The first cohort of Australian businesses benchmarked through H&B Defence’s Australian Submarine Supplier Qualification (AUSSQ) Program have each been successfully validated against HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding (NNS) division standards, paving the way for their formal qualification into the US nuclear submarine enterprise.
The announcement, made today at Indo Pac 2025, highlights Australia’s continued progress in defence industry integration under AUKUS. The companies, which include CQMS, AW Bell, AJAX, Hycast, Intercast, Supashock, Camco, Stella, Ferra, Axiom and Marand, have undergone rigorous assessments after being selected to join AUSSQ for their strengths in high-demand areas: castings, forgings, and precision machining.
Each supplier is now progressing through a series of required uplift activities to secure formal qualification into the NNS supply chain.
They seek to join eight other Australian businesses already qualified by H&B Defence through state-led capability uplift programs. Of these suppliers, three have already received formal Requests for Quotation (RFQs) from NNS, opening direct access to US contract opportunities.
Led by the Australian Submarine Agency and delivered by H&B Defence, the AUSSQ Program prepares Australian businesses to compete in one of the world’s most demanding defence supply chains.
A further 12 suppliers are also progressing through the AUSSQ qualification pipeline for air and gas system components and fabricated parts, following a $9.3 million program expansion, announced in the US last month by Minister for Defence Industry Pat Conroy.
Additional rounds of participants, targeting new priority capability areas, are expected to be announced in the new year.
“The AUSSQ program is delivering real capability, real opportunity, and real momentum to position Australian businesses for AUKUS export opportunities in the US," H&B Defence Board Chair Michael Lempke said.