Australian Makers

Galvin Engineering

Meet Tim Galvin, Owner/Director and 4th generation member of the Galvin Engineering family, a WA based foundry and water solutions company specialising in tapware, water management systems, and fixtures for education, healthcare and public areas.

Galvin Engineering employs more than 80 people across Australia in its offices in Perth, Melbourne, Brisbane, and Sydney. The company is accredited to ISO9001 Quality System and ISO14001 Environmental System.

Today Galvin Engineering has a strong vision to be a leader in providing safe and innovative water solutions for a healthier environment particularly in high risk and high care environments.

A key focus for Galvin Engineering is the transition to Lead Safe™ (low lead and lead free) tapware, a move it adopted in 2017, resulting in an extensive range of NCC 2022 compliant products now.

Galvin Engineering, Owner/Director Tim Galvin says he’s proud to carry the Australian Made logo on his family’s products communicating its Aussie authenticity and company values with his customers.

“I think it’s the fact that we are a family… it’s about our values… it’s about how we’re doing it. I get tremendous pride when I walk around the community and see our Australian Made products and the benefits they bring.”

Opal Diamond Factory

Established in 1974, Opal Diamond Factory is Adelaide’s oldest and largest opal, diamond and coloured gem specialist.

Their collection of South Australian crystal and white opals, Queensland boulder opals and famous Lightning Ridge black opals is one of the most extensive in Australia.

Amid the hot, red dust of Coober Pedy in South Australia’s far north, opal pioneer John Ryneš and son Mike Saj-Ryneš discovered a love for Australia’s national gemstone At the Opal Diamond Factory, the Ryneš family crafts jewellery, including bespoke pieces, from opals, ethically-sourced GIA certified diamonds and other precious stones.

The family craftsmen duo is proud to say they play small parts in thousands of stories - from love celebrations and special moments, to the creation of keepsakes and treasured gifts.

Handcrafting products with extra care, working closely with its customers and clients is at the heart of what the team at Opal Diamond Factory do. Whether it be cutting rough opals straight from Australian soil, or shaping elegant, custom jewellery in its design studio.

John and Mike are proud to be retaining an age-old craft locally in Australia with their beautiful, timeliness opal works that are certified with the Australian Made logo.

“The reason why we use the Australian Made logo is because it’s iconic… people see that gold kangaroo and straight away they know it’s Australian.”

Summer Land Camels

A story of one man and his favourite camel, Remi. Meet Paul Martin, Director of Queensland’s Summer Land Camels. In 2015, after a long career in stock and cattle management, Paul discovered a new passion for a breed that is often forgotten and most frequently found deep within the country’s red centre.

They say innovation is the ability to see change as an opportunity. Today, Paul has rescued more than 500 wild camels from being put down in central Australia and has re-homed the docile creatures at his farm just south of Brisbane.

“There is a special line of camels that really are like Labradors, they want to come up and put their head on your shoulder. They are such a gentle, gentle animals and they seem to find a home here at Summer Land,” Paul said.

While it’s a little known fact that wild camels like Remi are gentle and placid creatures… one other fact about Summer Land Camels that is turning heads all around the country and in overseas markets is that natural Australian camel milk is also a rich resource with medicinal benefits.

From farm crafted camel milk moisturiser, lip balm and soap that is kind on sensitive skin. To dry milk powder, ice-cream, cheese and even camel milk infused vodka that’s winning awards and gaining traction in overseas markets.

Paul and his team are proudly “shining a light on the camel” and have renewed a sense of appreciation for these gentle creatures and his range of regenerative and ethically produced Australian camel milk products.

Paul says the best way to communicate the authenticity of his unique and genuine Australian crafted range is with the iconic Australian Made logo.

“For us the Australian Made logo with the kangaroo you know says it all. That and Crocodile Dundee are the two things that resonate around the world and that really say Australian Made.”

CSR Gyprock

Meet Paul Dalton, the Executive General Manager of CSR Gyprock – Australia’s leading plasterboard brand celebrating its 75^th year of manufacturing locally made building solutions that help bind together Australia’s building landscape.

As the first to introduce paper-faced plasterboard in the market in the late 1940s, Gyprock has facilitated the builds of many iconic Australian buildings such as The Sydney Opera House (built 1959), New Parliament House (1981 – 1987).

Today Gyprock is one of the most widely recognised brands in the country, producing a range of highly trusted and Australian Made certified plaster solutions for the building and construction industries, including plasterboard, pre-mixed and dry compounds, as well as a vast DIY range for Australian homeowners.

The phrase “Gyprock” has become the Australian moniker for plasterboard and is the brand of choice for many of the top architectural and building firms around the country. The Australian owned company works closely with specifiers and engineers to make sure that its product is made to the latest building codes as well as Australia’s high manufacturing standards. The Gyprock Redbook has become the go-to guide for those in the building trade.

Australia is renowned for being rich in vital minerals, resources and Gyprock is proud to source premium Gypsum, the key ingredient for plasterboard - a soft mineral sulphate that has been used around the world in plastering since Ancient Egypt and Rome - locally from both Western Australia and South Australia. Choosing to source raw material locally means that more dollars flow into Aussie industry and through regional and rural communities where raw materials originate.

For more than seven decades Gyprock has been proud to support the Australian economy by providing materials for key infrastructure projects and looks forward to helping Australia ‘build the foundations’ for a better country for many more years to come.

Tontine

Helping families enjoy a full eight hours of sleep; Tontine has been crafting pillows and quilts locally in Melbourne, Australia for more than 60 years.

