12 mai 2020 | International, C4ISR, Sécurité
By: The Associated Press
NEW YORK — Intel and a Taiwanese company are talking to the Trump administration about building new semiconductor plants in the United States amid concern about relying on suppliers in Asia for chips used in a wide variety of electronics.
A spokesman for Intel, the biggest American chip maker, said Sunday that the company is in discussions with the U.S. Defense Department about improving domestic technology sources.
Spokesman William Moss said Santa Clara, California-based Intel is well-positioned to work with the government “to operate a U.S.-owned commercial foundry.”
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. is open to building a plant outside of Taiwan and has talked with the Commerce Department, a spokeswoman said.
“We are actively evaluating all the suitable locations, including in the U.S., but there is no concrete plan yet,” said the TSMC spokeswoman, Nina Kao.
The discussions were first reported by The Wall Street Journal, which said TSMC is also talking with Apple Inc., one of its biggest customers, about building a plant in the U.S.
The newspaper said the coronavirus pandemic has heightened worries about global supply chains, and that U.S. officials are particularly concerned about the growing reliance on Taiwan, the self-ruled island that is claimed by China.
Intel CEO Bob Swan said in a letter last month to two Pentagon officials that strengthening U.S. production “is more important than ever, given the uncertainty created by the current geopolitical environment.” He said it would be in the best interests of the United States and Intel to explore how the company could build a plant.
Concern about relying so heavily on chips from Taiwan, South Korea and China started even before the coronavirus outbreak.
The Pentagon and the Government Accountability Office issued reports on the matter last year. The GAO said that when U.S. companies shift operations overseas it can mean lower prices for components and technology used in weapons systems. However, having global sources “can also make it harder for [the Pentagon] to get what it needs if, for example, other countries cut off U.S. access to critical supplies,” the GAO said in a report last September.
22 août 2023 | International, Naval
Navantia Australia’s Managing Director, Mr Israel Lozano, said that the engagement as Platform Systems Designer is a major achievement for the company and will drive significant growth.
6 mars 2020 | International, Aérospatial
By: Nathan Strout The newly establish United States Space Force is expected to deliver a report outlining its acquisition plans to Congress by the end of the month, but in a series of hearings this week lawmakers got a first look at how Space Force leadership is approaching the problem. One of the primary issues the Space Force faces in organizing its acquisitions is the relationship between the three main space acquisitions entities: the Space and Missile Systems Center, the Space Development Agency and the Space Rapid Capabilities Office. SMC is the largest of the three and has been responsible for most Air Force space acquisitions, while the other two organizations were established in the last two years to address specific capability gaps. Legislation passed by Congress called for creation of a position in fiscal year 2022 to oversee the three organizations, but it did little to clarify their roles or relationships, leading to some concerns of redundancy. The Space Force seems set to follow that model. Space Force Vice Commander Lt. Gen. David Thompson reportedly stated that the three entities would be put under the jurisdiction of a new Space Systems Command, although they will continue to be three separate organizations. When asked about this proposal at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing March 3, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein assured lawmakers the Space RCO would remain independent, as Congress intended. “While there will be a lot of discussions about (administration) and bureaucracy, our job is to deliver capability and to deliver it fast—at the speed of relevance—because that's exactly what the threat companies are doing,” said Goldfein. “Space RCO (...) needs to stay independent, and it needs to be able to move fast without a lot of lines and boxes that all get a chance to vote on what they're doing.” In a separate hearing before the House Appropriations Committee Subcommittee on Defense March 4, Thompson emphasized that leaders were already working to ensure the three organizations were on the same page. “We have already begun the process even before the Space Force was established (...) of working between the SMC, the SDA, the Space RCO (...) and others to ensure that their acquisition processes are synchronized, complementary and not duplicative in many senses,” Thompson said. Thompson also briefly outlined the expected roles of the three organizations. SMC will continue to develop and acquire those unique capabilities the military has depended on for decades, including protected communications, missile warning and GPS, he explained, while the Space RCO, which was established two years ago, will continue to rapidly develop and prototype new capabilities. Finally, the SDA's focus will be on leveraging commercial technologies, especially when it comes to utilizing proliferated constellations in low earth orbit. “Consolidating them under a specific acquisition organization will further integrate their activities and ensure they are not duplicative, but make sure they create one, single space architecture,” said Thompson. “Right now our focus is in driving an agile and rapid response for all of them as they continue to develop space capabilities for the mission.” More details on the Space Force's plans will be delivered in a report to Congress by the end of the month. Space Force Chief of Space Operations Gen. John Raymond said he expects to see a draft of the Space Force's acquisitions plan next week. https://www.c4isrnet.com/battlefield-tech/space/2020/03/04/details-emerge-on-space-forces-acquisitions-plans/
29 avril 2020 | International, Terrestre
PAR LAURENT LAGNEAU Comme ils le firent quelques semaines plus tôt pour le Système de combat aérien du futur [SCAF], les députés de la commission du budget de la Chambre basse du Parlement allemand [Bundestag], débloquèrent l'enveloppe nécessaire au financement de l'étude de définition de l'architecture du Main Ground Combat System [MGCS], c'est à dire le futur char de combat franco-allemand. Il ne restait plus qu'à attendre la signature des accords permettant d'aller de l'avant dans cette affaire, sachant que la pandémie de Covid-19 n'allait pas faciliter les choses. Finalement, ce 28 avril, si elle n'ont pu se réunir physiquement, la ministre des Armées, Florence Parly, et son homologue allemande, Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, ont signé l'accord-cadre définissant l'organisation du projet ainsi que les structures chargées de le gérer. En outre, un autre accord de mise en œuvre [Implementing Arrangement 1], qui constitue la base de la commande d'une étude de définition de l'architecture du MGCS d'une durée de deux ans, a également été signé par les deux ministres. Cette annonce en a été faite par le ministère allemand de la Défense, celui des Armées, en France, ne s'étant pas encore exprimé. Pour rappel, la maîtrise d'ouvrage du MGCS doit revenir à l'Office fédéral des équipements, des technologies de l'information et du soutien en service de la Bundeswehr [BAAINBw] tandis que celle du SCAF a été confiée à la Direction générale de l'armement [DGA]. « L'architecture du système est une condition préalable au développement d'un démonstrateur technologique avec lequel les exigences allemandes et françaises pour MGCS pourront être vérifiées », rappelle le ministère allemand de la Défense, pour qui « l'Allemagne et la France envoient un signal important pour la coopération européenne en matière de défense » avec ce projet. v http://www.opex360.com/2020/04/28/les-premiers-accords-sur-le-char-de-combat-du-futur-ont-ete-signes-par-la-france-et-lallemagne/