Evolving battlespace triggers training innovation

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  17 février 2021 | Local, Naval

  DND unable to say exactly when delays in $70-billion warship program began

  David Pugliese, Ottawa Citizen, Postmedia News (dpugliese@ottawacitizen.com) Published: a day ago Updated: a day ago National defence says it doesn't know when it determined that a $70-billion project to buy new warships had fallen five years behind schedule, adding billions of dollars to the cost. That lack of knowledge about a massive mega-project is unprecedented, according to the department's former top procurement official, and is further proof the Canadian Surface Combatant project has gone off the rails. The Department of National Defence revealed Feb. 1 that the delivery of the first surface combatant ship would be delayed until 2030 or 2031. The first ship was to have been delivered in 2025, according to DND documents. The five-year delay will cost taxpayers billions of dollars, but the specific amount has yet to be determined. DND now acknowledges that while there were indications in early 2020 the project schedule was slipping, it doesn't actually know when it was determined the Canadian Surface Combatant program was facing significant delays. “There was no specific month/year,” DND spokesperson Jessica Lamirande wrote in an email to this newspaper. “It was an evolving schedule that continued to shift.” But Alan Williams, the former assistant deputy minister in charge of procurement at DND, said that lack of insight by DND staff is dangerous. On major equipment procurements, every step should be documented, as bureaucrats could be called on to justify future spending decisions and overall management of a project, he said. “It's totally absurd they can't even say when they first determined this project would be delayed by five years,” said Williams. “Is that not the definition of a total loss of accountability and control?” The Canadian Surface Combatant (CSC) project would see the construction of 15 warships for the Royal Canadian Navy at Irving Shipbuilding on the east coast. The vessels will replace the current Halifax-class frigate fleet. However, the project has already faced delays and significant increases in cost, as the price tag climbed from an original $14-billion estimate to $26 billion and then to $70 billion. The parliamentary budget officer is working on a new report on the CSC cost, to be finished by the end of February. Each year of delay could cost taxpayers more than $2 billion, the PBO warned previously. Although the DND has a new delivery date for the initial ship in the fleet, that doesn't mean that the vessel will be ready for operations at that time. “We expect delivery of the first ship in 2030/2031, followed by an extensive sea trials period that will include weapons certification and the corresponding training of RCN sailors, leading to final acceptance,” Lamirande said. No dates, however, were provided on when that final acceptance of the first ship would happen. Troy Crosby, the assistant deputy minister of materiel at the DND, denied the CSC project is in trouble. “I wouldn't call it trouble,” he said in an interview with this newspaper in November. “Is it hard? Is it challenging work? Absolutely. But I wouldn't say we're in trouble.” Other defence analysts are arguing the CSC program is salvageable with better governance and oversight. But Williams said the CSC is like a train rolling down a hill without brakes. “You're heading for disaster and people are talking about improving governance,” he said. “That won't save this project.” Canada has yet to sign a contract to build the Type 26 ship proposed by the consortium of Lockheed Martin and BAE for the CSC. So far, taxpayers have spent $739 million preparing for the eventual construction, according to figures tabled with parliament. Australia and the United Kingdom also plan to purchase the Type 26. But the first ship, destined for the U.K., has yet to be completed. The Canadian government originally said it would only accept a winning bid based on a mature existing ship design or a ship already in service with other navies. That would eliminate technical risk, as the design would be a known and tested commodity. The Type 26 carries extra risk as its design has not yet been proven. Williams said Canada could build an initial three Type 26 ships and then purchase other warships based on a proven design at a much reduced cost. Copyright Postmedia Network Inc., 2021 https://www.thechronicleherald.ca/news/canada/dnd-unable-to-say-exactly-when-delays-in-70-billion-warship-program-began-552869/

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  19 mai 2020 | Local, Aérospatial, Naval, Terrestre, C4ISR, Sécurité

