Australia's scientific organization releases five-year masterplan to increase global presence

Australia's foremost scientific research center has unveiled a five-year masterplan, which it hopes will boost the country's ability to turn scientific inventions into commercial reality.

The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) released on Thursday its five-year strategy, called Australia's Innovation Catalyst, which is designed to help the country become better at "innovation efficiency"-- transforming innovation investment into results.

CSIRO chief executive Dr Larry Marshall said Australia was far behind other first-world nations when it comes to innovation efficiency, and that more needs to be done to boost Australia's " outrageous" ranking.

"Australia currently ranks 81st in the world when it comes to innovation efficiency -- the bang for our buck we get when we transform innovation investment into results," he said.

"If that was a team sport ranking, we'd be outraged. As a country, we need to work together to improve this result."

Marshall said great Australian inventions had previously paved the way for successful Australian companies to offer vital products and services to the world, and that the organization's five-year plan would give its researchers the scope to do more.

"Australia's prosperity, health and sustainability is closely bound to our capacity for innovation -- and CSIRO has a key role to play here," he said.

"CSIRO is Australia's largest patent holder. We're the people behind fast Wi-Fi, part of the global team which developed extended-wear contact lenses, designer polymers using RAFT technology and the Hendra vaccine -- but this is the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the value we offer the Australian people. "

He said a crowd-sourcing campaign helped the CSIRO develop its five-year strategy. Marshall said it would bring in a "new era" for the national science agency.

"We must form new bonds and collaborate across disciplines, sectors, science and business. That is where profound innovation happens -- at the intersection of these areas," he said.

"We must also be asking who our customers are and if we're creating the value that they need. We work with businesses, industry, governments and communities and we need to find ways to benefit every Australian."

Part of the push for greater collaboration and co-ordination by CSIRO will be increased co-location with universities and other research organizations.

It will focus especially on international connections, such as the collaboration with America's NASA space agency in the New Horizons project, or the use of the Parkes satellite dish in Russian billionaire Yuri Milner's search for alien life.

The CSIRO will implement its master plan later this year. Endi