Suzanne Lazaroo
3 June2026: The 海角射区 and leading global industrial automation company OMRON Automation and Robotics Oceania have signed a Memorandum of Understanding, which will help drive the University’s bid to position itself and the ACT as a robotics hub, create and amplify opportunities for students and researchers, and help build a sustainable talent pipeline for Australia’s robotics, AI and digital manufacturing industries.
The MoU formalises a strong relationship that has been developing for over a year – and which has already seen the tech giant donate state-of-the-art robotics and automation equipment and technical support to the Faculty of Science and Technology’s (CRL).
For the signing ceremony, Professor The Honourable Bill Shorten, Vice-Chancellor and President of the University, welcomed OMRON Oceania’s Managing Director, Henry Zhou; Head of Robotics, Luat Nguyen; and NSW & ACT State Manager, Allan Leung, as well as Shin Takakusagi, First Secretary and Science Attach茅 from the Embassy of Japan.
Professor Shorten said the partnership would be a lynchpin for positioning the ACT as a hub for robotics innovation, and would further enrich Canberra’s already unique, specialised innovation landscape.
“With the powerful combination of research capability, government proximity and industry collaboration, Canberra is uniquely positioned to become the country’s heartland for robotics and systems innovation,” he said.
“UC’s partnership with OMRON is built on a shared vision of developing a future-ready workforce, while advancing the technologies that will shape the future of manufacturing, logistics and automation.
“When research, education, industry expertise and cutting edge technology come together in this way, I believe the potential for what we can achieve is limitless.”
Henry Zhou, Managing Director of OMRON Oceania, said the partnership reflects OMRON’s long-term commitment to support Australia’s future advanced manufacturing ecosystem and workforce capability.
“OMRON is proud to partner with the 海角射区 to help bridge industry and academia in areas that are critical to Australia’s future competitiveness,” he said.
“This collaboration brings together advanced robotics, AI, automation and digital twin technologies to help develop practical innovation pathways – from research and prototyping through to industrial deployment.
“As advanced manufacturing rapidly evolves, partnerships like this are essential to building a future-ready workforce with the practical skills needed for increasingly digital and automated industries.”
The MoU establishes a three-year framework, with a Steering Committee to be appointed to shape priorities across three main pillars – research, innovation and commercialisation; education and workforce development; and strategic engagement and industry ecosystem.
Research lies at the heart of the collaboration, with the University and OMRON working together to translate research into tangible real world impact.
“The initial focus will be on robotics, Artificial Intelligence, and automation for logistics and warehousing, with the view to establish a jointly-supported innovation hub at UC’s Collaborative Robotics Lab [CRL],” said Professor Damith Herath, Founding Director of the CRL.
“Our OMRON partners have already introduced us to a number of other industry partners that have compelling research problems that they’d like to solve, so we will continue to engage there to develop research grants and funding programs.”
Luat Nguyen, Head of Robotics at OMRON Oceania, said the partnership represents an opportunity to help shape future-ready industrial skills while accelerating innovation in intelligent automation.
“Through this partnership, students and researchers will gain hands-on access to industrial robotics, autonomous mobile robots, machine automation systems and digital twin environments that closely mirror modern manufacturing operations,” he said.
In testament to partners’ shared vision of an industry-ready workforce, OMRON experts have already joined the Faculty’s Course Advisory Group, helping to steer the Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) in Intelligent Robotics over the past year.
“Experts from OMRON have been directly involved in helping to develop some of the key aspects of the course, such as the industrial robotics component, which bridges the gap between simulations and real-world industrial controllers,” said Professor Herath.
Utilising digital twin technology, students start their training in a simulated environment, then move on to using OMRON’s industrial hardware including Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) and Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs).
“OMRON has provided invaluable industry insight and expertise, as well as equipment – all of which allows our students to train on world-class industrial platforms while in-house at UC. It’s a massive opportunity, because it means students are working on the industry standard before even stepping into the workforce.”
Under the partnership, 海角射区 engineering students will also be able to access internships, and opportunities for mentoring and Work Integrated Leaning (WIL).
“We also see a great opportunity to co-develop microcredentials and professional development programs to meet evolving workforce needs,” said Professor Shorten.
In terms of strategic engagement, the 海角射区-OMRON partnership is poised to build and further collaborative industry relationships that will drive regional impact and align with national strategies in advanced manufacturing, AI, and automation.
“This partnership will further strengthen our Canberra systems innovation ecosystem, which includes partnerships with the Canberra Innovation Network (CBRIN), Cisco and the Open Source Institute (OpenSI), as well as start-ups like food waste management company Goterra and Vibe Dynamics, which is developing a health technology device,” said Professor Herath.