Defence summit bigger and better with Queensland Government on board

Ipswich’s defence manufacturing, logistics and sustainment one-day summit has received a significant boost with the announcement that the Queensland Government will partner the event.

The summit – now known as the Queensland Defence Summit: Ipswich 2018 – will give Queensland-based businesses interested in being part of the nation’s burgeoning defence industry the chance to better understand the sector.

Queensland Minister for State Development, Manufacturing, Infrastructure and Planning, the Hon. Cameron Dick MP, said the State Government’s involvement was a big vote of confidence in the upcoming summit and the state’s burgeoning defence industry.

“Queensland’s defence industry is growing rapidly, including in Ipswich, and this summit will be invaluable to equipping local businesses with the knowledge and connections they need to succeed in this sector,” he said.

“Essential to building that is getting the right people together in a room. By bringing all the pieces together, we can unlock a network of capability that is greater than the sum of its parts. That’s why the Queensland Government is proud to be a partner in this event and to work with Ipswich City Council to attract the highest calibre of speakers and attendees.”

To be held at the University of Southern Queensland (USQ) Springfield Central campus on Tuesday 20 November, the summit’s confirmed speakers include some of the defence sector’s big names.

Assistant Minister for Defence Senator David Fawcett, Australian Defence Export Advocate David Johnson, Dr Sheridan Kearnan from the Department of Defence and representatives of the US Army are among the highlights of a program that also features a wide range of leading Defence, industry and academic figures.

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President of AIDN Queensland, Carl Quarterman, said attendees will get key insights from decision-makers and experts about how they can tap into the defence industry supply chain; the Australian and Queensland Governments’ industry support mechanisms; and how local businesses contribute to the current defence industry jobs and investment boom.

“For me, this event is about bringing the movers and shakers of the defence sector to South East Queensland and allowing local businesses – the kind who may not be able to travel to the large interstate defence events – to hear directly from them how they can make the most of working with the industry.”

Register to attend the Queensland Defence Summit: Ipswich 2018.

The forum will also highlight Queensland businesses whose involvement in the defence sector dramatically changed their fortunes.

TAE Aerospace – originally a small local business – managed to secure a defence contract and relocated its operations to Amberley.

Now the business is an Australian aerospace giant and major global defence player, about to invest $50 million into a new Ipswich headquarters to maintain engines for the world’s most high-profile jet fighter.

That incredible success story will be the core of TAE Aerospace’s CEO and Managing Director Andrew Sanderson’s presentation to the summit.

Mr Sanderson said TAE’s journey is a message to other small and medium sized businesses that they too can get a slice of the defence industry cake and grow quickly.

“We started with a defence sustainment contract in 2000. We were a very small, start-up SME and have developed into a major global business. The message is other SMEs can put themselves in a similar position to what we have become today,” he said.

TAE Aerospace is now the largest Australian-owned aerospace company with a broad range of aerospace products and services. It has become a top contender for major military contracts and leads the way in the international supply chain among SMEs in the export sector.

Mr Sanderson said TAE Aerospace was heavily committed to the Ipswich region and described it as a “great Defence enclave”. He said a third of the company had been employed in the last three years and the majority had settled in Ipswich.

Confirmed speakers at the Queensland Defence Summit: Ipswich 2018 include:

• Senator the Hon. David Fawcett, Assistant Minister for Defence
• The Hon. David Johnston, Australian Defence Export Advocate
• Dr Sheridan Kearnan, First Assistant Secretary, Defence Industry Policy – Department of Defence
• Lieutenant Colonel Daniel P. Henzie, Director – US Army RDECOM, ITC – Southern Pacific Region
• Scott Reeman, Sector Lead Executive – Northop Grumman Australia
• John Turner, Director of Supply Chain Logistics – Rheinmetall Defence Australia
• Carl Quarterman, President – AIDN Queensland
• Dr Karen Stanton, Managing Director – Heat Treatment Australia
• Shane Rogers, State Director – AIG
• Mike Kalms, Lead Partner, Defence – KPMG
• Andrew Sanderson, CEO and Managing Director, TAE Aerospace
• Professor Arun Sharma, Deputy Vice Chancellor, Research and Commercialisation – QUT
• Professor Peter Schubel, Director of the Centre for Future Materials – University of Southern Queensland
• Dr Todd Mansell, A/Chief Science Strategy and Program – Defence Science and Technology