Industry night of nights

21 March 2019

One of automotive’s most prestigious events was held recently at VACC House, when 120 industry guests were treated to the hospitality of freshly appointed VACC President, Fury Bortolotto.

Wednesday, 20 March officially marked the beginning of an exciting new era of leadership for the Chamber.

Special guests included The Hon Bruce Atkinson; Member for Eastern Metropolitan, The Hon Nick Wakeling; Shadow Minister for Industrial Relations and Workplace Safety, Shadow Minister for Ageing and Child Protection, The Hon David Hodgett; Shadow Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events, who were joined by numerous industry identities from automotive bodies and associations, from Victoria and interstate, along with corporate leaders from vehicle manufacturers and other sectors.

Also in attendance were numerous automotive journalists, keen to hear the insights the evening promised.

The Hon Peter Costello AC presented the evening’s keynote speech.

His entertaining dialogue posed a question to the automotive industry: Has anybody thanked you for bringing the prices of vehicles down while the costs of insurance, utilities and school fees continue to rise?

The former Australian Treasurer’s spearhead message was that the automotive industry needs to adapt quickly to the constantly changing business landscape.

Costello used the example of Channel 9, of which he sits on the board. In the past, he said, the television broadcaster’s competitors were rival stations, 7, 10 and the ABC.

Now the competition is Netflix, Amazon and YouTube. These are big, powerful companies that are here to stay – and continue to acquire market share. So, Channel 9, and the other stations, need to adapt to the ‘new world’.

The alternative is to go out of business.

Similarly, traditional vehicles – and those that sell, service and repair them – are facing competition from electric vehicles and, in the near future, autonomous vehicles and even ‘flying cars’.

The fantasy world of 1960s cartoon series The Jetsons is upon us, and this intriguing subject was explored on the night by David Taylor, Operations and Business Development Manager from Australian company, macchina Volantis.

What some people call ‘big drones’ or ‘small helicopters’ he calls Vertical Take-Off and Landing craft (VTOLs); essentially drones that are large enough and powerful enough to transport humans and/or up to 450kg of cargo.

Bunnings Warehouse and Domino’s Pizza have already experimented with home delivery of step-ladders and margheritas, and macchina Volantis’ proposals, says Taylor, are simply the next step in the evolution of personal transport.

View the VACC President's Dinner 2019 photo gallery now.