9 juillet 2018 | International, Aérospatial, Naval, Terrestre, C4ISR
By: Pierre Tran
PARIS - France seeks to shake up, speed up and closely audit its arms acquisition with a “transformation” of its procurement office, the Direction Générale de l'Armement.
In a July 5 speech, Armed Forces Minister Florence Parly pointed to the need for a deep restructuring of the DGA in response to changing threats, international relations, technology and innovation. AS part of that process, the DGA will spin up an innovation office for key programs, with a budget of €1 billion (US $1.2 billion).
Closer ties with industry will be part of the new approach, with prime contractors sitting down with the DGA and chiefs of staff to draw up a requirement – but industry must also assume responsibility and better share risk, Parly said.
“Transformation of the DGA” was the mission assigned to its director, Joël Barre, when he took up the post, Parly told the audience gathered at the defense ministry. Efficiency and responsiveness were key goals, requiring greater dialog between the DGA and the military services, rather than working in silos, she said.
There are now three phases in arms programs, half the previous number, she said. Those key stages are preparation, production and use of the equipment. The ministry seeks to simplify procedure, increase flexibility and acquire innovation, while pursuing new legal structures and financing.
While greater conversations with industry will be vital going forward, Parly pointed up that there would “balance” in the government's relations with industry. France was ready to talk to industry but the government was not ready to pay any price. There will detailed audits to ensure a right price was agreed to, Parly warned.
“The DGA is not a quartermaster's store, nor little old grandma with an open check book,” she said.
One of the major reforms for industry will be to pressure prime contractors deliver on time, with the government seeking to move to an approach used in civil aviation, where most of the payment is made on delivery. That encourages a delivery on time, rather than the present phased payment, where defense contractors have no incentive to speed up the work.
The DGA will send teams to inspect the contractors to ensure the right price was paid.
Additionally, Parly said there will be greater sharing and use of engineering information between the DGA and industry, with increased use of artificial intelligence and large databases.
Innovation agency
To help drive the new culture, DGA will set up an innovation agency, intended to be the one number to call for inquiries on innovation, and ready to take risk and speed up official backing. There is a search on for director of the agency, which will merge various existing offices including Astrid, Def'invest and Rapid. The agency will have a budget of €1 billion (US $1.2 billion) for investment.
There will be a greater cooperation between the DGA, Joint chief of staff and Chief of staff of each of the services, with teams working together in the same office area from this autumn. There are two pilot projects being considered: the Future Combat Air Systems, which will also consider the potential for cooperation with Germany and other European countries, and a maritime surveillance system.
There is a search for greater speed by merging the operational requirements set by the services with the technical needs drafted by the DGA. The forces and DGA will, with a prime contractor, draw up a single document setting out requirement. This combined approach will be tested on a new internal communications system for the ministry.
The DGA will seek greater flexibility in its staff management as the office relies on technical staff, which are in strong demand in the job market. That includes sending its employees to work temporarily in companies to learn best practice and boost cooperation between the ministry and industry.
The DGA manages an average annual budget of €11 billion for some 100 arms programs, employs 9,600 staff, of which 56 percent are engineers and executives. The office has a major role in managing export deals.
Parly, in her opening remarks, quoted former U.S. President John F. Kennedy in his 1960 acceptance speech of the Democrats' nomination for the presidential campaign: “We stand today on the edge of a New Frontier--the frontier of the 1960′s--a frontier of unknown opportunities and perils-- a frontier of unfulfilled hopes and threats.”
The DGA was formed just a few months before the presidential candidate delivered his speech at the Democratic National Convention at the Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles.
7 octobre 2021 | International, Aérospatial
The agency is using bailment agreements and other contracting tools to test out commercial services before committing to them, allowing it to evaluate and integrate those services faster.
6 août 2020 | International, Aérospatial
by Jon Grevatt Saab has reaffirmed its intention to offer its GlobalEye platform for South Korea's recently announced programme to acquire additional airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft for the Republic of Korea Air Force (RoKAF). Saab told Janes that it expects the procurement to feature an initial two aircraft acquired through either an open tender or a direct acquisition. South Korea's Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) is expected to confirm the procurement method later this year. A Saab spokesperson said that the company's offer will also include “both technology and collaboration projects” that match South Korea's future aerospace requirements and involve “multiple stakeholders from the military, government, industry, and other partners”. While detail on these projects will be expanded as the programme enters future phases, the spokesperson said Saab has already developed “clear principles and ideas for collaboration” as well as highlighted its own capabilities to local stakeholders, and “gathered information on Korean industry”. The spokesperson said, “Korea is a country with a highly skilled and developed industry opening several interesting areas for co-operation which we hope to explore further in the coming stages of the programme.” Although not confirmed by the company, this is likely to draw on Saab's existing industry ties in the country, which include strong links with LIG Nex1, one of South Korea's leading military electronics and missile manufacturers. Saab and LIG Nex1 have previously collaborated on supplying the Swedish group's Arthur Weapon Locating System to the Republic of Korea Armed Forces and on developing radar technologies. https://www.janes.com/defence-news/news-detail/saab-prepares-globaleye-bid-for-south-korea
16 avril 2020 | International, Naval
April 14, 2020 - CACI International Inc (NYSE: CACI) announced today that it has been awarded a single-award task order for one base-year and four option-years, with a ceiling value of more than $83 million, by the U.S. Navy to provide engineering, technical, and planning expertise to the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine. Under the task order, which the Navy awarded under its SeaPort-NxG contract vehicle, CACI engineers and technicians will provide expanded mission expertise, including planning maintenance and repair for submarines by assisting the Ships Availability Planning and Engineering Center (SHAPEC) and Deep Submergence Systems Program (DSSP). The task order is CACI's first award under the SeaPort-NxG vehicle. CACI technical expertise across submarine engineering disciplines, such as structural, mechanical, electrical, and combat systems, will help the Navy to safely return submarines to the fleet as quickly as possible. For example, CACI has developed the Shipyard Planning Engineering Automated Reports (SPEAR), the software tool SHAPEC uses to more effectively conduct its planning. John Mengucci, CACI President and Chief Executive Officer, said, “CACI engineers and technicians help Navy shipyards overcome hurdles in their maintenance and repair efforts with expertise earned through long-standing support of the mission. CACI stands ready to support the Navy shipyards in any way they may need, including by providing acquisition and engineering support.” CACI Executive Chairman and Chairman of the Board Dr. J.P. (Jack) London, said, “CACI is proud to play a critical role in helping the Navy maintain its submarine fleet and continue to project power around the world.” CACI's 23,000 talented employees are vigilant in providing the unique expertise and distinctive technology that address our customers' greatest enterprise and mission challenges. Our culture of good character, innovation, and excellence drives our success and earns us recognition as a Fortune World's Most Admired Company. As a member of the Fortune 1000 Largest Companies, the Russell 1000 Index, and the S&P MidCap 400 Index, we consistently deliver strong shareholder value. Visit us at www.caci.com. There are statements made herein which do not address historical facts, and therefore could be interpreted to be forward-looking statements as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements are subject to factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from anticipated results. The factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated include, but are not limited to, the risk factors set forth in CACI's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2019, and other such filings that CACI makes with the Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time. Any forward-looking statements should not be unduly relied upon and only speak as of the date hereof. CACI-Contract Award View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200414005058/en/