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 US Navy’s Strike Planning and Execution program (PMA-281) and Aerial Targets program (PMA-208) have partnered with US firm Shield AI to integrate autonomy and artificial intelligence software into the Kratos BQM-177A sub-sonic aerial target. Under the agreement Shield AI…
Northrop Grumman Corporation has been awarded the sole-source US$200 million ($295 million) Deep-Space Advanced Radar Capability (DARC) Site 2 contract by the US Space Force. The second site, located in the United Kingdom, is scheduled to be operational in June…
Californian company Joby Aviation has demonstrated autonomous airborne logistics operations during the US Air Force’s EX Agile Flag 24-3. It used a fully autonomous Cessna 208B Grand Caravan equipped with a suite of technologies developed by Xwing’s autonomy team, acquired…
The Royal Australian Navy’s first three Hunter-class frigates will be fitted with Rohde & Schwarz’s NAVICS Integrated Communications System and classified material control technology under a contract with BAE Systems Maritime Australia. NAVICS will be the central nervous system of…
Neumann Space and the University of Melbourne have announced successful completion of the first in a series of on-orbit tests of the Neumann Drive, a novel electric propulsion system based on solid metal propellants, and one of a number of…
The US Navy Virginia-class submarine USS Hawaii (SSN 776) has arrived at HMAS Stirling in Western Australia to undergo Australia’s first nuclear-powered Submarine Tendered Maintenance Period (STMP). She joined the US submarine maintenance ship USS Emory S Land which is…
Three Australian companies will each build 100 general purpose Uncrewed Aerial Systems (UAS) under contracts worth a total of $6.6 million awarded under the Sovereign UAS Challenge being managed by Advanced Strategic Capabilities Accelerator (ASCA). AMSL Aero, Boresight and Grabba…
The South Australian owned and manufactured microsatellite Kanyini has been launched successfully onboard a SpaceX rocket from the United States. Communications have been established with the satellite so commissioning is now under way. Kanyini was one of 108 spacecraft deployed…
UK company QinetiQ has been awarded a £20 million ($38.9 million) contract to build a radio frequency, anti-jamming test facility at the UK Ministry of Defence’s Boscombe Down flight test centre in Wiltshire. This will be one of the largest…
The US Navy has installed the world’s first Unmanned Air Warfare Center (UAWC) aboard USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77), where Air Vehicle Pilots (AVPs) will control future MQ-25 Stingray airborne operations. This major installation was a multi-year effort coordinated…
