Defence Industries News

The ramping up of shipbuilding programs in Adelaide this year is providing an employment lifeline for South Australia as the state’s looks for ways to tackle boost jobs growth post coronavirus.There are already almost 700 people working on the Hunter Class Frigate Program. Those numbers are expected to reach 1000 by, the end of the year and 1,500 by mid-2025 before reaching a peak of 2,400 in 2028.Nine anti-submarine warfare frigates will be built by ASC Shipbuilding at the Osborne…

A&P Falmouth has completed the dry docking of ABC Maritime’s double hull oil and chemical tanker, Troy. Beating competition from European shipyards, A&P Falmouth carried out a comprehensive 17-day refit package during the vessel’s dry-docking last month. Work included the class intermediate survey, renewal of the main deck cargo heating pipework, extensive deck cargo washing and line replacement, the overhaul of the main engine including turbo charger, fuel gear and associated pumps, a bow thruster seal change and overhaul and a number of small steel repairs.Stuart Bartle, Chief Operating Officer of ABC Maritime said: “ABC Maritime has had a long relationship with A&P having docked the Troy in Falmouth in 2008.

When BMT Group Ltd (BMT) current CEO Peter French retires in September, he will be succeeded by  Sarah Kenny, who joins BMT on August 1. “Sarah is well qualified to take on this role," said BMT’s Chairman, Sir John Hood. "She is ambitious for BMT and her extensive background in the marine and defence industries means she is ideally positioned to ensure that BMT’s research and development roots are cultivated and innovation nurtured. Kenny comes from QinetiQ where most recently she established and led the Maritime, Land & Weapons business as Managing Director, reporting to the Group CEO.

Modus Seabed Intervention has successfully completed trialling one of the subsea industry’s first commercially available hybrid unmanned underwater vehicles. It will be one of the first autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) to feature the capabilities and characteristics of a remotely operated vehicle (ROV). In partnership with Saab Dynamics, Modus has developed the Saab Sabretooth to offer greater endurance and speed, and is also developing advanced sensor payload packages and operating methodologies. The vehicle is expected to contribute to more cost-effective survey and inspection projects in the offshore, defence and oceanographic sectors. Following successful trials in Sweden and the UK, Modus is preparing the advanced spread for its first commercial deployment.

A combined Defence and industry team has won the International Association of Contract and Commercial Management Innovation Award for Operational Improvement. The FFG Enterprise is a collaboration between Defence's Capability Acquisition and Sustainment Group, Royal Australian Navy, Thales Australia and BAE Systems Australia, working together to sustain and deliver seaworthy guided missile frigates. Deputy Secretary Capability Acquisition and Sustainment Group, Mr Kim Gillis, said the award recognises the FFG Enterprise as conducting world’s best practice in relational contracting and collaboration. “Since its inception in 2014, the…

The Turkish defense firm Defense Technologies and Engineering (STM) won the tender to modernize Pakistan's submarines against its French competitor DCNS, reports Daily Sabah. STM and Pakistan’s Ministry of Defence Production (MoDP) have concluded the deal to upgrade the Pakistan Navy’s three Agosta 90B  (aka Khalid-class) submarines. The upgrade will be carried out in Pakistan. STM noted that the first upgraded submarine will be delivered in “45 months.” This is likely a typo for ‘4-5 months.’ The remaining two, which are currently listed as optional, will be delivered to Pakistan within a year of one another. "Engineering exports will be initiated in our country for the first time in the field of submarines…

Underscoring that India and Brunei have equal stakes in the security and prosperity of a "shared Asian neighbourhood", both countries held discussion on Chinese territorial claims in the South China Sea which has the potential to affect free maritime traffic in Southeast Asia, reports the Hindu. Indian Vice President Hamid Ansari said that both the countries have an interest in maintaining the safety of the sea-lanes in the region, after his discussion with Brunei's Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah and crown prince Haji Al-Muhtadee Billah. “Brunei briefed us on the negotiation under way for the Code of Conduct for the South China Sea. India supports a negotiated settlement of Brunei’s maritime dispute with China,” said Anil Wadhwa, Secretary (East).

