August 15, 2018 | Local, Naval
Murray Brewster
The federal government has been quietly debating a "refresh" of its marquee — but troubled — national shipbuilding strategy, federal documents reveal.
A memorandum to the deputy minister of Finance, obtained by CBC News under access to information legislation, notes there was "tangible progress" in ship construction last year, but also references impending production gaps at the two designated shipyards: Irving-owned Halifax Shipyard and Seaspan in Vancouver.
The size and scope of the "policy refresh" was not made clear in the heavily redacted memo, dated Jan. 23, 2018. Officials at Public Services and Procurement Canada were asked to explain, but did not produce a response by Tuesday evening.
As recently as last week, government officials were insisting they were still committed to the strategy.
During the last election campaign, the Liberals pledged to fix the "broken" procurement system and invest heavily in the navy.
Conceived under the Conservatives but embraced by the Liberals, the national shipbuilding strategy has been plagued by delays and ballooning cost estimates in the building of both warships and civilian vessels.
Critics have long complained it would be cheaper and faster for Canada to buy offshore from foreign competitors.
It also remains unclear whether the build-in-Canada provision that is at the heart of the strategy is up for consideration in the reset.
Much of the icebreaking fleet belonging to the coast guard is in need of replacement — a critical gap that led the government recently to set aside $610 million for the refurbishment of three commercial ships.
Similarly, the navy has been forced to lease a replenishment ship because of delays associated with the Joint Support Ship program.
Confidential sources in the defence community said the review is being driven partly by a yet-to-be completed assessment of the coast guard, which has — according to a 2015 statutory assessment — among the oldest coast guard fleets in the world.
The retooled policy is expected to be ready this fall, the sources said, and will also encompass updated budget estimates and timelines for delivery.
Last spring, CBC News reported the federal government had received a revised delivery schedule for vessels being constructed at Seaspan. But it refused to release it.
The new timetable, which apparently forecasts delays outside of the company's control, is politically sensitive. It speaks to issues at the heart of the breach-of-trust case against Vice Admiral Mark Norman, the military's second-highest commander — in particular, the program's inability to deliver ships in a timely manner.
Full Article: https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/liberals-shipbuilding-navy-refresh-1.4785465
June 16, 2024 | Local, Naval
Today, His Majesty’s Canadian Ship (HMCS) Charlottetown departed Halifax, Nova Scotia, to join and assume flagship duties of Standing NATO Maritime Group 2 (SNMG2) as part of Operation REASSURANCE in the Mediterranean Sea
March 7, 2022 | Local, Aerospace
Le français suit Sandbox CUAS Detect and/or Defeat Challenge is closing soon! The closing date for the Counter Unmanned Aerial Systems (CUAS) 2022 Sandbox challenge is fast approaching! Don't miss your opportunity to bring your ‘A' game and demonstrate how your solution can detect and/or defeat our team of drones. Get your technology at the forefront where you will interact one-on-one with Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) and RCMP end-users and science experts. Submit your application prior to 2 PM on April 13, 2022. Heads-up: new IDEaS challenges coming your way! Spring is upon us and the IDEaS program will soon be offering a breath of fresh air to its innovators. The Contests element will be launching a new challenge called Robot Round-up: Advanced robotics platforms and solutions. This next challenge invites the masterminds of the Robotics and Artificial Intelligence domain to go head-to-head for a chance to win cash and bragging rights. Stay tuned for more information and timelines. Incoming! Competitive Projects will launch new challenges this spring. Keep your ears to the ground to find out what we have in store for our Canadian Innovators in this new call for proposals. Domains will include C4ISR, the arctic and Space-based Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance SB-ISR. Embark on a journey to take your technology to new heights through our Competitive Projects element. Seize your chance to work with the US Department of Defense The Defense Innovation Unit operated by the United States' Department of Defense (DoD) is inviting Canadian Innovators to submit their commercial solutions to help solve national security challenges. View their open solicitations now: Endpoint Accuracy: The DoD is seeking technology that will deflect or self-aim a standard issue round to its target. This technology will augment the system to increase accuracy against targets selected by the shooter. System characteristics include: software compatibility with small arms fire control systems; standardized interfacing for fire control flexibility; improved accuracy; and shortened time of engagement through the Find, Fix, Track, Target, Engage, and Assess (F2T2EA) process. Closes March 11, 2022. Autonomous Perimeter Security: The DoD is seeking to prototype an automated system of networked, collaborative sensors that can detect, track and identify potential intruders for perimeters in environments including forests, urban areas, coastlines, rivers and harbors. Closes March 14, 2022. L'Environnement protégé du défi Détecter et/ou Vaincre les systèmes aériens sans pilotes (CUAS) fermera bientôt ! La date de clôture de l'environnement protégé des systèmes aériens sans pilote (CUAS) 2022 approche à grands pas ! Ne manquez pas votre chance de démontrer comment votre solution peut détecter et/ou vaincre notre équipe de drones. Mettez votre technologie au premier rang où vous interagirez avec les utilisateurs et les experts scientifiques des Forces armées canadiennes (FAC) et de la GRC. Soumettez votre candidature avant 14 h 00 le 13 avril 2022. Attention : de nouveaux défis IDEeS arrivent ! Le printemps est à nos portes et le programme IDEeS offrira bientôt une bouffée d'air frais à ses innovateurs. L'élément Concours lancera un nouveau défi appelé Foules robots : Plates-formes et solutions de commande robotique avancées. Ce prochain défi invite les cerveaux du domaine de la robotique et de l'intelligence artificielle (IA) à s'affronter