Page 47 - Australian Defence Magazine Sep 2021

SEPTEMBER 2021 | WWW.AUSTRALIANDEFENCE.COM.AU
SUSTAINMENT AND MRO 47
things like, whether we need a graving dock or a floating dock there, or how we dock or build a new ship that’s per- haps even as big as our tankers and LHDs in the future.”
TRANSITION TO GALILEO
The transition to the new sustainment model offered by Plan Galileo is being managed carefully and is being done incremen- tally, rather than being changed all at once. As existing contracts become due for re-tender or updating, the opportunity to appoint a CLCM is being considered, but this will not apply to some of the older ships in the fleet, such as the Huon class minehunters (MHC), which are due to be withdrawn in the near future and the cost of transition therefore outweighs the benefit.
“Our focus for the current phase is to have all the foun- dation stones in place, across transition, seaworthiness, as- set management, RMCs and our supply chain, by 2022,” RADM Malcom says. “I want to see that implementation plan delivered by the end of 2022 and for it to be a mature organisation by 2025.”
The challenge of upskilling both Navy and industry to support the new sustainment model is also being explored, through initiatives such as the Naval Shipbuilding College and recent Defence Industry Pathways Program, estab- lished together with the South Metropolitan TAFE in WA.
Finally, it must also be noted that, while it transitions to
Galileo, Maritime Systems Division is still responsible for the day-to-day upkeep of the existing surface fleet, a task recently made more difficult by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We’ve worked really closely with industry to make sure we have been able to meet the fleet availability requirements, both nationally and internationally, and we’ve continued to meet all our maintenance obligations, we’ve continued to up- grade the ships and supported large exercises like the multi- national Talisman Sabre 21 exercise,” RADM Malcom says. ■
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