Defence contractor locked on target

The success of BAE Systems has seen the company’s number of employees in the region jump from 40 to 600 in five years, and the Henderson site’s general manager says the only way is up.

The British company’s Australian subsidiary won the Federal Government’s anti-ship missile defence contract in 2011, with work on the last of eight vessels to be completed in March.

BAE has completed many other engineering upgrades and maintenance work on each vessel as it passed through its Henderson shipyard, working on 171 of the ships’ 182 compartments.

“It is a major undertaking and a complex program — the good news is that we are hitting schedule and sticking to cost,” general manager Ian McMillan said.

“It’s a great big tick in the box for everyone who has been involved — the team have done a phenomenal job and their performance has led to new business.”

BAE’s role in an alliance with Saab and the Commonwealth heralded another big contract win in July.

The Warship Asset Management Arrangement guarantees activity at the Henderson site until 2023.

With HMAS Perth to be the first vessel to be worked on under the WAMA project before the end of the year, hundreds of jobs have been secured.

“We have continuity of work, which is great news for everyone concerned,” Mr McMillan said.

“It guarantees that we will be working on Anzac (class frigates) through to 2023 — there will be around $2 billion worth of work through that period.”

About 40 people worked for BAE in Henderson before the company signed the missile defence contract in 2011, but this has rocketed in the past five years.

The organisation has spent about $40 million upgrading its facilities and now employs about 600 workers.

Each of the vessels in the ASMD project was based on the hardstand for about 12 months, with an incredible 600,000 man hours going into the wider refit and upgrade of each ship.

BAE also deals with about 100 local suppliers, creating an estimated $20 million of supply business in the region and stimulating jobs growth. The interstate battle to be awarded naval Defence White Paper work has been a hot topic of conversation over the past year, with contrasting views on how much of a role WA will play.

Mr McMillan said both BAE and the wider Henderson maritime community were well placed to win major contracts.

“I think Western Australia will play an important part — and we should do,” he said.

“When you look along the precinct, there is lots of great capability and we have good facilities.

“It is about how you bring that together to provide the right solution.

“The precinct is fantastic in terms of having lots of companies in close proximity — that has worked very well in our defence programs.

“Hopefully, we will play a pivotal role in future programs.”