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Minister for Defence Industry Melissa Price and Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister and Cabinet Ben Morton have officially opened Innovaero Technologies’ new modern manufacturing premises at Kardinya, Western Australia.
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With the opening of this facility, Innovaero confirmed their official entrance into the Australian defence industry, with the launch of its purpose-built Defence sovereign manufacturing facility and the unveiling of their 100 per cent Australian-made maritime unmanned aerial system (MUAS), the Innovaero Fox.
The new manufacturing premises was specifically designed to facilitate the production of Fox, which is the culmination of over two years of privately funded research, development and innovation.
The opening of Innovaero’s new modern manufacturing premises with its state-of-the-art workshop equipment and security initiatives heralds a new era for sovereign maritime and land surveillance capabilities through Innovaero’s CASA-certified, multi-award winning and world-leading aerial platforms and sensors.
Australian defence industry export advocate David Johnston welcomed Innovaero’s official arrival into the Australian defence industry, saying, "Innovaero is an outstanding Australian innovation and export success story and we welcome their entry into our dynamic and globally renowned industry with their sovereign industrial and manufacturing capability."
Located on both the west and east coast of Australia, the Innovaero team provides end-to-end sovereign industrial capability including product design, certification, manufacturing, as well as systems integration and support services.
These globally proven sovereign capabilities will enhance the Australian Defence Force’s national maritime domain capability, training system development, Combat Management System integration and payload development.
Innovaero’s innovative designs, ground-breaking technologies and multidisciplinary expertise have established a unique place in the field of aerial imagery with technical partnerships that have a proven track record of delivering world-class outcomes for clients in Australia and the US.
Mike von Bertouch, managing director of Innovaero, said, "In addition to our ongoing export sales to the United States, the Innovaero Technologies group of companies has proudly delivered a range of innovative sovereign capabilities for Australia’s Special Operation Command (SOCOM) on both the west and east coasts of Australia. We are proud to now offer the ADF both sovereign innovative design and industrial manufacturing capability in our new premises."
Identifying a sovereign capability gap, Innovaero Fox has been purpose-built in response to the Navy’s call for a new generation of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) and targeting capability for Royal Australian Navy ships. The 100 per cent Australian-owned, designed and developed Fox will be officially launched at the Avalon Airshow between 23 and 28 November 2021.
Innovaero is looking at a much broader market than just Australia, with significant export opportunity for the next-generation low-observable Fox platform. Innovaero’s work has been nationally recognised by Aerospace Australia at Avalon 2019 and Engineers Australia on multiple occasions. The company's multiple CASA approvals will soon be complemented by their AS9100 and Defence Industry Security Program (DISP) certifications, which are in the final stages of completion.
"Innovaero’s Australian supply chain and commitment to securing local regional jobs is to be commended. We are delighted to see an Australian Defence SME invest in critical modern manufacturing capability right here in Kardinya," said Innovaero’s local federal member for Tangney, Ben Morton.
As a participant in the Defence Industry Internship Program (DIIP), Innovaero welcomed Minister Price’s announcement last week of additional government funding for the program, and looks forward to welcoming their own student from the University of Western Australia, to provide them with a taste of the exciting careers available in the defence industry.
"We are honoured to provide opportunities for local engineering students to experience what a career in the defence industry can entail and are proud to provide training and skilling opportunities, not only for for those students, but for all of our Innovaero team members as well," said Innovaero Group CEO Simon Grosser.
Stephen Kuper
Steve has an extensive career across government, defence industry and advocacy, having previously worked for cabinet ministers at both Federal and State levels.
