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CHAPTER 8 AUSTRALIA'S DEFENCE INDUSTRY AND RELATED POLICIES Australia"s current defence industry is the product of diverse influences. Since at least the Second World War, Australian defence policy makers have debated the role of Australian industry in supplying and supporting the Australian Defence Force and how best to ensure local industry was capable of playing that role. As an integral part of Australia"s wider manufacturing and service industry base, defence industry has been intimately affected by developments at both macro and micro levels of the Australian economy. Defence industry policy has similarly been influenced by wider debates about the role of the Australian government in Australian economic development. Finally, and critically, Australia"s defence industry is a legacy of past defence procurements which have embodied important shifts in defence governance. Against this background, this chapter: defines and scopes Australian defence industry; summarises the enduring features of defence demand of industry; describes Australian defence industry currently does; analyses the most recent iteration of defence industry policy; and concludes by suggesting possible future trends in the development of Australian defence industry and related policies. Australian Defence Industry What is Australian Defence Industry? For present purposes, the term "defence industry" denotes those industries domiciled in Australia that are actually or potentially involved in supplying Australian Defence Force capability and which are influenced by Defence business policies or purchasing decisions. This definition includes selected defence-oriented elements of the manufacturing sector (including shipbuilding, aerospace, automotive, chemicals, electrical and electronic equipment, other fabricated metal products and machinery and equipment). The definition excludes those industries supplying goods or services which, while perhaps critical to ADF functionality (e.g., petroleum, oil and lubricants; civil roads, harbours and airports; commercial information technology), are not significantly affected by Defence policy or purchasing. The definition includes, in addition to selected elements of the technical and business services sector, service providers who now provide garrison support and other services under the Defence Commercial Support Program (see Chapter 5). Finally, Defence – like the Australian Government generally – has long welcomed foreign investment in local defence industry. Accordingly, and to paraphrase the UK"s 1 recent statement of defence industrial policy, the notion of the Australian defence industry embraces all suppliers that create value, employment, technology or intellectual assets in Australia. This includes both Australian and foreign-owned companies (Bach and Johnson, 2002; p. 4). How Big Is Australian Defence Industry? ACIL Tasman, an Australian economic consulting firm, has attempted to estimate the size of Australian defence industry in preparing a profile of defence industry (Wylie, 2004; pp. 8-9). The following analysis draws heavily on the ACIL Tasman report. Defence industry comprises a relatively stable "core" of large, medium and small companies who devote all or part of their capacity to defence or defence-related business on a long term basis. This core is supplemented by a large number of mainly small and medium sized companies who enter or leave the defence market on a contract-by-contract basis. Estimating the size of such a fluid element of the Australian economy poses important methodological challenges. ACIL Tasman estimated that the Australian defence industry employed some 13,000 people and generated some A$4.7 billion turnover in 2002-03. Limitations in the survey data mean that this estimate should be treated cautiously and is probably conservative. The largest ten companies in the industry generated a defence-related turnover of over A$3 billion. Most of these companies are prime contractors for the supply of defence capital equipment but service providers constitute a large and growing minority (see below). Prime contractors play a key role in marshalling the resources of numerous sub- contractors (an estimated 1300 in the ANZAC ship project alone). Estimating the number of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) permanently involved in the defence industry requires some important assumptions. ACIL Tasman"s very conservative estimate of the number of such SMEs is 200-250. State government officials have suggested that the true number is probably twice that. Arguably, the more important point is that the size of the defence industry depends on the business in hand and how it is managed. The flexibility of sub-contractors in entering and leaving the Australian defence market helps the defence industry as whole adjust to inevitable shifts in defence expenditure among different defence capabilities; and between short term preparedness and long term force structure development. What does Defence want from Australian defence industry? Since at least the 1970s, Australian governments have acknowledged that complete self- sufficiency in the supply and support of defence materiel was neither a realistic nor a desirable policy objective. As a well-regarded member of the Western strategic community and a close ally of the United States, Australia could – at least in principle - choose those goods and services it supplied itself and those it imported. 2 There are strong continuities in the choices Australia has made on this basis. According to the Australian government"s 2007 Defence and Industry Policy Statement, for example, "The ADF needs ready access to repair and maintenance services that, for practical reasons, can only be delivered by in-country providers. The ADF also needs in- country industry to adapt, modify and, where necessary, manufacture equipment that is suited to Australia"s unique operating environment and military doctrine" (DoD, 2007; p.1). This language echoes that used to describe Australian defence industrial policy thirty years earlier in the seminal 1976 Australian defence white paper (Killen, 1976; p. 51 paras 28-30). In the last ten years, however, and as the Australian Defence Force has focused on network enable operations, Australian strategic guidance has emphasised the following priorities for Australian defence industry capabilities: combat and systems software and support; data management and signal processing including for information gathering and surveillance; command, control and communication systems; systems integration; repair, maintenance and upgrades of major weapons and surveillance platforms; and provision of services to support peacetime and operational requirements of the ADF. These priorities provide a benchmark for evaluating Australian defence industry"s current capacity. What does the Australian Defence Industry do? Successive statements of Australian defence industry policy have reaffirmed that the Australian defence industry is an important element of Australian military capability. In the Australian defence lexicon, Military capability is the power to achieve a desired operational effect in a nominated operational environment (land, sea or air) within a specified period and to sustain that effect for a designated period. Military capability results from developing a force structure appropriately prepared for operations (DoD, 2006, pp. 4-7). Force structure is a sub-set of military capability and comprises the personnel, equipment, facilities and military doctrine required to conduct military operations effectively. This section describes the choices between local and overseas sources made by Defence and the Australian government in supplying and supporting the equipment element of Australia"s defence force structure as it evolves over the longer term. Preparedness, the second component of military capability, is more flexible and dynamic in the shorter term. As Betts (1995) has explained, an existing force can only be 3 maintained at high levels of preparedness for a limited period and then at the expense of longer term force structure development. Hence the level of preparedness of the Australian Defence Force is a second important area of choice for Defence and government. This section also addresses a related area of choice between Australian Defence Force in-house arrangements for support and outsourcing that support to industry. Preparedness is combination of "readiness" and "sustainability". Readiness is the ability of a military force to undertake specified military operations within a designated time. Australian industry supports Australian defence force readiness by upgrading equipment in order to retain its military competitiveness. Sustainability is the ability of a military force to continue operations for a specified period and depends on the level of maintenance and the availability of consumables like ammunition and spare parts. Australian industry supports Australian defence force sustainability by repairing and maintaining its equipment and by supplying consumables like ammunition. Supply and Support of Australian Defence Capability Against the above background, the following section describes the role of Australian defence industry in supply and support of: non-combat elements of military capability; Defence