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South Australia-based REDARC Defence & Space has expanded its sovereign testing and compliance capabilities, upgrading its electromagnetic compatibility facilities and environmental testing infrastructure to accelerate qualification and delivery across major defence programs.
REDARC Defence & Space has strengthened its sovereign manufacturing and testing capabilities with a significant investment in advanced in-house infrastructure at its Lonsdale facility in South Australia.
The investment is designed to increase the company’s ability to conduct military-grade testing and qualification domestically, reducing reliance on external testing providers while helping accelerate development and delivery of defence and aerospace technologies.
At the centre of the upgrade is REDARC’s expanded Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC) laboratory, which has been upgraded with 75 new radio-frequency absorbers installed across three walls and the ceiling of its existing chamber.
The upgraded facility provides expanded capability for testing electronic and electromechanical systems against MIL-STD-461 requirements, including electromagnetic susceptibility testing required for operation in demanding defence environments.
The enhanced laboratory can now conduct radiated susceptibility testing to RS103 requirements at up to 50V/m across frequencies from 2MHz to 18GHz.
REDARC has also commissioned new conducted susceptibility testing capabilities covering CS101, CS115 and CS116 requirements.
The expanded testing capability will allow REDARC engineers to generate critical qualification and performance data earlier in the development cycle, potentially reducing technical risk and shortening the time required to qualify new equipment for operational use.
The investment comes as the Australian Defence Force places increasing emphasis on sovereign industrial capability, resilient supply chains and the ability of domestic manufacturers to support capability throughout the acquisition and sustainment life cycle.
For REDARC, bringing additional testing capacity in-house also allows engineering, manufacturing and compliance teams to work more closely throughout product development.
The company’s expanded capability directly supports its involvement in major Defence programs, including LAND 400 Phase 3, LAND 19 Phase 7B and the SEA 5000 Hunter Class frigate program while also supporting a growing portfolio of defence, space and advanced technology projects.
REDARC has complemented the EMC upgrade with the commissioning of an ESPEC AR Series environmental chamber, delivered in partnership with New Zealand testing specialist Halt & Hass.
The new chamber expands the company’s environmental stress screening and thermal testing capabilities for batteries and electronic systems, allowing equipment to be assessed under demanding temperature and environmental conditions.
Together, the upgrades form part of a broader investment by REDARC in quality, compliance and advanced manufacturing capability, including the company’s AS9100D-certified quality management system.
Scott Begbie, executive general manager of REDARC Defence & Space, said strengthening sovereign testing and manufacturing capability was critical to Australia’s defence industrial resilience.
“Australia’s defence capability depends on trusted sovereign industry partners with the ability to design, test, manufacture and sustain critical technologies locally.”
Begbie said the investment would increase the amount of testing, qualification and manufacturing that could be undertaken domestically.
“By continuing to invest in advanced manufacturing and testing capability, REDARC is helping ensure Defence has access to trusted Australian suppliers capable of supporting both current acquisition programs and future force modernisation initiatives.”
Dr David Murfett, defence engineering manager at REDARC Defence & Space, said the upgraded facilities would allow the company to identify and address technical issues earlier in the development process.
“By expanding our in-house testing capability, we can generate critical performance data earlier, accelerate qualification activities and reduce technical risk.
“For Defence and industry partners, that means greater confidence in product performance, compliance and qualification outcomes,” he said.
The investment highlights the growing importance of domestic test and qualification infrastructure to Australia’s sovereign defence industrial base.
By expanding the ability to design, manufacture, test and qualify defence electronics within Australia, REDARC is seeking to reduce external dependencies while improving responsiveness to Defence acquisition and sustainment requirements.
The company said the investment would support both current programs and future force modernisation initiatives, reinforcing South Australia’s growing role in Australia’s advanced defence manufacturing ecosystem.
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