SA I Leveraging Smart Manufacturing and Industry 4.0 technologies to help grow South Australia’s manufacturing sector

David Pisoni was elected to the South Australian Parliament as the Member for Unley in 2006. Currently he is the Opposition Whip. He served as the Minister for Innovation and Skills in the Marshall Government from March 2018 until March 2022 during that time he reformed and expanded skills training across the state leading the nation in the growth of apprenticeship and trainee commencements and completions. Prior to being sworn in as Minister, David served as a Shadow Minister across various portfolios including Planning, Transport and Infrastructure, Education, Training and Child Protection. David was instrumental in exposing systemic failures in child protection under the then Labor Government. David was born and educated in South Australia. He attended Salisbury High School before completing a furniture trades apprenticeship. David became the Managing Director of his own manufacturing and retail company in Adelaide and Sydney and over 22 years was responsible for training 20 apprentices. For more than 30 years, David has played an active role in his local community of Unley and is a passionate advocate for many organisations, charities and businesses. David is married and has two adult children.

Benjamin Woenig is the founder and CEO of Visione Group, a South Australian based IT consultancy and systems integration group of companies. An experienced enterprise and technology architect, Benjamin’s passion is to assist asset organisations with technology strategy and project realisation where information technology converges with engineering and asset services with engagements spanning industry verticals such as power and water utilities, mining, oil & gas operations, healthcare facilities, and manufacturing businesses.
In recognition of the transitional change over the last 25 years with Australia’s manufacturing sector, Benjamin is an advocate for technology initiatives that support the Australian manufacturers to expand and seek new opportunities with global context through leveraging Industry 4.0 / IoT, automation, and smart manufacturing capabilities.

Dr Ana Kuusk is a leading authority on industrial automation and data integration



Ana’s recent consulting work includes;

· Technical Design Authority of complex system of systems Model Based System Engineering and Virtual Twin Solutions for mining tailing dam optimisation and improved asset manufacturing and terrain positioning for defence posts in north Australia for Dassault Systemes clients

· SCADA, historian and tag upgrades; strategy and architecture for Water Utilities

· Control System and IIoT automation projects such as ventilation on demand, autonomous trucks, GIS, Historian upgrades, OSI Pi implementation and production line processing optimisation for BHP Olympic Dam site

· Technical Lead for BAE/Flinders University Factory of the Future projects including design and implementation of real time data platform for Hunter Class Frigate Program– connecting millions of data points in real time from CAD designs, assets such as pumps, MES/PLM systems and office dashboards to reduce and improve maintenance shore docking time



Ana’s PhD, conference papers, book chapters and journal articles reflect upon her PhD findings of IT/OT technology, organisational policy and people convergence priorities for Engineering Asset Management organisations. She is a Fellow of the Australian Computer Society, the International Society for Engineering Asset Management and Industry Adjunct Fellow with the Industrial Automation Artificial Intelligence Lab at University of South Australia.

Gavan Doyle is General Manager of Kadego-Cadgile who are a multidisciplinary design, engineering and visualisation team focused on applying the latest industry 4.0 technologies to enable innovative solutions for their clients.

Gavan has over 40 years industry experience, and prior to the merging of operations of Kadego-Cadgile due to the acquisition by Groupe FIVA, Gavan was the Managing Director of Kadego.

Gavan’s focus is to support in the development of Kadego-Cadgile and it’s staff to ensure they continue to uphold their reputation that is built on high-quality results and excellence in emerging technologies.

Alexandra Bassett is SAHMRI’s Fundraising Manager. She has over a decade of fundraising experience across a range of sectors and organisations, including the University of Adelaide, Burnside Hospital, Adelaide Symphony Orchestra and the Biennale of Sydney. She now manages the individual giving programs at SAHMRI, securing vital income from donors and stakeholders to support groundbreaking research projects.


SAHMRI is South Australia’s flagship independent health and medical research institute, delivering better, more equitable health care through four major research themes - Aboriginal Health Equity, Lifelong Health, Precision Cancer Medicine and Women and Kids. SAHMRI is a not-for-profit organisation that relies on community support to fund our life-changing, life-saving work.

Nicolas Foata is a seasoned CTO leading innovation and technology at Nukon (SAGE Group). With a strong focus on digital transformation, he combines operational technology (OT) and information technology (IT) to enable industrial revolution initiatives for companies like Mars, Coca-Cola, Thales, Coles, FMT, etc. Nicolas has a diverse background, implementing scalable solutions across various industries and regions globally. He has worked in the digital marketing, cybersecurity, healthcare, telecommunications, transportation, insurance, and banking sectors. Nicolas's expertise spans cloud computing, big data analytics, AI/ML, IoT/IIoT, and CI/CD. He has collaborated with renowned brands such as Vodafone, Orange, Porsche, AstraZeneca, and Merck. As a visionary leader, Nicolas drives Nukon's digital transformation journey, empowering clients to achieve their business goals in the era of Industry 4.0/5.0 and beyond.