8 février 2021 | Local, Aérospatial, C4ISR, Sécurité

For CAE the future means expansion in cyber, space and more defense acquisitions

WASHINGTON — With defense budgets around the globe expected to fall, simulation and training firm CAE is moving to diversify its defense and security portfolio, with an emphasis on space and cyber capabilities.

Dan Gelston, who took over CAE's defense and security business unit in August 2020, told Defense News that his team is also looking to partner with defense primes during the early stages of new competitions, a shift which could require CAE investing in research and engineering efforts.

Over the last two decades, CAE was “very focused” on traditional platforms, particularly planes and unmanned aerial vehicles, Gelston said. Now, he expects the future of the company to involve “a real focus on space and cyber, not only for that customer, but also for CAE. And those are areas that we need to augment our capabilities to make sure that we're providing the best product, the best service to help our customers.”

The full interview will air as part of CAE's OneWorld event Feb. 9.

CAE reported just over $1 billion in defense revenues in 2019, which made it the highest-ranked Canadian company on the annual Defense News Top 100 list. Currently, Gelston's unit makes up about 40 percent of the company's overall business, but he sees a chance to hit a “much larger” market going forward.

Gelston's plan includes increasing the “security” part of the company's “defense and security” portfolio by aggressively pursuing contracts for government agencies such as the Department of Homeland Security and Transportation Security Administration. This would competing for what he describes as a “multi-hundred-million dollar opportunity with TSA here in the next few months” for training security forces for airports.

“With space assets ability to target, with cyber assets ability to attack anywhere and everywhere, it's not just the Pentagon, it's critical infrastructure, it's a lot of what we traditionally have separated into DHS. So that security element is crucial,” he said.

“We could really bring a lot of our research and development, our capabilities in machine learning and AI and virtual reality and augmented learning management systems” to DHS, which “you could categorize a little more of a traditional time phased approach to training.”

As the company seeks to expand into the non-defense security realm, Gelston said the company is keeping an eye out for potential merger and acquisition options, saying “I certainly would like to think in the next 18 to 24 months a property would come along, that's particularly attractive to me.”

2020 was a rocky year for CAE, which was hit particularly hard given its ties to the commercial aviation space. But the company worked quickly to shave costs, and toward the end of the year issued a public offering, with the goal of raising roughly $2 billion Canadian ($1.56 bn American). The plan, as Gelston said, was to have enough “dry powder to make sure that we're coming out leaning forward out of the COVID crisis. We don't want to be hunkering down just trying to survive. We want to take advantage of this.”

While not discussing specifics, Gelston emphasized that “I'd love to get a little more robust training capability in the cyber realm... that's an area that that I can certainly see augmenting with potential acquisition here in the next 18 to 24 months if the right property comes along, I think we would be positioned to potentially pursue that.”

Teaming with defense manufacturers

That focus on new areas doesn't mean the company is turning away from traditional defense projects, but it does come with a greater focus on teaming up with prime contractors early in the process to offer the DoD and other customers a package solution from the start, as opposed to bidding on training and simulation contracts after a design has been selected.

He pointed to the surprise rapid test-flight of the Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) demonstrator from last September as an example of how defense acquisition is speeding up.

“Our defense acquisition officials are really looking for skin in the game from industry” early on, he said. “We don't have the time for the classic cost-plus development work, years and years and multiple phases” of a project.

“No company, even the big OEMs, have unlimited research and development budgets. No company, even Lockheed Martin, has unlimited engineering assets,” he continued. “So if I can partner with these OEMs on these major next generation platforms now and start co developing as they develop the platform, I'm codeveloping the training in the simulation experience, and sharing some of that burden, adding skin into the game for research and development engineering — It's not just money, it's also time, and time, arguably right now is our is our biggest enemy — I can really help those OEMs and give them a true discriminator in their offering.”

“And certainly at the end, that international or us customer is going to be much better off as they've got a fully baked, fully integrated training and simulation solution with that new platform.”

In addition to looking into NGAD, Gelston said the company plans to pursue nearer-term contracts related to the F-35 joint strike fighter, MQ-9B drone, and the Army's Future Vertical Lift competition, while also continuing ongoing efforts like its C-130H business, which was awarded in 2018.

https://www.defensenews.com/training-sim/2021/02/08/for-cae-the-future-means-expansion-in-cyber-space-and-more-defense-acquisitions

