Innovation and R&D have always been the essential foundations of a strong, sustainable defence industry. Australia’s 2016 Defence White Paper, Defence Industry Policy Statement (DIPS) and Defence Integrated Investment Program (DIIP) acknowledge the importance of successful Defence R&D and innovation to the nation’s defence industry and thus to Australian defence policy. The 2020 Defence Force Structure Plan reinforced these foundations.
EX2 was set up by Dr Gregor Ferguson, a defence industry and innovation analyst and consultant, to make a useful contribution in Australia’s new and welcoming defence business environment.
EX2 helps innovators in Defence, the research sector and industry, and especially SMEs, by providing news and insight about innovation in Defence and adjacent sectors such as space, aerospace and resources.
Gregor Ferguson writes, teaches, advises and runs a national program designed to encourage and reward innovators in the defence, aerospace and maritime domains in both industry and the research and academic communities.
View his bio here (PDF opens in new window).
Dr Gregor Ferguson, Ph.D, BA (Hons), MRAeS
The Trusted Autonomous Systems (TAS) Defence CRC will host its 2022 symposium in Brisbane on 15 June. This year’s event, which has the theme ‘Accelerating cross-domain autonomy’, follows the successful 2021 Symposium held in Townsville. The 2021 event proved an…
Entries for the second annual KPMG Private Enterprise Tech Innovator competition close on 15 June. Australia's leading technology innovators and future tech titans will get the chance to compete against entrants from 22 other countries around the world. In 2021 entries…
Australian spaceport and space mission provider Southern Launch has been awarded an Australian Space Agency Moon to Mars Grant to help develop its mobile launch rail. The almost $1 million grant will enable Southern Launch to design, construct, and commission a…
Six Australian innovators have been named winners of the Indo Pacific 2022 Innovation Awards and the Innovation Pitchfest. The Innovation Award winners received their Award from the then-Minister for Defence Industry, Melissa Price MP, at Indo Pacific 2022. The Innovation…
The University of Adelaide’s new Centre for Advanced Defence Research in Robotics and Autonomous Systems (CADR-RAS) has invited applications for funding for R&D projects that address one or more of three research questions. Applications close 17:00 ACST 21/06/2022. The three…
Airbus is strengthening its presence in the UK with the launch of a fifth Zero Emission Development Centre (ZEDC) for hydrogen technologies at its Filton, Bristol site. A priority for the UK ZEDC will be the development of a cost-competitive…
Canberra-based space services provider and satellite manufacturer Skykraft has won a $1.76 million grant to fund the upgrade of its proprietary Attitude Determination and Control System (ADCS) into a high fidelity and accurate pointing system. The upgraded ADCS will be…
About 40 new, innovative autonomous technologies are being tested and evaluated in the waters of Jervis Bay, NSW, on Exercise Autonomous Warrior (AW22) throughout May and early June. The two-week exercise is testing uncrewed, robotic and autonomous systems that operate…
The NSW Government has launched an $8 million Tech Central Research and Innovation Infrastructure Fund to help drive research and commercialisation activity in the Tech Central precinct centred on Sydney’s Central Station and including UTS and the University of Sydney.…
Navantia Australia and University of Technology Sydney (UTS) have formed an industry-led joint research institute to develop digital technologies. The Joint Institute is part of UTS and will promote academic and future workforce engagement in commercial projects with Navantia Australia.…
