Members of Wollongong's manufacturing cluster have become used to working together to win business for the region since i3net was formed more than a decade ago.

In recent times the market has been fairly soft, but i3net is not giving up.

It has a new executive officer in Andrew Jeffrey helping chairman Emilio Salucci and the board of directors try and win more business for the region.

"We plan to move forward and bring new business opportunities to our members and the Illawarra," Mr Jeffrey said.

"We are holding our next industry breakfast on Friday the 19th of September where Hanson's will be detailing their $100 million Bass Point Quarry Expansion along with the business opportunities for local industry."

Hanson project manager Scott Whittaker will speak about the quarry and business opportunities.

Hanson is one of Australia's leading suppliers of heavy building materials, and its Bass Point Quarry supplies high-quality basalt material to the Sydney and Illawarra markets.

The quarry employs 70 people and produces about 1.5 million tonnes of construction aggregate.

The $100 million expansion will see production increase to 4 million tonnes per year.

The company plans to deepen its extraction pits to as far as 40 metres below sea level and to move the processing plant, which would result in a lower visual impact as well as more efficient processing system.

Mr Salucci said the expansion was one of many local business opportunities still happening locally.

He said there were a number of them here in locations such as Port Kembla, the university, and even BlueScope Steel which recently invested $8 million in a new plant.

But i3net had also become good at attracting interest from projects outside the region.

He said recently Rio Tinto had asked to meet members, and the discussions proved very productive.

Mr Salucci said a number of opportunities in various locations would be discussed this Friday morning, and he looked forward to a good roll up at the Lagoon Seafood Restaurant.