The Parliamentary Secretary for Defence, Senator Eric Abetz, has announced the approval of three new projects totalling $7.8 million under the Defence Capability and Technology Demonstrator (CTD) Program
Two of the new projects are in rapid signal processing, enabling faster and more accurate detection and identification of military targets, and the third is in land mine detection. Industry contractors which will work with Defence on the projects include Avalon Systems Pty Ltd on rapid signal processing, and ADI Limited, Minelab Electronics Pty Ltd, and Vision Abell Pty Ltd on land mine detection.
The new projects bring the total funding allocated under the CTD Program to more than $60 million since it began in July 1998. The total of 14 CTDs approved so far includes advances in technology in surveillance, broadband communications, sonar, radar, signature recognition, and defence against biological warfare.
"The Government said in 1998 that we would launch the Capability and Technology Demonstrator, or CTD Program, to integrate leading edge technology more quickly into the Defence Force," Senator Abetz said. "The fact that we have approved project funding to a total of $7.8 million for the coming financial year reflects rigorous assessment of the quality of applications at a time of significant budgetary constraints.
"As well as improving the rate of uptake of new technology in Defence, the program is a significant boost to research and development in Australian industry. It is another step towards industry's earlier involvement in capability development.
"With 14 CTDs now under way to fast-track new technology to the Australian Defence Force, the Government is delivering on its commitments," Senator Abetz said.
The CTD Program is designed to manage the development of advanced technology, and to explore its opportunities and risks, prior to commitment to full-scale acquisition. A CTD must address an acknowledged defence capability shortfall, or offer a significant advance, in a high priority area of defence capability with a clear link to strategic policy.
Regardless of its initial state of development-whether it starts as a prototype or merely as an idea-the technology in a CTD will be sufficiently well understood to enable near-operational capability to be demonstrated within three to five years.
More than 30 Defence and industry applications were received for the latest round of CTD Program funding. Two of the three latest approved projects have significant industry involvement. One of these was solely industry-initiated.
"This latest round of CTD approvals has reinforced the need for intending industry applicants for funding to understand both Defence's capability process and the CTD Program," Senator Abetz said. "To initiate successful CTDs, a company needs an appreciation of Defence capability priorities. "This is best gained through early discussions with capability development staff in Defence."
Industry briefings in Canberra and interstate by the Department of Defence CTD Program Office are an important part of the program.
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New Contracts Totalling $7.8m HelpTo Fast-Track Defence Technology
