Made in Queensland grants now on offer to manufacturers

Queensland’s manufacturers have been urged to step up for Palaszczuk Government grants of up to $2.5 million to make productivity-boosting improvements to their businesses.

State Development Minister Dr Anthony Lynham told Parliament today that 50 Queensland businesses had already registered to be part of the job-generating $20 million Made in Queensland program.

“Made in Queensland is all about taking the industry to the next level and supporting our manufacturers to make the improvements that they’ll need to thrive in the years to come,” he told Parliament.

“This is about jobs now, but most importantly, jobs of the future in an industry that’s particularly strong in our regional communities.”

Made in Queensland offers matching grants of between $50,000 and $2.5 million to Queensland-based manufacturers employing between five and 200 people.

Eligible businesses go through benchmarking that recommends what they can do to innovate and grow. They can then apply for grants from Made in Queensland to do what has been recommended.

Dr Lynham said businesses in the south-east, the Darling Downs and the south-west made up 44 of the registrations to date.

“Congratulations to those businesses for stepping up, but I want to see businesses from right across the state transitioning towards the manufacturing jobs and opportunities of the future,” he said.

“Manufacturing already employs almost 170,000 Queensland and we want to work with businesses  to grow more jobs.

“Made in Queensland funding will be available for two years or until the $20 million fund is expended, so manufacturers need to get in early.”

The Made in Queensland grants program is part of the Queensland Government’s $1 billion plan to boost jobs in regional Queensland.

It aligns with the $7.8 million Advance Queensland Advanced Manufacturing 10-Year Roadmap and Action Plan that is supporting businesses to transition from traditional to advanced manufacturing.

Visit www.statedevelopment.qld.gov.au/made-in-queensland or call 13 QGOV (13 74 68) for more information.

ENDS

Media inquiries: Jan Martin 0439 341 314