information capability; naval ships, boats and submarines; Army land-based manoeuvre; Defence munitions; and mlitary aviation. The following analysis draws on commercial data about Australia"s top forty defence contractors gathered by Australian Defence Magazine in 2005 (ADM 2006, pp. 15-28). Provision of non-combat support Defence contracts out a broad range of non-combat related services in order to release scarce and expensively trained military personnel for concentration on core combat and combat-related tasks. The process began with the Commercial Support Plan in the mid- 1980s, followed by the Defence Efficiency Review in 1997 (see Chapter 5). This form of contracting out constitutes a major innovation by Defence in response to enduring financial constraints and skill shortages (see below). By contracting out non- combat services, Defence has shifted the balance of defence industry activities away from manufacturing towards service provision, thereby encouraging established defence suppliers to change their business portfolios and new entrants to defence industry. ADI Limited (turnover: A$656 million; employees: 2513) undertakes a broad spectrum of defence business, including the manufacture of ammunition and explosives for the 4 Australian Defence Force. As a logical extension of munitions manufacture, ADI manages the storage, maintenance and distribution of the ADF"s explosive ordnance. Similarly, BAE Systems (turnover: A$525 million; employees: 2600) operates the ADF Basic Flying Training School as part of a diversified portfolio of defence manufacturing and service business. The Spotless Group is Australia"s seventh largest defence contractor (turnover: A$328 million; defence business employees: 3000). It provides garrison support to military units throughout Australia and New Zealand. Serco Sodexho Defence Services Pty Ltd (turnover: A$136 million; employees: 2300) also provides garrison support to units in the Northern Territory, North Queensland and the Sydney Region. The Joint Logistic Command of the Defence Materiel Organisation is conducting an ambitious experiment in the commercial provision of logistic support through the following contracts: the Defence Integrated Distribution System (DIDS), awarded to Tenix Toll Defence Logistics (Tenix Toll) in December 2003; and Albury-Wodonga Military Area Project, awarded to Tenix Defence Land Division in December 1997 under the Commercial Support Program. Tenix Toll is a joint venture between Tenix Defence Pty Ltd, Australia"s second largest defence company (turnover: A$650 million; employees: 2800), and Toll Holding (Australia"s largest logistic and distribution company). Under the DIDS contract, Tenix Toll provides Defence"s national warehousing and distribution services and maintains selected land materiel and electronic equipment. The DIDS contract is for ten years and is worth up to A$920 million. Defence expects the DIDS to reduce costs otherwise incurred by A$40 million and to enable reassignment of some 500 military personnel to higher priority activities, (Hill, 2003). The Albury Wodonga Military Area (AWMA) Project complements the DIDS contract and also involves the provision of materiel maintenance, warehousing and domestic services for Defence customers in the Albury Wodonga area and nationwide. According to Tenix, the materiel maintenance element of the AWMA contract covers all equipment fleets managed by Joint Logistic Command (including armoured fighting vehicles, general service vehicles, engineer plant, artillery, small arms, guided weapons, electronic, radio and optical equipment and radioactive stores test equipment). To deliver these services, Tenix uses Commonwealth-owned/Government Furnished Facilities, Government Furnished Equipment and Government-owned Information Technology provided free-in-aid under the AWMA Project. In return, Tenix provides these services at highly concessional labour rates – A$25 per hour in the late 1990s (Auditor General, 2005; p. 17). 5 Supply and support of defence information capabilities In order to maintain a competitive military capability Australia relies heavily on effective use of information (CoA, 2000; pp. 77-97). Because information capabilities are so important in the competition for military advantage, they have driven innovation on both demand and supply sides of the defence market. As a result, Australian industry supplies and supports a broad spectrum of defence information capabilities ranging from strategic level systems-of-systems through operational level systems (mostly embedded in platforms) to business information systems that improve defence productivity. The Jindalee Over-the-horizon radar (JORN) system provides a broad area surveillance capability linked to aircraft, ships and land platforms used to monitor Australia"s northern maritime approaches. JORN illustrates Australian industry involvement in the system-of- systems end of the information capability spectrum (see Chapter 5). While Australia"s strategic level information capabilities are Government-owned, many are operated and supported commercially. For example, Boeing Australia Limited (turnover: A$375 million; workforce: 3,400) supports Australian defence satellite communication stations in Darwin and Geraldton and Naval Communication Stations in Canberra, Darwin and North West Cape. In the middle of the spectrum are those information capabilities embedded in military platforms. When linked to weapon systems, these embedded information capabilities largely determine the military competitiveness of the platforms that host them. Radars and other sensors and associated data handling and signal processing systems illustrate the operational level information capabilities in the middle of the spectrum. In Australia, CEA Technologies (turnover: A$28.3 million; employees: 215) has pioneered the application of active phased array technology in maritime surveillance and anti-ship missile defence. CEA Technologies has developed low power, light weight but scalable active phased array radar systems that can be adapted to varying performance/platform requirements. In 2005, the Australian government selected CEA"s fixed face, active phased array radar and active phased array target illuminator for inclusion in the Anti-ship Missile Defence Upgrade of the ANZAC frigates. CEA is also the prime contractor for the Australia-United States Phased Array Radar (AUSPAR) program. Under AUSPAR the US and Australian Departments of Defence are collaborating in the development of CEA"s existing CEAFAR technology to achieve higher power transmission capability without prejudicing CEAFAR"s scaleability, light weight and low cost. This represents a substantial departure from the government-to- government arrangements that dominated, for example, collaboration in JORN. Also in the middle of the information capability spectrum are those niche products developed to meet unique Australian requirements or where the Australian innovation system has pioneered a solution to a common problem. Such products include, for example, the laser airborne depth sounder and mine sweeping system developed by DSTO and licensed to Australian companies. 6 At the other end of the spectrum are logistic information systems and other defence business systems. It is the efficiency and effectiveness of these defence business systems that largely determine the productivity of the overall Defence organisation and of its constituent elements. Defence is by far the largest buyer of non-military information and communication technology in the Australian government. Defence dominance of government ICT business has receded but, in 2004-05, Defence still accounted for 22% by value and 27% by number of Australian government ICT contracts. Defence tends to follow commercial best practice at the business systems end of the information capability spectrum. This business is strategically and commercially significant: For example, Defence"s spares inventory comprises some 1.6 million categories of stores, valued at some A$1.9 billion (ANAO 2004, p. 5). Vigorous competition for this business enables Defence to benefit from commercially driven innovation in, for example, improving its management of financial and personnel data. As part of the Defence Supply System Redevelopment Project, for example, MINCOM adapted inventory management software developed for the mining industry and applied it to Defence logistic management. Defence and MINCOM encountered widely publicised problems in upgrading and standardising Defence"s logistic information systems. The Auditor General, while recognising MINCOM"s difficulty in solving certain technical problems, attributed most of the problems to Defence"s failure to manage the project as a strategic procurement activity (ibid.; pp. 5-7). Australian public and private resources were marshalled more successfully in meeting defence requirements for a device that allow users of secure computers to access insecure networks such as the Internet without compromising their own security. To meet this requirement, DSTO developed the Starlight suite of products which it licensed to Tenix in 1988. These products can be used in almost any networked computing environment where secure access to two different networks of different security classifications is required from the one workstation. The Australian Departments of