Unemployment in the Australian minerals industry has far exceeded national unemployment figures, a new report from the Australian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (AusIMM) shows. [ + ]

ABB has been awarded a $2.765 million grant by the US Department of Energy for a project that aims to improve cybersecurity in the energy sector. [ + ]

Are you a good writer? Would you like to share your technical knowledge and experience with your peers? [ + ]

If Australia is to become the 'food bowl' of Asia, the agriculture industry needs to regain its competitive edge. One answer to this, according to a University of Sydney professor, is robotics. [ + ]

Hundreds of school students from Australia and around the world converged on the University of Queensland to compete in RoboCup Junior Australia over the weekend. [ + ]

Fonterra has announced plans to expand its Stanhope processing plant to incorporate ricotta cheese production once its Cororooke plant closes in October. [ + ]

The machineSAFE website is a user-friendly platform providing safety resources and information covering all aspects of machine safeguarding, safe plant automation and safety-related engineering across all industries. [ + ]

Global Industry Analysts has released a research report which provides a review of market trends, issues, drivers, company profiles, mergers, acquisitions and other strategic industry activities. [ + ]

Hiring optimism in Australia is expected to weaken in Q4 this year, falling to a Net Employment Outlook of +3% from +6% in Q3, the latest Manpower Employment Outlook Survey shows. [ + ]

Rockwell Automation has sponsored the biggest FIRST tournament in Australia to date. FIRST recently held the Asia Pacific Open FIRST LEGO League Championship and Invitational FIRST Tech Challenge in Sydney. [ + ]

Ulrich Spiesshofer has taken over as ABB's Chief Executive Officer. Spiesshofer will succeed Joe Hogan as CEO; Hogan will continue as advisor to the board until the end of March 2014. [ + ]

Concerns are growing in the Tasmanian midlands about Petragas's intentions to conduct oil and gas exploration in the region. The company has applied for an exploration licence for around 4000 m² of farmland just north of Hobart, near Kempton and Oatlands. [ + ]

Fluid Components International (FCI) has released a video that illustrates the VeriCal In-Situ Calibration System for the ST100 Series flow meter. [ + ]

Chief Minister Adam Giles announced plans for 'use it or lose it' rules to ensure oil and gas companies develop exploration leases or lose them within a given time frame. Speaking at an oil and gas industry conference in Darwin, Giles said these rules would prevent companies from just banking the leases. [ + ]

In the coming months, Rockwell Automation will provide specialised TÜV Rheinland Functional Safety Program training to machinery engineers across the country. [ + ]