2 mars 2020 | Local, Naval

Government checks another box on the long, long road to building a Polar icebreaker

David Pugliese, Ottawa Citizen

The federal government is requesting information from industry on which shipyard has the capability to build the Canadian Coast Guard's new Polar Class icebreaker.

It's a strange request in some respects. Last year the Liberal government took away the Polar Class icebreaker project from Seaspan shipyards on the west coast and instead provided that company with a deal that will see it build 16 new Multi-Purpose Vessels for the Canadian Coast Guard.

Irving on the east coast is running at full speed handling the combat ship portions of the National Shipbuilding Strategy. It has already fallen behind on the delivery of the first of the Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ships and it still has much work to do on the Canadian Surface Combatant program.

It was expected that Davie, the largest shipyard in Canada, would receive the contract to build the Polar Class icebreaker. Yet the news release issued Friday from Public Services and Procurement Canada noted that, “the Government of Canada issued a Request for Information (RFI), open to all Canadian shipyards, seeking information on domestic shipyard capability and capacity to construct and deliver a Polar-class icebreaker. This follows standard procurement practices, and the information gathered will help the government determine how best to proceed so that the polar icebreaker is delivered in the most timely and efficient manner.”

Companies, however, only have two weeks to respond to the request for information.

The whole exercise has the feel of a government checking the boxes off before awarding the contract to Davie. Or it could be a measure to head off any legal challenge from other shipyards who would complain that a “fair, open and transparent” competition was not run.

Cecely Roy, press secretary to Procurement Minister Anita Anand, said in an email to this newspaper that as “a significant amount of time has passed since the last commissioned studies on the capacity of domestic shipyards, this RFI was initiated to provide updated information to inform the government's decisions on the procurement process moving forward.”

The polar icebreaker, the future Canadian Coast Guard Ship (CCGS) John G. Diefenbaker, will replace Canada's current largest icebreaker, the CCGS Louis S. St-Laurent. The current fleet of heavy icebreakers, including the CCGS Louis S. St-Laurent, remain in good condition and will be in operation until the polar icebreaker is delivered, according to the federal government.

The Polar Class project was announced by the Conservative government in 2008 and has faced delays ever since. The ship had been expected to be in service in 2017. That date changed to 2021. Now there is no known date for the vessel to be operating. “The delivery date for the polar icebreaker will be identified as the project gets underway,” the federal government added in its news release.

“At this stage, we are exploring options to ensure the Polar Icebreaker is built in the most efficient manner to meet the needs of the Coast Guard, but a decision was not been made on the contract award, nor will this RFI result in that decision,” Roy said in an email to this newspaper.

https://www.thechronicleherald.ca/news/canada/government-checks-another-box-on-the-long-long-road-to-building-a-polar-icebreaker-417217/

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  • Enjeux de l’aéronautique et de la défense dans le monde: la vision d’Accenture