Defence and of Foreign Affairs and Trade use some 5000 Starlight units. In order to transfer the Starlight technology to Tenix, DSTO staff worked closely with the company during the entire development process. The two parties set out to develop an industry capability rather than just a product. This enabled Tenix to establish an overall capability in information security rather than merely establish a capacity to supply and support a single product. DSTO and Tenix continue to collaborate in development of the next generation of Starlight technology. The development of information capabilities will dominate Australian military innovation for the foreseeable future. Adapting to the needs of knowledge intensive military operations by the Australian Defence Force will pose a major challenge for the Australian defence industry in supplying and supporting such key Australian defence force information capability developments as: 7 military satellite communications (estimated to cost A$1,000-1,500m); ADF joint command support (estimated to cost A$350-500m); Defence-wide area communications (estimated to cost A$250-350m); land battlespace communication system (estimated to cost A$850-1,100m); and modernisation of the maritime command system (estimated to cost A$200- 250m.). Supply and support of Navy ships boats and submarines A fundamentally maritime strategy for defending Australia is a logical consequence of Australia"s strategic geography, its relatively small population and its comparative advantage in a range of technologies. (CoA, 2000; p. 47). A credible Australian maritime strategy needs more than sufficient numbers of naval vessels suitably configured and equipped for operations in the Australian environment (force structure). Those vessels must also be ready to undertake operations after a given period of notice and be able to sustain operations for a given period of time (preparedness). To this end those vessels must be maintained on a routine basis, repaired if they are damaged, upgraded so as to remain militarily competitive and adapted to meet the requirements of specific missions. Australian industry"s current capacity to support the existing Navy"s preparedness derives largely from choices made some 20 years ago. In 1987, the government awarded the A$5 billion Collins Class submarine contract to the Australian Submarine Corporation (ASC), then a new entrant to the naval shipbuilding business operating a purpose built facility at Outer Harbour in South Australia. Subsequently, in 1989, the Government awarded the A$7 billion ANZAC ship contract to what is now Tenix operating the newly privatised Williamstown Dockyard in Victoria. As Australia does not design naval combatants, obtaining access to the requisite overseas intellectual property was a critical feature of these commercial arrangements. These decisions initiated a naval shipbuilding cycle that ended with the delivery of the last of ten ANZAC ships in 2006. While this cycle was dominated by the ANZAC ship and Collins Class submarine projects, it also included the construction of oceanographic ships by North Queensland Engineers and Agents; the construction of six Mine Hunter Coastal vessels by ADI; the conversion of HMA ships MANOURA and KANIMBLA by Forgacs; and the capability upgrade of Australia"s guided missile frigates by ADI. The subsequent naval shipbuilding cycle started, arguably, with the award of the contract for Armidale Class patrol boats to Defence Maritime Services Pty Ltd in 2004. This next cycle will be driven primarily by the construction of three air warfare destroyers (to cost between A$4.5 billion and A$6 billion) and, subject to decisions yet to be made, of two amphibious support ships (to cost between A$1.5 billion and A$ 2 billion). In 2005, the government selected ASC (turnover: $229.3 million; employees: 1020) to build the air warfare destroyers. These destroyers will provide a critical element in the ADF"s layered joint air and missile defence capability (also see below). 8 In August 2005, the government announced the two candidate overseas designs for the amphibious support ships and foreshadowed an invitation to Australian shipbuilders to tender for their construction. The government reiterated its preference for building the ships in Australia, provided Australian industry demonstrates it can deliver the project at a competitive price.1 Assuming that the government does in fact decide to build both air warfare destroyers and the amphibious support ships locally, this next cycle would still entail a lower level of expenditure compressed into a shorter time frame than the previous cycle. It would begin winding down with the delivery of the second amphibious support ship in 2013. The Collins Class submarine and ANZAC ship programs demonstrate how local construction fosters local industry"s capacity to repair and maintain naval ships (thereby helping them sustain operations for as long as necessary) and to modify and adapt naval ships (so that they remain militarily competitive and interoperable with friends and allies) (see also Chapter 5). In 2003, ASC signed a 25 year $3.5 billion contract for the through life support of the Collins Class. ASC"s capacity to support the Collins class derives from its access to Kockums" intellectual property about the design, from the detailed engineering knowledge about the platform and its systems accumulated by ASC in the course of constructing the submarines and from the tacit knowledge accumulated by the ASC workforce. ASC can now undertake full cycle dockings of the submarines at Outer Harbour in South Australia and Intermediate Dockings of the submarines at the Australian Marine Complex, Henderson, Western Australia. The latter facility is close to where the submarines are home-ported at HMAS STIRLING and enables both ASC and Navy to harvest "learning by doing" and "learning by using". ASC"s capacity did not come easily: ASC and its sub-contractors encountered widely publicized technical and engineering problems in constructing the submarines and developing its combat system (see Chapter 5). Tenix and its main sub-contractors have also transitioned the expertise they accumulated during construction of the ANZAC ships to in-service support of those vessels. Routine in-service support (including ad hoc repair) crucial to the preparedness of the ANZAC ships is provided through contracts between the Commonwealth and Tenix (for hulls, hull machinery and ship systems) and SAAB Systems (turnover: A$177 million; workforce: 300). The latter is responsible for ANZAC combat systems and weapon systems. The Department of Defence, Tenix Defence Systems and SAAB Systems signed the ANZAC Ship Alliance in 2001. The alliance is a significant innovation in Defence business practices. It aims to reduce the cost of transactions among Defence (responsible for formulating change requirements as a result of operational experience with the ANZACs), Tenix (responsible for platform in-service support, drawing on its knowledge 1 Spain"s Navantir and France"s Armaris are competing for the design and construction of Australia"s amphibious support ships. These ships would displace between 22,000 tonnes (the Armaris design) and 27,000 tonnes (the Navantir design), be able to transport up to 1000 personnel and equipment, operate a mix of troop lift and armed reconnaissance helicopters, transport up to 150 vehicles, including the M1A1 Abrams tanks and armoured vehicles. 9 of the ANZAC ship supply chain) and SAAB (responsible for in-service support of the ANZAC combat system which it developed, integrated and set to work). The contract for provision of Armidale Class patrol boats is an important experiment in the search for more efficient and effective ways to support Navy preparedness. In procuring Navy ships (and other materiel) Defence traditionally specifies in detail, for example, the number of vessels it requires, their length and other dimensions and the standards to which they are to be constructed. The acquisition strategy for the Armidale Class patrol boats departed from this traditional model in favour of a "performance- based" model (see Chapter 7). This culminated in the award in December 2004 of a A$553 million contract to Defence Maritime Services Pty Ltd for the design, construction and in-service support of 12 Armidale class patrol boats. The innovative Armidale Class business model changed the structure of Australia"s naval shipbuilding industry by enabling Austal ships (turnover: A$65 million; employees: 1100) to enter the Australian defence market. Austal"s US subsidiary is also drawing on Austal"s expertise in building large fast aluminium ferries to construct a prototype of the US Navy"s littoral combat ship. As already indicated the next naval shipbuilding cycle will be driven primarily by construction of three air warfare destroyers and two amphibious support ships. The air warfare destroyers are currently one of Australia"s largest and most technically complex defence projects. The air warfare destroyer project entails two fundamental challenges for Australian industry: construction and fit out of the hulls based on one of two competing but already extant designs, with the design activity intended to mitigate cost and schedule risk in the construction phase; and integration of sub-systems into the air warfare destroyers" core Aegis combat system