The NRI census for 2017-18 was completed in 2019, and a snapshot of the findings is now available.
The census report demonstrates:
- NCRIS facilities are enabling world-class research - measured by the high citation rates of academic publications developed using NCRIS facilities (on average almost twice that of other similar publications)
- The top three industries served by the NCRIS facilities remain consistent with the last census as the scientific and technical services, agriculture industry and mining industry.
- For 2017-18, there is high usage of NCRIS facilities by both domestic and international researchers, with 65,000 domestic and 12,000 international researchers using NCRIS research infrastructure (an increase of one third in domestic users since 2016-17)
- In 2017-18 NCRIS facilities produced 72 patents, an increase of 80 per cent over the past two years, showing substantial commercialisation outputs
- The NCRIS program attracts significant co-investment from industry, universities and other stakeholders— estimated at $1.29 for every Australian Government dollar invested over the three financial years 2015-2018
- Over 70 per cent of NCRIS projects provide critical or operational services to enable Federal Government policies and program delivery, as well as providing specialist advice and data
- NCRIS facilities have shown the consistent collaborative nature of cross-disciplinary research in areas of immediate and critical importance to Australia, notably biological sciences, Medical & Health Sciences and Environmental Sciences.
- NCRIS facilities are a significant employer for attracting and retaining highly skilled people in Australia, funding over 1,400 technical positions — with women making up a third of total NCRIS staff and holding 40 per cent of management positions
The full National Research Infrastructure Census report is now available.