June 20, 2024 | Information, Land
French Diplomatic Entities Targeted in Russian-Linked Cyber Attacks
Russian hackers target French diplomats in sophisticated cyber attacks. ANSSI warns of ongoing threats to diplomatic entities and IT firms.
November 14, 2019 | Information, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security
The real obstacle for reforming military spending isn’t in the defence ministry. It’s the Treasury Board
KEN HANSEN
Ken Hansen is an independent defence and security analyst and owner of Hansen Maritime Horizons. Retired from the Royal Canadian Navy in 2009 in the rank of commander, he is also a contributor to the security affairs committee for the Royal United Services Institute of Nova Scotia.
For people inside the Department of National Defence, a minority Parliament – coupled with election promises for increased social spending and tax cuts – represents an uneasy calculus.
Defence spending is always on the chopping block because it represents the largest pool of discretionary spending in the federal budget, and every party spent the recent federal election campaign being vague about military policy – offering some kind of oversight-body reform or scrutiny over the billions of dollars that have been earmarked, even as they lent their support to ensuring the military has the equipment it needs.
In particular, the single largest program in Canadian defence history – the Canadian Combat Ship plan for 15 warships – will be a tantalizing target for politicians looking to get rid of perceived fat. Such cuts to shipbuilding programs have even already become normalized: The order for Halifax-class frigates were trimmed to 12 from 18 in 1983 and the Iroquois-class destroyers to four from six in 1964, to name just two.
The political leaders weren't wrong when they said the military procurement system is broken. But regardless of which party had won this past election, and no matter what tweaks at the edges that the Liberal minority government and its potential supporters pursue, the reality is that the core issue remains unaddressed: Treasury Board's bulk approach to purchasing the country's military kit.
Treasury Board policy states that bulk buys are how military procurement should be done, to ensure the lowest per-unit cost. But this forces tough decisions about what to buy, since the larger the order, the longer it will take to produce them all – not to mention the problems involved with trying to predict the future of warfare.
Information systems become outdated in five years; weapons and sensors in 10. With a planned operating life of 25 years, any ships ordered today will be out-of-date by the time the first are delivered, and fully obsolete by the time the last one arrives. Block purchasing leads to block obsolescence.
Traditionally, when technological change threatens to render military systems obsolete, the best way to hedge was to order in batches of the smallest number acceptable. In the years before the world wars, for instance, countries working to build competent naval forces put less emphasis on fleet numbers and more on technology and industrial capacity until the last moments before conflict. Technological competence was as important as numbers for fleet commanders.
Another outcome of bulk buys is that the volume means that they happen only every two to three decades (or longer, in the worst cases). With such lengthy dry spells between purchases, it is impossible to retain corporate knowledge in either the defence or civilian branches of government.
More frequent purchasing keeps the process alive in both practice and concept, with lessons learned that can be implemented by the same people who made the mistakes in the first place.
Such irregularly timed purchases have created desperation among defence planners whose vision of the future consists of short golden days of competence and pride, followed by long years of rust-out and irrelevance. Unwittingly, the dark decades were in large part of the military's own making because of its desperate desire to acquire the absolute best model available – a practice known as “gold-plating” – instead of working steadily to build capacity and skill that would address long-range fleet needs.
This is a collision of interests. The Treasury Board looks only at capital-acquisition decisions from the perspective of the buyer. It's left to the military to worry about how long they may have to operate obsolescent or obsolete equipment and systems, and to do the necessary mid-life upgrading, which is partly why costs balloon spectacularly. Life-cycle cost data is actually far more important that the initial sticker shock of the newest and shiniest model advocated by the military's leadership. The mindset needs to change.
Politicians who implement bureaucratic change will probably see some improvements in decision-making. But the biggest obstacle to defence procurement is that bulk purchasing is our lone approach, and that it happens only every few decades. Regular, planned capital acquisition is the best path forward, but all paths to the future must first run through the Treasury Board. No amount of political policy adjustment can change that.