being acquired under Foreign Military Sales arrangements from the US Government – this risk is being managed by access to a broad range of sub- systems already integrated into different Aegis configurations by the United States, Japan, Spain, Norway and Korea. In its submission to a recent enquiry by the Australian senate into the future of the Australian naval shipbuilding industry, Defence considered that, in an economy currently running at close to full capacity, local construction of both air warfare destroyers and amphibious support ships constituted a major challenge for the Australian maritime sector. Defence noted that: "Any expansion necessary to meet the construction demand would need to occur in an environment where there is already high demand for skilled engineering resources across Australia. Defence industry is already having difficulty in maintaining its skilled workforce as the demands for skilled personnel necessary in the ship construction areas competes directly with the demands of the mining and construction sectors. Skilled 10 labour in Australia is only partially mobile and this further limits the ability of industry to adapt its workforce to the fluctuating demand."2 The Australian government is scheduled to choose a design for the amphibious support ships and to decide whether to build that design in Australia or overseas in 2007. Supply and Support of Army Land-based Manoeuvre The role of Australian defence industry in the supply and support of Army land-based manoeuvre capability is illustrated by its involvement in the following projects: Leopard tank replacement project; supply and support of Australian light armoured vehicles; upgrade of M113 armoured personnel carriers; and acquisition of field vehicles and trailers and of infantry mobility vehicles. Defence is replacing the Leopard tanks with 59 ex-US Army Abrams tanks purchased from the US government under US Foreign Military Sales arrangements at an estimated total project cost of A$534 million. Australian industry will not be involved in the supply of these tanks which are being refurbished in the United States. Australian industry involvement in support of the tanks could involve: supplying and managing the inventory of spares, including warehousing support; provision of engineering support; configuration management; maintenance support; packaging, handling, storage and transport support; technical data and publications support; and provision of special tools and test equipment. In order to provide interim through life support of the Abrams tanks, Defence concluded a Cooperative Logistic Supply and Support Agreement (CLSSA) with the US government, thereby taking advantage of much larger US Army purchases to obtain lower prices. Defence is seeking to finalise Australia-based support arrangements by 2008. Such arrangements are likely to involve a combination of support by: Army technical personnel in-house (constrained by the difficulties Army is experiencing in attracting and retaining technical personnel); contractors located either in Darwin close to where most of the tanks are based or in Adelaide at the other end of the Alice Springs-Darwin railway (entailing higher labour costs but reduced transport costs and greater tank availability); and 2 Defence Submission to the Senate Inquiry into naval shipbuilding, 2006, p. 24 para 4.3, at http://www.apl.gov.au/Senate/comittee/fadt_cmtee/shipping/submission/sublist.htm [accessed 15 May 2007]. 11 Tenix under AWMA auspices (thereby taking advantage of lower labour costs but at the expense of much higher transport costs and much reduced tank availability). The Australian light armoured vehicle (ASLAV) is an eight-wheeled amphibious vehicle designed for reconnaissance and surveillance operations. Army has operated ASLAV for some ten years, including deployments to East Timor and the Middle East. After evaluating the vehicles, Defence procured ASLAV from what is now General Dynamics Land Systems Australia (GDLS-A) in several phases, each of which has involved significant engineering changes to meet Australian requirements. These changes (for example, the addition of a commander"s turret) were undertaken by GDLS-A at the company"s facility in Pooraka, South Australia. The current phase involves procurement of additional vehicles and the standardisation of the total fleet (of 257 vehicles) at an estimated total project cost of $672 million. Agreed industry objectives for the project included: co-production of components for the parent company"s production line; design, manufacture and fitment of role-specific equipment for Australian vehicles such as communication equipment, vehicle work stations, and surveillance equipment; establishment of maintenance capabilities for repair and adaptation of equipment; local sourcing of spares and other consumables; and development of technological and supply/support capabilities for longer term defence needs through technical publications, enhanced through life support and exports. In 1999, Army deployed the vehicles at short notice to East Timor. The above through- life support capability resulted in a high level of vehicle availability (albeit with reliance on imports of high value spares). In 2004, Defence committed ASLAV to operations in Iraq. This required improved levels of protection and firepower which, by virtue of its involvement in earlier supply and support, Australian industry was able to complete at short notice. The upshot of all this is that the ASLAV deployed in Iraq today is the best- equipped and most capable light armoured vehicle in its class.3 Army has operated M113 armoured personnel carriers since the 1960s. In 2002 Defence accepted a proposal by Tenix Defence Land Division and awarded it the prime contract for upgrading 350 M113s at an estimated total project cost of $672 million. The upgrade is intended to improve infantry protection, firepower, and mobility. It involves replacing most of the vehicle, retaining only the hull, hatches, rear door and communication systems. In order to take advantage of overseas technological innovation, Tenix has teamed with FFG, a German company with extensive experience in upgrading German 3 The stabilised turreted 25 mm cannon and remote weapon station 12.7 mm machine gun system have day and night sights and integrated laser range finders. The ASLAV bar armour systems assist in the defeat of rockets, its ballistic steel armour is enhanced with the addition of spall liner both to reduce rocket effect and to improve protection against blast and bullet. 12 and Danish M113s. Nevertheless, the project encountered widely publicised difficulties that were analysed by the Auditor General in 2005. Resolution of these difficulties has delayed vehicle development and led to an unrecoverable delay of six months, with the last vehicle now likely to be delivered in 2011. Tenix Land Division is undertaking: design and production of demonstration vehicles and initial production vehicles; design and production of the one man turret and external fuel tank to be fitted to the upgraded vehicles; development and proof of tooling and preparation of production process instructions; development of integrated logistic support arrangements; and full scale production of the upgraded vehicles at its facilities in Bandiana (see earlier discussion of AWMA contract). Army's current field vehicle and trailer (FV&T) fleet comprises some 7,700 vehicles (distributed among five vehicle types and 40 different variants classified into light, medium and heavy mobility categories). It also includes some 3100 trailers, 750 motorcycles and all terrain vehicles. Defence is replacing this fleet at an estimated project cost of A$2.4 billion - A$3.1 billion. While the project seeks to simplify and rationalise the composition of the FV&T fleet, the latter will still involve a complex inventory comprising six generic fleet ranges incorporating over 80 variants. As military trucks are a relatively mature technology whose production is characterised by large scale economies, Defence has decided that, because there is no strategic or operational justification for paying a premium for local production of trucks, it will import military- off-the-shelf vehicles.4 In a significant innovation in defence business practice, the Defence Materiel Organisation (DMO) has moved from contracting separately for the acquisition and in- service support of major platforms and systems. The DMO now requires the Prime Contractor not only to supply major platforms and systems but also to provide their in- service support. As a result, overseas truck suppliers competing for the LAND 121 contract are teaming with local companies who would provide in-country support. That support will in turn be provided by a combination of in-house and commercial arrangements. Army seeks to retain in-house unit level, or first line maintenance (that is work requiring up to ten hours for completion and undertaken by deployed units on continuous operations). It will also seek to maintain significant capacity in-house for field maintenance and repair but will rely on contractors in the rear support area to undertake repairs requiring 100 hours or more. In addition to procuring unprotected field vehicles, Army is also procuring, at an estimated project cost of A$361 million, infantry mobility vehicles that provide better personnel protection during land operations but greater range and mobility than the armoured vehicles already in Army"s inventory. ADI/Thales Limited won the Defence 4 In this Defence is no different to Australian civil truck operators who imported 99% of the 284,000 light, medium and heavy trucks sold on the Australian domestic truck market in 2002. 