Sustainable cooperative enterprise: an investigation into the factors influencing the sustainability and competitiveness of cooperative enterprises. From a national perspective the top 100 Co-operative enterprises control a combined turnover of around $20 billion and provide employment and economic benefits to many thousands of people across both regional and rural Australia. In Western Australia (WA) there are around 70 Co-operatives working across a wide range of industries including fishing, ....Sustainable cooperative enterprise: an investigation into the factors influencing the sustainability and competitiveness of cooperative enterprises. From a national perspective the top 100 Co-operative enterprises control a combined turnover of around $20 billion and provide employment and economic benefits to many thousands of people across both regional and rural Australia. In Western Australia (WA) there are around 70 Co-operatives working across a wide range of industries including fishing, farming, retailing and services sectors. Despite their significance, there is relatively little research available on drivers of the Co-operative business model and what makes it both unique and competitive. This project will address these issues and assist Co-operatives WA to prepare for the introduction of new state legislation and provide research of benefit to Co-operatives at the national level.Read moreRead less
Real-time plant discrimination and weed detection platform. The aim of this project is to develop an advanced, robust, commercially ready, laser-based green-from-green plant discrimination and weed detection sensor, capable of identifying different plants and weeds in the field, and allowing precise herbicide spraying of targeted weeds all in the same pass. Through the incorporation of novel multi-band sensors and the development of adaptable, configurable lasers, this first-of-its-kind system i ....Real-time plant discrimination and weed detection platform. The aim of this project is to develop an advanced, robust, commercially ready, laser-based green-from-green plant discrimination and weed detection sensor, capable of identifying different plants and weeds in the field, and allowing precise herbicide spraying of targeted weeds all in the same pass. Through the incorporation of novel multi-band sensors and the development of adaptable, configurable lasers, this first-of-its-kind system intends to see a dramatic improvement over current approaches to weed targeting. The outcome of the project aims to achieve optimised weed control, resulting in increased crop yields, reduced environmental impacts, decreased risk of herbicide resistance and substantial cost-savings.Read moreRead less