Adelaide’s newly expanded Convention Centre will house a “who’s who” of Australian land defence prime contractors and SMEs in September, when it hosts the Land Forces 2018 exposition.

Presented in collaboration with the Australian Army, Land Forces 2018 is an international industry exposition to showcase equipment, technology and services for the armies of Australia and the Indo-Asia-Pacific.

Combining a comprehensive exhibition and detailed conference program, Land Forces is specifically designed to help Defence connect and engage with industry.

The 2016 event saw more than more than 500 exhibitors from 23 countries, showcasing goods and services to more than 13,450 visitors from Australia and the Indo-Asia-Pacific.

According to Land Forces 2018 CEO Ian Honnery, this year’s event comes at a time when Australian and regional armed forces are making some critical decisions on future capability.

‘The ADF has begun an acquisition cycle that will see it spend more than $56 billion on land force equipment, services and new combat capabilities,’ Mr. Honnery said.

‘Other armies throughout the Indo-Pacific region are embarking upon similar upgrades, with many seeking to acquire or enhance a wide range of capabilities, including amphibious ships and watercraft, helicopters, armoured and utility vehicles, ISR, small arms and unmanned systems. Land Forces 2018 will provide the ideal venue for exhibitors to connect with both Defence and the prime contractors to which they can supply.’

Land Forces is a regional event which included 66 Australian and international delegations in 2016, as well as exhibitors from Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, India, Israel, Italy, Malaysia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, United Kingdom and the United States.

The program included 11 conferences, seminars and industry roundtables, augmented by the activities of the Centre for Defence Industry Capability (CDIC) and AusIndustry who worked to support SME outreach to prime contractors and supply chain partners.

Building on the results delivered at its two preceding events, Land Forces 2018 will again be the place to do land-defence business in Australia and the Indo-Asia-Pacific region.

This year’s event will feature major conferences including the invitation-only Chief Of Army Land Force Seminar (CALFS 18), the CASG 3rd Army Aviation Symposium and the DST Group’s International Conference on Science and Innovation for Land Power 2018 (ICSILP 2018), an event for defence researchers, industry professionals and academics focusing on Innovation through Technology Convergence for Land Power with topics covering Trusted Autonomy for Land Forces, and Technology Convergence and Innovation.

Land Forces 2018 will also include Defence Engagement with Industry Briefings organised by the Land Environment Working Group (LEWG) on Monday September 3.

Organised by Department of Defence, the defence engagement briefings will be held between senior Defence capability development and procurement officials, Army officers and key members of the Australian defence industry. This a regular and highly valued series of meetings and will include the exchange of land defence market and technical information.

The event will also feature presentation of the 2018 Land Forces Industry Innovation Awards, highlighting innovations from Australian companies or the Australian subsidiaries of overseas parent companies, including a National Innovation Award, $15,000 SME Innovation Grant and $15,000 Young Innovator Award.

The 2018 Land Forces Innovation Awards are part of a program created by the organisers which has awarded $245,000 in Innovation grants and awards across all events since it began in 2013. Previous winners have included Australian Defence Apparel for its One299 adjustable backpack frame, Marathon Targets for its robotic small-arms target system and Young Innovator Scholarship winner Dr. Long Nguyen of DST Group at Fishermens Bend, Victoria, for his world-leading exploratory research on Ultra High Molecular Weight (UHMW) polyethylene composite vehicle armour.

Land Forces 2018 is organised and conducted by not-for-profit industry development entity Industry Defence and Security Australia Limited, with support from the Australian Army, the Australian Department of Defence and the Defence Science and Technology Group (DST Group).

The mission of Industry Defence and Security Australia Limited is to promote the development of Australia’s industrial, manufacturing and information/communications technology resources in the military land defence and security sectors.

Industry Defence and Security Australia Limited is a division of the not-for-profit Aerospace Maritime Defence and Security Foundation of Australia Limited, which also stages the biennial Pacific International Maritime Exposition, CIVSEC Civil Security Congress and biennial Australian International Airshow and Aerospace and Defence Exposition (Avalon Airshow).

For more information on Land Forces 2018, head to www.landforces.com.au or contact the sales team at expo@amda.com.au.