13 competition for this requirement with its Bushmaster infantry mobility vehicle. Bushmaster development and production entailed substantial cost overruns and delays but, according to Defence, yielded a vehicle providing levels of protection against mines, mortar splinters and small arms fire unmatched by any comparable vehicle in operation world-wide. Under the current contract, ADI/Thales is delivering 300 vehicles in six variants (troop, command, assault pioneer, mortar, direct fire weapon and ambulance). In July 2006 the government approved the rapid acquisition of 44 protected weapon stations to further enhance the level of protection provided by those vehicles currently deployed on operations. The fitting of the stations to deployed vehicles by ADI/Thales commenced in February 2007 and is planned to be complete by mid-2007. In December 2006, and after the vehicle performed well during deployment in the Middle East, the government approved the purchase of an additional 143 Bushmasters. Supply and support of defence munitions The Australian Defence Force uses a combination of ballistic weapons and munitions; and precision and guided munitions. This section analyses Defence choice of munitions supply arrangements across this spectrum. Production of ballistic weapons involves relatively mature technologies characterised by large economies of scale. ADI Limited is the only Australian producer of ballistic weapons. To this end ADI operates a mixed portfolio of government-owned and ex- government factories and a purpose built facility at Benalla. The production of munitions is managed under the Strategic Agreement for Munitions Supply (SAMS) between ADI and Defence. This agreement, signed by the Commonwealth and ADI in 1998, provides for the supply of munitions to the ADF until 2015 with options for further extension. The agreement is unique in Australian defence industry in requiring ADI to establish and maintain a strategic capability for munitions manufacture in Australia and the Commonwealth to guarantee ADI a return on that investment. The facility producing propellant and high explosive (HE) for use in ADF munitions is not commercially viable and is therefore owned by the Commonwealth but leased to ADI. Defence pays ADI an annual capability payment to maintain its workforce, industrial competencies and systems to agreed levels. The facility takes two months to produce the ADF"s annual requirement for HE and propellant. For the balance of the year, ADI markets the surplus output to other interests both nationally and internationally and shares the profits earned with the Commonwealth. ADI designed its Benalla facility to produce selected natures of ammunition on a small scale commensurate with the ADF"s requirements. The ADF will generally purchase and consume Benalla"s total annual output of ordnance. The Benalla workforce generally works to a single 8 hour shift. Under this arrangement Benalla produces, for example, hand grenades, some 24 million rounds of 5.56mm rifle ammunition and 2 million rounds of 12.7mm machine gun ammunition. It also produces a mix of 105mm howitzer 14 ammunition, Navy 5 inch gun rounds and 81mm mortars totalling up to 50,000 rounds annually. ADI"s Bendigo facility specialises in heavy engineering for maritime and land vehicles manufacture, maintenance, repair, refurbishment and support. It recently signed a contract to supply High Mobility Engineering Vehicles to the US Army. It is currently upgrading the Otto Malara Naval gun and manufacturing the Commanders Weapon Station for the ASLAV Program. Another ADI"s small arms factory at Lithgow has manufactured 90,000 5.56mm Steyr AUG Assault Rifles for the ADF, 8,000 Minimi Light support Weapons, 50 calibre Quick Change Barrel Machine Guns. It is currently manufacturing the Aerodynamic Control Fin for the Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile, .22 calibre Steyr AUG training rifles for the ADF, Phalanx penetrator assembly and handcuffs. Conventional projectiles can also be improved by the addition of a GPS guidance capability and aerodynamic surfaces for guidance. Such enhanced projectiles are then programmed with a grid reference for the target and after firing deploy aerodynamic surfaces which guide the projectile to the reference. An example of such enhancement is the conversion by Hawker de Havilland (HdH) of a conventional MK 82 iron bomb into an air launched stand-off weapon – the Joint Direct Attack Munition Extended Range (JDAM-ER). HdH, a subsidiary of Boeing Holdings Australia, has drawn on prior DSTO development of a strap-on wing kit to enable the MK 82 bomb to glide unaided from point of release to its target. HdH has added a cheap, reliable GPS-based inertial guidance system linked to removable tail fins for directional control and the resulting system has more than three times the range of a baseline Joint Direct Attack Munition. The JDAM-ER system was tested successfully in August 2006. Guided munitions constitute a fourth stage of improvement. This category of terminally guided missiles includes the Evolved Sea Sparrow missile (ESSM) with which Australia is upgrading the ANZAC ships" defence against anti-ship missiles. Australia, Canada, Denmark, Greece, The Netherlands, Norway, Spain Turkey and the United States are collaborating in order to share the cost and risk inherent in ESSM development and production. BAE Systems Australia and other Australian companies are contributing to development of, for example, the missile"s guidance section, thrust vector controller, and certain control surfaces to be incorporated in all ESSM produced. Another munition "enhancement" involves missiles that self-sense potential targets and discriminate among them. The efficacy of these missiles is increasingly dependent on the technology required to integrate and interpret data from a variety of sensors (i.e., "sensor fusion"). The development of precision guided weapons and of "smart" ballistic munitions is increasingly blurring the distinction between munitions and wider defence information capabilities. The software which determines guided missile capability requires upgrading in response to the development and deployment of countermeasures or to exploit improved target detection, tracking, discrimination, and aim point selection. Such software must by modified for Australian circumstances and when the missiles are integrated into new platforms. 15 Missile software development and management is a skill-intensive and knowledge- intensive activity. Australian industry has to date played little part in supply and support of the ADF"s precision and guided weapons inventory. In pursuing the advantages of precision and guided weapons, Australia"s choices are constrained by the cost and high technical risk involved. Australia imports its high capability/high cost precision and guided munitions like Harpoon anti-ship missiles. The United States will only release to Australia on a government-to-government basis the software required to manage the Harpoon. Defence therefore manages the Harpoon and similar weapons via DSTO and the Joint Ammunition Logistic Organisation and returns the weapons to the Original Equipment Manufacturer for deeper maintenance - a process which can take up to 18 months. Supply and support of military aviation Defence is likely to spend A$29 billion on supply and support of military aviation between 2003 and 2014. Some 40-50% of this projected expenditure will be devoted to further development of Australia"s military aviation force structure by acquisition of, for example, airborne early warning and control aircraft and, later in the decade, of joint strike fighters to replace the F/A-18 Hornets. Australia will import all of these aircraft, with about 25% of the acquisition expenditure incurred in Australia. About 20-30% of projected expenditure on military aviation over the next decade will be devoted to maintaining the readiness of the existing military aviation force structure. This will entail major upgrades of, for example, F/A-18 Hornet fighter aircraft, C-130 H transport aircraft, Orion P3 long range maritime patrol aircraft and Sea Hawk and Black Hawk helicopters. Defence has contracted the Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) to upgrade Australian Defence Force aircraft because they control the requisite intellectual property. As a result, only about 10% of Defence expenditure on the upgrade of military aircraft is undertaken in Australian industry. Provision of the Through-Life Support (TLS), to enable the existing force to sustain operations, accounts for the remaining 30% of projected expenditure of A$29 billion. Some 65% of Defence"s expenditure on TLS of military aircraft will be incurred in Australia. Australian industry has had mixed success in the provision of TLS of Australian military aircraft. This mixed record reflects important shifts in the way Defence has managed TLS of military aircraft. This shift can be traced through the F/A- 18, Hawk lead in fighter, armed reconnaissance