Aust + NZ Defence Directory 2021-22

AUSTRALIAN + NEW ZEALAND DEFENCE DIRECTORY 2021/22 INDUSTRY GROUPS, ASSOCIATIONS & GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENTS THE NATION BUILD

SOVEREIGNTY T he unique Value Proposition that HDA brings is in the strategic alignment between what Korea needs to do in order to enhance their security and what Australia wants to do by the creation of more durable supply chain arrangements and the creation of a sovereign industrial capability to enhance the ADF’s self-reliance in the context of high-intensity conflicts. Why do we think Hanwha can do this! Because in many ways we already have. Rebuilding the Republic of Korea following the devastation of the 1950s Korean War required coordination and commitment from the Korean people, Government and business, large and small. It required a whole of nation approach. Restoring the economy, modernizing industrial processes and out- puts, diversifying business across sectors and regions – now we want to achieve this across two great nations: Australia and Korea. From its heritage as a manufacturer of explosives, today Hanwha is recognized for its success in providing strategic self-reliance to the ROK military for more than sixty years, something we want to deliver to Australia. In the Defence Industrial Capability Plan (DICP) 2018, the Commonwealth described defence sovereignty as ‘the ability to independently employ Defence capability or force when and where required to produce the desired military effect’. The Plan said that this does not automatically mean a defence capability has to be designed, developed or maintained in Australia, but that Defence would seek to have access to a functioning defence capability as and when required. In other words control and reliability become paramount. A major initiative that speaks to the Commonwealth’s aspirations is the Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance Enterprise. So, what does sovereignty mean, and how do we get there?

Richard Cho Managing Director Hanwha Defense Australia

We all have a role to play – small and medium sized enterprises, Governments, industry bodies, research organizations, Primes. Whether it be through funding R&D and innovation, setting the business conditions to attract business, talent and/or capital investment, each stakeholder makes a unique and meaningful contribution to defence industrial development and sovereignty. I would like to focus on the Primes, the companies who, by their size, scale and reach, have an ability to influence and effect change across the sector. The ability to make investments based on longer term goals, to generate demand and scale from multiple, often global, sources, and to access the financial and human resources to enable focus on ‘the solution after next’; these are among the strengths of a Prime. Primes can be the custodians of sovereign industrial capability, but more importantly, Primes can be the enablers of the sovereign industrial capability being generated by others. We have seen this reflected in some ways by the creation of collaborative approaches to the GWEO Enterprise. Yet there is much we can learn from how these things of self-reliance and security have been achieved overseas. Applying our strengths and enabling others has allowed Hanwha Defense to deliver strategic self-reliance to the Republic of Korea. Hanwha’s ambition is to replicate this self-reliance in Australia, providing the ADF an enduring capability across a range of armoured vehicles, joint fires and artillery solutions. A core pillar of Hanwha’s Australian industrial development strategy includes regional partnerships and collaboration, bringing together indus- trial expertise and facilitating technology transfer and ongoing R&D across both nations, with the appropriate control over IP and the enabling of independence of action as crucial to any outcome. Through this strategy, Hanwha will enable SME participation and growth, generate scale, and establish trusted relationships for innovation and R&D; all essential ingredients for enduring capability development and sovereign outcomes. The Hanwha – Armoured Fighting Vehicle Centre of Excellence (H-ACE) to be established in Geelong, Victoria, provides a centre of gravity for the company in Australia to enable collaboration, upskilling and reskilling initiatives and ‘cross pollination’ (shared learnings and growth) with the Australian supply chain community. The Industrial Development Unit, Hanwha’s industrial interface, will provide best practice in access, engagement, development, monitoring and innovation, and improve visibility and support for industry seeking to work with Hanwha in Australia, Korea or elsewhere in the world. These commitments provide a foundation to support the Commonwealth’s sovereignty ambi- tion; not solely as a result of the domestic capability developed and grown in-house and via Hanwha-led R&D and technology transfer – but also, as a result of the environment and the opportunities this investment creates. Primes, like Hanwha Defense Australia, must bolster the implementation of the Government’s SICP agenda. We can - and we should - learn from the experiences of our Allies and leverage the technologies and expertise developed off-shore to grow and pursue our sovereign objectives; we cannot, however, depend on them. We shouldn’t wait for our resilience to be tested before we take the risks and make the investments necessary to continue along the sovereign capability path. As a nation, we all have a role to play; our collective success relies on our ability to collaborate and coordinate, to support and to align with the strategic objectives and direction of the ADF.

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