A modern, intelligence-led, integrated, and agile Australian Defence Force is essential to safeguarding our national interests, particularly across the Indo-Pacific region. Achieving Defence’s strategic objectives depends on the successful integration of multiple capability inputs, including people, technology, platforms, and infrastructure.
Among these, Defence infrastructure is a foundational enabler, underpinning operational readiness, resilience, and the ability to adapt to evolving strategic demands.
Defining and delivering infrastructure to support the raising, training, and sustainment of Defence capabilities is a complex task for engineers, planners, and program managers. Projects must align with rigorous requirements, respond to dynamic operational needs, and support an increasingly integrated Defence estate - all while remaining cost-effective, scalable, and future-ready.
Importantly, infrastructure programs must deliver the minimum viable solution to meet initial capability needs – referred to as the Minimum Viable Capability - while retaining the flexibility to scale and adapt as operational needs evolve.
Meeting the Challenge: Three Strategic Practices
- Embed defence experience into infrastructure delivery teams
Successful projects bridge the gap between capability needs and infrastructure solutions. One of the biggest risks is misalignment - when delivery partners and Defence stakeholders operate with different assumptions or technical languages.
Including individuals with lived Defence experience - veterans, reservists, or those with deep understanding of Defence culture - within project teams helps translate complex needs into actionable requirements. Paired with infrastructure specialists in planning, design, and engineering, these blended teams are well positioned to anticipate constraints, resolve issues early, and align infrastructure to strategic capability outcomes.
- Undertake comprehensive needs and condition assessments
Effective planning begins with clarity. By combining a detailed needs assessment with a condition audit of existing assets, teams can make informed decisions about reuse, adaptation, or redevelopment.
This integrated approach ensures new investments deliver only what is needed - nothing more, nothing less - while preserving flexibility for future capability evolution. It’s a strategic, resource-conscious model that maximises value and extends asset life cycles.
- Prioritise feasibility and stakeholder alignment early
Before design begins, a rigorous feasibility assessment can provide the data, insights, and alignment required to de-risk decisions. This includes technical, financial, and operational evaluations of potential options to determine the most viable path forward.
Strong engagement with end users, transparency in trade-offs, and robust technical scoping help deliver feasibility studies that are not just technically sound - but decision-ready. These assessments shape the ‘what’, ‘where’, ‘when’ and ‘how much’ for each project, providing the certainty stakeholders need to move forward with confidence.
Conclusion
By embedding defence insight, applying disciplined planning, and aligning early through robust feasibility processes, infrastructure projects can help Defence meet today’s requirements - and anticipate tomorrows. These are not just buildings or facilities - they are strategic assets, purpose-built to strengthen our national capability and resilience.
About the Author
Tanya Sideris is Executive Director, Cities & Places, Environment, Defence and Advisory at Jacobs, and the ANZ Executive Sponsor for VetNet, Jacobs’ employee network for veterans, their families, and supporters.