World-leading, lifesaving wearable medical technology will be produced at a new Queensland facility, supported by an up to $30 million project announced today.
The manufacturing facility will be one of a kind in Australia and will be key in creating hundreds of high-value jobs throughout this decade. The funding is from the Queensland Government, WearOptimo and The Australian National University (ANU). The project is also supported by The Australian National Fabrication Facility (ANFF) and other partners.
Deputy Premier and Minister for State Development Steven Miles said the revolutionary wearable health technology developed by WearOptimo, and primarily backed by the ANU, will improve the care of seriously ill patients.
“The ‘sticker-like’ Microwearable™ sensors are a leap in innovation beyond present day wearable health devices, and are inexpensive and painless, giving fast and accurate results in real-time,” Mr Miles said.
“The new technology could replace frequent blood testing for various diseases."
“It is exciting that such an advance is being commercialised with the products to be distributed globally from Queensland."
“This project supports our strategic vision for digital health and innovation and will significantly contribute to Queensland’s innovation ecosystem.”
Brisbane-based WearOptimo was founded in 2018 to develop next generation wearable devices for continuous monitoring in precision heath.
WearOptimo Founder and CEO Professor Mark Kendall said, "WearOptimo is serious about helping to change the world."
"The Microwearables we're developing will empower individuals and their health care providers,” Professor Kendall said.
"For example, some of our Microwearable sensors will detect and alert you to dehydration whilst people are on the job, or dehydration in the elderly.
“Another type of our Microwearable sensor is designed to help with the early detection of heart attacks and cardiovascular disease, which is responsible for 20 million deaths per year.
"We're focussed on helping tackle some of the biggest killers on the planet, so it is a real thrill to receive this important support from the State Government through the Essential Goods and Supply Chain Program for our important work."
This project is a critical next step in WearOptimo rapidly taking forward its Microwearables to production and helping address key health challenges.
WearOptimo’s industry relationships, including a significant
partnership with ANFF, will ensure that this cutting-edge health technology will be primarily made at the new Queensland facility.
ANFF CEO Dr Ian Griffiths said, "The long-standing collaboration with WearOptimo has created novel microstructures on a research scale, and we now look forward to further supporting a technology born of our tools into the next phase of production."
By assisting WearOptimo to scale-up and commercialise its technology, the project aligns with the government’s Queensland Biomedical 10-Year Roadmap and Action Plan to make Queensland a globally competitive Asia-Pacific biomedical hub by 2027.
Through the Essential Goods and Supply Chain Program the Queensland Government will work with industry to develop and expand manufacturing and production capacity of essential goods, and to shore up the supply chain of essential goods.