Australian Aerospace and Eurocopter have continued to expand their supply base in Australia by involving locally based Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs).
The latest example of this is the negotiation and signature of a new contract scope between Australian Aerospace, Eurocopter and Production Parts Pty Ltd, for NH90 machined components.
The new work capitalises on existing capabilities at Production Parts’ Melbourne facility thus sustaining jobs and skills developed previously on the ARH Tiger and MRH90 programs.
Peter Nicholls Managing Director of Production Parts said “This extension of work at Production Parts is a further confirmation of Eurocopter’s confidence in the manufacturing skills and capabilities in Australia, to support the Eurocopter global supply chain.”
In the future, work with suppliers such as Production Parts, will be facilitated by the Defence Materiel Organisation (DMO) Global Supply Chain initiative. In support of this initiative, Eurocopter and Australian Aerospace signed a Deed of Agreement with DMO in October 2010 with the view of establishing a Global Sourcing Office (GSO).
The strategic objective of the GSO is to further open the Eurocopter supply chain to Australian companies, particularly SMEs, by giving them access to appropriate opportunities allowing them to compete for Eurocopter and its vendors’ global needs.
About Australian Aerospace:
With more than 1000 staff in Australia and New Zealand and access to the financial strength and expertise of Eurocopter and the EADS Group, the company is well-positioned to manufacture and support military and civil helicopters in the Australia-Pacific region.
At its production facility on Brisbane Airport, Australian Aerospace currently is assembling and delivering 22 Tiger ARH armed reconnaissance helicopters to the Australian Army and 46 MRH90 multi-role helicopters to the Army and Navy. It is also bidding to equip the Navy with a new combat helicopter, the NH90 NFH NATO Frigate Helicopter.
In addition to its helicopter capabilities, Australian Aerospace has a long history of support to the Australian Defence Force (ADF). This includes support for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) AP-3C Orion reconnaissance aircraft and, until recently, the now retired Caribou transport fleet.
In 2009, Australian Aerospace commenced a through-life-support role for C-130J Hercules transports. The company is also involved in supporting the RAAF’s new Airbus A330-based Multi-Role Tanker-Transport (MRTT) aircraft and F/A18 (Classic) Hornet fighters.
Australian Aerospace
