January 14, 2019 | Local, Land
David Pugliese, Ottawa Citizen
he Canadian Army's new armoured vehicles have been plagued by rollovers and fires, the latest in a series of problems to affect the $600-million fleet.
Since April 2014, there have been 10 incidents when Tactical Armoured Patrol Vehicles have tipped on to their sides, six where they have rolled over completely, and four where they have caught fire.
Pat Finn, the assistant deputy minister in charge of procurement at the Department of National Defence, told Postmedia there have been no serious injuries as a result of the incidents. But the problems are not the first to hit the Tactical Armoured Patrol Vehicles or TAPVs.
The TAPV program has “experienced a number of significant technical issues, particularly affecting vehicle mobility,” then-defence minister Rob Nicholson was told in August 2014. There have been problems with the suspension, steering and other items on the vehicle, according to a briefing document released under the Access to Information law.
The technical issues significantly delayed the test program for the vehicles, the document added. “These accumulating incidents, which relate to the vehicle's ability to travel distances on medium cross country terrain, led the project office to conclude the existing testing could no longer continue.”
The Conservative government announced the TAPV contract in 2012 as part of its re-equipping of the Canadian Army. Canada bought 500 TAPVs from Textron, a U.S.-based defence firm, at a cost of $603 million. The TAPV is a wheeled combat vehicle that will conduct reconnaissance and surveillance, security, command and control, and armoured transport of personnel and equipment.
Finn said as a result of the various incidents further quality assurance tests are being done. “It's kind of high off the ground so it can be more agile,” he explained about the vehicle. “(But) it brings with it a high centre of gravity.”
“It may be it's about training and understanding the vehicle,” Finn added.
None of the vehicles have been written off because of the incidents, according to the Canadian Army. “Upon review of the major TAPV incidents, it has been identified that the most common contributing factors of these incidents tends to be human error due to limited familiarity time operating the vehicles,” the army noted in an emailed statement to Postmedia.
The army pointed out that investigations into the incidents did not reveal any design or mechanical faults. “Primary reports on the majority of these incidents (rollover and tip-overs) were attributed to a combination of factors, such as operator experience, the vehicle's high centre of gravity, weather conditions, and/or vehicle speed,” the email noted.
The army did not provide any explanation for the four fires on the TAPVs.
The army noted that it is considering limits on the speeds the vehicles can operate at as well as “rollover hazard mitigations” and “recommendations such as the use of new technology to enhance experience for new drivers and crew.”
The army did not provide further details on those new technologies or initiatives.
The TAPV project will cost taxpayers a total of $1.2 billion, which not only includes the vehicles but also includes the building of infrastructure to house them, as well as the purchase of ammunition and service support for the equipment.
The initial problems with steering and other issues delayed the delivery of the vehicles. After those were dealt with, the army had to contend last year with concerns about brakes and the distance the vehicles needed to stop. The TAPV is a heavy vehicle and requires longer stopping distances at higher speeds than most new drivers are familiar with, noted DND spokesman Dan Le Bouthillier in July 2018.
The fleet of TAPVs have been distributed across seven bases and 24 units throughout Canada. The Canadian army has said it expects to declare full operational capability by mid-2020, following training of all operators. TAPVs were first deployed in spring 2017 to assist communities affected by the flooding in Quebec.
dpugliese@postmedia.com
Twitter.com/davidpugliese
April 15, 2024 | Local, Aerospace
Today, His Majesty’s Canadian Ship (HMCS) Montréal’s crew bid farewell to their loved ones at a departure ceremony held at HMCS Scotian in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
February 13, 2019 | Local, Other Defence
Pilot project will help Canadian companies reap the full benefits of IP to grow their business February 13, 2019 – Ottawa, Ontario When Canadian companies put intellectual property (IP) at the core of their business strategy, they are better positioned to grow and succeed. This is why the Government of Canada is making sure that our small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) have the tools and supports they need to expand their business and become more competitive. Today, the Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, launched the Patent Collective pilot program to assist SMEs with their patent and other IP needs. Canadian entities that can gather a team with experience in delivering high-quality patent advice are invited to apply. The chosen applicant will receive $30 million in funding over four years to create a non-profit organization that will work with companies in a selected sector to help them use their IP more strategically. Announced as part of the five-year Intellectual Property Strategy, the pilot project will provide the Government with valuable insight into the IP issues faced by SMEs. The new collective will have an opportunity to shape how the program will support member businesses, customize services to suit clients' needs, and identify how best to support the strategic use of IP in scaling companies. Quotes “Intellectual property is at the core of innovative businesses. For Canada's economy to succeed, we need to ensure that companies of all sizes have the tools to grow, expand and become competitive global players. With this new patent initiative, we are providing small and medium-sized enterprises with the IP support they can use to build their business, boost economic growth and compete and win on the world stage.” – The Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development Quick facts The Intellectual Property Strategy was announced in Budget 2018. Interested applicants can visit Canada.ca/patent-collective. Small and medium-sized businesses that hold formal IP are three times more likely to engage in product innovation than those without IP. They are also two times more likely to engage in other types of innovation, four times more likely to export, and 64% more likely to be high growth. IP-intensive businesses pay 16% more, on average, than businesses with little or no IP. Businesses using IP in patent-intensive industries have about 8 to 10 times more revenues than those not using IP. Contacts Follow Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada on Twitter: @ISED_CA Dani Keenan Press Secretary Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development 343-291-1710 Media Relations Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada 343-291-1777 ic.mediarelations-mediasrelations.ic@canada.ca https://www.canada.ca/en/innovation-science-economic-development/news/2019/02/government-of-canada-announces-call-to-launch-intellectual-property-collective.html
September 26, 2022 | Local, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR
Recruitment cratered during the first year of COVID-19 as the military shuttered recruiting and training centres, in which only 2,000 people were enrolled in 2020-21.