LOCATIONS
MARITIME
21 Jun 24. First steel cut for Hunter Class frigate. Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles and South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas officially cut the first steel for the lead ship of Australia’s Hunter Class frigates, the future HMAS Hunter.
Taking place at BAE Systems Australia’s shipyard in Osborne, South Australia, this program milestone marks a major step forward for the embattled multi-bn frigate program first announced in 2018.
The contract for the construction phase for the first three Hunter Class frigates has now been signed by Defence and BAE Systems Australia, with the first Hunter Class frigate expected to be operational in 2034.
Construction of the Hunter Class frigates will take place at the Osborne Naval Shipyard as part of the Albanese government’s commitment to continuous naval shipbuilding in South Australia.
This comes following a decision earlier this year by the Albanese government to reduce the originally nine planned Hunter Class frigates to a fleet of six to be built in South Australia as part of a broader reconfiguration and reprioritisation of the Royal Australian Navy’s surface combatant fleet.
The construction phase of the Hunter Class Frigate Program will run for 20 years and at its peak, this program will support around 3,000 direct jobs and will support a further 5,000 indirect jobs across the Australian supply chain.
Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles said, “This first milestone is not just about cutting steel; we are supporting Australian workers to build frigates in an Australian yard, supporting Australian industry.”
These jobs are in addition to the thousands of highly skilled workers that will be required to build our AUKUS submarines and extend the life of the Collins Class submarines, both of which will also take place at Osborne in South Australia.
“This milestone exemplifies our government’s commitment to deliver continuous naval shipbuilding in South Australia and a future made in Australia, by Australians,” the Deputy Prime Minister added.
South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas said, “The construction of the frigates locks in a pipeline of continuous naval shipbuilding in South Australia, delivering thousands of secure, well-paid jobs for generations to come. This delivery of frigates alongside SSN-AUKUS submarines puts South Australia front and centre in the most crucial of national endeavours.”
The Hunter Class frigates are a key component of the Albanese government’s commitment to ensure the Royal Australian Navy has a surface fleet with high levels of lethality and deterrence in a time of increased global uncertainty.
“It also represents a step change in our state’s economic complexity, which will help improve the standard of living for South Australians more broadly,” Premier Malinauskas said.
The Royal Australian Navy’s six Hunter Class frigates are a key component of the Australian government’s commitment to ensure the Royal Australian Navy has a surface fleet with high levels of lethality and deterrence in a time of increased global uncertainty. (Source: Defence Connect)
PLANT CLOSURES, JOB LOSSES AND STRIKES
21 Jun 24. Marshall of Cambridge Holdings Ltd may slash 300 jobs.
Marshall of Cambridge Holdings Ltd is a privately-owned company based at Cambridge Airport whose sectors include aerospace and defence
An aerospace company is putting up to 300 roles at risk of redundancy following “a challenging 2023”.
Cambridge Airport-based Marshall Group said the posts going were “primarily within our support and administrative functions”.
The government recently announced the company would receive £40m to develop a new fuel system for zero emission aircraft, while Sweden signed a £100m defence contract with the firm in May.
Interim chairman Roger Hardy said it had “launched a voluntary redundancy programme and hope to keep the need for compulsory redundancies to an absolute minimum”.
Affected jobs were in administration and support, the company said
The company, which employs about 2,000 people worldwide, external, recorded “a modest, pre-tax, pre-exception profit of £4.1m” following “a challenging 2023”, it said.
Mr Hardy said it was now focused on “addressing underlying programme delivery issues, improving the competitiveness of our cost base and taking a more systematic approach to pursuing and winning business”.
“We will shortly begin formal consultation with those colleagues, and their representatives, who are potentially impacted,” he said.
Those affected work for its Skills Academy and also for its standalone Futureworx team, which focuses on development work in the areas of sustainable aviation and autonomous platforms and is based at the city’s St John’s Innovation Centre.
Both operations would be transferred to the core business.
Many of the people in the teams will transition to the new working model, but some will be at risk of redundancy, the company said.
Finally, a proposal to relocate its land operations for ground defence, to a new purpose-built facility at Alconbury Weald, near Huntingdon, will no longer go ahead.
The company’s chief executive officer Kathy Jenkins left the company in May. The board thanked her for working tirelessly for the group.
(Source: Google/BBC)
PERSONNEL
INDUSTRY
PERSONNEL
U.S. APPOINTMENTS
21 Jun 24. Cuashub.com said today that D-Fend Solutions, the leader in radio frequency (RF), cyber-based, non-kinetic, non-jamming, counter-drone takeover technology, today announced the expansion of its U.S. team. In response to the rapid growth in demand for the organization’s solutions, these additions will support the continued advancement of its U.S. presence and operations from its Mclean, Virginia office. The company has appointed Gordon Kesting as Vice President of U.S. Sales and Business Development and Glenn McArthur as Business Development Manager. With their expertise and experience, D-Fend Solutions is poised to continue developing and leading in multiple C-UAS market sectors through its U.S. operations, sales, partnerships, and implementations. https://cuashub.com/en/content/d-fend-hires-defense-and-homeland-security-veterans/?utm_campaign=C-UAS%20Hub%20General&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-8KvOHtoxHjTZi7omUPJDkGKJuULdBOXUMJfNcNzle52hcOJrAxuk-CChYyEvZuBmwvotR6hMajUvdFmaqQ43DGD5beK3yzx-j4MQMD_Lh7X7NRzM8&_hsmi=312437152&utm_content=312437152&utm_source=hs_email (Source: https://cuashub.com/)
19 Jun 24. Exostar, a leader in trusted, secure business collaboration solutions for highly regulated industries including aerospace and defense, life sciences, and healthcare, today announced Derrick Reig has joined the company as Chief Revenue Officer. He will oversee all aspects of the customer journey – from awareness and acquisition to fulfillment and retention – implementing go-to-market and revenue generation strategies that create and optimize value for the Exostar community. (Source: PR Newswire)