When is a small business not a small business? When that business is Ultra Electronics Australia. Best known for its ability to draw internal collections of SMEs together for a best of breed solution, Ultra Electronics is making its presence known in Australia with its work on the AWD sonar. ADM Editor Katherine Ziesing spoke to managing director Doug Burd about where the company and where it’s going.

Plan Beersheba is the name given to the current suite of Army modernisation initiatives that ensure the organisation is positioned for the challenges of the future. ADM’s Senior correspondent Julian Kerr spoke with Major General Jeff Sengelman about the finer details of the plan and how it interacts with both legacy and future capabilities.

Four years ago, QinetiQ moved to Australian shores with the purchase of three successful SMEs (Ball Group, Novare and Australian Aerostructures) and has grown significantly since that time. The UK-based business appointed Alan Woolford as CEO in February this year and he spoke to ADM Editor Katherine Ziesing about where the business is headed now.

As the new Chief Operating Officer in the Department of Defence, Simon Lewis is the only Associate Secretary for the organisation. He spoke to ADM Editor Katherine Ziesing about how the role fits into the wider department, with a focus on infrastructure given his previous job. And of course, how he is trying to get across the breadth of responsibilities of the role.

Ben Greene heads a company whose world-class sensors drive its interests on land and in space. A decision on its shared bid for a US$1 billion-plus US Army contract is expected imminently, as Dr Greene explained to ADM Senior Correspondent Julian Kerr.

Dr Alex Zelinsky took up his new role in March, bringing with him an international reputation in systems engineering and information technology. He spoke with ADM Senior Correspondent Julian Kerr on the challenging agenda facing DSTO and the importance of collaboration with partner agencies and industry.

Australia has a wide range of really smart SMEs doing high technology work. One of the best known of these is Daronmont Technolgies. ADM Editor Katherine Ziesing spoke Daronmont’s General Manager Ben Norris about the challenges the company faces and some of the bigger issues in the Defence industry space.

CEA Technologies might be best known for its Phased Array Radar (PAR) work as part of the Anti-Ship Missile Defence (ASMD) program on the ANZACs but the company does so much more. CEA Technologies CEO Rob Forbes spoke to ADM Editor Katherine Ziesing about the future of the company and how he sees the defence industry landscape from a smart SME perspective.

While RMMV Australia is now widely known as the preferred tenderer for Phase 3 Heavy of Land 121 Logistic vehicle program, there is more to the company than simply trucks.  Last month, ADM Editor Katherine Ziesing spoke to MD Mike Riley about where the company has come from and where it’s heading.

Last month, ADM Editor Katherine Ziesing spoke to Glenn Brown, Head of Qantas Aviation Services which encompasses six Qantas companies including Qantas Defence Services (QDS). As a brand, Qantas is perhaps best known for its passenger services but their engineering and defence work is also moving ahead.

A naval career spanning 33 years has seen Vice Admiral Ray Griggs...

Much has been made of the issues that the Collins class faces as the Future Submarine program seems stalled at the moment.

Rear Admiral (Ret) Brian Adams, AO, spent 37 years in the RAN...

After almost two and half years in the inaugural job...

The 2009 Defence White Paper heralded significant change and growth in the RAN’s...

Kim Gillis was appointed vice president and managing director of Boeing Defence Australia in June this year...