BAE Systems Hunter Class Frigate Program

Project at a glance
Contact Details
Hunter program June 2022 update
The Hunter Class Frigate Program is making strong progress towards the delivery of a superior anti-submarine warfare capability for the Royal Australian Navy.
- During the program's prototyping phase, which commenced in December 2020, the Osborne workforce is busy constructing representative ship blocks in order to extensively test and refine the processes, systems, tools, facilities and workforce competencies ahead of ship 01 construction.
- The program successfully concluded a year-long System Definition Review, which established the functional baseline of the Hunter class frigate, and is the second major assessment of the warship's design.
- Capability requirements include the Aegis and Australian Interface Combat Management Systems, the CEAFAR2 phased array radar, as well as the Seahawk Romeo Maritime Combat Helicopter integration.
- The program has moved on to Preliminary Design Review, which is a technical evaluation that ensures the design is 'operationally effective' and sets the pace for detailed design and planning phases.
- The process to separate the Hunter class frigate design from the UK reference ship design - known as Design Separation - commenced in late 2021 and involves the transfer of millions of artefacts to Australia.
- Dozens of contracts have been awarded to Australian businesses to support the design and productionisation phase. Supply chain continues to engage with Australian industry and our Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) to maximise Australian industrial capability, and local businesses around Australia are already being engaged to support manufacture of the first batch of three Hunter class frigates.
- More than 1,340 people are currently working on Hunter, and at the program peak around 2,200 people will be working on the program at the state-of-the-art Osborne Naval Shipyard in South Australia.
- The program continues to invest in research and technology, collaborate with academics, researchers and local businesses to develop, test and trial advanced manufacturing processes and techniques that will lead to productivity, quality and safety outcomes at Osborne.
Watch the block build process - here.
Hunter Update
Click here to request access to the monthly newsletter detailing news on the Hunter Program.
More information - HCFP Quarterly Update
Project Background
Click here to read more about the Hunter program.
Cyber Security Support
A new cyber security tool has been developed to help small businesses gain access to work in Australia's defence industry.
BAE Systems Australia, Saab Australia, industry partners and government have developed the Cyber Framework for the Defence Industry (CFDI) to measure and increase the cyber resilience of SMEs wanting to work on Defence programs.
The CFDI was developed to simplify and help address the growing cyber risk facing SMEs as many don't have the same level of cyber resources and protections as the larger defence contractors.
The CFDI provides a standardised approach to cyber maturity assessment and can also be used to guide users to next steps to increase their levels of cyber protection. The tool aims to support companies so they can self-manage their cyber security requirements and risks.
More information in the media release here.
SMEs can download a sample of the cyber assessment tool in the Cyber Security document section at the bottom of the project page.
BAE Systems encourages companies to utilise this tool to familiarise themselves with the process and the questionnaire.
It can help you understand your levels of cyber security maturity.
Follow on engagement with the tool will occur if you are invited to a supplier on-boarding/qualification activity.
You do not need to submit a completed tool to BAE Systems Australia unless invited to.
Upcoming engagement events
We will continue to advise of HCFP engagement events through ICN email notifications. To ensure you are kept up to date, please make sure you have a registered account with the ICN against the HCFP.
DISP information
Click here for information regarding DISP Membership and how to apply.
Working securely with Defence, DISP guide is also available in the attachment section of this portal. You can also click here to access it.
Industry Security Notice (ISN) 2018/06
Click here for information on handling and transmission of defence classified information.
How to register an Expression of Interest
This is a general EOI submission and Work Packages currently available to submit an EOI for can be viewed by clicking the Work Packages tab above.
Shortlisted companies will be invited to tender Work Packages as needed.
To submit an initial EOI for the Work Scopes, companies must have an ICN Gateway company profile. Information on how to register your company on ICN Gateway is detailed below.
ICN Gateway Company Registration
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Support and assistance is available through the web link below
Your company summary and company description are used to assess your ability to complete projects when you lodge an EOI - please ensure that your company invests the time and energy required to represent your company in the most effective manner possible.