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Grow your business at Tonsley.

The Tonsley Innovation District promotes productive, inclusive and sustainable business development. As Australia’s first innovation district, it is a bold initiative for creating and growing businesses by helping entrepreneurs, universities, researchers and investors — across sectors and disciplines — co-invent and co-produce new discoveries.

Businesses and institutions based at Tonsley benefit from the district’s culture of research, collaboration and entrepreneurship supported by local and international partners.

Tonsley’s layout and facilities are designed to help take great new ideas from concept to market. It is set up purposely to attract investment and create jobs. It’s unique because some of the smartest businesses in Australia share a precinct together with residential and community living.

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"Here in South Australia people are already working on projects including regenerative suspension systems, next-generation batteries, innovative electric drive trains and even autonomous vehicle technology.

It’s that innovative philosophy that has started Siemens — in collaboration with a number of local companies and educational institutions."

Jeff Connolly, Chairman and CEO, Siemens

Siemens

Siemens is a leading, multi-national German technology company with global reach, ranked 63 on the Fortune Global 500.

The company has invested $5 million in its Tonsley Service Centre, which opened in July 2015. At this facility, Siemens maintains turbomachinery equipment including wind turbines, gas turbines, steam turbines and compressors for the energy and resources sectors. It attracts business from across Australia and Asia Pacific.

Siemens’s commitment to Tonsley — and South Australia — doesn’t stop there. The company is also a strategic partner on the entire Tonsley project, helping establish the precinct as a global model of a sustainable technologies hub.

Strategic partner

Siemens signed a memorandum of understanding with the Government of South Australia in 2012 to become a strategic partner on the Tonsley project. As part of this partnership it will explore further opportunities to assist and establish Tonsley as a global model of a sustainable technologies precinct. This will ensure partners at the site will benefit from Siemens’ promotional activities.

Siemens Vice-President of Energy, David Pryke has publicly committed to collaborating with partners at Tonsley and has said that “innovation and collaboration are essential ingredients for successful business on a global stage.”

The company is considering expanding its Tonsley facilities following its $10 billion acquisition of Dresser-Rand. This ensures it has a comprehensive portfolio of equipment and capability for oil and gas servicing in Australia.

Siemens's Tonsley facility

Siemens’s maintenance and repair facility at Tonsley was designed to be flexible in its production set-up and delivery. So much so, the company’s Chairman and CEO Jeff Connolly says it will deliver a 22% faster turnaround — with 65% more throughput — while using 14% less floor space. Plus:

“The facility will be able to overhaul larger equipment for the oil and gas industries that previously would have been sent offshore.”

That means the facility is also positioned to attract work from heavy resource states such as Queensland and Western Australia, effectively making it a national service centre for technology and engineering.

Business Partners

Simulation Australasia

Relocating its headquarters to Tonsley, Simulation Australasia’s corporate members include:

  • Australian Defence Simulation and Training Centre
  • Australian Institute of Medical Simulation and Innovation
  • BAE Systems
  • Boeing Defence Australia
  • Coal Services
  • Kellogg Brown & Root
  • New South Wales Police Force Simulated Operations Unit
  • Saab Australia Pty Ltd
  • TraumaSim.

The presence of Simulation Australasia at Tonsley is a resource to any company in the software and simulation sector.

ZEN Energy Systems

ZEN Energy Systems is Australia’s first 100% renewable energy utility provider, and developer of energy storage technology.

ZEN Energy won a $1 million tender to install lithium ion batteries at three government-owned buildings — Art Gallery of South Australia, State Library of South Australia, and Adelaide High School.

The three Adelaide city sites will be fitted with battery storage demonstration systems, in what is believed to be a national first.

Signostics

Signostics specialises in portable point-of-care devices such as the Signos handheld ultrasound device and the SignosRT Bladder Scanner.

Being so close to other ‘like-minded’ companies, Signostics has thrived at Tonsley.

Micro-X

Micro-X specialises in the development, manufacture and export of ultra-lightweight medical x-ray products, sold through partnerships with multinational companies around the world.

Hills Innovation Centre

With industrial design staff and graduates from the University of South Australia, the Hills Innovation Centre has designed and developed a new aged-care nurse call device (or ‘pendant’) that’s easier to use for people with arthritis and low hand dexterity.

Latent Heat Storage

A start-up company, Latent Heat Storage is developing and demonstrating large scale thermal energy storage technology and is progressing towards manufacturing this technology at Tonsley.