  Canada’s defence industry positioning for life beyond COVID

  Posted on May 15, 2020 by Chris Thatcher In an appearance before the Commons finance committee on May 12, Parliamentary Budget Officer Yves Giroux suggested the federal deficit could vastly exceed the $252 billion he projected in mid-April as the government continues to unveil relief measures to help Canadians and businesses withstand the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic. Most admit it is to too early to tell what that will mean for future military procurement and the government's 2017 defence policy, Strong, Secure, Engaged (SSE), but think tanks and defence analysts are nonetheless forecasting turbulence ahead. “Over the past generation, recessions and the fiscal consolidation that has followed them have had a seriously negative impact on DND's (Department of National Defence) budget,” wrote Eugene Lang, an adjunct professor with the School of Policy Studies at Queen's University and Fellow with the Canadian Global Affairs Institute, in a recent policy paper for CGAI. “The future for SSE and its associated funding does not look bright. National defence probably has a year or two before the crunch hits.” Christyn Cianfarani is more cautious, but the president and chief executive officer of the Canadian Association of Defence and Security Industries (CADSI) admits the “rumblings are there that we are naturally concerned. Anybody who knows their history will tell you that when federal governments have been in these deficit spending situations — and this is the largest since the Second World War — they typically will be looking for strategies to reduce that deficit in the long term and DND unfortunately is a target.” But pulling government funding from a sector that has weathered the COVID-19 storm reasonably well might be “counterintuitive,” she suggested. The sector “right now is one of the few that is able to contribute to the economy under this persistent pandemic environment ... If there are multiple waves of [the virus], defence will be one sector that actually can shoulder the ups and downs and return to remote operations if we get to that stage again.” “Pure play” defence companies with few or no ties to commercial aerospace and the travel industry have managed the risks well, she said. Most have so far avoided the workforce layoffs and temporary downsizing experienced in other sectors, though manufacturing has slowed to meet provincial health regulations. Some, in fact, have been hiring. “Aside from some localized instances of companies facing real challenges, I would say the overall health [of the sector] is not too bad,” she said. Following what she called a “choppy” roll out of COVID-19 related policies that cut across federal and provincial jurisdictions, defence companies have adapted. Some have retooled shop floors and supply chains to manufacture critically needed personal protective equipment (PPE). Others with government contracts have continued operations where possible, albeit at reduced levels to match restrictions at government facilities. Maintenance on some platforms such as submarines has halted. The federal government has been “very conscious of trying to keep the contracts moving and executing,” said Cianfarani. “For example, if you are in the Canadian shipbuilding program, you are still pushing forward. If you are part of that supply chain, that hasn't seen any tangible change in the expectations.” Furthermore, many smaller defence firms specialize in software development and cyber security, both of which remain in demand as governments and companies try to protect expanded networks that now include thousands of employees working from home. The greatest concern for members has been liquidity, she said. CADSI encouraged the Business Development Bank of Canada and Export Development Canada to set aside their traditional risk aversion to the defence sector as they work with private sector lenders to support access to capital. The Business Credit Availability Program includes loans of up to $60 million and guarantees of up to $80 million. “We are quite proud of making a big intervention on that,” she said. “It was supposed to be open for all businesses and, irrespective of ... whether you characterize certain businesses as higher risk than others, it is an incentive program at the federal level.” An essential service At the outset of the COVID-19 economic slowdown, CADSI was a vocal advocate for defence as an essential service and greater harmonization of federal and provincial policies, including the rules that allow embedded contractors to access Canadian Armed Forces facilities. As provincial governments now begin easing restrictions and take the first tentative steps to open their economies, the association is calling for guidance and common standards, especially for the use of protective masks, gloves and other clothing. Of particular concern are the rules for employees of companies that embed on Wings and Bases to provide training, platform maintenance, healthcare and other services. “Who has to wear protective health equipment in a DND facility and is it the same [federal standard] across different provincial jurisdictions?” said Cianfarani. “If Ontario decides you have to stand two metres apart and Nova Scotia doesn't have the same policy,” it will create confusion. “If you need a particular face mask to go onto a DND base to perform maintenance on their aircraft, what does that look like? If it is so specialized, can you help us procure it? Or, if it is not so specialized, can you give us a specification so we can ensure that we do have it when we get spooled up to work?” Likewise, what PPE do companies need to provide when DND and other government employees visit their facilities? DND has released some information on “what they are starting to classify as health equipment versus PPE,” she said. “If companies have that information, they won't get to a DND facility and be surprised by a piece of PPE they need or a standard of working they need to accommodate.” Made in Canada The economic repercussions of the pandemic likely won't be felt in the defence sector for some time. Cianfarani noted that some companies have found opportunity in the crisis and will increase investments in automation, big data and other elements of Industry 4.0 as they position for the future. “This is probably an acceleration of something that has been going on slowly in the background for quite sometime,” she observed. But the pandemic has opened the door to a renewed discussion about a national defence industrial strategy, an issue CADSI has been flagging for over a decade. Buying made-in-Canada defence and security platforms and systems is more expensive, but the past months have demonstrated that protectionism is “alive and well.” President Donald Trump in early April asked U.S.-based 3M to stop supply N95 masks to Canada. “The crisis has certainly given us and the government, and Canadians in general, a renewed interest in the concept of having sovereign capability,” she said. Shifting to a procurement culture that accepts the risks and costs of Canadian-built equipment won't happen quickly or easily — it took about seven years to study and adopt recommendations for Canadian key industrial capabilities, she noted — “but I really do think if there is any opportunity, it is probably now, because the shock is still very prevalent in everyone's mind.” https://www.skiesmag.com/news/canada-defence-industry-covid

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  3 juin 2019 | Local, Terrestre

  Rheinmetall rolls out robot rescue vehicle at CANSEC 2019

  DAVID PUGLIESE, OTTAWA CITIZEN Rheinmetall has rolled out at CANSEC 2019 in Ottawa a rescue model of its “Mission Master” robotic vehicle. The vehicle gives soldiers the ability to evacuate casualties over long distances either autonomously or via remote control. The rescue robot vehicle comes equipped with two basket stretchers with sliding provisions, head and foot immobilizers, oxygen masks and canisters, a monitor defibrillator, and other medical gear. All of these items would be impossible for a medic to carry on foot, Rheinmetall points out. Troops can operate the Mission Master from near or far using autonomous navigation. While transporting a wounded soldier using the system's stretcher, for example, accompanying medics can use the vehicle as a workstation to administer emergency care. Using the “follow me” function, the rescue robot can roll alongside other soldiers, who are busy making sure that the surrounding area is safe and secure, the company noted. “In both “follow me” and autonomous navigation modes, the Mission Master significantly relieves cognitive and physical stress, allowing troops to deal with the mission at hand,” according to Rheinmetall. https://ottawacitizen.com/news/national/defence-watch/rheinmetall-rolls-out-robot-rescue-vehicle-at-cansec-2019