Defence in WA - The Influencer Series by ECU

On Tuesday evening I was honoured to be among a select group of contributors to a discussion on Defence in WA, arranged by Edith Cowan University and Austal and hosted at the ECU Campus in Mount Lawley.

It was a pleasure to be in a room with professionals from a variety of backgrounds who all shared a common purpose and aspiration, which was greater opportunities for West Australian industry in Defence.

Key aspects of the conversation included domestic and international supply and demand, risk appetite, Government process, the need for continued innovation, finance and investment, corporate strategy, intellectual property, legacy of investment, employment of returning service men and women, emerging opportunities, and the strength of Australian capability and innovation. This cut across the major Defence sectors of Land, Sea, Air and Cyber, where ECU retains a strong interest.

Attendees at the Dinner included representatives from ECU and Austal, Forgacs Marine and Defence, The Dichotomy Group, Hofmann Engineering, Huntington Ingalls Industries, the University of South Australia, The West Australian State Government, Azure Capital, SAAB Australia, Regional Development Australia, CCIWA, and a former Federal Defence Minister. This is in addition to Airflite and the Australian Industry Defence Network in Western Australia (AIDN-WA), whom I represented.

Thank you to the team at ECU for the invitation, and to Steve Chapman at ECU and David Singleton at Austal for Co-Chairing an excellent event.

It is encouraging for the Defence Industry in Western Australia to have so many influential voices in support of its interests.