Building the first-step manufacturing layer Australia lacks.
NPL Australia is a privately held specialty chemical company in Brisbane, building the first-step manufacturing layer that Australia does not currently have after decades of sovereign chemical industry decline. Our scope is deliberately focused on chemicals that would become unavailable if Australian ports closed. We design and invent new processes and catalyst systems that turn domestic feedstocks into enabling chemicals on shore.
What we focus on
For defence programmes, that means sovereign production of specialty organics, crosslinker systems, and platform chemistry that sits on the critical path for advanced composites, polymers, and qualified supply, with documentation and release practices appropriate to programme work.
Listed catalogue lines where public release is appropriate
Custom chemistry and scale-up under NDA for programme-specific work
Explicit clarity on which inputs are sovereign and which are not
Today
After restructuring in Q3 2025 from our earlier roots, our first defence production lots will begin shipping in Q3 2027. We are small, deliberate, and building capacity in steps rather than promising scale we have not yet qualified.
Board of advisors
NPL draws on independent advisors with depth in sovereign manufacturing, defence industrial policy, export controls, and specialty chemical scale-up. Profiles are published here as appointments are confirmed.
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Crawford Samuel MSc, CISM, CISSP, FBCS
Caybris Consulting · cyber security, DISP and secure operations
Crawford is a cyber security professional and veteran who advises Defence industry organisations on governance, risk management and secure operations in high-assurance environments. He is Principal of Caybris Consulting, a veteran-owned consultancy that helps organisations strengthen resilience, meet regulatory obligations and embed secure-by-design practice.
He brings deep expertise in Australian frameworks including the ACSC Information Security Manual, the Essential Eight and the Defence Industry Security Program, underpinned by SABSA enterprise security architecture. Crawford holds a Master of Science and is a Fellow of the British Computer Society and a Senior Member of the Australian Computer Society. As a board advisor he translates technical risk into clear governance considerations so cyber security is built into NPL’s strategy, operations and long-term capability.
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Kylie Rendina MBAE, LLB
Phoenix Australia Consultancy Services · national security, capability and strategy
Kylie has extensive leadership experience in national security and law enforcement, most recently as an Assistant Commissioner in the Australian Border Force leading intelligence, workforce, crisis and national operational functions. She also brings capability expertise from leadership roles in technology services and transformation at Lockheed Martin Australia and Leidos Australia.
Kylie’s strength is translating threat and opportunity into plans and competency uplift across individuals, teams, organisations and multi-agency settings. She holds an Executive MBA from RMIT, a Bachelor of Laws from QUT and executive credentials from Harvard Kennedy School and Cambridge. Her legal, public service, board and capability experience helps NPL use foresight to shape its direction, partnerships and delivery.
