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Two Australian innovators have been named winners of the prestigious Land Forces 2022 Innovation Awards, worth some $30,000.

In a first for the Land Forces Innovation Awards, both the National and the SME Innovation Awards were won by the same company.

Pentarch Pty Limited has developed a system called Damocles which uses Artificial Intelligence (AI) and robotics to remove the human risks associated with inspecting and defuzing live High Explosive and Illuminating artillery rounds.

The panel of eight judges, led by former Deputy Chief Defence Scientist Dr Bill Schofield AM, agreed that Pentarch’s entry was a standout winner.

Pentarch Executive Director Chris Deighton said he and his team were ‘delighted with the acknowledgement,’ describing it as ‘testimony to the power of bringing technical specialists together’ to solve a longstanding problem for their client, the Australian Department of Defence.

“The cost of R&D and achieving compliance with Defence requirements, especially where human safety is the overriding priority, can be demanding and often financially challenging for SMEs,” he said.

The Young Innovator Award was presented to Mr James Tsarouhas of Anywise, a young engineer from Victoria, for his work on designing and integrating an array of sensors for military bridges, making them more reliable and safer for the engineers erecting them.

The Awards, including the two cheques for $15,000, were presented at LAND FORCES 2022, at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre (BCEC). They are sponsored this year by Synergy Group, a team of thinkers, solvers and doers focussed on innovation and professional services.

The winners are:

- Land Forces 2022 National Innovation Award: Pentarch Pty Limited (VIC)

- Land Forces 2022 Defence SME Innovation Award ($15,000): Pentarch Pty Limited (VIC)

- Land Forces 2022 Young Innovator Award ($15,000): Mr James Tsarouhas, Anywise (VIC)

In addition, three Award contenders won a High Commendation:

- Land Forces 2022 National Innovation Award HIGH COMMENDATION: DMTC Limited (VIC) - for leading a team that has developed a rapid diagnostic system that enables diagnosis in minutes of COVID and other viruses and bacteria that can afflict deployed troops

- Land Forces 2022 Defence SME Innovation Award HIGH COMMENDATION: Tekuma (SA) - for developing the Easy Manoeuvre Unit (EMU), incorporating a patented Tekuma control orb as a universal controller for robots

- Land Forces 2022 Young Innovator Award HIGH COMMENDATION: Mr Lachlan Clark, Anywise (VIC) - for his work on the software, Graphical User Interface (GUI) and data management system of the Fleet Agnostic Bridge Health and Usage Monitoring System, FABHUMS.