Sur le même sujet

17 décembre 2020 | Local, Aérospatial

Saab offers two aerospace centres in Gripen E proposal for Canada’s Future Fighter
By Garrett Reim14 December 2020 Saab is offering to open two new aerospace centres as part of its Gripen E proposal for Canada's Future Fighter Capability Project. The aerospace facilities, the Gripen Centre and the Aerospace Research & Development Centre, would be based in the greater Montreal region, the company announced at Aero Montreal's International Aerospace Innovation Forum 2020 on 14 December. Mission system software and hardware development, as well as integration, for the proposed Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) Gripen E would be done at the Gripen Centre. The Aerospace Research & Development Centre would focus on a variety of aerospace technologies, including automation, artificial intelligence and “greening” technologies. That work may or may not be directly related to the Gripen E. Rather, the research and development would focus on next-generation aerospace technologies more generally. Saab is also in talks with undisclosed local universities about partnerships related to the aerospace centres, it says. Saab has only about 50 people working in Canada currently, across various businesses such as maritime traffic management and army training and simulation work. However, between the two aerospace centres, the company anticipates at least 3,000 people being directly employed. The RCAF is looking to buy 88 advanced fighters to replace its fleet of Boeing CF-18 Hornets. Canada's Department of National Defence estimates acquisition of the aircraft, related equipment and entry into service will cost C$15-19 billion ($11.8-14.9 billion). A contract is scheduled to be awarded in 2022 after evaluation by the RCAF. The air force wants the first jets received as soon as 2025. The new fleet is expected to fly beyond 2060. In addition to Saab, the RCAF received bids in July from Boeing, which is offering its F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, and Lockheed Martin, which is offering F-35 Lightning II stealth fighters. Canada is also part of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter programme, spending more than $500 million on the effort since 1997, an investment that has allowed Canadian companies to secure C$1.8 billion in contracts from the project. However, Ottawa has not yet committed to buying F-35s, hence the acquisition competition. Politicians objected to F-35s in part due to the high cost of early examples of the stealth fighter. The cost of the F-35A has fallen to $77.9 million per unit, though operating costs remains high, at $35,000 hourly. Lockheed has promised to lower that figure to $25,000 hourly by 2025. For its part, Saab has proposed that Canada's IMP Aerospace & Defence would handle in-country production of the Gripen E, and provide support over the lifetime of the fleet. The company says initial aircraft would be produced in Sweden to meet Ottawa's goal of first fighter delivery in 2025. It is still evaluating how many aircraft could be made in Canada, but says it aims to “maximise” the number. The rest of the Saab Gripen for Canada team would include CAE, which is to provide training and mission systems; Peraton Canada, which is to supply avionic and test equipment, as well as component maintenance, repair and overhaul, and material management; and GE Aviation, which is set to provide and sustain the fighters' turbine engines. https://www.flightglobal.com/fixed-wing/saab-offers-two-aerospace-centres-in-gripen-e-proposal-for-canadas-future-fighter/141602.article
13 février 2023 | Local, Aérospatial

Personnel shortage challenging Air Force's plan to introduce F-35, other equipment
OTTAWA — A model F-35 sits in a place of prominence on the corner of Lt.-Gen. Eric Kenny's desk. The miniature grey aircraft is propped in the air by a plastic stand as if it is flying, and Royal Canadian Air Force markings are visible on its wings.
30 décembre 2019 | Local, Aérospatial

Canadian surveillance satellite system now operational
DAVID PUGLIESE, OTTAWA CITIZEN Canada's RADARSAT Constellation Mission is now operational and federal government departments will start receiving data from the surveillance and earth observation satellites. The RADARSAT Constellation Mission, or RCM, was launched June 12 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The constellation of three satellites will provide daily images of Canada's territory and maritime approaches, as well as images of the Arctic, up to four times a day, according to the Canadian Space Agency. It will have daily access to 90 per cent of the world's surface. The RCM is also equipped with an Automatic Identification System (AIS), allowing improved detection and tracking of ships, including those conducting illegal fishing, the CSA noted. The constellation is orbiting Earth at an altitude of 600 km. Each of the satellites has a life expectancy of seven years. The Canadian government owns the satellites. The three spacecraft were assembled in the Montreal area by the prime contractor MDA. Over a dozen federal government departments and agencies will use RCM images. It is estimated that the Canadian government will use approximately 250,000 images from the satellite constellation every year. That represents a fiftyfold increase from the days of the first RADARSAT-1 system, according to the Canadian government. The majority of the data transmitted from RCM is expected to be used by the Canadian Forces and the Department of National Defence. RCM follows the highly successful RADARSAT-1, launched by NASA in 1995, and RADARSAT-2, put into orbit by the Russians in 2007. Initial work on RCM began in 2005. The project cost an estimated $975 million. The RCM project was led by the Canadian Space Agency and supported by its principal users: the Department of National Defence, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Environment Canada, Natural Resources Canada and Public Safety Canada. https://ottawacitizen.com/news/national/defence-watch/canadian-surveillance-satellite-system-now-operational

Toutes les nouvelles