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"Australian Industry Well Placed for Potential $1.5b Simulator Market" - Defence Acquisition Study

Australian industry is well placed to capture a significant slice of the estimated $1.5B.which the Australian Defence Force (ADF) is expected to spend on simulation over the next five years.

A study released by Defence’s Industry and Procurement Infrastructure Division today says Australian industry possesses a significant capability in the growth technology field of simulation.

Simulation is the modelling of a ‘real-world’ situation with the aid of devices such as flight trainers, mission simulators and computer-based trainers.

Simulators are used widely through the ADF enabling the Navy, Army and Air Force to hone their skills at sea, on the battlefield and in the air at lower risk, faster and at a fraction of the cost.

The Navy uses bridge and tactics room simulators, the Army uses battlefield simulators and the Air Force has a variety of simulators for transport, fighter, strike and maritime patrol aircraft.

The Simulation Study was commissioned to investigate the nature of ADF simulation acquisition, the number and state of in-service simulators and the level of capability of the Australian defence simulation industry. It also supports and addresses objectives in the draft Defence Simulation Master Plan which aims to develop a coordinated approach to modelling and simulation across Defence.

Simulation technology embraces a variety of skills including development of software, research and development, systems engineering and systems integration.

The study identifies more than 100 Australian companies as having some simulation capability, with more than half demonstrating a high capability. Seventy companies had specific experience with ADF simulators and 25 had a manufacturing capacity.

"There is a large and growing requirement within Defence for simulation across a diverse range of applications with an estimated expenditure of about $1.5 billion over the next five years," the Deputy Secretary - Acquisition, Mr Garry Jones, said today.

"While the study does not suggest that all of the ADF needs can be met in Australia, a significant number of current simulation acquisitions could be undertaken using the capabilities demonstrated by the Australian simulation industry."

One conclusion, however, was that the workload in the simulation industry is very uneven because of year-to-year fluctuations in the Defence acquisition program.

"This makes it difficult to develop, employ and retain relevant capability and skills in Australia," he said, "and it was this that led to one of the key recommendations of the study - for the Department to adopt a systematic approach to maximise the benefits for industry, as advocated in the recently released Defence Strategic IndustryPolicy."

Mr Jones added that a Defence/Industry Simulation Workshop will be held towards the end of the year to discuss the findings of the study and how to implement its recommendations.

The Simulation Study Summary and Current and Future ADF Simulation Projects can be accessed at http://iic.spirit.net.au.

Further information . . .

John Pluck: (02) 6266 3487 (w)
            (02) 6231 6240 (h)