Professor Peter Schubel

Acting Executive Director, iLAuNCH Trailblazer

Professor Peter Schubel has had a distinguished executive and research career partnering with manufacturing, space, and defence industry organisations globally. Now serving as Acting Executive Director for iLAuNCH, Peter continues to drive the program he helped establish in 2022 as Chief Investigator and Founding Director of the $50 million iLAuNCH Space program under the Federal Government’s Trailblazer initiative. Before this, he was Executive Director of the University of Southern Queensland’s (UniSQ) Institute for Advanced Engineering and Space Sciences (IAESS), leading 164 researchers across a diverse Defence and Space portfolio.

Over his career, Professor Schubel has been awarded over $113 million in competitive research grants and $363 million in total research project activity, specialising in the design and processing of high-value composite components and structures with a particular focus on automated manufacturing, process development, advanced infusion processing, repair, CMCs and surface metrology.

Professor Schubel has worked with organisations including Aston Martin, Boeing, Airbus, BAE Systems, GE Aviation, Safran and Rolls Royce PLC. He is a board member of a number of space and defence committees. In 2019, Professor Schubel supported the establishment of a commercial rocket test facility operated by Rocket Technologies International (RTI).