Local companies polish up for lucrative Defence pitch

More than 90 Queensland companies, including 10 in Townsville, will be offered expert instruction on how to deliver a compelling business pitch after being shortlisted for the next multi-billion-dollar defence contract.

Minister for State Development Dr Anthony Lynham said the Queensland companies were chasing subcontracts under the Department of Defence’s LAND 400 project - a $20 billion deal for the Australian Army’s next generation of armoured fighting vehicles.

“The next stage for these companies is to pitch their capabilities to BAE Systems and Rheinmetall Defence Australia, the two major players vying for the Land 400 Phase 2 contract,” he said.

“For the next couple of weeks, my Department of State Development will be offering pitching workshops in Brisbane and Townsville to help our companies sharpen their presentation skills and techniques.

“Queenslanders make up nearly a quarter of the companies chosen nationally to take part in the next stage of the selection process and we’re doing our best to make sure they are pitch perfect.”

The Queensland companies selected cover a broad range of disciplines including engineering, metal fabrication, satellite communication systems and electronics manufacturing.

The spread of companies stretches from Townsville in the north to Dalby in the west and south to the Gold Coast.

Dr Lynham said interstate competition for defence contracts was substantial but Queensland had the advantage of being home to Australia’s most significant and growing Australian Army presence.

“Our defence industries have agile and innovative supply chain capabilities, in the land defence sector in particular, with a highly-skilled workforce and broad regional coverage,” he said.

“This is a great opportunity to build on the efforts of Queensland-based defence industries - more than $3.8 billion worth of Department of Defence contracts covering everything from aircraft maintenance to meat rations have been won in the last financial year alone supporting 6500 full-time equivalent jobs.

“Defence industries are one of the key growth sectors the Palaszczuk Government is targeting as part of its Advance Queensland agenda to diversify the economy and generate the jobs of the future.”

[ENDS]

Media contact:           Jan Martin       0439 341 314

EDS: For Land 400-related images, visit the DSD media centre.