Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

That explains why I could find out anything....

Correct m if I'm wrong Piggy... but Camden can get quite cold through winter... that will mean some very expensive heating for Barramundi....

You guys looking at hydronic heaters???

Most ventures of this nature would require not only fisheries licences, but council approval.... and a full EIS....

Does that still hold true for a "research" project... or do the rules get waivered??

Hi piggy welcome aboard.

When you were talking to me I got the impression that you had been employed to do design and possibly construction work on the project but that you were not one of the operators or drivers of the project. Hence it was as you have said not you that was requiring "commercial in confidence" clause but your employers/dominant share holders or whatever. If you have given your word not to divulge any information then you can only behave as you did on the day we spoke but that does not counter my criticism of such a way of doing business. As others have said any one with a decent amount of experience will pretty quickly get an idea of how the system in question operates.

They real thing that I'm amazed at is that people think that they can do better by keeping secrets. With novel innovations make sure that you get your patents in place and then go for it. Other information who cares. In many cases people are better off sharing info than they are when they hoard it. Three examples that I know of. The maron industry in WA shares info pretty readily and they are growing (so I've been told). The redclaw industry does not share any info what so ever and the industry is stagnating (so I've been told). Finally the Wasabi growers of Tasmania have formed a cooperative and are actively sharing information on production, propogation, marketing, etc and are making progress and saving themselves many dollars because when someone in the coop makes a mistake and wipes out a crop all the other members here about it and don't repeat the mistake themselves.

If these guys make some real money it won't be from this system (4000m2 is respectable but not huge) it will be from the systems that are to come and they won't sell those by keeping everything bound up in commercial confidences.

You can't expect people to spend lots of money on research and developement and then just release it all to the general public? The Industries you mentioned that share information would be sharing in a closed loop system I would imagine?

Maybe but just think of how we operate here. How many of us would have up and running systems without the knowledge freely given on this and other forums. I for sure wouldnt.

I'm really wondering just what they spent $1,000,000 on ... researching .... googling, and existing peer reviewed papers would have given all the information necessary from an aquaculture perspective....

As would liasing with the Grafton and other DPI fisheries research facilities...

And from an "aquaponic" perspective... a trip to Tailor Made and Barramundi Blue... would have shown them how to "develop" it....

Unless they have really come up with something astoundingly novel.... they've surely just "re-invented" the wheel...

Yeah...... but it's an entirely different thing.

I'm assuming they will want to make $'s somewhere down the line, if by chance these folk know something others don't (or think they do) they have a right to withhold that information until they get their ducks in a row, it's not unfairness, it's not being mean, it's business sense.

You beat me to it Rupe

I was not talking about truly novel inovvations having to be shared or your a bad person it was more the amusing occurence that the size of the GH was a commercial confidence. Yet I had already heard about its size from at least two independent sources. Also that other inocuous (from my perspective) information was aparently a commercial confidence.

The first person to really make AP a commercial success may have novel IP that helps them get there but even if they do they are going to have to build a reputation as a successful operator and that will require large amounts of information to be divulged so that those considering investing in a serious commercial setup can make an informed decision.

Without this AP sprukers are relying on their sales abilities not their AP experience or expertise. Which isn't to say that they won't successfully sell many systems. Many emerging industries have such people at their inception who make a packet and then dissapear.

To be clear I'm not suggesting that these guys fall into that later category, they are putting up $3,000,000 after all.

Are they putting $3m or the University has received a $3m grant from the government. The secrecy would save them releasing what the feck they have been doing.

$1m in research? Easily done with 5 researches on 200k salaries a year or 5 researchers on 100k a year plus expenses.

Unless I am mistaken, if it is attached to a university, its probably funded by the tax payer.

All the secrecy crap is to cover up where the money is going.

I'll go put my tin hat on now.

Researchers don't earn anything like that - perhaps in the public sector.. but not at a Government funded University.

You need to think outside the square.
It's probably not the AP system that costs 3 mil, but the associated study facilities, including office equipment & lab fit out, infrastructure & amenities etc etc.

The actual AP system would only be a very small part of the actual costs of setting up an AP research facility.

(I work for a University, and by co-incidence only - the one in question.)

It could also be that the research is (in whole or in part) co-funded by a commercial organisation, who may (or may not) have rights to the intellectual property as part of the funding agreement.

So Mitchamus... and welcome by the way... can you confirm that such a project is indeed going ahead???

And can you give any details as to when??

Its actually the new system that is meant to be 3mil with 1mil previously spent on research.

Actually, I think I've found who it is.... and yep, they might have spent $1million on "R&D" in the past... and they are spruiking that they've "sold" their first system... in Sydney... for about over $3million... and are trying to raise another $750,000....

And yes... they do claim a "patent pending"... and have for some time....

no sorry, i'm not connected to it in any way, and had no idea about the project until I read about it here.

It's a big place! With lots of staff... I'm not connected with academia or research division either, but just have some knowledge of how things work in universities.

I was just trying to point out how research dollars could be being spent.

Thanks for the welcome... I'm a long time lurker