Australian manufacturing has had a tough time recently with the winding down of the local car industry but a number of defence projects are providing opportunities for local manufacturers to transform their businesses for new industries and challenges.
One such project is the Joint Strike Fighter project, which will see the Royal Australian Air Force purchase 72 new F-35A Lightning II aircraft.
Although the F-35s are being built in USA, because Australia joined the project in 2002, it provided an opportunity for Australian industry to tender for jobs on the JSF through the JSF Australian Industry Involvement Program.
"Indeed, Australian industry was involved in designing elements of the Joint Strike Fighter, and its systems from those early days," says Air Vice-Marshal Leigh Gordon, who is responsible for buying the JSF and establishing a system to support it in service.
"A lot of it is really at the component and support system level but it is genuine design leading into the product."
AVM Gordon is an RAAF engineer and will talk about 'Managing complexity and the Smart Buyer' at the Australian Engineering Conference 2016.
"I will look to draw on the JSF program as an example of the technologies and challenges that Defence is dealing with in delivering modern capabilities," he says.
"I intend to discuss the benefits to industry, the changes that are required in the Defence force as these new capabilities come along. The important role we need to recognise in the link between industry and Defence and Air Force in particular and my group, capability acquisition sustainment group to draw those outcomes."
He says one of the project's goals was to establish a capability within Australian industry that was to the benefit of Australian industry.
"We've got a dedicated effort occurring to help Australian industry to work with the overseas equipment manufacturers to ensure that they can capitalise on opportunity," says Gordon.
"That's the real benefit of us making that decision to join the cooperative program back in 2002, and I believe that it is a far more effective program of industry engagement than a simple offset program that we might have done in the past."
Even though the decision to enter the program was well in advance of the major car manufacturers Ford, Holden and Toyota deciding to shut down their Australian operations, Gordon says a number of the companies currently working in the JSF program had their beginnings in that industry.
"They were agile enough to be able to adapt to this work quite rapidly," he says.
"I think we do need to look at opportunities where we can genuinely add value and the higher end levels of manufacturing is an area where Australia can add that value. I do believe it's the sort of area that we need to be targeting."
He also feels that the skills being developed in these organisations will provide opportunities for these companies when contracting for other defence projects and also high-tech high-value added manufacturing in areas beyond defence.
"There are opportunities for these companies not just in the aerospace sector but in other Defence sectors, and indeed, in other areas of capability development not just military," Gordon says.
"I see some read-across in the materials and the procedures that we are using. An example would be we are getting a very high level of competence in dealing with carbon fibre type structures in the aircraft, and we expect that there will be similar carbon fibre structures in submarines."
To learn more, secure your spot at the Australian Engineering Conference where AVM Leigh Gordon will talk about managing complexity and the smart buyer.
[AVM Leigh Gordon and four F-35s in the sky above Arizona. Photos: RAAF/Lockheed Martin]