POLICY STATEMENT - ENGINEERING FOR

DEFENCE

INTRODUCTION

The capability and responsiveness of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) is highly dependent on
its technological edge. Technology permeates all elements of the ADF, including its materiel,
doctrine and tactics. It enables the creation of forces that are sustainable, networked and
deployable, that are adaptable over their in-service life, and that excel at joint and coalition
operations.

However, technology itself cannot achieve this capability and responsiveness; it is the people,
knowledge, processes and systems that have shaped the development, selection, integration and
operation of technology for the ADF’s purposes.

This shaping depends on a range of expertise, particularly engineering. Engineering applies

science-based theory and practice to analyse, design and manage technology-based physical
systems and to provide the supporting infrastructure.

Australia’s defence engineering expertise resides mainly in the following organisations:

• The ADF, comprising the Armed Services - Navy, Army and Air Force.
• The capability, acquisitions, research and development, IT, communications and support/estate
areas of the Australian Defence Organisation (ADO).
• Defence industry, comprising commercial, research and tertiary institutions primarily involved in
research, development, production, adaptation and service of military equipment, military
facilities and border protection.
• The national industrial base, which comprises all elements of Australia’s industrial base
including its education and innovation systems, its public and private sectors, and its research
and tertiary Institutions.

CHALLENGES

The key challenges in maximising the contribution that engineering and the engineering team
makes to the ADF’s mission and tasks are:
• Ensuring that engineering capabilities and expertise are treated as a key input to ADF
capability
• Ensuring engineering expertise is integrated into all aspects of capability life cycles
• Ensuring trends in advanced defence technology and techniques are factored into defence
decision making
• Ensuring that advanced technology projects are managed within appropriate risk management
criteria and continuous process improvement to avoid the aversion that can arise from projects
that do not meet the original objectives
• Articulating the defence specific capabilities required of Australia’s defence industry
• Implementing approaches that advance defence industry policy strategies
• Maintaining a critical mass of engineering expertise within the ADO and defence industry
• Ensuring that skilled engineers are attracted to and retained in the ADF
• Ensuring sufficient investment is made to provide and sustain supporting infrastructure for
defence specific capabilities
• Ensuring defence materiel is safe, fit-for-purpose and environmentally compliant

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POLICY STATEMENT – ENGINEERING FOR DEFENCE

Engineers Australia believes that a sustainable engineering contribution to the ADF can only be
achieved if change is undertaken in a systematic manner. Change must encompass keeping
abreast of advances made in state-of-the-art theory, practice and technology, and must span the
ADF, the ADO, defence industry and the national industrial base.

To this end, Engineers Australia makes the following recommendations:

RECOMMENDATIONS

The Australian Government, through the Australian Defence Force and the Department of Defence
should:
• Recognise that the strength of the ADF is achieved, in significant part, by technological
capability, and that the ADF and supporting industry engineering capability is central to the
achievement and maintenance of this overall technological capability.
• Recognise that innovations in doctrine, operations, capabilities, networks, processes, systems,
support and platforms are as important as purchasing new systems, platforms, and equipment
in achieving strategic advantage.
• Work collaboratively with Engineers Australia, defence industry and broader civil industry to
identify the engineering capabilities that are required to meet ADF needs, and reflect these in
defence industry policy.
• Provide a clear statement of critical Australian industry capability requirements to support the
ADF that will guide higher education and industry on priority areas of engineering requiring
investment and professional development.
• Ensure that Defence remains an informed buyer, regulator and operator in relation to
engineered products and systems by maintaining a high level of engineering input at all levels
of management.
• Ensure that Australian defence industry input is encouraged in all acquisition activity at the
capability development stage to maximise the opportunity for Australian industry participation in
the whole-of-life process.
• Expand multi-party defence industry engineering activities to bring groups together on
collaborative projects.
• Develop a more refined process for risk management that balances risk with innovation, costs
and benefits.
• Facilitate the growth and transfer of the necessary knowledge and intellectual property to
relevant groups in Australia so that they can be granted design authority.
• Develop a personnel strategy that ensures broad engineering expertise is maintained to deliver
ADF needs, and reflect these in both defence and defence industry policy.
• Review each Service’s doctrine to ensure functions requiring engineering are appropriately
identified and defined.
• Ensure that each Service’s organisational structures, career-management, and personnel
policies are shaped to enable the engineering work force required to perform their functions to
be recruited, trained and retained;
• Promote the pivotal role of the Engineering Team in Defence, to encourage the attraction of
high level engineering skills to Defence and the retention of skilled engineers in Australian
defence industry.

Approved by National Council 24 November 2009

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