Australia to spend A$65 bln on ships and subs over 20 years; PM pledges A$40 bln for domestic shipbuilders. Australia will spend A$89 billion ($65 billion) on ships and submarines for its navy over the next 20 years but pressure grew on Prime Minister Tony Abbott on Tuesday to spend more than half that total building a new submarine fleet domestically. Two naval shipbuilding programmes, the A$20 billion SEA5000 Future Frigate project and the SEA1180 Offshore Patrol Vessels, would be brought forward to guarantee the continuous domestic construction of surface warships, Abbott said. Despite that new component, Abbott is facing intense pressure from within his conservative Liberal Party…

South Australian defence shipbuilding company ASC has axed 101 blue collar jobs from its facility at Osborne near Port Adelaide. The submarine and shipbuilder ASC has let go 101 contractors from its facility in Adelaide in a move it says will increase productivity on its air warfare destroyer program. "This contractor management activity is normal practice for projects of this nature and has, and will, occur several times over the life of the project," it said in a statement. “On the basis of continuous improvement, ASC is making enhancements to the way it undertakes production activities, including changing the sequencing of work. Whilst the change in sequencing will lead to efficiency gains during the entire construction timeline for each chip…

Hertel has announced the acquisition of Hertel by Altrad  for its worldwide access solutions, insulation, corrosion protection and mechanical businesses. Hertel Offshore was not part of the acquisition by Altrad, but will continue its activities and business with the same shareholders (NPM Capital, Ackermans & van Haaren and Hertel Offshore Management) under a new brand name. Hertel Offshore has now changed its name and will continue its business as per May 1, 2015 under its new name: CKT Projects.

GE Marine announced it has signed a contract with Savunma Teknolojileri Mühendislik Ve Ticaret A.Ş. (STM), Ankara, Turkey, whereby GE will provide STM with LM2500 gas turbines. The engines will power the Turkish Navy’s third and fourth MILGEM multi-purpose corvettes, GE reported today during the IDEF ’15 industry trade show. STM is the program manager for these new two ships, and will provide platform systems, construction materials, design services and the main propulsion systems, as well as integration of the propulsion system.

'Ambush', the second of the Royal Navy's Astute-Class attack submarines prepares to leave the builder's yard. In the next few days, the 7,400-tonne submarine will leave the BAE Systems shipyard in Barrow-in-Furness in Cumbria, where she was built, and sail to Her Majesty's Naval Base Clyde in Scotland. The seven Astute Class boats planned for the Royal Navy are the most advanced and powerful attack submarines Britain has ever sent to sea. They feature the latest nuclear-powered technology…

Maritime Information Systems AS, Norway (MARIS) has appointed Ove Bråthen Director, Sales Scandinavia. Mr Bråthen, who holds an electronics degree with focus on radar and underwater acoustics, brings more than 25 years’ international sales experience to the company, having spent the first six years of his career with the Royal Norwegian Navy. After working at sea on a number of seismic research vessels, Mr Bråthen spent the next decade as Sales Manager for Schlumberger Oilfield Services, selling high-tech products to the seismic, offshore and defence industries.

The Society of Maritime Industries is pleased to announce that Malcolm Clements will be joining the organization in June in the dual role of Director of the Association of British Offshore Industries (ABOI) and Ports and Terminals Group (PTG). John Murray, the Society’s Chief Executive, in welcoming Malcolm’s appointment said “Malcolm brings a wealth of experience in supporting the marine industry and will be a valued new addition to our team”. Following a career in banking and finance as a corporate and project financier with a number of international institutions…

SMM Istanbul 2011 now has the support of the Turkish Undersecretariat for Maritime Affairs and the Turkish Undersecretariat for Defence Industries (SSM). The second SMM Istanbul is to be held at the modernized and enlarged Lütfi Kirdar Convention & Exhibition Centre (ICEC) from 26 to 28 January next year. At that first event in January 2009, SMM Istanbul attracted more than 4,000 trade visitors from 66 countries, showcasing 150 exhibitors from 30 countries. The high international level achieved right from the start by the first SMM overseas exhibition no doubted owed a lot to the quality standards of the SMM brand, which stands for the world’s leading international shipbuilding industry fair.

The European Commission has approved, under the terms of the EC Treaty’s rules allowing Member States to take measures to protect essential security interests linked to defence industries (Article 296 of the EC Treaty), a reorganisation of the Spanish public military shipyards. These yards were formerly owned by IZAR but have recently been taken over by a new company called Navantia. The solution allows Spain to protect its essential security interests by rescuing its military shipyards, while ensuring that there will be no undue distortion of competition in the market for civil shipbuilding and ship repair. The solution also takes account, to the greatest possible extent, of the social and regional problems involved in this case.

SeeByte Ltd., a Scottish software product company announces two new appointments to its technologies team based in Edinburgh. Since its founding in 2001, SeeByte has experienced rapid growth providing situation awareness software for people and machines in the Offshore and Defence industries. The increase in staff is a result of SeeByte's commitment to be at the forefront of providing innovative, state of the art tools to the markets' increasing demand for more autonomy from their operational vehicles. Jose Vazquez has joined as Navigation and Control specialist, responsible for further developing SeeByte's SeeTrack products for autonomous systems. Prior to joining SeeByte Ltd., Vazquez held a Post Doctoral position at Heriot Watt's world renowned Oceans laboratory.