Australia has tapped several companies to join the Global Supply Chain program, expanding its membership to 13 participants in line with the Defence Industry Development Strategy.
The participating companies, known as primes, are:
- Babcock
- BAE Systems
- Boeing
- HII
- Kongsberg
- L3Harris
- Lockheed Martin
- Moog
- Northrop Grumman
- Raytheon
- Rheinmetall
- Saab, and
- Thales.
Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy said the decision to expand the program is part of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s commitment to supporting local businesses and creating new jobs.
Commenting on his company’s inclusion in the initiative, John Fry, managing director at Kongsberg Defence Australia, said the firm is delighted to be named as a prime helping Australia identify export opportunities and produce innovative defense products for the global supply chain.
The Albanese government established the GSC Program to help Australian companies build their presence in the international supply chain, supporting efforts to diversify revenue and build resilience.
Conroy said participating businesses should expect growth in “opportunities to integrate into the international supply chains of the GSC Program partners.”
Apart from increasing the number of participating companies, the GSC Program also revised its performance framework. Among the new inclusions is an effort to accelerate the government’s discovery of Australian innovation in the early development cycle.