I am a business
Why work with Defence?
Large, long-term and well-resourced projects
Work at the cutting edge of your sector alongside the best in the business
Access to Government grants and support
Rapidly growing sector with increasing opportunities
Variety of contracts - short-, long-, and mid-term
Contracts available across Australia with significant regional investment
Significant Government investment
$270 billion
The Australian Government is investing an historic $270 billion in Defence spending outlined in the 2020 Defence Strategic Update and Force Structure Plans.
$3 billion
Invested in innovation, science and technology through the Next Generation Technologies Fund and the Defence Innovation Hub.
What capabilities are needed?
To understand specific capabilities the Government is supporting industry investment in, check out the Naval Shipbuilding Plan and the Sovereign Industrial Capability Priority Implementation Plans.
Priority capabilities
The Sovereign Industrial Capability Priorities are (in no particular order):
- Combat clothing survivability and signature reduction technologies;
- Munitions and small arms research, design, development and manufacture;
- Land combat and protected vehicles and technology upgrades;
- Aerospace platform deeper maintenance and structural integrity;
- Collins class submarine maintenance and technology upgrade;
- Continuous shipbuilding program (including rolling submarine acquisition);
- Enhanced active phased array and passive radar capability;
- Advanced signal processing capability;
- Surveillance and intelligence;
- Test, evaluation, certification and systems assurance;
- Robotics, autonomous systems, and artificial intelligence;
- Precision guided munitions, hypersonic weapons, and integrated air and missile defence systems;
- Space; and
- Information warfare and cyber capabilities.
Getting help
The Office of Defence Industry Support (ODIS) provides advisory, guidance and mentoring services for eligible businesses to help them navigate, prepare for and access the defence market. The ODIS team can advise you on your readiness for defence market opportunities, and connect you with supply chains and innovation opportunities. They can also help with grants to improve your business capabilities.
Available business grants
There are a number of grants available to Small and Medium Enterprises to help them upskill employees or develop offerings suitable for Defence. Check out a selection below:
- Skilling Australia’s Defence Industry Grant Program
- Defence Global Competitiveness Grants
- Joint Strike Fighter Industry Support Program Sustainment Grants
- Australia-US International Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative (AUSMURI)
Where to next?
Take the first steps on the rewarding path to working in Defence Industry.
