Page 12 - Australian Defence Magazine Dec 2018 - Jan 2019
P. 12

NEWS REVIEW
INDUSTRY UPDATE
Construction begins on first Arafura class OPV
AUSTRALIA’S shift to continuous naval shipbuilding has begun with construction starting on the new fleet of Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs).
The Offshore Patrol Vessels will be named the Arafura class, with the first ship enter- ing service in 2022 being named HMAS Arafura. The first two vessels will be built at Osborne before Civmec starts constructing the next 10 at Henderson in WA.
“Named for the Arafura Sea, the name recognises the prominence of Navy’s endur- ingoperationsinthenorthernapproachesto Australia to protect our national interests, natural resources and maritime borders.
“Assigning a name to a warship is a sig- nificant milestone in the introduction of a new capability,” Minister Pyne said. “This is the first time the Australian Navy has used the name Arafura and represents a
new generation of na- val operations.”
Luerssen Australia
and ASC have welded
the first steel, cut by Civmec in WA.
Luerssen Australia Chairman Tim Wag- ner said it was a great honour to be responsi- ble for the delivery of the Sea 1180 program and to be partnering with great companies like ASC, Civmec, Saab Australia, L3, Tay- lor Bros and Penske.
“This is a momentous day both for Lu- erssen Australia and Australia’s naval shipbuilding sector; a partnership with the Australian Government and the local industry that points to a bright future,” Wagner said.
“We are proud to be part of this nation’s shipbuilding capability, and to ensure that German design and technology can be mar-
ried with the best of Australian manufac- turing and ingenuity.”
ASC CEO Stuart Whiley said Australia’s shipbuilding capability has been built up over the past 10 years on the Air Warfare Destroyer program.
“Today, highly skilled ASC shipbuilders commence their second surface shipbuild- ingprojectandAustraliaembarksoncon- tinuous naval shipbuilding for decades to come,” Whiley said.
In June 2018, Luerssen announced a JV with Civmec to establish Australian Mari- time Shipbuilding and Export Group (AM- SEG) as part of its commitment towards developing a sovereign shipbuilding sector.
to the control and monitoring system, engine modifications to improve power and efficien- cy, and a new communications suite.
The improvements to the control and monitoring system of the ship include re- placing existing analogue technology with digital. According to BAE, this is the first time that such a technology refresh has been undertaken on such a large scale on the Anzac-class ships.
Integration of the communications sys- tem into the existing ships data communi- cations systems has been closely managed during design by Melbourne-based defence communications company Leonardo.
“Our team at Henderson and William- stown in Victoria has established and main- tained an important maritime engineer- ing and program management capability through the sustainment of the Anzac fleet over more than two decades,” BAE Austra- lia Chief Executive Gabby Costigan said.
“That capability is critical to ensure that the project achieves quality, cost and sched- ule milestones despite the enormous com- plexity of such work.”
HMA Ships Anzac and Perth have also docked for AMCAP upgrades, marking the first time all three warships have been on the hard stand at Henderson.
New mast for HMAS Arunta
HMAS Arunta’s new mast has been in- stalled as part of the ship’s Mid Life Capa- bility Assurance Program (AMCAP) being undertaken at BAE Systems Australia’s Henderson facility.
The new mast was manufactured by BAE Systems as part of the Warship Asset Manage- ment Agreement (WAMA) between BAE Systems, SAAB Australia, Naval Ship Man- agement (NSM) and the Commonwealth.
Around 650 people are currently work-
ing on the upgrade of the Anzac frigate fleet, including 400 BAE employees.
The mast installation is one of the last major works on the ship ahead of her un- docking before the end of the year. She will then undertake sea trials ahead of a planned return to service in 2019.
The replacement mast is taller and wid- er than the existing mast to accommodate the new CEA L-Band radar system, while retaining the existing anti-ship missile de-
fence radar capabil- ity. The L-Band radar will be integrated into the existing combat management systems of the ship by Saab Australia.
HMAS Arunta ar- rived at Henderson in September 2017. In ad- dition to the new mast, the ship will also have upgraded ventilation systems, new sewage systems, improvements
12 | December 2018 – January 2019 | www.australiandefence.com.au
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