Photonics Industries Australia is the industry association for Australia's photonics sector, based in Adelaide. Born from the shared desire of industry and academia to join forces, PIA is a non-profit, member-supported organisation that brings together industry, research and government to grow the sector through education, investment and workforce development, guided by a board of sector leaders drawn from across South Australia's photonics community.
WHY IT MATTERS
Photonics covers the devices, technologies and processes that generate, control, transmit and detect light. It touches almost every part of modern life, from fibre-optic telecommunications to medical imaging, defence sensors and quantum computing, yet its role is so embedded that it's often called Australia's "hidden economic engine".
Photonics is a global market worth an estimated USD$600 billion, growing at around 6 per cent a year, and expected to reach USD$900 billion before the end of the decade. South Australia is already a meaningful part of that story: photonics employment in the state grew from around 800 to more than 1,500 jobs between 2016 and 2022, with revenue roughly doubling to an estimated AUD$400 million a year over the same period.
South Australia's institutions and companies excel across five areas of photonics:
- Biophotonics – imaging and diagnostics for biomedicine, agriculture and environment
- Lasers – customised for military, space, biomedical, industrial and mining applications
- Optical sensors – for environment, space, energy, military, infrastructure and industry markets
- Specialty glass and optical fibres – used across all of the above technologies and markets
- Quantum photonics – ultrasensitive measurement for military, space and geophysics
VISIONPhotonics Industries Australia assumes the role of a national reference hub and common ground for the stakeholders of thriving Photonics technology industries here in South Australia and in Australia, as well as reaching out and connecting internationally. | MISSIONPhotonics Industries Australia, is a pivotal force, actively shaping the Australian Photonics landscape, strategically driving education, attracting strategic investments, championing innovation, workforce development, and growth of the industries, linking academic excellence with the industry needs while fostering the enduring sustainability and successful commercialisation of Photonics advancements in Australia. |
HOW WE GET THERE
PIA works by bringing industry, academia and government together under one roof. In practice, that means a national training pathway for photonics technicians, our first initiative, co-developed with industry and delivered from Adelaide; regular events and networking across the sector, addressing regional needs as well as metropolitan ones; an industry guide connecting businesses with the capability they need; and Spectrum, our regular briefing on photonics and quantum news, member updates and opportunities. It also means partnering directly with the Department of State Development to amplify the industry's voice, share funding opportunities, and help shape future support initiatives.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
 | Laurence Deziel
|
| Piers Lincoln |
| Ted Byrt
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| Peter Shute
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| Victor Previn
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| Phil Prosser
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ANNUAL REPORTS
COMING SOON