Professor Stuart Bateman

Professor Bateman is an active researcher in the area of high performance and functional polymeric materials and coatings.  He has a focus on solving applied research problems which underpin competitive advantage to partners and longer term impact.  Prior to joining RMIT in 2015, he spent 17 years with CSIRO as a researcher and research leader.  Key roles included being the Theme Leader of CSIRO Sustainable Polymeric Materials (50 staff, $18M research portfolio) from 2005 to 2011, and the Deputy Director of the Future Manufacturing Research Flagship from 2011 to 2014 (a 300 staff, $100M research portfolio). 

Professor Bateman has partnered extensively with the aerospace, automotive, energy and building and construction industries.  This includes a 15 year collaboration with Boeing in areas of coating technologies, fire resistant materials, and high performance composites and nanocomposites.  He has also led research and development in related fields with the likes of General Electric, Vestas Wind Systems, ORICA, Petronas and the Reserve Bank of Australia, in all over $20M in externally funded research.  Professor Bateman focuses on the development of intellectual property and is the inventor of 20 patent families and 75 major confidential reports to industry and government.

Outcomes from Professor Bateman’s research contributions have been recognised through:

• Boeing Technical Replication Award (2012)
• Leader’s Choice - Boeing Supplier of the Year - Academia (2011): Chief Investigator of the exemplar project used by CSIRO
• CSIRO Medal for Outstanding Research Achievement (2011)
• Boeing Special Invention Award (2009)
• CSIRO Medal for Outstanding Business Achievement (2009)
• ORICA Innovation Award (2005)

Professor Bateman is a Williamson Fellow (Leadership Victoria) since 2013 and completed CSIRO’s “Leading the Research Enterprise’ Program in association with the Australian Graduate School of Management in 2009.

Professor Bateman is the inaugural Boeing Professor of Aerospace where he takes a lead role as Chief Investigator of contract research and coordinator of the Boeing – RMIT partnership generally. 

Concurrently Professor Bateman is Director of the Australian Research Council’s Training Centre in Lightweight Automotive Structures.  The $11M Centre with FORD as the lead industry partner seeks to develop the next generation of high quality entrepreneurial researchers in fields of lightweight materials, structures and manufacturing processes.

His current research interests include high performance polymeric materials for advanced manufacturing techniques such as additive manufacturing, biomimetic surfaces and interfaces and functional composites and nano-composites.  He also has a keen interest in the commercialisation of research outcomes.

In 2016, Professor Bateman was the Interim Director of RMIT’s Enabling Capability Platform in Advanced Manufacturing and Fabrication

Professor Bateman is Course Coordinator for OENG1115 Innovation and Technology Management since 2015.

• Professor Bateman is a graduate of the University of Melbourne BSc Ed (H1, 1991),
• BSc Hons (H1, 1992), PhD in Chemistry (1996)
  

Selected patents resulting from Professor Bateman’s research include:

• Activation Method, US14/710,550, 2015
• Ice Adhesion Reducing polymers, WO/2015/01789903
• Ice Adhesion Reducing Polymers and Pre-polymers, WO/2015/0179902
• Self-Healing Polymer Compositions, WO/2014/017899
• Low Toxicity Pro-Degradant Additives For Polyolefin, WO/2013/043040
• Coating System, WO/2013/086571
• Light Triggered Cure On Demand Sealants, WO/2013/090988
• Self-Healing Polymeric Material, WO/2012/103578
• Conductive Element, WO/2008/006166
• Activation Method Using Modification Agent, WO/2006/086828
• Fire Resistant Material, WO/2004/039916