News

Rheinmetall has founded a joint venture with Ukrainian state-owned conglomerate Ukroboronprom to build and repair tanks in Ukraine, the Handelsblatt daily reported Friday, citing the German arms maker's chief executive.

Germany plans to buy 18 Leopard 2 tanks and 12 self-propelled howitzers to replenish stocks depleted by deliveries to Ukraine, according to procurement documents seen by Reuters on Friday.

Athens is keen on building up a military-drone sector at home.

Ottawa, Ontario - Ensuring that Canadian Coast Guard personnel have reliable equipment to keep Canada’s waterways open and safe is a key priority for the Government of Canada. Today, the Canadian Coast Guard announced two contract awards for the vessel life extension of CCGS Martha L. Black and CCGS Leonard J. Cowley, respectively at the value of $31.5 million and $29.7 million. Both vessels will be dry-docked and enter an extended maintenance period designed to increase their operational life. Following an open competitive process, Public Services and Procurement Canada, on behalf of the Canadian Coast Guard, has awarded Verrault Navigation Inc. from Les Méchins, Quebec and Newdock from St John's, Newfoundland and Labrador for the contracts to complete vessel life extension work on the CCGS Martha L. Black and CCGS Leonard J. Cowley. A light multitasked icebreaker and buoy tender, the CCGS Martha L. Black  is primarily responsible for aids to navigation and buoy tending work in the St. Lawrence region during the warmer months of the year. During winter months, the vessel performs ice escorts and the St. Lawrence and Saguenay rivers, playing an integral role in keeping Canada’s major waterways navigable year round. The CCGS Leonard J. Cowley is an Offshore Patrol Vessel based in St Johns, Newfoundland and Labrador. While the vessel’s primary task is fisheries patrol and enforcement, the vessel also carries out search and rescue operations when needed. While the ships undergo vessel life extension from spring 2023 through summer 2024, the Canadian Coast Guard will reallocate its other maritime resources to ensure Canada’s waterways continue to be safe for all seafarers. These contract awards fall under the repair, refit and maintenance pillar of the National Shipbuilding Strategy, which is helping to ensure that Canada has a safe and effective fleet of ships to serve and protect Canadians for years to come, while providing ongoing opportunities for shipyards and suppliers across Canada. Quotes "With the National Shipbuilding Strategy, we're making sure we invest in the right equipment so that members of the Canadian Coast Guard have the gear they need to keep us safe on the water and keep crucial trade routes open all year. This work is a win-win—it boosts the economy and helps us safeguard Canada's spectacular coastlines and waters." The Honourable Joyce Murray, Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard “Our government is ensuring the Canadian Coast Guard has the equipment and tools it needs to carry out its crucial work from coast to coast to coast by way of the National Shipbuilding Strategy. These contracts will extend the life of the CCGS Martha L. Black and CCGS Leonard J. Cowley while providing economic opportunities for Canadian shipyards.” The Honourable Helena Jaczek, Minister of Public Services and Procurement “Keeping our vessels in good working order is critical to ensuring that our personnel can provide Canadians with the services they need throughout the year. We are pleased to be working with Verrault Navigation and Newdock to ensure that the CCGS Martha L. Black and CCGS Leonard J. Cowley will be serving Canadians for many more years to come.” Mario Pelletier, Commissioner, Canadian Coast Guard Quick facts The CCGS Martha L. Black is homeported in Quebec City, Quebec and was originally commissioned in 1986. The ship has been serving Canadians in the St. Lawrence region since its commissioning, ensuring that waterways remain open and navigable. The CCGS Leonard J. Cowley entered into service in 1984 and has been carrying out fisheries enforcement operations from its home port in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador. The vessel is equipped with a flight deck capable of operating a light helicopter. The vessel life extension work for CCGS Martha L. Black includes: Main engine replacement Helicopter hanger steel work renewal Main deck and boat deck steel replacement Internal communication system replacement Hazardous material removal Hull sandblasting and painting Wheelhouse window maintenance The vessel life extension work for CCGS Leonard J. Cowley includes: Deck equipment replacement and refurbishment Propulsion upgrades Steel work Accommodation refurbishment Hanger and flight operations refurbishments Ventilation system upgrades  Associated links National Shipbuilding Strategy Start Your Career With the Canadian Coast Guard https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-coast-guard/news/2023/05/canadian-coast-guard-ships-martha-l-black-and-leonard-j-cowleys-vessel-life-extension-contracts-awarded.html

This is truly an exhilarating period in space advancement, as we witness dramatic reductions in launch costs and remarkable progress in space technology. The current landscape is accelerating the commercial adoption of space solutions and driving unprecedented growth in the global space economy. As the national champion in the Canadian space sector collaboration is one of MDA’s core values, and key to our mission is making ambitions come true. This all comes together with MDA’s LaunchPad, where we partner with our community to build and grow. Our LaunchPad Portal is where we start that process. Whether you are a University looking to leverage our Satellite imagery to support your research, a student team looking for a sponsor, a start-up seeking investment, an established business looking to become a supplier to the space industry or seeking access space technologies for application in another sector. Whatever your needs – if you are a Canadian participating in the space economy, we want to hear from you. Visit the LaunchPad Portal and let's shape the future of space together! We look forward to connecting with you, learning about your ambitions, and exploring how we can support you in making those ambitions come true. MDA’s LaunchPad Team

We are thrilled to announce that the IDEaS Marketplace event is back! IDEaS Marketplace 2023 will be held at the Shaw Centre in Ottawa, Ontario, on June 2, 2023, from 9h00 to 16h00. Innovators will have the chance to showcase their IDEaS-funded innovations, create partnerships and network with Department of National Defence and Canadian Armed Forces (DND/CAF) personnel, as well as leaders in industry and government to further advance their technologies. Dynamic and interactive presentations will cover a number of challenges faced by DND/CAF. Some of the themes include:  Identifying and countering cyber threats; Detection of concealed explosives; Maritime surveillance and quantum sensing technologies; Communications and ground solutions for combat in the arctic; Tracking and de-orbiting space debris and protection of satellites from natural and artificial threats; Portable power solutions for soldiers on the move; Real-time insights for pandemic decision making; Sanitizing cleaning sensitive equipment and workspaces; Autonomous systems: Trust and barriers to adoption (Innovation Networks); Advanced materials: Innovation in detection avoidance and physical protection (Innovation Networks); Fast and adaptive logistics planning for military missions; and much more! Participation to this event is FREE - and by invitation only. Attendance will be limited to other government departments and large defence companies with the ability to invest in technology developed by IDEaS, as well as DND/CAF personnel. If you are from another government department or large industry stakeholder, and would like to attend, please contact Heather at: heather@allianceevents.ca. The IDEaS team

A combination of enabling technologies and analytic capabilities produce a virtual model of a process, system, or object, informed by real-time data.

The Air Force plans to collect industry's ideas for creating drone wingmen and use them to flesh out how it might use collaborative combat aircraft.

Germany will buy an additional 50 Puma fighting vehicles worth a total of 1.5 billion euros ($1.65 billion) for its armed forces after the parliamentary budget committee approved the purchase, the defence minister said on Wednesday.