Tontine is a company that prides itself on ‘doing it all locally’, producing more than 4.3 million pillows and 750,000 quilts per year right here in Australia – all while supporting a number of other Aussie businesses across each stage of its supply chain. Tontine is a local employer with a longstanding Aussie manufacturing history and incorporates locally sourced raw materials such as the finest quality Australian downs wool into its products.

Self-proclaimed ‘Pillow Nerd’ and Tontine CEO Ian Shannon told Australian Made that the company proudly offers more than 300 types of pillows and quilts that are made with Australian wool, cotton, down as well as recycled polyester. Across a vast range of weights, warmths and sizes – meaning the Tontine range can help you enjoy a better night sleep on a cool night or during Australia’s hot summer. But the Tontine innovation that rings true for hundreds of thousands of Australians is Tontine’s original 100% Aussie Wool Doona®, which skyrocketed in popularity following its inception and is a name that is now synonymous with quilts right around the country.

The company is also incredibly passionate about protecting the environment and sustainability. Each year the company proudly prevents more than 100 million plastic bottles from entering landfill by using recycled polyester in its production process and transitioning to more eco-friendly material packaging options.

When shopping for Australian Made products like Tontine pillows and quilts at the likes of Coles, Big W, Target, Spotlight, Harris Scarfe, Woolworths, Myer and David Jones; you can be sure that you’re doing something positive for Australia, such as supporting a company grounded in the Aussie manufacturing and agriculture industries, giving dollars back to the broader economy and helping generate employment opportunities locally in Australia.

Seasol International

Meet Chief Executive, Alick Osborne and Owner, Lisa Boyd; the Aussie Makers behind Seasol International. A local business producing over 10 million litres of Seasol seaweed solution a year – an illustrious Aussie Made innovation that has grown to become one of the country’s most cherished gardening products.

Seasol’s mission is to inspire people to change the way they grow their food and the way we all green our landscapes. They achieve this everyday by providing home gardeners and farmers in the agriculture sector with organic liquid seaweed and environmentally friendly fertilisers which are made locally in Australia.

Seasol’s product range is proudly made locally across manufacturing in sites In Victoria, Tasmania and Western Australia, which are distributed right across Australia. Wherever possible, Seasol aims to support Australian companies by buying Aussie products and using them in their manufacturing process.

Seasol’s seaweed solution helps to stimulate strong root growth and beneficial soil micro-organisms, promoting vigorous flowering and fruiting and overall garden health. Whereas Seasol’s PowerFeed dynamic fertiliser and soil improver products contain active liquid composts which improves soil structure, reducing the loss of nutrients in sandy soils and helping to stimulate flowering and fruiting.

The primary ingredient used in Seasol’s natural, but powerful product range is a unique species of kelp called Durvillaea Potatorum that grows in the cold oceans of around north west Tasmania. This species is not only unique to Seasol’s manufacturing process, but it can be only found in southern Australia.

When shoppers buy Australian Made natural plant tonics from businesses like Seasol, they’re not only supporting a cleaner, greener environment here in Australia – they’re helping to create local jobs in Aussie factories and giving back to Australian Makers.

SupaGarlic

Meet Nick Diamantopoulos, Founder & CEO of Australian Garlic Producers (AGP) – the country’s largest grower and marketer of Australian garlic – operating across more than 700 acres of garlic fields Australia wide. Nick is the brains behind SupaGarlic - an innovative range of dietary supplements made locally with 100% Australian Garlic Oil, providing Australian and overseas consumers with targeted support for general health and well-being.

AGP has developed a range of treatments targeting Immune Support, Congestion Relief, Cardio & Heart Health and Health & Wellbeing. All containing extract made from Australian Grown garlic and a formula of garlic varieties carefully selected by master Horticulturalist and AGP, CEO, Nick Diamantopoulos - chosen for an optimal treatment harnessing the power of the ‘SupaG’ gene found only in pure, high potent garlic oil.

This Aussie creation can help maintain a healthy immune system and relieve the severity of common cold symptoms. At the height of harvest season Australian Garlic Producers employs up to 600 seasonal workers. Every stage of production is overseen by the Australian Garlic Producers team locally in Australia with full traceability back to variety, field and location. 

Australian Garlic Producers has been working with the major Australian supermarkets for more than 20 years to ensure Australians have easy access to fresh locally-grown garlic and garlic pastes year-round.

Rondo Building Services

Since its inception in 1964, Rondo Building Services has been proudly manufacturing a range of light gauge rolled formed steel products and systems locally in Australia, that support the backbone of the country’s building and construction industry.

Originally established by Eric Cuckson as W.E. Cuckson and Sons, trading as Rondo Zipador Pty Ltd and producing metal zippers – this Aussie Maker developed a thermal aluminium foil ceiling system to reduce the heat from the factory roof and improve employee working conditions.

Fast-forward 56 years later and today Rondo is highly regarded throughout the industry as the gold standard for Suspended Ceiling Systems along with Steel Wall Framing Systems, which are manufactured, distributed and installed across Australia, New Zealand, Asia Pacific and the Middle East throughout hotels, educational facilities, office buildings, hospitals, airports, prisons and high-rise residential projects.

As of 2021, Rondo employs over 280 local staff and produces more than 800 SKUs at its Australian based manufacturing facility in Erskine Park, New South Wales, which includes: Steel Stud Drywall Framing System, KEY-LOCK® Concealed Suspended Ceiling System, DUO Exposed Grid Ceiling System, MAXIframe® External Wall Framing System, Plastering Beads and more!

All of Rondo’s Australian Made products carry the famous Australian Made kangaroo logo, are tested to Australia’s high manufacturing and building standards and are manufactured under warranty.

Rondo, Executive General Manager, Greg Thomas says: “Rondo are proud to carry the Australian Made certification, we see this as a badge of honor in the market place and we also see it as giving back to the Australian economy.”