Systematiq combines industry experience and technical expertise to deliver successful Defence projects.
Delivering successful Defence projects, is often a combination of several factors such as the right strategy adopted, the people and partnerships formed, the innovation-led solution that an organisation delivers, as well as preparing compliant and technically accurate documentation.
As a consulting firm that often provides solutions to clients in the Defence sector, Systematiq’s focus has always been on building meaningful partnerships where we can add value, implement a strong project management strategy, and utilise skills that complement our clients’ capabilities.
“Clients don’t always have the in-house expertise to deliver a complex capital acquisition project for Defence, so they look for a partner to provide them with specific capabilities,” commented Nicole Snyder, Systematiq’s Business Development Manager for Defence.
“Systematiq’s practitioners combine their vast technical skill sets along with their Defence led industry experience to offer advice and deliver results that add value to our clients. We offer a deep understanding of Defence’s acquisition process – not just the ‘how’ but also the ‘why’.”
Project Management Support
Project management forms a critical part of a Defence project’s success. Systematiq recently provided project management support to Defence Major Service Provider, CAPDA, where we acted as a conduit between the CAPDA Engineering team in Victoria and the CASG project LAND 154-Phase 4 team located in Canberra.
Senior consultant and data analytics specialist Susanna Wyld led the project on behalf of Systematiq where she managed a team of seven engineers in Victoria and was responsible for 1000 lines in the schedule. What made this project challenging was having to adapt to working remotely, due to COVID-19 while also having to manage the two teams.
Despite working remotely, and with both the teams located in different states, Systematiq was able to efficiently keep track of each team’s progress through the development of a metric. This further enabled Systematiq to provide a report to the CASG team and various stakeholders, on a weekly basis.
“A schedule of 1000 lines was a lot of work. Also, the lockdown made managing two teams challenging. But the feedback received from the client was worth all the difficulties faced. They appreciated the expertise provided and the value-add created through the development of the metric.” said Susanna.
Documentation Support and Data Analysis
Systematiq often delivers documentation support and data analysis as part of lending our Integrated Logistics Support (ILS) capabilities to client projects.
A recent example of this was when Systematiq supported Tectonica Australia’s involvement with Land 400 Phase 2. Tectonica Australia was providing the Rheinmetall Combat Reconnaissance Vehicle (CRV) with several Local Situational Area Systems (LSAS) as part of LAND 400 Phase 2.
Several documents were to be developed for the LSAS, which were designed to feed into Rheinmetall as the Prime Integrator, and outline Tectonica’s overarching support concept for the LSAS.
Systematiq played a key role in the development of these documents (LSAS Sparing Analysis Report and Assessment Table, the LSAS User Manual and ILS Concept), enabling Tectonica to continue supporting RDA and the Land 400 Phase 2 project.
“Systematiq was able to provide experienced Defence industry professionals who supported and co-developed a high-quality User Manual, Sparing Analysis, and an Integrated Support Concept for the Local Situation Awareness System under the L400 program. The Systematiq scope of work was successfully delivered in a short time frame and was able to adapt and evolve as the project progressed” commended Ryan O’Donnell, Project Manager, Tectonica.
The importance of Integrated Logistics Support (ILS) to project delivery
ILS as a management planning tool optimises systems support and ensures the right and timely availability throughout a project’s lifecycle. Mainly developed to ensure availability of military equipment within Defence, ILS ensures optimum Mission System is provided to the right person, at the right place and the right time.
Chris Cyc, Systematiq’s ILS expert explains: “Regardless of whether the project in question has an ILS centric output or not, applying basic ILS principles (such as task analysis vs resource requirements and resource availability) is crucial to developing any project plan.”
Integrated Logistics Support (ILS) as a system engineering management method considers a range of engineering and support disciplines, to develop a sustainment model aimed at ensuring a target level of equipment availability. This ensures that the system’s operational availability is predictable and reliable throughout its use.
“When it comes to delivering client projects, ILS forms an integral part of our approach at Systematiq. We understand that implementing an ILS framework is like laying the foundation for a successful project. It helps with our gating process to determine whether we have the capability and capacity to meet expectations and helps with delivering outputs as per client requirements,” adds Chris.
Similarly, for Major Service Providers, (MSPs), ILS plays crucial role in understanding customer project requirements and in delivering a supported Materiel System through its life. It helps assure that the cost of delivering the project and the cost of maintaining the equipment throughout its life (Through Life Support cost) is known right away.
When it comes to collaborating with MSPs, Systematiq consultants are able to provide insights and add value at different stages of Defence’s capability life cycle, such as:
-
- before the requirement is defined,
- during the framing of requirements,
- prior to tender release and
- during the delivery stage while managing the programmes in Systems Engineering, contract management, and project management
“Technically speaking, we can assist our clients to complement their own work forces or we can come in and deliver full work packages for our clients. If there is a customer that doesn’t have too much experience in developing documents as per Defence’s ASDEFCON’s template, we can work with the client and provide advice on the process and the skill sets that they might need.
“We have a solid competency framework in place that helps us develop our capability across different skill sets. This allows our consultants to add value to the end customers even as they continue to work with MSPs through their career,” affirms Nicole.
Integrated Logistics Support (ILS) reduces cost and increases project management efficiency
Despite being aware of the requirements for ILS to be included in Defence projects, MSPs often eliminate this aspect when budgets become tight.
The effects of doing so can be long lasting and prove to be extremely costly. Eliminating ILS or not implementing it accurately, can often lead to projects not being compliant, or going over schedule by 4-5 years thereby increasing project costs by millions.
When working on a project for L3 Harris, Systematiq provided ILS Support to develop a User Manual for an air traffic management system that L3 Harris wanted to build for an overseas client.
The Systematiq team was able to update and produce the required ILS artefacts (RAM Analysis, FMECA, LORA, and Sparing Model), allowing the client to fill in the missing gaps that existed within the project prior to the work done by Systematiq.
“Through the application of ILS, we were able to identify gaps right at the onset of a project and devise a solution that plugged these gaps and achieve outputs as per the client’s expectations. It set us up for success, allowing us to overcome roadblocks and help avoid duplication and wastage of any kind,” resonates Chris.
Adding value from a long-term perspective
Systematiq’s approach has always been to build long term client relationships. We don’t just come into a project when a client needs to submit a particular piece of documentation to the Commonwealth (CoA). We provide guidance and offer our expertise even before a Tender or work package is released.
Providing surety to the customer’s project planning as well as guiding them through the process for preparing and delivering relevant documentation on time to the CoA as per the set standards, is how we add real value to our clients.
“When I joined Systematiq in 2014, most of our clients were new then. The fact that we continue to do significant work for those same clients is testament to the fact that they recognise how invested we are in their long-term success and growth,” shared Nicole.
Engage with Systematiq for Project Management, Documentation and ILS practitioners – get in touch with our Defence sector business development managers to discuss your project requirements.
