(L to R) Wade Noonan, former minister for industry and employment, Bronwyn Halfpenny MP, Member for Thomastown, Tim Piper, Chair ICN Victoria, Nicholas Foa, CEO ICN Victoria, event Master of Ceremonies Heidi Murphy, Nine News
ICN Victoria today celebrates 40 years of supporting local Victorian businesses and workers.
Since its founding in 1984 as the Industrial Supplies Office (ISO), ICN Victoria has supported local businesses through supply chain intelligence and facilitating government and industry networks, and connected thousands of local suppliers with major projects, ensuring the sustained growth of Victoria’s manufacturing, construction, renewable energy, and advanced technology.
The Hon. Natalie Hutchins, Minister for Jobs and Industry said the anniversary was an important milestone. “For 40 years, ICN Victoria has supported local businesses to get a fair go at work on government projects.”
“Local Jobs First – Australia’s longest standing industry participation policy – is designed to maximise jobs and economic benefits from our major projects pipeline, and ICN Victoria has played a key role in identifying and connecting local businesses to these projects.”
Nick Foa, CEO, ICN Victoria, said the organisation had played a critical role in shaping Victoria and supporting the delivery of signature projects that define the state, including the MCG redevelopment, Southern Cross Station, and the State Library.
“Over the last decade alone, it has contributed more than $3 billion in economic value to the state, worked with 30,000 small businesses, and helped generate some 256,000 new jobs.
“As the Victorian economy has evolved from a manufacturing, textiles and automotive focus in the early 1980s to what we see today – including advanced manufacturing, medtech, and renewable energy generation – ICN Victoria has evolved with it.
“Today ICN Victoria has more than 54,000 businesses in its network and a team of specialist advisers working across industry sectors, including renewable energy, housing, construction, advanced manufacturing, and medtech and biotech as well as Victoria’s key regional hubs –Ballarat, Geelong, Northern Victoria and Gippsland.
Tim Piper, Chair, ICN Victoria, said the organisation was well-placed to continue to play a pivotal role in supporting Victoria’s future economic growth.
“By 2050, our state is on track to be home to more than ten million people, with eight million forecast to live in Melbourne and more than two million in regional Victoria, and ICN Victoria will continue to be a key driver of economic activity and local employment.
“In an increasingly technologically driven future that seeks to renew our sovereign industrial capability, there is a real opportunity for Victoria to build on its heritage as the home of Australian innovation.
“And ICN Victoria has a vital role to play in enabling local businesses and workers to drive progress, create new products and services that improve lives, address societal challenges and boost prosperity and productivity for all Victorians.
ICN Victoria hosted a 40th anniversary celebratory event on Tuesday, 22 October 2024, at the State Library of Victoria’s Conversation Quarter with government and industry leaders.
About ICN Victoria
Industry Capability Network Victoria, an independent organisation supported by the Victorian Government, has been working for local industry since 1984. We were founded on the principle that local businesses, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, should be given full and fair opportunities to compete for work on major projects, aided by local capability considerations. In turn, this helps create jobs by encouraging industry to first think local, social and sustainable in all procurement decisions.
Funded predominantly by the Department of Jobs, Skills, Industry and Regions (DJSIR), and led by our Board of Directors and Executive Leadership Team, ICN Victoria is the trusted government procurement partner, administering the Local Jobs First Policy and the Social Procurement Framework. ICN Victoria delivers Victorian employment and socio-economic outcomes, and makes a difference by engaging local industry and stimulating local connections and jobs in Victoria and Australia.
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