    17 juin 2019 | Local, Aérospatial

    Enjeux de l’aéronautique et de la défense dans le monde: la vision d’Accenture

    POSTED BY: AEROMORNING « Accelerating through digital turbulence », tel est le titre de l'étude menée par Accenture en 2017, et Jean-Louis Rassineux, directeur exécutif, nous fait partager la vision de sur les enjeux de l'aéronautique et de la défense dans le monde. « Le secteur aéronautique et spatial a connu une croissance extrêmement forte jusqu'en 2014, date où l'on annonçait des prises de commandes record dans les salons, et Accenture souligne une baisse de 50% qui se fait sentir depuis 3 ans au niveau mondial » affirme Jean-Louis Rassineux. L'un des défis majeurs de cette industrie consiste à accroître efficacité et croissance dans un secteur qui évolue lentement avec une baisse des commandes de nouveaux appareils en Europe et en Amérique du Nord, mais aussi avec des climats instables, des risques géopolitiques, et l'aggravation des conditions économiques dans certains pays. L'accroissement des cadences chez les avionneurs pèse aussi sur la production qui doit se réinventer pour être plus compétitive. Au niveau du marché de la défense, Accenture évoque de nouvelles perspectives de croissance avec un budget monde estimé à 400 Milliards de dollars, en augmentation faible sur 5 ans. Toutefois une forte croissance sur ce marché défense est liée aux risques, avec une part croissante sur les drones, une tendance de fond qui se confirme. Bien que le contexte d'évolution soit lent, la défense se porte bien et progresse. En croissance depuis deux ans gr'ce aux succès importants qui se sont succédés, et notamment en France avec le Rafale par exemple, l'enjeu aujourd'hui pour la défense est aussi de remplir les accords de contrepartie qui vont avec les ventes et d'arriver à avoir une chaîne de production qui permette de donner un équilibre à ces contrats, de gérer les questions de compétences dans le pays. L'avènement de la transformation numérique, la clé pour affronter tous les enjeux: Accenture analyse l'avènement de la transformation numérique du secteur aéronautique et spatial comme une tendance lourde pour faire face aux nouveaux enjeux. L'une des clés pour la croissance est d'utiliser des technologies d'analyse de données afin d'améliorer les opérations, la chaîne d'approvisionnement et l'intégration de systèmes afin de proposer des services plus attractifs pour leurs clients. Autre tendance lourde observée, le développement des services. L'aspect service digital est devenu un des leviers de croissance. Pour illustrer cette transformation numérique, dans son enquête menée en 2017, pour 68% des entreprises de l'aéronautique et du spatial des sommes considérables ont été investies dans les technologies du numérique, aussi bien pour l'externe que pour l'interne qu'il s'agisse de fabrication additive, de machine learning, d'applications intelligentes, de réalité augmentée. Déjà à la pointe du mumérique depuis la conception du B777 ou de l'Airbus A350 conçu à l'origine entièrement en CAO sur les logiciels de Dassault Systèmes, les entreprises du secteur Aérospatial et défense vont encore plus loin. Au-delà de cette première étape de transformation numérique l'enjeu majeur est d'appliquer cette transformation numérique déjà initiée sur toute la chaîne de valeur, à partir d'objets connectés. Pour citer un exemple, Accenture et Airbus ont collaboré en « mode start-up » pour développer une application « wearable » de pointe dédiée au secteur de l'aérospatial et de la défense : des lunettes intelligentes qui permettent d'améliorer la précision et de réduire la complexité des procédés d'aménagement des cabines, en réduisant notamment le temps nécessaire pour le marquage des sièges en moins d'un mois.. Opérant à partir d'Instructions contextuelles à propos du marquage, les lunettes connectées affichent toutes les informations nécessaires pour aider l'opérateur à marquer le sol plus rapidement et à éliminer tout risque d'erreur. Cette technologie implémentée par Accenture permet une grande interactivité en offrant un accès à diverses fonctions telles que la lecture de codes à barres, la récupération des données dans le cloud, la commande vocale et la réalité augmentée. Gr'ce à cette innovation technologique, les emplacements des sièges peuvent être marqués au millimètre près, permettant ainsi de vérifier leur précision et leur qualité dans tous les avions. De multiples applications digitales de réalité virtuelle sont ainsi portées sur l'industrialisation, sur le développement du produit. L'enjeu, et on assiste à énormément d'essais, c'est de passer du POC, du pilote, à l'industrialisation en série. C'est en ce sens qu'Accenture développe la stratégie digitale en interne à travers toutes ces opérations de production, de support (finance, RH, achats) et assiste ses clients dans la bonne utilisation du digital de la meilleure façon. Il y a eu beaucoup d'apports à l'industrie gr'ce à la réalité augmentée, avec d'heureux effets sur l'emploi, car elle aide l'aéronautique à avoir une meilleure image, moins ancienne et traditionnelle, apporte un facteur d'attractivité sur les aspects formation, en privilégiant l'interactivité plutôt que les « slides » froids et muets. En somme, selon Accenture, tout l'enjeu est d'arriver à trouver les bons leviers pour permettre en interne d'être compétitif, en externe, d'offrir les meilleurs produits et services. Et le big data dans tout ça ? Dans un avion, on a 1 teraoctet (mille milliard d'octets) de données sur un vol, ce qui équivaut à environ 200 vidéodisques numériques et le traitement des données peut devenir clé pour la maintenance prédictive aéronautique. Le grand enjeu est de savoir comment utiliser ces données en vol, et au sol sans s'y perdre et d'en sortir de la valeur ajoutée en matière de conception, de maintenance, de services et de coûts. Par exemple, imaginer des avions performants qui s'échangent les données de vol, ou tout un tas d'applications qui permettent en temps réel de saisir des trajectoires, d'utiliser des données, d'optimiser des routes, d'économiser du gazoil, etc.... Le data lake est né, pour stocker et restituer de façon intéressante et innovante les données en vue de plus de compétitivité. L'intelligence artificielle améliore les Fonctions du support, offre de nouvelles possibilités en matière financière ou en matière de ressources humaines Big data, et mise en place d'applis intelligentes (machine learning), permettent d'envisager l'intelligence artificielle dans l'industrie aéronautique et de doper la croissance. l'innovation, les universités et les startups : Les entreprises aéronautiques ont compris cette nécessité de se remettre en question. L'innovation est aujourd'hui un levier incontestable et c'est pourquoi en 2017 la connection avec les startups et les universités est devenue centrale dans les stratégies de ces dernières, qui de plus en plus nouent des partenariats pour être à la pointe de la meilleure bonne idée, pour créer les meilleurs produits et services, et puisqu'on est souvent en phase de proof en concept, pour réduire les coûts au cas où le POC ne dépasserait pas la phase pilote. Autant pour la recherche que pour le financement, les alliances réduisent les coûts, agrègent des compétences, et en s'allliant avec des petites startups, les grandes entreprises créent de cette façon un réseau d'intelligence. La solution est de se rapprocher de l'écosystème de l'innovation et de travailler collaborativement. Accenture, acteur du digital, apporte de nombreuses solutions gr'ce à son expertise, à sa philosophie, et non moins important son sens de la responsabilité sociétale, n' oubliant jamais l'humain au centre de ces évolutions. Elle remporte ainsi de nombreux succès, fait d'ailleurs partie des grands partenaires du Gifas depuis plus de 10 ans, est aussi partenaire des plus grands salons mondiaux tels Le Salon du Bourget ou celui de Farnborough. « On vit une période fabuleuse d'opportunités, et Accenture, au cœur de cette révolution est passé de consultant à acteur, partenaire industriel du marché de l'aéronautique et de la défense. Nadia Didelot pour AeroMorning http://www.aeromorning.com/blog/enjeux-de-laeronautique-de-defense-monde-vision-daccenture/

