defence

South Australian company Airspeed has been selected by BAE Systems to support the Global Combat Ships program. The program will build three ships in Glasgow, Scotland for the UK Royal Navy as part of the multi-billion-dollar UK Type 26 program. The Type 26 frigate is the original model which led to the Hunter class frigate, … Continue reading BAE Systems selects SA manufacturer for UK naval shipbuilding contract →

The Australian Defence Forces awarded Canberra-based Penten Services a $2.2 million contract to improve the Australian Army’s cyber capabilities. The technology required will be used by the Army to send messages over unsecured networks. Additionally, funding will go towards the construction of cyber-management capability and the improvement of security countermeasures. In sum, the contract will … Continue reading Canberra company receives funding for defence cyber solutions →

The Australian Defence Force has identified seven research proposals for innovative materials as worthy of pursuing for military platforms. Contained within the research proposals are methods of developing new adhesives to bind high temperature structures, the integration and repair of different composite types, and the joining of ceramic armour for greater protection against bullets and … Continue reading Joint AU-UK funding for advanced materials in defence →

French multinational Thales and South-Australian small business Micro-X have signed a $10 million agreement to invest in the development of ultra-miniature x-ray systems. The systems, which utilise carbon nanotubes in their x-ray imaging, have potential applications in airports and other high-security environments. A backscattering image processing algorithm, augmented with artificial intelligence, will identify suspicious items. … Continue reading Thales and Australian manufacturer sign agreement on future x-ray systems →

On September 26 and 27, Australian drone manufacturers and those utilising drones in their manufacturing processes are invited to attend the World of Drones Congress in Brisbane. The congress includes a business expo with exhibitors from Australia, China and Japan, as well as a national drone safety forum and a national drones defence industry forum. … Continue reading Drones to hover over Brisbane at Congress →

From 2019 until 2021, the PACIFIC International Maritime Expo will be held in Sydney. The expo is one of the largest defence and maritime industry events in the world, and the NSW government will assist local manufacturers to connect with international markets at the event, according to Minister for Trade and Industry John Barilaro. “NSW … Continue reading NSW government looking to support naval manufacturers at Maritime Expo →

BAE Systems has announced that local manufacturing enterprises are now able to bid to supply equipment, materials and services as part of the Hunter Class Frigate Program. BAE systems estimates that $20 million worth of contracts are will be available in this prototyping stage. The contracts are split between two supplier categories, one of which, … Continue reading Registration opens for local suppliers to the Hunter frigate program →

Australian digital manufacturing solutions company Titomic Limited has delivered five prototypes of defence soldier systems products. Completed in six months, the soldier systems were manufactured with the Titomic Kinetic Fusion AM process (TKF AM). The quick turnaround of this project in only six months demonstrates the potential of metal additive manufacturing in sensitive applications. The … Continue reading Additive manufacturing speeds up defence project delivery →

The federal government has announced in June that it has awarded funding to two local manufacturers for defence systems and their integration. Minister for Defence Industry, Melissa Price, and Member for Brisbane, Trevor Evans, jointly declared that Brisbane-based firm EPE will improve its radar technology that is used by the Australian defence forces to identify … Continue reading Federal government funds local defence manufacturing companies →

British defence technology company QinetiQ relies on Brisbane-based ImmersaView, a company that develops advanced software solutions for complex visualisation applications in the defense, simulation, audio visual, education, energy, and emergency services industries, to capture high-quality vision from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Touring the UK headquarters of QinetiQ, Minister for State Development, Manufacturing, Infrastructure and Planning … Continue reading ImmersaView helps UK defence company →

Defence-related businesses may be eligible for a grant of up to $1 million to invest in projects that build capabilities aligned with Defence’s stated Sovereign Industrial Capability Priorities. The Sovereign Industrial Capability Priority Grants aim to ensure Australian businesses have the capacity and resilience to support Defence’s most critical capabilities. The Centre for Defence Industry Capability … Continue reading Sovereign Industrial Capability Priority Grants now available →

Australia’s Defence Science and Technology (DST) is inviting research proposals from small businesses and universities to help the department of defence devise novel ways of integrating advanced materials onto military platforms. DST and the United Kingdom’s Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA) are collaborating on research to find innovative joining technologies that will provide Defence in … Continue reading DST promotes research on advanced materials integration onto military platforms →

The federal government has awarded five Australian businesses contracts with a combined value of more than $12 million to further develop their innovative technologies to support the Australian Defence Force. Funded through the Defence Innovation Hub, the investments will see Sentient Vision Systems, a small Australian computer vision technology company, awarded a $5.5 million contract to … Continue reading Defence Innovation Hub contracts worth $12m awarded →

Austal’s American subsidiary, Austal USA, has delivered its fourth expeditionary fast transport (EPF) ship to the US Navy this year, bringing the total number of EPF vessels delivered by the shipbuilder to 10. The USNS Burlington (EPF 10) was constructed at Austal’s shipyard in Mobile, Alabama, where two additional Spearhead-class EPFs are under construction. “Austal … Continue reading Austal delivers another EFT vessel to the US Navy →

Construction has commenced on the Australian Navy’s new Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs) at Osborne in South Australia. Twelve of the OPVs are to be supplied to the Navy. German shipbuilder Luerssen is the prime contractor to supply the 12 new OPVs for the navy, and will work with Australia’s ASC for the building the first … Continue reading Navy OPV construction begins in South Australia →

Thales Australia has officially opened its new World Trade Centre offices in Melbourne, which will be the base for its new OneSKY team developing the new Civil Military Air Traffic Management System for the Department of Defence and Airservices Australia. The offices had undergone a $12 million redevelopment for the OneSKY project, which will eventually … Continue reading Thales Australia opens OneSKY office in Melbourne →

Australia’s Naval Shipbuilding College officially opened this week, and will provide a coordinated approach to workforce development and training across the industry. Located at Obsborne in South Australia, the College is being managed on behalf of the Australian Government by the Naval Shipbuilding Institute (NSI) Australia – a joint venture between Kellogg Brown and Root … Continue reading Australian Naval Shipbuilding College officially opens →

The Western Australian government has launched a strategic plan to capitalise on the state’s manufacturing and technological capabilities and grow the local defence industry. Western Australia’s Premier Mark McGowan launched the Western Australia Defence and Defence Industries Strategic Plan during his address at the inaugural Indo-Pacific Defence Conference on Tuesday. The premier said that the … Continue reading WA launches defence industry strategy →

Indra Australia has been awarded a $36 million contract with the federal government to design and manufacture a Level 2 deployable forensic laboratory capability that is being procured under Project LAND 154 Phase 2. The system, supplied by Indra, will be used by the Australian Army to provide a forensic support capability for a range … Continue reading Indra Australia to deliver IED forensic technology for Army →

The United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defence is in discussion with Boeing and the Royal Australian Air Force regarding the potential purchase of E-7 Wedgetail Airborne Early Warning and Control aircraft to replace its current Sentry fleet. Speaking ahead of the meeting of defence ministers in NATO, UK defence secretary, Gavin Williamson, called the Wedgetail the … Continue reading UK in talks with Boeing and RAAF to buy Wedgetail aircraft →