helicopter and joint strike fighter programs. Australia announced its selection of the F/A-18 Hornet aircraft to replace the RAAF"s Mirage aircraft in October 1981. Procurement of the F/A-18 was completed in May 1990. The F/A-18 project entailed extensive Australian industry involvement, primarily in order to "provide in industry the capability to undertake required engineering, maintenance and spares provision support for the aircraft, its systems, equipment and 16 support facilities, during the service life of the aircraft." (F/A-18 Industry Program Review, 1994; p. 36). In the event, the RAAF supported the F/A-18 largely in house and made little use of the capacity established in industry (ibid.; pp. 38-39). Defence subsequently changed its aircraft procurement business model. In the case of the Hawk lead-in fighter, for example, BAE Systems was contracted not only to supply 33 Hawk aircraft but also to provide their in-service support. To this end, BAE Systems established the facilities and recruited and trained the workforce required to assemble the aircraft at Williamtown, where the aircraft are based. After completing delivery of the 33 aircraft, BAE Systems then converted the facilities and workforce over to TLS of the aircraft. Similarly, Defence awarded Australian Aerospace Ltd a contract for supply, assembly, test and in-service support of Army"s 22 armed reconnaissance helicopters. This approach to fostering in-country TLS capacity has important limitations. According to a recent audit of the Wedgetail Airborne Early Warning and Control project, denial of US government export licenses has precluded Australian industry from undertaking, for example: design and development of Wedgetail sensors, mission systems, communication systems, electronic warfare systems, electronic support systems and tactical intelligence sub-systems; the range of system integration tasks required for Australian support of Wedgetail systems and associated test and support systems; and full Wedgetail TLS, including software and systems integration, test and evaluation and operational and logistic support. (ANAO, 2004; p. 28). Arrangements for Australian participation in the Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program will influence the development of Australia"s defence aerospace industry capacity. Lockheed Martin initiated the JSF system development and demonstration (SDD) phase with a view to developing not only the aircraft and its systems but also the associated supply chains. Australia is participating in the SDD phase, along with the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Denmark, Norway, Italy, Netherlands and Turkey. Arrangements for Australian industry participation in the JSF program constitute a sharp departure from the pattern established in previous military aircraft acquisitions. The JSF program has no "guaranteed work-share" arrangements and companies will compete for participation in the JSF"s international supply chain on a "best value" basis, according to their capabilities and competitive advantages. This approach has important limitations. The record suggests that Australia - like other non-US participants in the JSF program - will have difficulty securing access to the full range of software required to maintain the aircraft in Australia. Subject to how Defence manages the business involved, however, Defence procurement of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) may offer greater scope for Australian industry participation in supply and support of the platforms and systems involved. At the 17 strategic end of the capability spectrum, Defence is exploring the potential of the Global Hawke long endurance unmanned aerial vehicle. At the tactical end of the spectrum, the Defence Capability Plan 2006-16 provides for the acquisition at an estimated cost of A$200-250 million of an upgraded tactical UAV system capable of providing airborne surveillance, reconnaissance, and target acquisition to support land operations. Supplying and Supporting Current Defence Priorities The above overview of Australian defence industry activity was preceded by a summary of current Defence industry capability priorities. The overview suggests that Australian defence and related industries have: contributed significantly to defence productivity by supply and support of a broad range of defence business systems; contributed to overall ADF capability through supply and support of operational level C4ISR systems; through prior involvement in the construction of Navy ships and submarines and through such innovations as laser airborne depth sounders, contributed significantly to Navy preparedness; through extensive involvement in supply and support of the vehicles underpinning Army land-based manoeuvre, contributed significantly to Army preparedness; enhanced Air Force preparedness through involvement in repair, maintenance and, to a lesser extent, adaptation of imported military aircraft; and supported the preparedness of all three services through supply and support of a comprehensive range of ballistic munitions and through limited support of mainly imported precision weapons. At issue is local defence industry"s capacity to help sustain network enabled operations by the ADF through supply and support of defence information capability at the systems- of-systems level. Also, at issue is Australian industry"s capacity to supply and support software intensive systems embedded in platforms like the Joint Strike Fighter and air warfare destroyers. The next section addresses Australian government policy initiatives aimed at addressing these issues. Supplying and Supporting Future Defence priorities An effective defence industry policy has long eluded Australian defence policy makers. Including the now discarded defence industry sector plans developed 2002-2004, the Australian government"s latest, at the time of writing, Defence and Industry Policy Statement 2007 is the tenth attempt to promulgate an effective policy in the last two decades. According to the 2007 statement, "The Government"s primary goal for defence industry policy is to ensure the cost effective delivery of equipment and support of the ADF in line with Australia's strategic circumstances" (DoD, 2007; pp. 3 and 17 - 18 emphasis in the original). This policy goal has much in common with previous iterations of the policy. There are three key tests of the efficacy of the new policy: its success in prompting refinement and amplification of existing statements of priority industry capabilities; the efficacy of the strategies proposed to such refined goals; and the resources allocated to the task. To implement the 2007 Defence Industry Policy Statement, the Australian Government envisages adopting a strategic approach to equipping and sustaining the ADF; maintaining priority local industry capabilities; securing value for money through best practice procurement; creating opportunities for Australian firms and encouraging small and medium enterprises; supporting the development of skills in defence industry and facilitating defence exports; driving innovation in defence technology and enabling Defence and industry to work together better (ibid.; p. 3). Of these nine strategies for implementing Australia"s 2007 Defence industry policy the following warrant closer examination in the present context: a strategic approach to equipping and sustaining the ADF; maintaining priority local industry capabilities; securing value for money through best practice procurement; driving innovation in defence technology; and those strategies relating to provision of the resources required to implement the policy. A strategic approach to defence industry development The proposed strategic approach to equipping and sustaining the ADF is the key to the 2007 defence industry policy"s efforts to refine and amplify established priorities for defence industry capabilities. The approach turns on development of a new Defence Industry Self-reliance Plan (ibid.; p.10) by: identifying those industry capabilities that confer an essential national security and strategic advantage by being resident in-country; developing, in consultation with industry, a strategy to foster priority industry capabilities now and into the future; and promulgating the priority local industry capabilities so identified in the public version of the Defence Capability Plan (see Chapters 4 and 5). In order to identify those industry capabilities that confer an essential national security and strategic advantage by being resident in-country the new Defence Industry Self Reliance Plan will be embedded in the defence strategic planning process and derived from the following defence strategic planning outputs: 19 with respect to supply and support of the future force, the comprehensive guidance Defence generates for capability managers regarding priorities for and balance between particular goals for future development of military capabilities having regard to available resources (in Australian parlance, the Defence Capability Strategy, one output of which is the cyclical Defence Capability Plan for procurement of major capital equipment); and with respect to supply and support of the present force, guidance on readiness of the Australian defence force in-being for operations and on its ability to sustain those operations for a specified period as