Minister of Defence Industry Awards announced

  • Gerry Brownlee
Defence

The recipients of the annual Minister of Defence Industry Awards of Excellence for 2016 have been announced by Defence Minister Gerry Brownlee.

“The awards are an important way of acknowledging the role the defence industry plays in supporting both the Ministry of Defence and the New Zealand Defence Force,” Mr Brownlee says.

“In providing and maintaining key assets, as well as supplying the Defence Force with goods and services, the defence industry is vital to the success of New Zealand’s defence policy.”

Hawker Pacific NZ Limited, MetOcean Solutions Limited and Kongsberg Defence Systems each won a category of the awards.

“I want to congratulate the other finalists and thank the New Zealand Defence Industry Association and its members for the work they do supporting the Defence Force,” Mr Brownlee says.

  • Category 1, for the provision of a service to defence of less than $15 million, was awarded to Hawker Pacific, who provide and maintain aircraft for the Royal New Zealand Air Force. Staff from Hawker Pacific travelled to Fiji with the RNZAF following Cyclone Winston, where they provided engineering support.
  • Category 2, for the provision of a product to defence of less than $15 million, was awarded to MetOcean, who partnered with the Defence Technology Agency to create the Surfzone View Tool for the Royal New Zealand Navy. Surfzone View assists amphibious landings by modelling surf conditions.
  • Category 3, for the provision of a product or service to Defence in excess of $15 million, was awarded to Kongsberg, who partnered with the Ministry of Defence as part of the Super Seasprite helicopter upgrade project.