Minister of Defence Awards of Excellence to Industry

Minister of Defence Awards of Excellence to Industry

Wellington, Oct 23 – Daronmont Technologies Ltd was adjudged winner in Category A for the provision of excellent equipment to Defence at the NZ Defence Industry Association Forum held on October 21-22 at the Michael Fowler Centre in Wellington.

The award was part of the Minister of Defence Awards of Excellence to Industry given annually to recognise suppliers who have served the NZ Defence Force very well.

Daronmont developed a replacement Communication Detection System (CDS) for the navy’s protector fleet, which has been integrated and networked with other sensor systems, provides the required performance, and which uses existing ship infrastructure.

Daronmont was very innovative in overcoming the challenges of integrating the communication detecting system into the sensor management system, and in resolving the issues associated with integrating the CDS into the existing antenna.

The company presented well-researched evidence of how the project deliverables would meet the requirements, and the documentation, reports and advice it provided was of a very high standard.

Daronmont exceeded client expectations with the refinements it made to the direction finding systems and continuously demonstrated excellent project management practices, the judging panel said.

“The company’s engineering excellence and professionalism have resulted in a system that performs better than expected.”

There were three finalists in Category A, namely MAS Zengrange (NZ) Ltd for completing an urgent operational requirement for the supply of Mini-DRFD to the Special Forces; Metco Engineering Ltd for producing adapter brackets for the NZDF to enable the C2A1 sight to be used on the 105mm light guns; and Daronmont Technologies Ltd.

In Category B for the provision of superior services to Defence, Catalyse Ltd won the award for facilitating the techniques used to assist the Defence Midpoint Rebalancing Review (DMRR) Project Team to undertake the major review of the policy, capability and funding trade-offs within Defence using value-for-money as a basis, and delivering credible, robust option to ministers.

Catalyse introduced the core DMRR methodology that Defence needed to make the complex and challenging trade-offs then developed the methodology with Defence and facilitated and supported its successful execution. In all its service provision to Defence, Catalyse has provided professional, customised, Defence-focused services.

The DMRR process was robust, analytically sound, and data driven, and it has been identified as an example for other government departments to follow, the judging panel said.

The other finalists in this category included Beca Applied Technologies and Texas Aero Engine Services LLC.

Despite losing out in the previous category, Texas Aero Engine Services LLC won in Category C for the provision of outstanding commitment to Defence.

The company was recognised for providing Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) services to the RNZAF B757 engines for seven years. For the duration of the relationship, the RNZAF's service requests have all been dealt with on an ad hoc basis as TAESL and the RNZAF did not have a formal or contract in place until very recently this year. Since the RNZAF started sending engines to TAESL, the engines have proved very reliable and have yet to require further shop visits. There have also been no engines or components returned under warranty.

TAESL has always shown a can-do attitude and a willingness to quickly respond to Defence needs. The company has provided superior service to the RNZAF through innovations in the flexibility of their production schedules, assistance with fault finding, utilisation of their vast contacts in the airline industry to resolve many aircraft issues, and travelling to New Zealand in response to short notice service requests, the judging panel said.

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