On the northern fringe of Adelaide, in the small Hills suburb of One Tree Hill, this family\u2019s week revolves around early starts, steel, and a shared sense of purpose \u2014 building Australia\u2019s naval future.<\/p>\n
Between them, Phil, 44, Amelia, 42, and their son Riley represent three generations of a family now firmly embedded in Australia\u2019s defence industry through BAE Systems Australia shipbuilding and engineering programs.<\/p>\n
Phil is a boilermaker leading hand who first worked on the Air Warfare Destroyer program at Osborne between 2011 and 2016 before rejoining BAE Systems in June 2023. <\/p>\n
Today, he works across naval shipbuilding projects, including the Hunter program, and is also part of the site emergency response team.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s work that matters,\u201d Phil said. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe get to contribute to the protection of our country, and that\u2019s pretty cool. <\/p>\n
\u201cDefence has been a big part of the family with my brother and other relatives serving, so this is our way of contributing to that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Amelia works as a learning projects manager, helping support training and development across the workforce, while Riley has just started his Mechanical Engineering apprenticeship at Edinburgh Parks after completing a Certificate II in Engineering Pathways.<\/p>\n
For Riley, the industry is already familiar territory. <\/p>\n
In 2015, he attended the launch of HMAS Hobart, arriving early to see his dad on board during his involvement in the AWD program and sea trials.<\/p>\n
\u201cI got to the ship as early as I could to see Dad,\u201d Riley said. <\/p>\n
\u201cI even got interviewed by Channel 9 and told them how proud I was. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt was really cool.\u201d<\/p>\n
Amelia remembers the scale of the launch clearly. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt was one of those days you never forget, seeing a project of that size come together and go into the water was just awe-inspiring.\u201d<\/p>\n
The family\u2019s connection to defence runs deeper still, with Amelia noting the pride it brings to older generations. <\/p>\n
\u201cMy granddad is 93 and served. It means a lot to him to see not just his grandchildren, but now his great-grandchildren, contributing to defence. It\u2019s very special.\u201d<\/p>\n
At home, work rarely dominates conversation \u2014 life on their hobby farm tends to take over \u2014 but the shared understanding of what they do binds them closely.<\/p>\n
Riley said starting his apprenticeship has been both challenging and rewarding. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe team at Ed Parks are great. It\u2019s hands-on, and I feel like I\u2019m learning so much more doing the work than I did at school. The precision is mind-blowing.\u201d<\/p>\n
For Phil, seeing his son follow a similar path is a proud moment. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s pretty amazing to see your kids become successful young adults. The fact that Riley has chosen something similar just makes me really proud.\u201d<\/p>\n
And for Riley, the ambition is simple. <\/p>\n
\u201cOne day it would be a dream to work on a project together. Instead of Dad saying \u2018I built that\u2019, we could say \u2018we built that\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n
How new SA brigade will boost Australia\u2019s strike power<\/p>\n
AUKUS may have placed South Australia at the heart of the nation\u2019s defence sector but for the past two years, a new brigade has been quietly building the country\u2019s military might at Edinburgh. <\/p>\n
The 10th Fires Brigade was designed to bolster the nation\u2019s long-range strike capabilities, forming a key part the Army\u2019s transformation under the National Defence Strategy. <\/p>\n
Established in 2024, the brigade has rapidly grown into a 1750-strong force with an unprecedented ability to strike land, air and maritime threats \u2014 such as ships and aircrafts \u2014 500 kilometres away.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a bit of a quiet achiever, a quiet success story,\u201d brigade commander Brigadier Corey Shillabeer told The Advertiser. <\/p>\n
\u201cRightly a lot of attention is focused on the acquisition of the next generation of our submarines, which clearly impacts Australia nationally, but here in South Australia, the investment that is being made both in capability but also in people … shouldn\u2019t be underestimated.\u201d <\/p>\n
Last month, the Federal Government announced it would inject a further $2.3 billion into the brigade to establish a second long\u2011range fires regiment, a move that will double the Army\u2019s long-range strike capabilities. <\/p>\n
The regiment will be armed with High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) \u2013 launchers that will allow army personnel to hit targets at distances of up to 500km. <\/p>\n
In the future, those rocket launchers will be able to fire precision strike missiles, reaching ranges beyond 1000km. <\/p>\n
