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
California company Anduril Industries has unveiled its Roadrunner and Roadrunner-M Autonomous Air Vehicles (AAV). Roadrunner is a Vertical Takeoff and Landing (VTOL) AAV designed to be customized for various missions; Roadrunner-M is a radical new class of recoverable ground-based air…
The Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN) will trial Ocius Technology’s 6.8m, renewable-powered Bluebottle Uncrewed Surface Vessel (USV). The supply ship HMNZS Aotearoa has carried the USV from Sydney to Auckland and once operational it will be able to undertake maritime tasks at sea…
The Group CEO of the biggest Australian-owned supplier of military munitions has laid out a detailed plan to mobilise the nation’s defence industrial base, emphasising “it’s time for urgency, optimism and action”. NIOA Group CEO Robert Nioa used a keynote…
The University of South Australia (UniSA) with two Adelaide-based SMEs, VPG Innovation and SMR Australia, will mature and space-qualify a new optical manufacturing process and materials for space flight applications and demonstrate it in a camera that can utilise this…
Australia will install the Northrop Grumman Deep-space Advanced Radar Capability (DARC) near Exmouth, WA. The radar is expected to be operational by 2026. The decision was announced during the second AUKUS Ministers’ meeting in California. All three AUKUS partners –…
The partners in the tripartite AUKUS agreement – the USA, UK and Australia – have announced that the first maintenance to be carried out in Australia on a US Navy nuclear-powered submarine will be undertaken in the second half of…
The Australian government’s $15 billion National Reconstruction Fund can now start investing in growing Australia’s industrial capabilities, says the Department of Industry. The Minister for Industry, Ed Husic, and the Finance Minister, Katy Gallagher, have published the National Reconstruction Fund…
Defence’s Advanced Strategic Capabilities Accelerator (ASCA) has released its first Approach to Market (ATM) for the Mission Program. Industry and research partners have been invited to respond to a Request for Proposal (RFP) to help co-design and deliver ASCA’s first…
The Australian Government plans to unlock billions of dollars in investment and cut red tape for Australia’s Defence industry and its AUKUS partners with the introduction of the proposed Defence Trade Controls Amendment Bill 2023. At the time of writing the…
Lockheed Martin Australia and Australian industry partner Av-Comm has successfully completed the installation of the inaugural satellite dish for the Southern Positioning Augmentation Network (SouthPAN) in Uralla, regional New South Wales. This marks a significant achievement for the SouthPAN project,…
