The Cooperative Research Centre for Welded Structures (CRC-WS), which has industry partners and research operations in four States, is launching a major research program in Newcastle on Wednesday, February 7th. The launch meeting is to be held from 10 am at Pacific Power's Advanced Technology Centre (Shortland Campus of the University of Newcastle).

The R&D program is being sponsored by at least eight Power Stations in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and the Northern Territory and is expected to be worth in excess of $2.4m over three years. The research expertise being facilitated and brought together by the CRC-WS includes experts and scientists from Pacific Power, ANSTO, CSIRO, The Welding Technology Institute of Australia and the University of Wollongong, all of whom are core participants of the CRC-WS.

Mr Bob Small of Pacific Power will be the Program Leader for the six sponsored projects, which focus on the development of world-leading knowledge in the design, maintenance and repair of electricity generating plant. The launch meeting will bring together sponsors and Australia's best researchers to discuss details, timescales and budgets for the projects.

The Cooperative Research Centre for Welded Structures (CRC-WS) has its Head Office at Wollongong University and has partners and operations in four States. The Centre brings together industry participants such as AGL, BHP, CIGWELD, the Department of Defence, Pacific Power and Woodside Energy, two Industry Associations (APIA and WTIA) and research organisations including CSIRO, ANSTO and four Universities (Adelaide, Sydney, Western Australia and Wollongong) into a collaborative research venture.

The CRC-WS has been particularly successful in reducing the costs of welded construction. For example, the Centre has worked with over 20 pipeline-related companies over the past two years to develop methods for achieving high installation rates for natural gas pipelines. It has recently announced additional funding from the pipeline industry to pursue further technological innovations worth over $130m to the industry. The CRC-WS is also spearheading a world-first trial for educating Welding Engineers by distance education.