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Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said the move would serve to bolster the area’s military and civilian defence industry.
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Already one of the state’s landmark locations for the sector, Ipswich is home to RAAF Base Amberley – Australia’s largest Defence air base – and is soon to see a $170 million manufacturing centre for armoured vehicles (Rheinmetall’s Boxer CRV) open for business.
According to state member for Ipswich Jennifer Howard, nearly 10 per cent of employment in Ipswich is in the defence industry and associated supply chain.
The hub will target SMEs and local operators, providing a targeted range of programs and workshops to help smaller operators integrate into the market.
“We already have a significant defence industry supply chain established in the Ipswich region, but we want more small-to-medium enterprises to take advantage of the growing opportunities,” the Premier said.
Minister for State Development Cameron Dick highlighted particular growth areas where these businesses might tap into.
“We’ve allocated $5 million to the hub so it can help local businesses get on the defence radar and be considered for contracts in areas like heavy vehicle manufacturing and maintenance, aerospace maintenance, and autonomous systems development,” he said.
Located in the Ipswich CBD at Fire Station 101, the Hub will have two staff dedicated to working together with local industry to ensure businesses are ready to bid for defence contracts. Additional staff will focus on working with local council and larger business to attract and secure more work for locals.
Howard spoke to the robust defence economy of Queensland as a whole, and underscored the potential to attract and secure work. The state’s defence industries currently employ more than 6,500 people and generated an estimated $6.3 billion in revenue in 2015-16.
“Defence represents a significant part of our history, our identity, our community and our future,” she said.
“As a sector, it already generates more than $1.4 billion in export value to our local [Ipswich] economy."
