INDUSTRY NEWS

Lockheed Martin announced it has successfully completed the contracted Industrial and Regional Benefits (IRB) obligations associated with three Canadian programs.

The investment obligations, valued at just over $425 million, have created robust economic activity for a wide range of academic institutions and small-and-medium sized businesses – 93 Canadian organizations in total.

These programs include:

1. Canada’s Halifax Class Modernization Design and Build program for the Royal Canadian Navy. (Economic impact valued at over $1.14 Billion)
    
2. Canada’s procurement of the P-3 Aircraft Service Life Extension Program (ASLEP) for the Canadian Forces’ CP-140 Aurora aircraft fleet. (Economic impact valued at over $265 Million)
    
3. Canada’s procurement of the Advanced Multi-Role Infrared Sensor (AMIRS) to upgrade the Canadian Forces CF-18 aircraft fleet. (Economic impact valued at over $160 Million.)

“These investments made across Canada demonstrate how defence procurement serves as a catalyst for innovation, research and economic development,” said Lorraine Ben, chief executive, Lockheed Martin Canada. On the AMIRS program alone, the economic impact, valued at over $160 Million, overachieved the Industrial and Technological Benefits (ITB) contract obligation six-fold.

Across the country, small-and-medium sized business benefited from their inclusion in the projects mentioned above by providing a wide range of services – either through direct involvement across the supply chain or through investments made by Lockheed Martin.

• For ASLEP this includes detailed parts assembly, software assurance and other manufacturing needs. The University of New Brunswick, Conestoga College, the University of Northern British Columbia, the University of Toronto and the British Columbia Institute of Technology are among the academic institutions that benefited from research investments made by Lockheed Martin.
   
• For AMIRS this includes procurement of a diverse array of products from Canada including precision castings, electro-optical turrets, satellite payloads, ruggedized embedded computers, laser detector chips, underwater robotics, and more. Quebec and Atlantic province firms were outstanding suppliers and enabled Lockheed Martin to exceed its quota for these commitment categories. 

Canada’s original IRB Policy, which later evolved to Canada’s Industrial and Technological Benefits (ITB) policy, applies to all defence and Canadian Coast Guard procurements over $100 million that are not subject to trade agreements, or for which the national security exception is invoked. The ITB policy, which includes the Value Proposition, leverages defence and Canadian Coast Guard procurements to contribute to jobs, innovation and economic growth across the country. It contractually requires companies that are awarded defence procurement contracts to undertake business activity in Canada equal to the value of the contracts they have won.