promulgated in the Chief of Defence Force Preparedness Directive (see also Chapters 4 and 5). This methodology for identifying defence industry priorities takes advantage of the very significant maturation of Australian processes for defence capability development and preparedness management that has occurred in the last decade or so. The new Defence Industry Self-reliance plan will therefore be classified – an impediment to access by industry to the Plan. Defence proposes to manage this by embedding a declassified version of the plan in the public version of the Defence Capability Plan for acquisition of new major capital equipment. It is premature to judge the efficacy of this strategy but, prima facie, it represents a substantial – and highly prospective - departure from previous efforts to develop defence industry policy at the unclassified level. Maintaining priority local industry capabilities Defence plans to monitor the health and sustainability of the priority defence industry capabilities so identified and, where necessary, to take action to maintain them. Such action is likely to hinge on use of the defence procurement by, for example, rescheduling demand, bundling projects and using restricted or sole source tendering (ibid.; p12-13). These are familiar prescriptions for remedying defence industry ills: they were mentioned in, for example, the Defence Efficiency Review (see Chapter 5) and figured prominently in the defence industry strategic sector plans. Yet, Defence seems to have made limited use of such remedies to date. This is probably because rescheduling demand and bundling projects is not cost free: Such action can directly affect the ten year program of new major capital equipment promulgated in the rolling Defence Capability Plan and the Defence Management and Finance Plan which underpins the Australian Defence Organisation"s budgeting system (see Chapter 6). Similarly, restricted or sole source tendering demand high levels of contracting and project management skills if the resulting monopolies are to continue generating value for money. That said, sole sourcing can account for as much as 50% of Australian Defence contract outlays and, as noted earlier) Defence and industry are learning to manage the 20 requisite partnering through such arrangements as the ANZAC Ship Alliance between the Commonwealth and Tenix (shipbuilder) and SAAB (combat system supplier).5 Best practice procurement The 2007 Defence and Industry Policy Statement marks a potentially important advance in committing Defence to adopt a more commercial approach to risk management, noting that "The efficient management of complex programs is impeded by a culture that shows little tolerance for risk. For this reason, a better public understanding of defence projects and the risks they entail is needed. In the future Defence will clearly set out the level of risk in projects in routine reporting and explain why this risk is necessary" (ibid.). Australia"s Parliament is a key audience for such explanations. However, Australia"s adversarial political culture is inimical to the kind of learning and experimentation required to realise the potentially high returns that justify embarking on complex, high risk development projects in the public sector. In these circumstances, routine Defence project reporting must not only explain the level of risk involved and why those risks are necessary but also convince Ministers and Parliament about the value Australia stands to gain if the experiment succeeds (see also Chapter 7). The onus is on Defence to foster the Australian public sector"s appetite for risk and, hence, its capacity and willingness to innovate, always recognising that: "The handling of risk is at heart about judgement. Judgement in the context of government decision making can, and should, be supported by formal analytical tools which themselves need enhancing. But these cannot substitute for the act of judgement itself."6 Innovation in defence technology The 2007 Defence and Industry Policy Statement announced several initiatives to foster innovation in defence technology. Two particularly significant initiatives are: at the strategic planning end of the spectrum, defence experimentation aimed at fostering a shared understanding of the requirements, merits and likely outcomes of competing solutions to operational problems with the objective of improving concept and capability development; and at the application end of the spectrum, the Rapid Prototyping, Development and Evaluation (RPDE) program aimed at truncating the traditional process for procurement of capabilities for network enabled operations through defence- industry collaboration. 5 Nelson, Brendan Dr the Hon, Defence Industry Policy Review: 2006 Discussion Paper, June 2006; p. 23, para 6.8. 6 Strategy Unit, UK Cabinet Office: Risk: Improving government's ability to handle risk and uncertainty, November 2002; p. 6 at www.strategy.gov.uk. 21 The introduction of formalised Defence experimentation resulted from the Government"s acceptance of the recommendation by the 1997 Defence Efficiency Review (DER) that Defence improve the capability development process through more advanced modelling and simulation. The DER envisaged this ranging from basic technical models of, say, radar or sonar signatures over the full range of possible operating conditions and weapons effects feeding into the performance of complete weapons systems and, in turn, into complete battle field simulations (McIntosh et al, op. cit.; pp. 23 and E-4). Defence experimentation uses wargaming and simulation, lessons learned from operations, studies from operations research and history and military judgement to help link strategic guidance to capability development. When applied to defence industry policy, defence experimentation tools and techniques provide a structured and increasingly mature vehicle for assessing the consequences of a foreign supplier limiting or withholding support in a contingency for, say, political reasons. At the other end of the spectrum the Rapid Prototyping Development and Evaluation (RPDE) is a particularly interesting and timely organisational experiment aimed at enhancing ADF capacity to conduct network centric operations. To this end the organisation is designed to enable Defence and Industry to work collaboratively on Defence-directed problems. The intention is to generate sufficient information to enable Defence to make expedited decisions about enhancing ADF network centric warfare capacity.7 RPDE does this by scoping and bounding problems identified by ADF stakeholders. It then develops options for solving the problems, evaluates a selection of the solution options using a rigorous analytical and/or experimentation approach leading to evidence-based recommendations for selecting one of those options for solving the problem. The final RPDE output is a plan showing how the recommended solution would change ADF warfighting. If Defence adopts the recommended solution, RPDE supports ADF implementation. The RPDE experiment is represents a potentially radical departure from the conventional defence business model for technological innovation. Participants work in a paid collaborative environment based on Defence funding of some A$60 million over 2007- 2010 and involving secondees (including the RPDE General Manager) from over 80 companies and academic bodies covering the full spectrum of small/medium enterprises, prime contractors, and service providers in equal proportions. Providing the requisite resources The 2007 Defence and Industry Policy Statement addressed the means available for implementing defence industry policy under the following headings: creating opportunities for Australian firms; encouraging small and medium enterprises; and supporting the development of skills in defence industry. 7 See http://www.rpde.org.au/defence for more details. 22 Of these, initiatives for creating opportunities for Australian firms and fostering the defence industry skill base are the most relevant for present purposes. The Statement reaffirmed the conventional wisdom that "Defence"s procurement program is the only concrete tool available to shape Australia"s defence industrial base" (op. cit.; p. 12). As a means of implementing defence industry policy, Defence procurement is not only concrete but also substantial: in 2006-07, for example, the Defence Materiel Organisation is scheduled to spend A$5,017.6 million on the procurement of capital equipment and A$3,652 million on the sustainment of existing capability (PBS, 2007; p. 250 – also see Chapters 6 and 7). Looking ahead, the government is presently scheduled to spend a total of $51.3 billion on about 100 unapproved capital equipment projects over the period 2006-2016 (Thomson, 2006, Table 8; p.32). At issue is the means by which this current and future expenditure is harnessed to develop defence industry capability. In order to create opportunities for Australian firms, the 2007 Defence and Industry Policy Statement requires bidders for large defence contracts to show how they have explored the potential for cost-effective Australian industry participation and to propose an Australian Industry Capability Plan. The latter is to identify any additional costs generated by the Plan and a mechanism for independent audit of compliance with that plan. The Australian Industry Capability