On the same subject
-
-
April 24, 2022 | Information, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security
Nous avons besoin de vous | Aéro Montréal lance une campagne de communication inédite pour attirer et retenir les talents dans l’industrie aérospatiale québécoise
NOUS AVONS BESOIN DE VOUS ! Aéro Montréal lance une campagne de communication inédite pour attirer et retenir les talents dans l'industrie aérospatiale québécoise Chers membres, chers partenaires, L'exercice de planification stratégique d'Aéro Montréal et les nombreux entretiens menés avec l'industrie ont fait ressortir deux attentes majeures de la part de l'industrie aérospatiale québécoise : améliorer la visibilité de l'industrie et trouver des solutions pour attirer et retenir la main-d'œuvre. À l'heure où l'industrie connaît un regain d'activité, le conseil d'administration d'Aéro Montréal n'a pas tardé à se mobiliser pour répondre à ces besoins identifiés par les entreprises. Ses membres ont donné le ton en appuyant financièrement le déploiement d'une campagne de communication massive dont l'objectif sera d'assurer la visibilité du secteur, de stimuler l'attraction de talents et de soutenir la rétention de la main-d'œuvre. Vous avez un rôle à jouer Nous lançons un appel pour engager la contribution de chaque membre de la grappe aérospatiale du Québec : c'est gr'ce à votre soutien financier que nous ferons de cette campagne un succès. Aéro Montréal mandatera une agence pour coordonner une campagne de communication. Aéro Montréal sera garant de représenter la pluralité des pans de l'industrie et s'assurera de véhiculer des messages communs qui répondent aux objectifs des maitres-d'œuvre, équipementiers, sous-traitants et fournisseurs. Toutefois, le succès d'une telle opération ne saurait être garanti sans un investissement de l'ensemble des parties prenantes. Participez à cet élan collectif : nous devons remplir nos programmes de formations en aérospatiale, nous devons nous assurer de maintenir et d'accroître la richesse du bassin d'employés qualifiés disponible au Québec. En offrant de la visibilité au secteur, nous nous assurons de poser les premières fondations qui nous permettront d'y arriver. Chaque entreprise de la grappe est invitée à contribuer financièrement et ainsi soutenir ce projet qui servira l'intérêt collectif. Toutes les contributions comptent ! Ils ont d'ores et déjà dit OUI Ces premières entreprises se sont engagées aux côtés d'Aéro Montréal pour permettre à cette campagne de visibilité de voir le jour. Joignez-vous à elles! Comment contribuer ? Ce projet compte sur la mobilisation de tous les membres de la grappe. Les confirmations d'engagement sont attendues avant le vendredi 6 mai 2022 et l'équipe d'Aéro Montréal met tout en œuvre pour vous proposer des termes de paiement flexibles et échelonnés selon vos besoins. Si vous souhaitez contribuer ou en apprendre davantage sur le projet, vous vous invitons à contacter Léa Guicheteau, Directrice pilier Image et aérospatiale durable (lea.guicheteau@aeromontreal.ca ; 514-550-7494). 380, rue Saint-Antoine Ouest Bureau 3120 Montréal, QC, H2Y 3X7 Téléphone : (514) 987-9330 ENVOYER À UN AMI SITE WEB
-
February 9, 2018 | Information, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security
Doing business with NATO
Canada has a new representative at the NATO Communications and Information Agency (NCIA / NCI Agency). Ms Joanna Glowacki started this fall and is ready to help Canadian companies connect with NATO ICT business opportunities. She can be reached at joanna.glowacki@ncia.nato.int or +32 (0)2 707.82.27 As you know, Canada has established a new Liaison Officer at the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA) in Capellen, Luxembourg. Lieutenant-Colonel Martin Bedard arrived in the summer and some of you have already been engaging with him. Martin's email address is calo@nspa.nato.int Canadian companies are encouraged to continue to track NATO business opportunities on the websites of the two NATO Acquisition Agencies – NCI Agency and NSPA. For companies tracking ICT business opportunities at NATO, it is recommended that you follow the NCI Agency Bulletin Board website https://www.ncia.nato.int/Industry/Pages/Home.aspx for the latest updates on current business opportunities. If you see an opportunity of interest, shown on the website as a Notice of Intent (NOI), notify the Canadian Delegation to be added to the bidders list. There is no cost to receive the bid package and no commitment to bid once on the bidders list, although for each and every opportunity you must notify Canada's Delegation to NATO at BNATO.industry@international.gc.ca to be added to the bidders list. For NATO business opportunities in the area of logistics and maintenance, the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA) website is: http://www.nspa.nato.int/en/index.htm. You should also register your company as a supplier of NSPA – there is no cost and no commitment to register your company – so you start to receive notices of NSPA business opportunities in your domain. You can register at the following link: http://www.nspa.nato.int/en/organization/procurement/supplier.htm. You can also view “Future Business Opportunities” on the NSPA database: http://www.nspa.nato.int/en/organization/procurement/fbo.htm. Right click on an item of interest for more detail. Check out as well the “Request for Proposal” opportunities at the same site – right side of page. You can also look at the following webpages for general information: Guide to navigating NATO procurement: http://www.forces.gc.ca/en/business-connecting-foreign-markets/nato-faqs-guide-procurement.page Answers to Frequently Asked Questions about NATO business opportunities: http://www.forces.gc.ca/en/business-connecting-foreign-markets/canadian-industry-doing-business-nato-faqs.page Guide pour la navigation- Acquisitions au sein de l'OTAN: http://www.forces.gc.ca/fr/faire-affaires-acceder-marches-etrangers/otan-faqs-guide-acquisition.page Réponses aux questions fréquemment posées sur les opportunités d'affaires de l'OTAN: http://www.forces.gc.ca/fr/faire-affaires-acceder-marches-etrangers/industrie-canadienne-faqs-otan.page