Description
The formal origins of Unisearch Ltd are in an undated report from Vice-Chancellor Professor J. P. Baxter to Council on 11 March 1957. Council immediately set up an Ad Hoc Committee to consider the question of university assistance to industry and to examine the vice-chancellor's proposals in detail. On 14 July 1958 Council approved action to set up a limited liability company and to obtain the Minister's approval (resolution 58/88). The original name proposed for the company was Research Services Ltd, but as there was another company already registered under that name, this was changed to Unisearch Ltd at the 9 March 1959 Council meeting. The prime aim of Unisearch was indicated as to undertake research and investigation and to develop and exploit patents (resolution 59/23). Unisearch Ltd was incorporated on 1 April 1959 and the inaugural meeting of its Board of Directors was held on 7 April 1959, with R. J. Webster as Chairman. In 1961 J. S. Fraser was appointed Secretary of Unisearch - and in 1963 this position was redesignated as Manager & Secretary. A restructure of Unisearch Ltd was approved by Council at its 1 June 1998 and 6 July 1998 meetings. Its educational activities were separated out to form a new body effective from 1 January 1999 in order for Unisearch to revert to and concentrate on its establishment objectives of consulting/technology, commercialisation/innovation and project management activities (resolutions CL98/40 & CL98/47). In a report given to the 9 November 1998 meeting of Council, the new entity was named NewSouth Global Pty Ltd and, together with Unisearch, it was intended that they would report together to the body NewSouth Enterprises Pty Ltd, which would be under the direct control of the university. But while accounts of the two entities were kept separately from 1 January 1999, NewSouth Global did not begin operations until 1 July 1999 (file 981199). Also, while NewSouth Enterprises Pty Ltd was incorporated on 24 February 1999, its original purpose of overseeing both Unisearch and NewSouth Global was never fulfilled. Instead it became a holding company for NewSouth Global alone, before ultimately being de-registered in 2002 (file 001475, UNSW Annual Reports 2001, p 74; 2002, p 82). Unisearch thus retained its original arrangement of reporting directly to the university. At the 22 June 2005 Council meeting Unisearch was re-named NewSouth Innovations Pty Ltd effective from 1 July 2005. At the same time it was converted to a proprietary company limited by shares - with the university as sole shareholder - and its consulting arm Expert Opinion Services (EOS) was transferred to NewSouth Global, thereby making the new NewSouth Innovations responsible only for technology commercialisation (resolutions 05/68 & 05/69). In 2007 the Chief Executive Officer of NewSouth Innovations was Mark Bennett. Subordinate agency: International, Professional & Continuing Education (IPACE) Institute (1989 - 1993) / Institute of Professional Education (1993 - 1997) / Unisearch Professional Education (UPE) (1997 - 1998) - 01/07/1989 - 15/10/1998 Subordinate agency: Study Abroad - 01/01/1997 - 31/12/1998 Subordinate agency: Test Scoring Service (1964 - 1967) / Educational Testing Centre (1967 - 2004) / Educational Assessment Australia (2004 - ) - 03/03/1982 - 16/05/1991 Subordinate agency: Centre for Entomological Research and Insecticide Technology (CERIT) - 01/07/1987 - 31/12/2002 Subordinate agency: Building Research Centre - 01/04/1990 - 31/07/1998 Subordinate agency: NewSouth Five / BVT - 19/02/2007 - Controlling Organisation: UNSW - 01/04/1959-
