Aerobond has announced it has been awarded a sovereign industrial capability priority grant by the federal government, for precision guided munitions, hypersonic weapons, and integrated air and missile defence systems.
Aerobond aims to expand its Composite Structures Manufacturing capability and capacity to contribute to local manufacturing, research and development, maintenance and repair and test and evaluation.
A total investment of $1.7 million, which includes Aerobond matching the federal government funding, will facilitate expansion so that that Aerobond can manufacture guided munitions and associated systems at scale, as opposed to prototyping and initial or low-rate production.
“To be awarded this grant, is a prime opportunity for us to take the next steps in our journey to becoming Australia’s privately-owned Centre of Excellence for lightweight structural solutions and be able to accelerate our growth plans to support our Australian and International Partners” said Justin Struik, Managing Director of Aerobond.
“We are making a significant commitment to the defence industry in Australia and are excited about the future of our organisation for our team and our clients. This new grant is going to strengthen our capability, innovation and value-add to the Commonwealth, which is an achievement we are very proud of.”
This grant, in addition to Aerobond’s new contract with Kongsberg Defence Australia to manufacture the NSM launcher canisters, will see them moving into a new purpose-built, 3,500 sqm facility in Adelaide in early 2024.