  • Canadian Navy : The Canadian Surface Combatant – More than Just a Ship

    19 octobre 2020 | Local, Naval, C4ISR

    Canadian Navy : The Canadian Surface Combatant – More than Just a Ship

    More than Just a Ship With the release of Canada's defence policy Strong, Secure, Engaged in 2017, the Government of Canada signaled its commitment to renewing the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) fleet. As part of an effort to deliver a Blue Water Navy built around the ability to sustain two naval task groups of up to four combatants and a joint support ship, supplemented when warranted by a submarine and maritime air assets, the government committed to the acquisition of 15 Canadian Surface Combatants (CSC). The effort to procure these vessels represents the centrepiece of the National Shipbuilding Strategy - the largest procurement in Canadian history - and certainly one of its most complex, spanning over three decades Lockheed Martin Canada, the successful bidder in a lengthy but fair, open and transparent bid process, proposed a CSC concept design based on the United Kingdom's (UK) Type-26 Global Combat Ship, currently under construction. With this selection, Canada joins the UK and Australia who are leveraging the Type-26 Global Combat Ship design into their future fleets. The CSC is Canada's next generation warship, which will eventually replace both the recently retired Iroquois-class and today's modernized Halifax-class. Capabilities from both classes will be modernized and future-proofed to ensure not only that systems stay relevant for years to come, but more importantly that tomorrow's sailors have the equipment they need when sent into harm's way. It forms part of a broad vision of defence capabilities that will serve Canada's defence interests well into the latter half of the century. A Warship at its Core At its core, the CSC is being designed to be combat capable through the marriage of high-tech equipment and highly trained RCN sailors - able to conduct air, surface, sub-surface and information warfare missions simultaneously. The crews will be trained and organized to be capable of conducting warfare operations 24/7 and to both fight the ship and respond to any damage sustained simultaneously. Survivability, a key principle that shaped CSC requirements from the outset, refers to the ability to protect the crew onboard, maintain combat effectiveness under fire, and bring our sailors home safely on completion of the mission. This principle is reflected in ship requirements that include the military design standards for critical shipboard systems, levels of protection from blast and fragmentation, reduced signatures, a battle damage control system and, of course, the full suite of sensors and weapons the ship carries to defeat threats. The Operational Capability of CSC, or its ability to deliver credible and relevant effect, was also top of mind to ensure that the ship could deliver on the mission set outlined in Canada's defence policy Strong, Secure, Engaged. The design and capability fit aims to deliver a highly versatile ship that is multi-role in nature, and that affords the greatest range of capability. This outcome translates directly into agility and responsiveness for the RCN, including re-rolling a deployed ship from one mission to another, without returning to port. The ship will be able to a perform a broad range of missions with North American Aerospace Defence Command (NORAD), 5-Eyes nations, NATO, coalition partners, and here in Canada with other government departments and agencies. CSC will have decisive combat power for operations at sea, and in support of joint-force operations ashore. The versatility of the design will also ensure the RCN is well enabled to support missions for counter-piracy, counter-terrorism, intelligence and surveillance, interdiction and embargo operations, as well as provide support for humanitarian assistance, Search and Rescue, and law/sovereignty enforcement. The ship's capability suite includes: Four integrated management systems, once each for the combat system, platform systems, bridge and navigation systems and its cyber-defence system A digital beam forming Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar and solid state illuminator capability The USN Cooperative Engagement Capability sensor netting system A vertically launched missile system supporting long, short and close-in missile defence, long-range precision naval fires support and anti-ship engagements A 127mm main gun system and dual 30mm gun mounts A complete Electronic Warfare and countermeasures suite A fully integrated underwater warfare system with bow mounted sonar, towed low frequency active and passive sonar, lightweight torpedoes and decoys Fully integrated communications, networking and data link capabilities CH-148 Cyclone multi-role helicopter, multi-role boats and facilities for embarking remotely piloted systems. A Node in a System of Systems More broadly speaking, the CSC will also serve as a node in a broader system of systems, all of which are geared to ensuring that Canada is strong at home, secure in North America and engaged in the world. This system includes space-based assets, intelligence networks, advanced Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) collection platforms, and shore-based command