The brigade\u2019s 14 Regiment, established last year, was the first in the country to be equipped with HIMARS.<\/p>\n
Last year during Exercise Talisman Sabre, they were used to fire the first precision strike missile in the country\u2014 two years ahead of schedule. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a high priority for not only Army, but the Defence Force, which is why so much attention within the Defence Force is being applied to (the brigade) and given a high priority,\u201d Brigadier Shillabeer said. <\/p>\n
\u201c(This) is why we\u2019ve been able to introduce their capabilities a lot faster than what we\u2019ve traditionally had.\u201d <\/p>\n
He added the weapons systems provided to the 10th Brigade were being introducing into the service for the first time.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor a long time, Army has been a recipient of joint effects, such as being reliant upon Airforce and Navy to provide certain capabilities for us … we are now being able to meaningfully provide capability to the joint force,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
The second long\u2011range fires regiment will grow the 10th Brigade by a further 450 personnel, with the formation eventually expected to reach 3000 people. <\/p>\n
AUKUS supply chain: The 3D printing revolution<\/p>\n
WAM! An Adelaide based company is quietly, determinedly riding the advanced 3D manufacturing wave to expand to the lucrative defence industry markets in the United States and United Kingdom.<\/p>\n
AML3D at Plympton uses its patented Wire Additive Manufacturing (WAM) technology which combines an electric arc with certified welding wire feedstock to metal 3D print medium to large-scale parts, much faster and with lower energy and waste than traditional methods.<\/p>\n
AML3D\u2019s Arcemy system combines state-of-the-art welding science, robotics and materials engineering, and is capable of 3D printing industrial-scale metal components such as propellers, pistons, gears and pulleys.<\/p>\n
Its website notes: \u201cAML3D has the world\u2019s largest, open-air, production-ready, metal 3D printers commercially available on the market.\u201d <\/p>\n
The company opened a US manufacturing facility in Ohio last year and is now looking to double the size of the site after a series of contract wins.<\/p>\n
These include a $9.9m deal to supply four of AML3D\u2019s Arcemy X systems to a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries \u2013 the largest military shipbuilder in the US.<\/p>\n
Another $2.6m contract will see it produce submarine parts for the US Navy out of Adelaide.<\/p>\n
The company also is working with defence giant BAE in the UK so is well positioned for the massive AUKUS project as it develops.<\/p>\n
AML3D managing director Sean Ebert said it was \u201cearly days\u201d exploring the UK market but they have signed a $1.4m contract with BAE UK to produce prototype parts and hope this will lead to systems to go to submarine production in Barrow.<\/p>\n
They also are working with a distributor in Scotland, all of which could lead to AML3D setting up a facility in the UK similar to the US Ohio facility.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat would mean under the AUKUS framework we would have manufacturing facilities in Adelaide, Ohio and probably the UK,\u201d Mr Ebert said.<\/p>\n
He noted there is a move away from casting and forging processes because it takes so long.<\/p>\n
\u201cParts for the US Navy were taking about two years due to casting, we are doing it in 16 to 18 weeks,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cUnder AUKUS they are trying to increase production from 1.2 submarines a year to 2.3.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rear Adm. Jonathan Rucker, the US Navy\u2019s lead buyer for attack submarines, told a House Armed Services Subcommittee hearing the Navy must 3D-print more parts if it is to build three submarines per year.<\/p>\n
He noted 3D-printed parts are already starting to be installed on submarines and singled out AML3D for praise.<\/p>\n
In a separate briefing to reporters, he said: \u201cCastings [were] the bane of our existence when I talked to you two years ago \u2013 that chokepoint\u2019s gone.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"On the northern fringe of Adelaide, in the small Hills suburb of One Tree Hill, this family\u2019s week…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":11246,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[395],"class_list":{"0":"post-11245","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-adelaide","8":"tag-adelaide"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11245","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11245"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11245\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11246"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11245"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11245"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11245"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}