ARM Hub pitches Defence Technology Accelerator program

The Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing Hub is seeking $12 million in funding to establish a pilot Defence Technology Accelerator program, which it says could address “key gaps in the defence manufacturing ecosystem”.

In a statement on Wednesday morning, coinciding with day two of the Land Forces 2022 expo, ARM Hub CEO Dr Cori Stewart said that the manufacturing industry and its SMEs were rich in ideas, but faced hurdles in engaging with Defence. 

There was currently no access to enable emerging defence technology solution providers “to develop, demonstrate, and scale-up delivery” said Stewart.

“There is an urgent need to harness the power of technology to support Australia’s defence capability to be better protected, mobile, and connected,” she added.

“It’s not a silver bullet, but it does address some major inhibitors for Australian SME to participate in the Defence Industry.  

“It will make the Defence Supply environment significantly less hostile to Australian SMEs and start-ups; increase sovereign manufacturing capability and Australian industry content; while also boosting capability overmatch.”

Griffith Defence Network’s Professor Adam Findlay, Major General (Retired), backed the initiative in a statement, saying that it would, “greatly increase ​the rate of ​​technology ​adoption, and support the build-up of sovereign resilience, through actively promoting the uptake ​of world-leading Australian Industry Content ​into Defence.​”

Stewart raised the need for such an accelerator in episode 15 of the @AuManufacturing Conversations podcast, published on September 10. (See here.) Her comments begin at 32:30.

ARM Hub will detail their accelerator proposal at 1130 this morning (Brisbane time) at the Land Forces event at the Brisbane Conference and Exhibition Centre, at Hub 2, Rear of Hall 4.

Picture: supplied