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Industry secures $20m in Defence Innovation Hub contracts

Industry secures $20m in Defence Innovation Hub contracts

Ten local businesses have been awarded grants via the Commonwealth government’s Defence Innovation Hub, marking the achievement of a new milestone.

Ten local businesses have been awarded grants via the Commonwealth government’s Defence Innovation Hub, marking the achievement of a new milestone.

Defence Innovation Hub grants totalling almost $20 million have been awarded to 10 local businesses based in Victoria, NSW, Queensland, Western Australia and the ACT.

The contracts are expected to fund projects aimed at bolstering both Army and Navy capability.

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Grant recipients include both SMEs and primes, with BAE Systems Australia among the businesses to secure funding. 

Victoria-based RingIR has been awarded the largest contract ($3.9 million), to fund the development of a portable device designed to accelerate the identification of dangerous chemicals and explosives. 

 

Other businesses to receive the latest tranche of contracts include:   

Organisation

State

Contract value

(GST incl.)

Description of innovation

Mission Systems Australia 

WA

$2.7 million

To develop a networked underwater acoustic sensor.

Mincham Aviation 

SA

$2.2 million

To continue to develop a tube-launched aerial delivery system for rapid and accurate payload delivery in maritime environments.

TAE Gas Turbines 

QLD

$2.2 million

To develop a single-stage engine filter for the existing fleet of Abrams tanks for improved performance and efficiency.

Marathon Targets

NSW

$1.6 million

To continue to develop an unmanned, realistic and self-propelled vehicle target to support Australian Defence Force training.

Mediaware International

ACT

$1.6 million

To develop an information processing system that integrates data to present a single visualisation for accelerated decision making.

Sentient Vision

VIC

$1.3 million

To develop an enhanced visual detection system for use in reduced visibility conditions to detect and classify objects of interest.

BAE Systems Australia

VIC

$1.1 million

To develop a software-based decision support system to extract tactically useful information from maritime environments and facilitate accelerated decision making.

Defendtex Research Labs

VIC

$263,000

To develop a gas to disable a combustion engine, removing the need for explosives or tank traps.


Minister for Defence Industry Melissa Price particularly welcomed the $2.7 million contract awarded to Western Australia’s Mission Systems Australia to further develop a networked underwater acoustic sensor for Navy.

“This is the largest Hub contract awarded to a WA company to date,” she commented.

These latest awards take the overall number of contracts issued to defence industry under the scheme to 150, with a total value of over $300 million.

Minister Price said surpassing $300 million in contract awards represents a significant milestone in the development of sovereign defence industry and innovation capability.  

“We are helping local companies to develop new technology to help keep Australia safe. The Defence Innovation Hub’s investment strategy has played a transformative role for Australia’s small-to-medium businesses and the way in which they innovate and support Defence requirements,” the minister said.

“It is rewarding to have Australian businesses continue their partnership with the Hub and mature their innovations towards delivering the future capabilities that Defence needs.”

Minister Price concluded: “The $300 million investment milestone demonstrates the growing success of Australia’s defence industry and innovation sector as they partner with Defence to build truly sovereign game-changing military capability.”

[Related: Defence Innovation Hub awards nine new contracts]

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