Two South Australian automotive suppliers have won $1.18 million funding in the first handouts as part of the new $30 million Automotive New Markets Program.
Precise Global and Quality Plastics and Tooling qualified for funding under the new scheme.
Precise Global recently won a contract with a Tennessee supplier to Mercedes Benz to build tooling for B Pillar stamping, that will make ultra high strength steel for the support between the front and rear glass window of the 2013 M Class Mercedes.
The company also makes plant and equipment for submarines for the Canadian Navy and Royal Australian Navy, as well as tool and equipment for Mercedes Benz, Kia and Ford in the US.
Precise Global is part of the Precise Advanced Manufacturing Group that has about 85 staff and is owned by South Australian Grant Tinney.
A company spokesperson said the $600,000 grant would be spent reducing turnaround time in product development along with developing more intellectual property in hot die stamping.
Quality Plastics and Tooling is a custom plastic injection moulding and tooling company that has 35 employees and is a second tier supplier to the automotive industry.
They received $580,000 to buy electric moulding machines with robotics and automation to improve competitiveness and reduce costs.
Manufacturing Minister Tom Koutsantonis said the funds would help automotive component companies scale up and advance the state's manufacturing industry.
Referring to the recent collapse of automotive parts supplier Autodom, Mr Koutsantonis said companies needed to look further than the Australian automotive industry in their forward plans.
The four-year Automotive New Markets Program has $20 million Federal funding and $10 million Victorian government funding.
