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
Optical quantum clocks developed at the University of Adelaide have been proven to out-perform GPS navigation systems by many orders of magnitude. The clocks, which were put through their paces in EX RIMPAC, were developed by a team led by…
Lockheed Martin has delivered the first Aegis System Equipped Vessel (ASEV) shipset comprised of four AN/SPY-7(V)1 radar antennas to the Japan Ministry of Defense (JMOD). All four radar antennas will undergo further testing and integration at manufacturer Lockheed Martin’s Production…
South East Queensland’s Swartz Barracks at Oakey is once again home to part of the Australian Army’s Black Hawk helicopter fleet. Three of the UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters have been transferred to the Army Aviation Training Centre in Oakey, near…
The Adelaide-based Defence Innovation Network (DIN) and Melbourne-based Defence Science Institute (DSI)are calling for collaborative proposals on Working Under Water for $400,000 Innovation Grants. The proposals must be led by Australian Defence Science University Network (ADSUN) member universities across the…
Defence has issued a Request for Information (RFI) for SPA9102 (Narrowband Satellite Communications). The closing date for the RFI is 11 August and an industry briefing is scheduled for 10 July. Defence says it is looking for a single, sovereign…
Arlington-based RTX (formerly Raytheon) and San Diego-based Shield AI have announced a partnership to integrate Shield AI’s autonomy system into selected RTX defence products such as loitering munitions and sensors. This collaboration will deliver enhanced, autonomous capabilities to US and…
San Diego-based Shield AI has opened a new Australian headquarters in Port Melbourne. This expansion signals a significant investment in Australia’s defence capability and will build on collaboration between Shield AI (which bought Port Melbourne-based Sentient Vision Systems in 2024),…
French company Exail will supply multiple Unmanned Surface Vessels (USVs) and Mine Identification and Disposal Systems (MIDS) to the Indonesian Navy enabling a fully integrated unmanned Mine Countermeasures (MCM) capability. The contract covers the delivery of four Exail’s Inspector 90…
Saab and the French defence procurement agency, Direction générale de l'armement (DGA), have signed a joint declaration of intent regarding the sale of Saab’s GlobalEye Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) aircraft to France, including ground equipment, training and support,…
The three partners in the Global Combat Air Program (GCAP), BAE Systems, Leonardo and Japan Aircraft Industrial Enhancement Co, have launched a new Joint Venture company, Edgewing, to deliver a major part of the project. Edgewing will be accountable for…
