South Australian electronic warfare company Asension (formerly DEWC Systems) has partnered with Melbourne-based company AOS, to offer the Australian Defence Force a game-changing electronic warfare (EW) solution. Announced at Land Forces 2022, the new HERCULES EW network is expected to be more versatile than current networks and will provide the Army with a sovereign EW system that will increase the ground forces’ survivability. Managing Director of AOS Andrew Lucas said the system would provide a cost-effective solution that delivers what the Army needs right now. “HERCULES EW is a sophisticated, AI-driven system that will allow the Army to penetrate difficult ...

Lockheed Martin Australia has expanded its South Australian footprint, with the opening of its new purpose-designed Adelaide office. The new 930 square metre office will accommodate more than 90 staff from across its 520-strong South Australian workforce including engineers, scientists, commercial, legal, administration and operational employees. It will also house a dedicated STELaRLab, increasing the company’s R&D presence in the state. First opened in 2016 in Melbourne, STELaRLaB is the first world-class multi-disciplinary research facility to be established by Lockheed Martin outside of the US. The company’s Adelaide-based STELaRLaB scientists and engineers will drive innovation across several fields including artificial ...

South Australian defence technology firm QuantX Labs, has reached a major milestone in the development of its flagship technology, the Sapphire Cryogenic Clock. Following nearly two years of work upgrades and improvements, the technology – known as Cryoclock for short – has recently passed through a full acceptance testing and is ready for inclusion into the Jindalee Operational Radar Network (JORN). The Sapphire Cryogenic Clock has been developed over more than 30 years and shows a frequency instability that is equivalent to losing or gaining only one second every 40 million years. This is 100 times better than commercial atomic ...

South Australian industrial refrigeration specialist Cold Logic has received its first order for a batch of new Defence compliant Environmental Control Units (ECUs) to support a Defence Mobile Command and Control program. The Port Adelaide-based Refrigeration and Controlled Environment System manufacturer designed the unit to address a gap in the Australian supply chain market for hard-mounted air conditioning systems to cater for deployable shelters currently in use with the Australian Defence Force that meet new requirements for EMI/EMC compliance. Prior to this, there was no current sovereign Australian option to provide hard-mounted environmental conditioning systems for deployable shelter systems for ...

An agreement between Flinders University, the University of Strathclyde (Glasgow, Scotland) and BAE Systems has been established to support opportunities to collaborate on modern manufacturing methods for shipbuilding and marine operations. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) is a milestone in the formation of the Advanced Manufacturing Research Exchange and is expected to facilitate the development of international best practice for shipbuilding manufacturing. An exchange of expertise and collaboration between the Factory of the Future at Tonsley Innovation District in Adelaide and the National Manufacturing Institute Scotland is anticipated to open prospects for adopting ground-breaking manufacturing technologies and processes. Any innovations ...

Aerospace giant Boeing has expanded the scope of a commercial partnership with South Australian-based AML3D Limited, accelerating the company’s entry into the aerospace and defence markets. A world leader in large-scale 3D metal printing, AML3D will now be working on the next phase of a contract for 3D metal printed aeroplane parts, by developing prototype components using its patented Wire Additive Manufacturing (WAM®) process. The expansion of the contract with Boeing builds upon the initial agreement in June 2021 for AML3D to supply a 3D printed tooling component. This was followed by a facilities inspection in March 2022 by Boeing’s ...

The best of South Australia’s defence industry will be on show at Australia’s premier land defence expo, Land Forces, in Brisbane from 4-6 October 2022. A record number of defence companies will be showcased on the South Australia – The Defence State stand, ranging from electronic warfare specialists to component designers and advanced manufacturers, as well as the state’s research and education institutions. South Australia’s presence at Land Forces has more than quadrupled in the last decade, growing from 12 exhibitors in 2010 to 58 at this year’s event. In the lead up to the expo, Defence SA received expressions ...

Nova Systems Australia has announced it will invest an initial $2 million to establish an Australia-first Test and Evaluation Centre of Excellence (T&E CoE) – a central hub to support sovereign defence capability, research and training. The national initiative will bring together Defence, industry and academia from around the country to deliver integrated joint-force T&E. The Centre is expected to support the acceleration of emerging technologies; enable collaboration across industry and academia; deliver T&E practitioner training; facilitate innovation and research and development activities; and offer T&E subject-matter experts to distribute in-depth training, conferences, seminars and more. There is also scope ...

A new South Australian defence industry alliance has been formed in Adelaide’s north, aiming to trigger growth and create new jobs in the sector. The Edinburgh Industry Alliance – developed in collaboration with the City of Playford – will work with stakeholders to address supply chain challenges and build on the need for onshore sovereign industrial solutions. Nine local companies based in the area will be joining the alliance: Aimpoint RPL, BiORG, Century Engineering, Eptec Group, Levett Engineering, Lionsgate Business Park, Sonnex, Williams Metal Fabrication and XTEK Limited. Chair of the alliance and Head of Armour & Composites at XTEK ...

A new advanced supercomputing capability has been launched at South Australia’s Edinburgh Defence Precinct, enabling leading scientists to tackle complex Defence challenges with greater precision and accuracy.   The high-performance computing capability performs up to a million times faster than a standard computer and is the first of its kind in Australia. It will be used by scientists at the Defence Science and Technology Group to analyse large data sets and rapidly perform complex calculations to tackle some of Defence’s most challenging scientific and engineering problems. Minister for Defence Richard Marles said the supercomputing capability will play a vital role in ...

South Australian company Praxis Labs could transform the way Australia’s future armoured vehicles are powered by using cutting-edge solar technology to harvest the sun’s energy.    The company – formerly known as Praxis Aeronautics – has developed solar-powered technology that enables composite materials, such as fibreglass and carbon fibre, to capture energy from the sun whilst remaining lightweight and robust. The technology has the potential to revolutionise small unmanned aerial systems and surface vessels by providing a sustainable energy solution – and now the company is focusing its attention on improving the performance of Australia’s next generation electric vehicles on ...

Following a decade of leadership guiding the development of South Australian defence industry capability, Defence SA Advisory Board Chair Sir Angus Houston, has stepped down from his position. An energising and passionate advocate for developing sovereign industrial capability, Air Chief Marshal Sir Angus Houston AK AFC (Ret’d) has played a pivotal role in driving South Australia’s defence industry strategy. Joining the Defence SA Advisory Board in 2012 before taking on the role of Chair in 2014, Sir Angus has been a staunch advocate for maximising Australian industry participation, strongly supporting local industry to capture vital supply chain opportunities and ensuring ...