pour tenter de gagner des prix et des droits de célébrer. Restez à l'écoute pour plus d'informations. Nouveauté ! Les Projets compétitifs lanceront de nouveaux défis ce printemps. Restez à l'écoute pour découvrir ce que nous réservons à nos innovateurs canadiens dans ce nouvel appel de propositions. Les domaines comprendront le C4ISR, l'Arctique et le renseignement spatial, la surveillance et la reconnaissance SB-ISR. Amener votre technologie vers de nouveaux sommets gr'ce à notre élément Projets compétitifs. Saisissez votre chance de travailler avec le département américain de la Défense Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) gérée par le Department of Defence (DoD) des États-Unis invite les innovateurs canadiens à soumettre leurs solutions commerciales pour aider à résoudre des problèmes de sécurité nationale. Consultez leurs sollicitations ouvertes maintenant : Précision des points finaux (en Anglais seulement) : le DoD recherche une technologie capable de faire dévier ou de viser automatiquement une balle standard vers sa cible. Cette technologie augmentera le système pour accroitre la précision contre les cibles sélectionnées par le tireur. Les caractéristiques du système comprennent : la compatibilité logicielle avec les systèmes de contrôle de tir des armes légères ; interface standardisée pour la flexibilité du contrôle de tir ; précision améliorée; et raccourcissement du temps d'engagement gr'ce au processus Find, Fix, Track, Target, Engage, and Assess (F2T2EA). Fermeture le 11 mars 2022. Sécurité périmétrique autonome (en Anglais seulement) : le DoD cherche à prototyper un système automatisé de capteurs collaboratifs en réseau capables de détecter, de suivre et d'identifier les intrus potentiels pour les périmètres dans des environnements tels que les forêts, les zones urbaines, les côtes, les rivières et les ports. Fermeture le 14 mars 2022.
October 9, 2018 | Local, Naval
David Pugliese, Ottawa Citizen Officials are concerned the Irving yard in Halifax won't be able to handle all the work as it will also be building the new Canadian Surface Combatant warships The federal government is looking at splitting up maintenance work on the Canadian navy's frigates between an east coast shipyard and one in Quebec, but is facing objections from Halifax workers and Irving Shipbuilding who warn the change will mean lost jobs in Nova Scotia. There are seven frigates that will need maintenance on the east coast over a five-year period. But military and Department of National Defence officials are concerned the Irving yard in Halifax won't be able to handle all the work as it will also be in the midst of building the new fleet of Canadian Surface Combatant warships. Each of the aging Halifax-class frigates will require about a year of maintenance work, and in 2020 the navy expects maintenance will be needed on two frigates at the same time. Irving won the original maintenance contract in 2011 but that deal is nearly expired.In order to keep the navy at sea, federal procurement officials are proposing splitting up the work between Irving and its rival, Davie Shipbuilding in Levis, Que. Pat Finn, assistant deputy minister of materiel at DND, said that while no final decision has been made, discussions are taking place about splitting up the work. “We have to do this maintenance,” he told Postmedia. “We've got a fair bit to do. We have to keep the navy operational.” Finn said the government's shipbuilding strategy is producing new vessels for both the navy and coast guard, all of which will have to be maintained in the future — a large task. “If we don't have two maintenance and repair facilities for the navy and the coast guard we're going to have a strategic problem,” he said. Union officials at the Halifax shipyard and, defence-industry sources say, Irving itself have been lobbying the Liberal government to stop the plan to send some work to Davie. Irving did not offer comment for this story, but Lana Payne, the Atlantic Regional Director for Unifor, the union representing around 900 employees at the Irving yard, said her organization is worried that as many as 300 staff could face layoffs if some of the work is transferred to Davie. “The Halifax-class has been historically (maintained) at the Halifax yard and the loss of that work will create a major problem for our membership,” she said. “Our understanding is that this is work they can easily do.” Unifor has brought its concerns to Nova Scotia Liberal MPs and other members of the Liberal government. The government will spend several hundred million dollars per frigate for each maintenance period. To date, Irving Shipbuilding Inc. has received more than $3.4-billion in contracts under the government's shipbuilding strategy. That includes contracts for the Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ships and initial work on the surface combatant program. That also includes more than $511 million for repair, refit and maintenance contracts, according to federal government figures. The surface combatant program will result in an estimated $30 billion in build contracts for Irving, with work continuing into the 2040s. Sources within the federal government told Postmedia they do not see widespread layoffs arising from any decision to split the work between the yards. The government is also examining a plan to fast-track some aspects of the surface combatant program so the Irving yard is working at high capacity. Irving raised similar concerns in August after Davie received a contract to refit and upgrade three medium-size icebreakers purchased by the federal government. At the time, Irving noted that it and Seaspan Shipyards in Vancouver had been selected to build Canada's future fleets. “We call upon the Federal Government to confirm to Irving Shipbuilding, our shipbuilders and their families, the Province of Nova Scotia, and all Atlantic Canadians that the National Shipbuilding Strategy remains intact and, therefore, construction of the ships for Canada's Navy and Coast Guard will be done exclusively by Irving Shipbuilding and Vancouver Shipyards,” it pointed out in its statement. Treasury Board President Scott Brison, a Nova Scotia MP, said at the time that Irving's role in the shipbuilding strategy is secure but it has always been the case that other shipyards can compete for maintenance and refit work. • Email: dpugliese@postmedia.com https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/plan-to-split-warship-maintenance-between-quebec-and-nova-scotia-shipyards-prompts-warnings-of-job-losses