HUNTER businesses interested in working in the defence industry are being urged to take part in a series of online seminars designed to help the private sector tap into a program of spending set to total $270 billion over the coming decade.
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And given the global emergence of cyber warfare as a serious commercial and security threat, the seminars include modules that go to the heart of the cyber threat, and teach participants how to recognise hostile "threat actors" and how to counter them.
Former RAAF air commander and NSW Liberal MP Tim Owen is the chair of the Hunter Defence Taskforce, and features in a promotional video for the "Defence Ready Seminar Series".
The Federal government announced a $430,000 injection to develop the program in April.
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Funding for the program comes through the federal government's Centre for Defence Industry Capability with 40 places for each seminar, and preference given to Hunter and regional-NSW based small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs).
Mr Owen said the series was a joint initiative of Hunter Defence, the Department of Defence, the Australian Industry & Defence Network NSW and training provider Goal Group.
It would start in August and run over 12 months with 13 training modules, each a course of between a fortnight to seven weeks. He said it was important that Australian industry had the "organic ability" to support the Defence Force.
The seminars are broken into three levels - "explorer", "exponent" and "expert" - depending on the amount of experience companies taking part have had with defence contracting.
The seminar series website says the explorer modules are aimed at "companies considering an entry to Defence but finding the landscape just too complicated and full of (largely unfamiliar) jargon to determine if the market is right for them".
The jargon is an inescapable part of the defence industry, with cyber security, especially, throwing up new terms for practices that in some cases are either brand new or constantly changing, creating problems with unfamiliarity.
A mid-level "exponent" seminar on "Defence cyber regulatory controls" promises an explanation of the "current cyber threat environment" and "an understanding of the geopolitical nature of the threat environment", and how Defence regulations are different to commercial regulations, especially in relation to "imminent changes" in "some of our major allies' supply chains".
Bob Hawes of Business Hunter (formerly the Hunter Business Chamber, said defence would become an increasingly important part of the Hunter economy, which is why the organisation was part of the Hunter Defence Taskforce.
- More information at https://www.hunterdefence.org.au/defenceready/
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Ian Kirkwood
Reporting journalist at the Newcastle Herald since 1987. Editorial writer, general reporter, industrial relations, industry and coal.
Reporting journalist at the Newcastle Herald since 1987. Editorial writer, general reporter, industrial relations, industry and coal.
