Multi-million dollar MedTech and supercomputer facilities at Swinburne on show

Swinburne University of Technology has welcomed the Minister for Skills and TAFE Gayle Tierney and Member for Southern Metropolitan Region John Berger MP on a tour of our leading tech facilities across healthcare, medicine, astronomy and neuroscience.

Swinburne’s Medical Technology Victoria (MedTechVic) $6 million LivingAT Facility and $5.2 million Ngarrgu Tindebeek Swinburne supercomputer are investments of the Victorian Higher Education State Investment Fund (VHESIF). 

These facilities are giving the next generation of learners the opportunity to accelerate their skills through active participation in technology that impacts them.

The tour was attended by Swinburne’s Vice-Chancellor and President of Swinburne, Professor Pascale Quester, Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Research, Professor Karen Hapgood, Director of MedTechVic, Professor Rachael McDonald, and Paralympian and Co-founder of ROVE Wheelchairs, Bryce Alman. 

Professor Rachael McDonald said the co-design, development and use of the LivingAT Facility has been integral in MedTechVic’s mission to amplify the perspectives of people with lived experience of disability, especially in the design of assistive technologies.

“MedTechVic is driving innovation in locally produced assistive technology, and our co-design process ensures that the needs and experiences of end-users are central throughout product and service development,” Professor McDonald said. 

Member for Southern Metropolitan Region John Berger said, “this groundbreaking facility not only puts Victoria at the forefront of MedTech innovation but also ensures that people with disabilities are directly involved in creating technology that enhances their lives”.

Minister for Skills and TAFE Gayle Tierney says, “the LivingAT facility is a great example of what can be achieved through co-design – by bringing lived experience, expertise and industry into the one room, we’re building better technology faster, that is fit-for-purpose”.

“The Victorian Government is backing these projects because they get the best results, they grow skills, grow the workforce, advance research and improve peoples’ lives.” 

Next generation of tech facilities 

The LivingAT Facility is a lab by Swinburne’s MedTechVic: designed and delivered as Australia’s first fully accessible, co-designed research space, which is used to develop and prototype enabling technologies, products and services.  

Located at Swinburne’s Hawthorn campus, the LivingAT Facility was co-designed in collaboration with end-users with the goal to allow people with a disability to be active participants and fully contribute to creative problem-solving and help create meaningful outcomes. 

Using the LivingAT Facility, the MedTechVic team has created three new prototypes set to transform everyday tasks for people who have mobility issues – from using the toilet, to transferring a person between their wheelchair, car or bed.  

The Ngarrgu Tindebeek supercomputer is named by Wurundjeri elders, translating as “Knowledge of the Void” in the local Woiwurrung language. The Swinburne supercomputer's name represents the goal of harnessing the power of a supercomputer to enable researchers to explain the unknown and push the boundaries of knowledge.  

Its capabilities include forming a better understanding of the mysteries of space, such as gravitational waves, black holes and galaxy formation; the brain’s operation through analysis of brain data by neuroscientists and neuroimaging experts; and our planet through earth observation data generated from satellites and other ecosystem analysis.   

These projects are part of the Victorian Government’s investment in university’s applied research and research infrastructure projects to boost productivity and Victoria’s economy.