2010 Victoria Prize winner - Associate Professor Voytek Gutowski

A leading Victorian materials scientist who invented the world's first zero waste technology for the plastics and car industry has been awarded the prestigious 2010 Victoria Prize.

Innovation Minister Gavin Jennings announced that Associate Professor Voytek Gutowski had won the $50,000 prize for being ahead of his time in solving many difficult technology problems.

Professor David de Kretser, AC, Governor of Victoria, presented the award to Dr Gutowski at a reception at Government House.

Dr Gutowski's work addressed the waste problem faced by the car industry which uses 9.68 million litres of paints a year in car manufacturing -- with all solvents used in the process becoming airborne and 2.5 million litres of solids going to landfill.

"Dr Gutowski has developed a coating technology that uses solvent-less powder resins that enables powder coatings, paints and inks to adhere to plastics," Mr Jennings said.

"His innovation has resulted in drastically reducing the need for solvent-based paints and allows the metal body parts of cars and building components to be replaced with lighter, less expensive plastic and composite parts.

"It has the potential to revolutionise the future of manufacturing industries that make painted plastic components for cars, furniture and buildings. This could save the Australian car industry at least $100 million a year and ensure they become cleaner and greener," said Mr Jennings.

Dr Gutowski's development has been commercialised by Dulux and the potential of this new technology for next generation clean energy and car, aerospace and bio-medical applications is also being investigated.

As the CSIRO's Chief Research Scientist of the Materials Science and Engineering Division, Dr Gutowski has received national and international recognition from industry and the community including the Banksia Environmental Award and the Premier's Eco-Innovation Award.

As part of the Victoria Prize, the Materials Science and Engineering Division of CSIRO as the lead organization in the research receives the Anne & Eric Smorgon Memorial Award of $100,000 from the Jack and Robert Smorgon Families Foundation.

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