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23 Apr 19. L3 MAS Awarded Five-Year Option to Its CH-147F Chinook In-Service Support Contracts. L3 MAS is proud to announce that Boeing has exercised a five-year contract option for L3 MAS to continue providing Support and Test Equipment In-Service Support (ISS) services, Logistics Support Analysis (LSA) and Electronic Publication management services on the Department of National Defence (DND) CH-147F Chinook aircraft fleet. The work will be carried out at the customer’s operating base in Petawawa, Ontario, and in L3 MAS’ facilities in Mirabel, Quebec, and Halifax, Nova Scotia.
“We are honored to renew these contracts with our partner, Boeing,” said Ugo Paniconi, Acting Vice President and General Manager of L3 MAS. “We understand the importance of this strategic fleet, and we are committed to providing DND with best-value sustainment support solutions for these helicopters. This option award is a testament to L3 MAS’ commitment to customer focus and performance excellence in providing these services over the past five years.”
The CH-147F Chinook is an advanced, multi-mission, medium- to heavy-lift helicopter. It provides logistical and mobility support to the Canadian Army and the Special Operations Forces and is used to transport equipment and personnel during domestic or deployed operations. It has also been used to support other government departments, law enforcement agencies and civil authorities. Through its industrial engagement programs, Boeing is able to leverage the expertise of Canadian companies of all sizes, and from all regions, in support of both its commercial and defence platforms, leading to greater economic benefit in Canada and opportunities for future collaboration across the enterprise. (Source: ASD Network)
23 Apr 19. Frontline Manufacturing achieves ISO certification ahead of LAND 400 Phase 2. Queensland-based Frontline Manufacturing has taken one step closer to supporting the delivery of the Australian Army’s future logistics and Boxer combat reconnaissance vehicles following the company’s ISO 3834 Level 3 certification. Following the successful tendering by Rheinmetall for LAND 400 Phase 2, in mid-2018 prospective Australian suppliers were tasked with achieving European-recognised standards in order to enter the Rheinmetall global supply chain.
As part of its vision to grow metal fabrication for Defence, Frontline immediately commenced working towards this accreditation in conjunction with Weld Australia. The awarding in April of this certification is the culmination of a 12 month up-skilling and improved systems program at Frontline, which strongly positions the company to support primes sourcing from within Australia.
Matthew Ellis, the founder and general manager of Frontline, welcomed the achievement, saying, “I have enjoyed many proud moments in business over the last 20 years, but none rank higher than this. Frontline did not even perform welding until eight years ago, so to be accredited to a world-class standard is an enormous credit to the team.”
Frontline is the first defence-based company in Queensland to achieve this standard. It is one aspect of a rapid transformation undertaken by the company in the last 12 months, along with the upgrading of all welding machines to pulse technology and its expansion of robotics to improve cost efficiency and repeatability, upskilling of several staff to weld supervisor level, appointment of a responsible welding co-ordinator and a senior plant manager, and the commencement of a new high-tech facility.
“By offering a turnkey solution from specialist CNC machining, laser and plasma cutting, heavy presses and precision welding, Frontline is Defence-ready, willing and able to expand our output to a European standard,” Ellis added.
Project LAND 121 is a multi-phase project providing the Australian Defence Force with current-generation, high-capability field vehicles, modules and trailers. Overall, Project LAND 121 will deliver a networked and integrated capability as a significant contribution to the modernisation of the land forces. Ongoing co-operation with a number of projects delivering command, control, communication, computing and intelligence (C4I) and force protection solutions will see the delivery of vehicles with a generational advancement on current fleet technology.
LAND 121 will deliver around 7,500 protected and unprotected vehicles providing battlefield mobility and logistics support.
The Boxer CRV was selected as the successful design for the $5.2bn LAND 400 Phase 2 program after rigorous trials conducted by the ADF. The Boxer CRV was chosen in 2016 as one of two candidates for risk mitigation activity trials, where the 8×8 wheeled armoured vehicle performed convincingly in the categories of survivability, mobility, firepower, and command and control. Rheinmetall Defence Australia is also presenting the Lynx Infantry Fighting Vehicle to the $10-15bn LAND 400 Phase 3 project, which will see the recapitalisation of the Vietnam-era M113 Armoured Personnel Carrier force with an IFV and APC. (Source: Defence Connect)
18 Apr 19. IAF inaugurates repair and overhaul facility for Mi-17-V5 helos. The Indian Air Force (IAF) inaugurated a repair and overhaul facility for its fleet of Russian-made Mil Mi-17-V5 ‘Hip’ medium-lift helicopters on 17 April at Chandigarh, some 250 km north of New Delhi.
India had acquired 151 twin-engine Mi-17-V5s between 2008 and 2016 for USD2.87bn, of which 139 were weaponised versions for the IAF and the remaining 12 for use by the federal Home Ministry and the country’s paramilitary forces. The IAF is also fast-tracking the procurement of another 48 Mi-17s, which largely support Indian Army formations deployed along the country’s Himalayan border with China and Pakistan. (Source: IHS Jane’s)
17 Apr 19. Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) has transitioned additional F-35 suppliers to longer term Performance Based Logistics contracts and Master Repair Agreements to enhance supply availability and reduce sustainment costs.