and control facilities. As part of this approach, the RCN will also take interoperability to the next level, enabling systems integration both with other Canadian Armed Forces capabilities and our closest allies. Designed with a communications and information systems architecture that will enable it to share significant amounts of data, it will contribute to a modernized North American Aerospace Defence Command (NORAD), and better enable the RCN to leverage and support its closest allies on operations abroad. With its sensor-netting capability, which is also employed in the United States and Royal Australian navies, the CSC will have a significantly greater ability to defend itself against highly sophisticated threats. Finally, the ship will be digitally integrated with the RCN/CAF/DND enterprise ashore, in keeping with the RCN's Digital Navy strategy. It is being carefully designed from the outset with digital requirements in mind, with a view to leveraging new technologies in maintenance and materiel management, supply chain management, logistics, training, operational support, as well as operations. A Workplace and Home for Tomorrow's Sailors Ships are only as good as the sailors who sail them and going to sea has always involved some level of hardship, whether from the effects of the sea, the lack of privacy or simply the separation from family and loved ones. In keeping with an intent to ensure the Navy affords a safe, welcoming and inclusive workplace to all its members, the RCN is looking at the hardships of going to sea and aiming to lighten them in the CSC. Over the past several months a small team, comprised mostly of junior-level sailors, looked at the CSC design through a habitability lens and provided advice on those areas that sailors felt were most important to them. The team surveyed close to 3,000 members of the RCN and looked at everything from privacy, personal storage, sleeping quarters, mixed messing, mess occupancy, heads and wash-places, laundry facilities, digital connectivity, fitness facilities, recreation lounges and dining. The three most significant priorities highlighted were in the areas of privacy, the ability to digitally connect with families ashore and improved fitness facilities. The RCN is now working to see how this feedback might be incorporated into the design of CSC, to produce a ship that can better accommodate tomorrow's sailors and ensure that we remain committed to People First, Mission Always. A Significant Opportunity for Canadian Industry What lies ahead for a world-class industry team, led by Irving Shipbuilding Incorporated, Lockheed Martin Canada and BAE Systems, truly represents an immense opportunity. It all begins with ensuring the best equipment and right level of integration to enable and protect sailors in the future, so they can deliver on their mission. Next is the opportunity that comes within each line of effort related to the overall program: naval design, systems integration, shipbuilding, training development, and shore-based infrastructure. In each area, industry partners have a chance to adapt world-leading best practices, introduce new innovative approaches in their respective areas and leverage the best in modern technologies to make value-chain improvements. For example, the RCN is already involved with the CSC industry team in using a model-based systems engineering approach that will establish the foundation for the eventual creation of a digital twin of the ship, as well as a baseline digital thread that will facilitate the Navy's ability to capitalize on a variety of digital technologies in the future. The last area of opportunity lies in capitalizing on the benefits that come with three nations all building a surface combatant using the same baseline design. Examples include pursuing supply chain economies of scale, cooperating on design and engineering packages, sharing lessons learned in design and build practices, and collaborating on the development of training products. These areas of opportunity were spurred by Canada's National Shipbuilding Strategy, which aims to not only deliver Canada's Navy and Coast Guard the ships they need, but also to create a sustainable marine sector in Canada, and contribute economic benefits and highly skilled jobs to Canada's economy. Conclusion The CSC is more than just a ship - it represents a national endeavour to safeguard Canada's defence needs. It is being designed from the keel up to be multi-purpose in its capabilities, affording Canada the ability to deploy it across a broad spectrum of mission sets, and agility to adapt to a new mission, in hours not days or weeks. It is a significant component in a much broader system of systems, where interoperability is being elevated to integration, and digital technologies and data are leveraged as capabilities. It offers a floating environment that balances hard steel and high tech against the habitability needs and desires of today's young sailors - a home away from home. And finally, it offers a tremendous opportunity for Canadian industry to take on a complex challenge and deliver in a world-class and innovative way. The Canadian Surface Combatant - the right ship for the RCN and Canada. https://www.marketscreener.com/news/latest/Canadian-Navy-The-Canadian-Surface-Combatant-ndash-More-than-Just-a-Ship--31556116/

