When the Federal Government announced its plans for an Intermodal Terminal facility at Moorebank in Sydney’s southwest in April, it triggered a project for the relocation of Defence units and facilities which will cost the taxpayer an estimated $870 million.

It may come as a surprise to many that Defence is one of the largest landlords in the country, managing over 3 million hectares of land spread across every state and territory of the Commonwealth. To strategically manage the Defence estate, the Infrastructure Division of the Defence Support Group (DSG ) employs around 330 people and has an annual budget of between $1.7-2.1 million dollars.

Having awarded itself the title of The Defence State, South Australia clearly has no intention of relinquishing its share of Commonwealth defence expenditure notwithstanding the swingeing budget cuts now facing the sector.

Quickstep Holdings formally marked its move from Perth to Sydney with the official opening on 22 June of its new composites facility in a former Hawker de Havilland Aerospace hangar at Bankstown airport.

Lockheed Martin’s new Centennial House, officially opened last month by ACT Chief Minister Katy Gallagher and Christopher Kubasik, the company’s current Vice Chairman, President and Chief Operating Officer, consolidates the majority of its Canberra staff into a single facility.

Electro Optic Systems has announced a new contract valued at $25 million for the manufacture and delivery of remote weapon systems over the next 30 months for an existing customer.

In its third year of the DTC Defence Industry Member Awards, South Australian Defence Industry celebrated this years’ winners at the annual DTC Defence Industry Dinner and Awards Ceremony on Thursday the 31st of May.

Thomas Electronics of Australia has successfully completed the prototype turret assembly for the Australian Light Armoured Vehicle Crew Procedural Trainer simulator.

Austal has officially opened its Marine Support Base in Henderson, Western Australia.

ManpowerGroup has announced a new contract, worth at least $400 million over five years, for Recruiting Services to the Australian Defence Force (ADF).

Nine Australian companies have been offered $12 million in matched funding to commercialise new defence technologies.

It can be all too easy to think about the failures and problems in Defence procurement. But there are thousands of people both in Government and Industry working hard to deliver capability and support to the ADF on time and on budget. Our awards aim to recognise such people and projects.

The ninth annual ADM Congress carried the pointy end of Defence firmly into 2012. Delegates heard presentations from the Minister for Defence, the Minister for Defence Materiel and Manufacturing, the Secretary of Defence, the Chief of the Defence Force, the newly appointed CEO of the DMO, the Head of Capability Systems, the Managing Directors of three large local prime contractors along with the most respected defence budget analyst in the country – all before afternoon tea.

There are changes happening in the way governments build their communications networks. Decades old policies are being dismantled and in their place new policies are paving the way for greater mobility in departments and agencies such as Defence and Foreign Affairs.

Oxley Group Ltd have made great strides into the Naval lighting market with their high quality products based on advanced LED technology. for which the company is renowned.

Brisbane played host to PARARI, the Explosive Ordnance (EO) symposium at the end of last year that has brought together experts in the field from around the world since 1993.