“As the F-35 fleet expands, we are partnering with our customers and taking aggressive actions to enhance F-35 readiness and reduce sustainment costs,” said Greg Ulmer, Lockheed Martin vice president and general manager of the F-35 program. “The F-35 global supply chain is a key enabler to success, and we’re restructuring and streamlining several contracts with key industry partners to provide the long-term stability that will allow them to make investments, improve efficiencies and optimize their performance. This is one of several actions we’re taking across the supply chain to improve capacity, reduce costs and enhance supply availability.”
Previously under annual contracts, the new multi-year PBLs allow each company to make longer term investments and actions to reduce costs and improve efficiencies. In addition to PBL contracts, Lockheed Martin has established 12 Master Repair Agreements (MRAs) with key suppliers to enhance repair capacity and speed.
The PBLs cover several contracts with BAE Systems, Northrop Grumman and Collins Elbit Vision Systems (CEVS); and the MRAs cover contracts with 12 separate suppliers including Honeywell, GE and Eaton.
The initial multi-year contracts are already delivering benefits. A 2017 PBL contract awarded to BAE Systems for the Electronic Warfare subsystem is helping deliver a 25 percent improvement in the system’s availability throughout global operations.
Enhancing Readiness, Reducing Costs
As the F-35 fleet expands, the F-35 Joint Program Office-led Hybrid Product Support Integration (HPSI) team is implementing the Global Support Solution (GSS) to enhance readiness and reduce costs.
The F-35’s reliability and readiness continues to improve and newer production aircraft are averaging greater than 60 percent mission capable rates with some operational squadrons consistently near 70 percent. Additionally, Lockheed Martin has reduced its portion of operating costs per aircraft by 15 percent since 2015.
The F-35 enterprise’s goal is to deliver 80 percent mission capable rates in the near term, and achieve a $25,000 Cost per Flight Hour (CPFH) by 2025, which is comparable to the cost to sustain legacy aircraft, while providing a generational leap in capability.
As more aircraft enter service, the enterprise is optimizing resources across the fleet and leveraging data across hundreds of thousands of flight hours to achieve these goals. The program is conducting supply chain competitions, building supply chain capacity, synchronizing spare buys, improving parts reliability and maintainability, implementing advanced analytics tools, enhancing the Autonomic Logistics Information System (ALIS), accelerating modifications of earlier aircraft, and supporting the stand-up of government-led regional warehouses and repair depots. With stealth technology, advanced sensors, supersonic speed, weapons capacity and superior range, the F-35 is the most lethal, survivable and connected aircraft in the world. More than a fighter jet, the F-35’s ability to collect, analyze and share data, is a powerful force multiplier that enhances all airborne, surface and ground-based assets in the battlespace enabling men and women in uniform to execute their mission and return home safely.
16 Apr 19. Stricter supply chain enforcement is coming. The Defense Department has been ramping up efforts to quash supply chain vulnerabilities with enhanced cybersecurity guidance that gives the organization greater access to contractors’ security protocols and controls even before awarding a contract.
According to Tom Tollerton of the accounting firm Dixon Hughes Goodman’s cybersecurity advisory team, DOD has been firing off a series of memos and guidance since late 2018 aimed at tweaking contracting language and improving security conditions pre-award.
The most recent of which was in January from Ellen Lord, DOD acquisition head, designating the Defense Contracting and Management Agency with assessing contractors’ compliance with the NIST 800-171 in the cybersecurity framework by reviewing purchasing systems.
“This is really a step beyond previously identified gaps, which is what contractors were doing previously,” Tollerton said of the potential of on-site assessments in the firm’s April 16 webinar. “This was just released in January so this process is gearing up. So just be aware that it’s coming down the pike.”
He called particular attention to a set of guidance documentsreleased in November by Kim Harrington, acting principal director for the Defense Pricing and Contracting Agency, gave contractors a new urgency when considering security and partnering with the DOD.
One requires self-attestation to comply with DFARS and the NIST Cybersecurity Framework, as well as on-site assessments and “enhanced cybersecurity measures in addition to the security requirements in NIST SP 800-171 to safeguard information stored on the contractor’s internal unclassified information system” before an award is made.
Tollerton said that overall the guidance “was a little vague” and gave DOD latitude to evaluate or add system controls if the organization believes its necessary.
Additionally, DOD expects contractors to already have a system security plan, along with plans of action and milestones, in place and outlines the consequences to the government if the security standards are not met.
There’s “a lot of subjectivity in that guidance suggests that contractors need to make every effort to consider security of data and systems even before considering compliance requirements,” he said. (Source: Defense Systems)
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About Oshkosh Defense
Oshkosh Defense is a leading provider of tactical wheeled vehicles and life cycle sustainment services. For decades Oshkosh has been mobilizing military and security forces around the globe by offering a full portfolio of heavy, medium, light and highly protected military vehicles to support our customers’ missions. In addition, Oshkosh offers advanced technologies and vehicle components such as TAK-4® independent suspension systems, TerraMax™ unmanned ground vehicle solutions, Command Zone™ integrated control and diagnostics system, and ProPulse® diesel electric and on-board vehicle power solutions, to provide our customers with a technical edge as they fulfill their missions. Every Oshkosh vehicle is backed by a team of defense industry experts and complete range of sustainment and training services to optimize fleet readiness and performance. Oshkosh Defense, LLC is an Oshkosh Corporation company [NYSE: OSK].
To learn more about Oshkosh Defense, please visit us at www.oshkoshdefense.com.
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