  • Ottawa releases draft tender on purchase of new fighter jets

    30 octobre 2018 | Local, Aérospatial

    Ottawa releases draft tender on purchase of new fighter jets

    Murray Brewster · CBC News It's the first sign of movement on the file since the competition was launched almost a year ago The effort to replace the air force's aging fleet of CF-18 fighters took a small step forward Monday when Public Services and Procurement Canada released a draft tender and asked for feedback from the makers of new jets. There are five companies in the running: France's Dassault Aviation; Saab of Sweden; Airbus Defence and Space out of Britain; and Boeing and Lockheed Martin in the U.S. The manufacturers will have about eight weeks to comment on various aspects of the proposed tender before the government finalizes the document. A full-fledged request for proposals is not expected to be released until the new year. The department said input from the manufacturers "is critical to the overall success of this procurement and for selecting the right fighter aircraft to meet Canada's needs." A slow process It has been almost a year since Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan formally "launched" competition to replace the CF-18s, which were originally purchased in the 1980s but have received significant upgrades in the decades since. At the same time, Sajjan also announced the federal government would buy used Australian F-18s of the same vintage as Canada's current fighter fleet. That purchase is meant to serve as a stopgap to ensure the air force can meet its NATO and NORAD commitments at the same time. The Liberal government is looking to buy 88 new jets, but the first ones aren't likely to arrive until the mid-2020s. The competition among manufacturers for Canada's business is expected to be fierce. Lockheed Martin will pitch its F-35 stealth fighter, which the former Conservative government was prepared to buy until the auditor general criticized both Public Works and National Defence in 2012. The AG said, among other things, that the departments had not done enough homework to justify the multi-billion-dollar purchase. Boeing is in line to offer the Super Hornet — a larger, more advanced version of the F-18 — but the Chicago, IL.-based company and the Liberal government traded blows last year in a dispute over passenger jets and Bombardier. The Liberals initially had planned to buy Super Hornets as a stopgap instead of the Australian fighters, but cancelled the purchase because of the dispute. Advantage: Europe? Airbus plans to offer its Eurofighter Typhoon. Saab will pitch the latest version of its Gripen, while Dassault has the Rafale. The European aircraft-makers all privately expressed optimism about the competition last spring at an Ottawa defence industry trade show. For years, Canada has been seen as favouring U.S. manufacturers because of what the military called "interoperability issues." But recent trade disputes and political tensions between Ottawa and Washington have given contractors outside of North America a morale boost. https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/ottawa-releases-draft-tender-on-purchase-of-new-fighter-jets-1.4882570

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