VIRTUAL EVENT
Thursday 5 August 2021
Webinar: 6:30-7:30pm AEST
Cost: Free
Fellows and guests are invited to join Dr Stuart Cannon, Acting Chief Technology Officer for Innovation and Strategic Research for the Defence Science & Technology Group and Kristen Raby, General Manager of Operations for Nova Systems ANZ for an engaging discussion on how disruptive Defence technologies can catalyse growth in a post-COVID-19 economy, hosted by ATSE’s Victorian Division.
Disruptive innovations in the Defence domain have a long history of serving national security interests as well as protecting those in uniform. The Federal Government has identified the Defence sector as one of the priority industries that will fuel the economic recovery from the impacts of COVID-19. The Defence Science & Technology Group has committed to the Science Technology & Research (STaR) Shots program as a means of driving fundamental research through to prototyping and transition into capability, and to focus the national S&T enterprise on Defence’s biggest problems.
The emphasis from Defence is on early engagement and collaboration with defence industry partners, with a focus on fostering an industry that is actively undertaking research and development in collaboration with university and government counterparts and creating new technologies in the national interest.
Nova Systems are a leading Australian company providing advanced technology solutions in the Defence, cyber, geospatial and essential services sectors and a great example of how a local company is working with partners across Australia to introduce disruptive technologies into sovereign Defence capability.
What are the areas of technology focus? How can the innovation and research sector engage? How is industry playing a leadership role in developing and deploying disruptive technologies for Defence, as well as fostering the next generation of an advanced S&T workforce for Australia?
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Open to all Fellows and their guests.
Fellows are encouraged to circulate the event information to their networks.
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This webinar will be recorded — see below.
Dr Stuart Cannon
Acting Chief Technology Officer for Innovation and Strategic Research, Defense Science and Technology Group
Dr. Stuart Cannon is the Acting Chief Technology Officer for Innovation and Strategic Research within the Defence Science and Technology Group (DSTG), Fishermans Bend, Victoria. In his current role Stuart is responsible for providing the strategic direction for Defence’s innovation initiatives, Next Generation Technologies Fund and STaR shot research programs.
Stuart has more than thirty years experience as a naval architect, specialising in the performance of surface ships, and leading multi-disciplinary research programs to address current and future Defence needs. He has received acclaim for achievements such as his evidence-based solution to fatigue-associated cracking in the aluminium alloy hulls of RAN Armidale Class patrol boats and structural investigations of the premature cracking in ANZAC Class frigates. For the latter, his team rewrote the rules for load levels. This work was subsequently incorporated in the rules of the UK-based Lloyd’s Register of Shipping—a leading provider of marine classification and innovation services worldwide. Stuart is the Executive Chair of the Maritime Systems group of the Five Eyes TTCP program. His previous roles include Program Leader for Surface Ship Science and Technology in the Maritime Division of DSTG.
Stuart has held academic and industry positions in the in the UK, the Australian Maritime College and Monash University. He was a regional manager for the Australian Maritime Engineering Co-operative Research Centre. He is an Adjunct Professor position in the National Centre for Maritime Engineering and Hydrodynamics at the University of Tasmania’s Australian Maritime College.
Stuart was elected as a Fellow of ATSE in 2016. He is also a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Naval Architects (FRINA), a Fellow of Engineers Australia and a Chartered Engineer. He has been a member of Lloyds Register of Shipping Technical Committee, been past president of the Australian Division of RINA and a committee member of Standards Australia. He has an Executive Masters in Public Administration from the Australia and New Zealand School of Government.
Kristen Raby
General Manager of Operations, Nova Systems ANZ
Kristen is the General Manager Operations for Nova Systems ANZ, an Australian owned and operated engineering services and technology solutions company with locations throughout Australia, and offices in New Zealand, Singapore, Norway and the UK. She is responsible for the leadership, management, and culture of all of the Australian Operations, as well as the Major Service Provider Strategic Partner Services (SPS) Program. Under her leadership, the NS ANZ workforce has expanded to over 350 staff and over 200 suppliers working in Defence and non-Defence environments, providing support to the Maritime, Land and Future Systems (MLFS), Communications Information and Space (CIS), Aerospace and Surveillance (A&S), and Integrated Solutions (IS) verticals within Nova. She worked as both the Victorian Operations Manager and the Regional Operations Manager (VIC, SA, WA) in Nova, before becoming the General Manager in 2019.
Kristen Raby is a highly qualified Leader, Manager, and Senior Systems Engineer with over 20 years of experience in the delivery of technically complex projects and people management. A former Officer in the Canadian Air Force, Kristen is also a graduate of the EPNER Test Pilot School in France and a Flight Test Engineer on both fixed wing and rotary wing platforms. Over her career, Kristen has amassed significant experience in the areas of Systems Engineering, Project Management, Verification and Validation (V&V), and Human Factors. Kristen sits on the board of Aviation/Aerospace Australia and the Nova Employee Company. She is the Australian chair of the Nova IDEAL Committee (Inclusion, Diversity, Equality, Action and Leadership), and is active in promoting engineering and STEM initiatives in the community. She is an Engineering Executive and a Fellow of the Institute of Engineers Australia, a Chartered Professional Engineer in both Australia and Canada, and a member of the Society of Flight Test Engineers (SFTE).