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
Canberra-based Electro Optic Systems (EOS) has demonstrated its Laser Dazzler technology at Canada's Innovation for Defence Excellence and Security (IDEaS) Sandbox event. This year’s event focussed on Counter Uncrewed Aerial Systems (CUAS) and counter-drone prototypes were put to the test…
The Australian defence and space industry will manufacture a new space camera that can provide images back to Earth at high speed to aid in disaster resilience operations, land management, and defence. This multi-sensor camera for Earth observation is now…
Canberra-based Lockheed Martin Australia has rebranded its Science, Technology, Engineering Leadership and Research Laboratory (STELaRLab) in Melbourne as Advanced Systems and Technologies to better align with the mission-directed objectives and capability development needs of the Australian Defence Force. Established in…
Brisbane-based Boeing Defence Australia has signed a contract with Lockheed Martin Australia to deliver the deployed communications elements of the Australian Defence Force’s (ADF) next generation Joint Air Battle Management System (JABMS) under Project AIR6500. Drawing on the technology developed for…
At EX Valiant Shield 24, Arlington-based Raytheon demonstrated a simulated complex missile engagement leveraging the US Army's Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor, or LTAMDS, and Integrated Air and Missile Defense Battle Command System, IBCS, launching the US Navy's…
Charles Darwin University has become a member of the Queensland Defence Science Alliance (QDSA), a node of DSTG’s Australian Defence Science and Universities Network (ADSUN). ADSUN brings together research institutes and industry to find solutions for defence problems. Charles Darwin…
Defence will invest over $100 million acquiring 110 ‘drones’ from two Australian manufacturers of lightweight surveillance and reconnaissance Uncrewed Air Systems (UAS) and augment the ADF’s existing stock of UASs. The Quantum-Systems Vector 2-in-1and SYPAQ Systems CorvoX were trialled along…
Australian soldiers will be equipped with US company AeroVironment’s Switchblade 300 Block 20 precision loitering munition, providing a critical combat edge and adding to drone capabilities available to the Australian Defence Force (ADF), says the Department of Defence. The first Switchblade…
The US Missile Defense Agency (MDA) and its partners have successfully conducted the first flight of the Hypersonic Test Bed (HTB) designed to provide a common platform for hypersonic experiments. According to San Diego-based company Kratos the HTB was Kratos’s…
The Australian Government will invest at least $2 billion over the next decade to bolster Australia’s cyber capabilities with the announcement of a strategic partnership between Defence’s Australian Signals Directorate (ASD) and Amazon Web Services (AWS) in Australia to deliver…
