Author: Andrew See

NSW Premier’s Prizes for Science & Engineering 2025: A Milestone for the Australian National Fabrication Facility – NSW Node

NSW Premier’s Prizes for Science & Engineering 2025: A Milestone for the Australian National Fabrication Facility – NSW Node

Sydney, 25 November 2025 — The unveiling of the 2025 winners of the NSW Premier’s Prizes for Science & Engineering (announced 19 November 2025) spotlights excellence across fields from perovskite solar cells to soil ecology and cognitive ageing. Among these achievements, the pivotal role of the Australian National Fabrication Facility – NSW Node (ANFF-NSW) stands out for empowering many of the breakthroughs celebrated.

Enabling Innovation Through Infrastructure

Based across the University of New South Wales, University of Sydney and University of Technology Sydney, ANFF-NSW provides open-access advanced micro- and nanofabrication facilities to Australia’s researchers. ANFF-NSW (link) Its equipment and expertise have underpinned high-impact research in quantum technologies, photovoltaics, medical devices and more — the very kind of work being recognised in the Prizes.

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ANFF-NSW@UNSW: $690K secured for new sputtering tool

Dr Matt Boreland, Technical Director at ANFF-NSW, has successfully secured $690,000 in funding to revitalise critical lab infrastructure. The funding comes from two major sources — $300K from UNSW’s Ageing Research Equipment Repair and Replacement Scheme (via the Office of the PVCRI) and $390K from the ANFF National Contingency Fund. This investment will enable the replacement of the ageing HHV sputtering tool, which has experienced a significant increase in age-related failures over the past 1–2 years. The upgrade will directly benefit both UNSW researchers and key industry partners, ensuring continued excellence in materials fabrication and innovation.

ANFF Shines Spotlight on Lab Sustainability at IVC-23

Ute Schubert, Process Engineer at ANFF-NSW, took the stage as an invited speaker at the 23rd International Vacuum Congress (15–19 September 2025), delivering a compelling and well-received presentation titled “Lab Sustainability: Making an Impact Through Small Changes in Lab Operations.” Her talk drew a strong audience and sparked meaningful discussion on how incremental shifts in lab practices can drive significant environmental impact.

Syenta secures $8.8M pre-series A funding

Semiconductor startup Syenta has raised $8.8 million in pre-series A funding to accelerate its work addressing memory bandwidth challenges in artificial intelligence hardware.

The investment will support Syenta in developing chip technologies to improve the speed and efficiency of data movement, a key focus as AI models continue to grow rapidly in scale.

This places Syenta among several high-growth Australian startups attracting strong investor backing this year.

Further reading: LinkedIn post.

Image credit: https://www.startupdaily.net/topic/funding/electronics-3d-ai-chips-generates-8-8-million-pre-series-a/