Plan is a variation of the Australian Industry Involvement (AII) Program created in 1986 to replace the Australian Industry Participation (AIP) Program. The AII program was described as the "key tool for maximising the involvement of Australian industry in Defence acquisition projects and for ensuring that in-country capacity exists to provide through-life support for ADF capabilities" (Ryan, 2001; p. 1-1). In 2003, the Auditor General reviewed the AII Program and concluded that "In the absence of quantitative and/or qualitative performance measures for the AII Program as a whole, it was not practicable for Defence to demonstrate whether, over the many years of its existence, the AII program has been making real progress, or is losing ground, in seeking to meet its objectives" (AG, 2003; p.14). The 2007 Statement does not explain how the Australian Industry Capability Plan will be an improvement over the AII program in terms of meeting defence objectives. Nor does the Statement explain how, if at all, Defence will take into account competing bidders" Australian Industry Capability Plans in ranking tenders for supply and support of Defence capital equipment. This analysis suggests that Defence has some distance to go in establishing practical links between refined priority defence industry capabilities and defence procurement of capital equipment. Equally important, there is no indication of how Defence proposes to explain to Ministers or to Parliament the performance it expects of industry involved in supply and support of capital equipment and how it will measure that performance. At the time of writing, the Australian economy has grown continuously for 15 years and the unemployment rate has fallen to a 30-year low. This has created a shortage of 23 professional, technical and trade skills in Australian defence industry. This shortage could prejudice the successful delivery and sustainment of ADF capabilities, either because competition for skills is so strong that defence firms risk being capacity limited or because labour costs are increasing faster than elsewhere in the economy, resulting in higher costs being passed onto Defence. The Defence and Industry Policy Statement points out that the rising defence demand foreshadowed in the Defence Capability Plan for procurement of major capital equipment will be exacerbate these risks. According to the Statement, procurement of major capital equipment alone is planned to increase by almost 30% over the next decade. In this period Defence will spend an estimated A$50 billion on ADF materiel, of which new acquisitions will account for some A$20 billion and sustainment of existing equipment will absorb some A$30 billion. This spending will combine with continuing permanent departures from Defence industry to generate demand for some 12,000 new defence industry employees over the next decade. Of these new personnel, about 25% will need to be engineering or tertiary qualified project managers and about 75% are required in trades. The Australian government has initiated a series of training and other initiatives to alleviate the national skills shortage. In 2005, Defence decided to allocate 0.5% of planned spending on major defence capital equipment projects (equivalent to some A$215 million over ten years) to help defence suppliers up-skill their workforces - the Skilling Australia's Defence Industry (SADI) program. SADI funding is provided for the additional activities or initiatives that companies propose, over and above those they already carry out in the normal course of business. It is structured as a reimbursement program where companies commit to a program of skilling activities with outcomes and costs agreed in advance. SADI Agreements include: individual company agreements that are tailored to suit the nature and size of both company and the initiatives involved; and one combined agreement whereby a group of companies is represented by one organisation or a third party like an education provider. Defence has also recognised that in many areas Defence and industry are competing for a limited pool of available skilled personnel and prospective trainees. Defence and defence industry have therefore formed a training task force to explore the possibility of pooled and joint apprenticeship and graduate training where ADF and industry skill requirements overlap. Concluding Comments Elsewhere in the Australian Section of this publication we have explained important improvements in defence internal and external governance arrangements. These improvements are aimed at improving Defence organisational performance by, among other things: 24 clarifying the accountability of individual officials for discharging responsibilities assigned to them; and setting clear targets for the organisation and monitoring the organisation"s progress in achieving them. Industry performance underpins the performance agreements between, for example, the DMO"s Chief Executive and the Minister and the purchaser-provider arrangements between the DMO and, respectively, the Capability planners and the Service Chiefs. In future iterations of the policy, we are therefore likely to see more explicit linkage to defence internal accountability arrangements (see Chapter 7). Industry performance is nearly always critical to Defence"s ability to achieve the performance targets for military capability outputs specified in the annual defence portfolio budget statements. Defence external accountability arrangements are therefore likely to feature more explicit discussion of industry"s contribution to achievement of force structure and preparedness targets in the annual defence budget documentation and of industry performance – at least in aggregate terms - in the associated defence annual reports to Parliament. The 2007 Defence and Industry Policy Statement is the tenth iteration of defence industry policy since the 1980s and while it represents good progress, there is more to be done. 25
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Etherington beating gambling problem
Wednesday 03 February 2010
Stoke winger Matthew Etherington is confident he is winning his battle with a gambling problem.
Former West Ham man Etherington, who joined Stoke 13 months ago, has been one of his club's most impressive performers this season.
The 28-year-old is playing without the stress of gambling and revealed he is taking steps to manage his addiction.
Quoted in the Daily Mail, Etherington said: "I've never really spoken about it, but I go twice a week to Gambling Anonymous in Birmingham. I'll do that for the rest of my life.
"You are just meeting like-minded people and you talk about things that help keep you off gambling. It has been a big help.
"I had to do something about it - and I've done that. Now I'd like to get on with my life. I would be the first to admit I had problems with gambling and I never hide that fact.
"My problems had been well documented and I would like to think they are long behind me now. I've got over that and come out the other side."
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The Religions for Peace Tasmania Branch Interfaith Gathering for June will gather at MONA, Main Rd. Berriedale, on Monday 8 June, Queen's Birthday, from 2.00-3.30pm to celebrate UN World Environment Day.
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Good to know, just incase.........You can make all of the things that you love: bread, cookies, cakes, etc. All that you have to do is replace the wheat flour in your recipe with the following ingredients: rice flour, potato starch, tapioca starch and xantham gum..... Follow the chart above to figure out how much of each of the above ingredients are needed for your recipe Conver Charts, Recipes, Menu, Free Converse, Cheat Sheet, Gluten Free Flour, Gluten Fre Converse, Glutenfree, Converse Charts
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USOC, Boston End '24 Games Bid Sabres Part Ways With Ted Black WME-IMG Signs Tennis Player Jack Sock Iger "Bullish" On ESPN's Future Coplin Hired To Launch Russian Channel Final Round Canadian Open Ratings Up On CBS Boston Mayor: Olympics Bid Could Be Dropped Classified Advertisements Tod Leiweke To Become NFL COO Coyotes, Suns Discussed Sharing New Arena
SBD/23/Events AttractionsPrint All
The NFL has entered a "more than" $100M joint venture with FL-based real-estate firm St. Joe Corp to develop a "chain of interactive entertainment centers" that would include "technology-based games," restaurants and retail stores, according to Fatsis & Carrns of the WALL STREET JOURNAL. The project, a "spinoff" of the NFL Experience, is "[t]entatively dubbed" NFLX. NFL officials estimate that it would cost "more than" $100M to develop the first of a planned seven to nine such centers, which is scheduled to open in New York City in "late" '99. The league has targeted other U.S. cities, including Boston and L.A., with plans to expand to "key" int'l markets with interest in the NFL including Tokyo, London, Frankfurt and Barcelona. Plans call for 35,000 square-foot facilities to look like NFL stadiums, housing virtual reality activities. NFL execs project the centers "could generate up to" $170M a year and "be another significant revenue source for a league awash in money" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 1/23).


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