RUAG Australia’s Senior Manager of Additive Technologies and Engineering Services, Neil Matthews, is one of only seven recipients of the Defence Industry Service Commendation.
The Commendation recognizes outstanding achievement and dedication in the application of skills, judgment and innovation on behalf of Australia’s defence industry and to the specific benefit of Australia’s defence capability.
Neil Matthews, an internationally recognized authority on additive metal technologies such as Supersonic Particle Deposition (SPD) and Laser Additive Deposition (LAD), received the award for his research on the technologies' application on RAAF aircraft such as F/A-18 Hornets.
Awarded by the Minister of Defence Industry, award reads: “In your role as Senior Manager, Advanced Technology and Engineering Solutions at RUAG Australia, and, as a pioneer in the use of Additive Metal Technologies, you helped protect aerospace components from corrosion and wear. Your research resulted in significant cost savings to Defence and improved aircraft availability. You contributed to achieving outstanding outcomes for the ADF.”
“Restoring full structural functionality, reliably and repeatedly, is our objective,” Matthews said. “SPD and LAD are continuing to meet these criteria. They are also highlighting their potential to significantly reduce the time and costs associated with traditional repair approaches."
“Leading the way in this technology, and making it successful and accessible on behalf of our Defence Industry customers, is a mission Neil Matthews and RUAG have followed consistently and continue to share,” Terry Miles, General Manager RUAG Australia, said. “We are pleased to have Neil Matthews’ work recognized for the valuable contribution it represents.”
The technology was recently used for the full repair and return to service of an arrester hook from a RAAF F/A-18 Hornet, which had previously identified as worn ‘beyond safe limits’ due to operational activities. The full repair significantly improved the component’s return-to-service time compared with the typical replacement options.