rouz is the Associate Director (Industry and Community Partnerships) at the University of Southern Queensland; an experienced relationships manager and partnerships strategist with a demonstrated history of strategic industry and community collaborations, working in higher education partnerships to build a future-ready workforce in various sectors. Highly skilled in Learning Management, Tertiary and Vocational Education and Training, Industry Linkage, Business Development, and consulting with a great passion for regional Queensland. He is actively building mutually beneficial relationships between industry, communities, and the university to drive innovation in industry collaborations and regional outcomes for our communities through engagement.

Brad Parsons

Founder & CEO

Rely Ability

Panellist | Brad leads sustainable energy and manufacturing innovation, specialising in energy saving and disruptive technologies across manufacturing industries. As Founder and CEO of Rely Ability, he worked with global academics to build their flagship energy management LEAP programme which combines energy monitoring, predictive maintenance and operational optimisation to reduce costs and improve profitability.

Manufacturing for the Primary Industries

Catering for the needs of rural businesses and benefits of rural manufacturing and food processing.

Amanda Moohen

COO

Condabri Beef

Panel Moderator | Is the Chief Operating Officer at Condabri Beef, a leading family owned and operated company which has an integrated model that includes a 32000SCU feedlot, backgrounding, dryland and pivot irrigation farming and a logistical fleet of over 8 trucks. With over 16 years of experience in the feedlot industry, Amanda has built a career centred around operational excellence and driving performance improvements across the supply chain, focusing predominantly on lot feeding that consistently delivers exceptional results, high retention and morale and balancing operational demands with long-term strategic goals.

April Cavanagh

Chair

TSBE/Manufacturing Skills Queensland

Panellist | April is a dynamic senior executive with a proven record in business, leadership, governance, project management, and consistently delivering exceptional results. Born and raised in the bush, April understands regional needs, challenges, and opportunities. Over the course of her accomplished 25-year career, April has amassed diverse experience across various industries, including financial services, agriculture, and manufacturing. Her professional journey has taken her to London, Sydney, Brisbane, India and more recently the United States, providing her with a global perspective. Now settled in Toowoomba, Queensland, April applies her national and global lived experiences and career skills to her role as Chair of Toowoomba and Surat Basin Enterprise (TSBE), Chair of Manufacturing Skills Queensland and a board member of Cotton Australia.

Peter Walsh
Owner & CEO
Walsh & Ford

Panellist | Peter Walsh is born, raised and educated in Dalby. He studied laboratory techniques in Toowoomba at the Darling Downs Institute of Advanced Education. Peter is currently Owner and CEO of Walsh & Ford, a leading agricultural, grain and bulk handling company. He has also worked for Defiance Milling, Analytical lab procedures & testing /Lab manager-Toowoomba-Melbourne- Warwick (JV with Kellogg’s Australia).

Cori Stewart

CEO/Founder

ARM Hub

Panellist | Industry Professor Cori Stewart is a Board Member of Industry Innovation and Science Australia (IISA) appointed by the Prime Minister of Australia and contributes to a range of committees and boards in an advisory capacity. In 2020, Cori founded the highly successful Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing (ARM) Hub and is the company’s CEO. In this role, Cori has nurtured hundreds of businesses across sectors to validate, commercialise and modernise using cutting-edge technologies, design thinking, new IP and workforce development strategies.

Skilling, Industry Pathways and Employment in Manufacturing

Learning future skills in manufacturing and strategies for existing workforce development and training.

Kate Venables

GM Southwest QLD

TAFE QLD

Panel Moderator | Before joining TAFE Queensland in October 2024, Kate spent 20 years working in the social services sector across Central Queensland, the Darling Downs and Southwest Queensland, in a variety of leadership roles. Kate’s passion for rural, regional and remote Australia, has connected her with many varied communities and her core values include a proven commitment to diversity and inclusion, and a lifetime commitment to excellence.

With 11 of the 14 South West campuses falling in rural, regional or remote Queensland, Kate is aware of the many vulnerabilities and complexities of our varied communities across Southwest Qld as well as the enormous resilience they demonstrate.

Nick Riddell

Account Manager

Harness Energy Services

Panellist | With over five years of experience in the employment and training sector, Nick has spent the past three years at Harness Energy. Prior to that, he worked as an Employment Officer with the Downs Industry School Co-Operation (DISCO), where he played a key role in helping young people access meaningful employment pathways.

Known for his genuine approach and commitment to client success, Nick takes pride in building strong, lasting relationships with businesses of all sizes—delivering tailored workforce solutions that meet both current and future needs.

Michael Matthewson

General Manager Projects & Innovation

Mort & Co

Panellist | Leveraging over 30 years’ experience in Maintenance Management, Process Engineering and Project Management, Michael joined Mort & Co in 2021 as General Manager, Projects & Innovation. In 2005, Michael shifted focus to the Consulting, Engineering and Construction industry delivering large scale food and beverage facilities throughout Australia and Southeast Asia. During this time, Michael worked with Australia’s largest multinational and privately owned red meat processing and feedlotting organisation to deliver a wide range of projects that provided operational efficiency, increased capacity, develop new processes and adopt new technologies.

Kris McCue

Director - Program Delivery and Commercial

Manufacturing Skills Queensland

Panellist | Kris is a seasoned executive with over 20 years of leadership experience across the private, public, and community sectors in QLD, NSW, and the NT. As Director of Program Delivery and Commercial at Manufacturing Skills Queensland, Kris leads strategic workforce and skills investment for the state’s manufacturing industry.

2023 Accelerate Manufacturing Conference Wrap

In May 2023, Council hosted the second Accelerate Manufacturing Conference in the Western Downs, which attracted more than 70 attendees from across the industry and its value chain. Facilitating this brilliant event and connecting experts from around Australia with local businesses is part of Council's commitment to building a strong, diverse economy in a region which is a recognised leader in agribusiness, energy and manufacturing. Hear more about the event in the video below: