Publication:Sea Talk Spring 2007/Training Australia's future capability
Training Australia's future capability
By LEUT Lorinda Bond
Anything less than excellent training can have serious consequences and it's the task of Navy Personnel and Training Projects Section to provide guidance to those managing the host of new equipment projects currently on the books.
NPT Projects staff are kept busy with about 25 major projects and 125 minor projects. These vary a great deal in complexity, monetary commitment and overall impact to Defence, ranging from less than $200,000 for some minor projects to the $8 billion air warfare destroyer project.
Major projects: The $8 billion air warfare destroyer (AWD) program developed two competing designs for consideration by government. The ship pictured is of the Spanish Navantia F100 design announced by the Defence Minister in June as the design selected for development as the RAN's AWD.
Training is a vitally-important mechanism employed by Navy to ensure that new equipment meets operability and capability requirements. It may only be a small aspect of the capital acquisition process, but the provision of adequate training is certainly critical.
Quite simply, good training ensures good results while poor training, or a lack of training, can have dire consequences.
Some new assets acquired by Navy have a significant level of risk associated with them. Training, however, can provide a sound mitigation strategy in situations where there is potential exposure to safety hazards while using the equipment. In cases such as these, excellent training is an absolute requirement: anything less may unnecessarily expose Navy personnel to unacceptable risk.
The Anzac Harpoon project, for example, identified operator training as a safety control for a number of identified hazards. The lesson management guides for this training therefore include specific guidance for the instructor tagged with a safety label to highlight their importance.
NPT Projects Section staff at NPTC-Canberra provide important guidance to project staff on training. In particular, NPT projects staff oversee the implementation of personnel and training policies as part of project deliverables. These policies are important tools used by Navy to ensure that training meets the needs of the organisation, to the standard required.
Project offices within Defence Materiel Organisation are responsible for co-ordinating the work of many contractors and are instrumental in ensuring the positive progression of the project.
In many cases, the production of training documentation and materials is completed by a contractor who has participated and won the tender. There are several key motivators for the use of external contractors in the development of Navy training.
In cases where new capability is being developed, not simply acquired, a contractor is able to provide significant subject matter expertise not normally available within uniformed ranks. In many cases, Navy personnel may not have acquired the specialised knowledge required as the project may involve the development of new technologies and systems.
NPT Projects staff provide through-life guidance to the project from the concept of operation through to final certification. In particular, projects are assessed to ensure that Navy training standards are upheld.
As Eric Thompson, Tenix's ILS Manager for the Anzac Anti-ship Missile Defence (ASMD) upgrade project, said recently: "The progressive review of project training material performed by the RAN Training Authorities goes a long way towards ensuring the training deliverables are acceptable to the RAN. NPT Projects staff provide a focal contact point for planning and achieving the required (training) outcome. This planning stage is in full swing in the Anzac ASMD project."
This rigorous approach to compliance ensures that training is developed and delivered consistent with the competency-based training (CBT) framework adopted by the rest of Navy.
Adherence to the CBT framework and the use of registered competencies allows the Navy to award qualifications for training that have been completed by Navy personnel.
Projects are also analysed in terms of their ability to meet Navy personnel philosophies. Concepts such as minimum manning and the need for shore respite are advocated and implemented as appropriate. More recent developments such as multi-crewing and flexi-crewing are also considered and implemented where appropriate.
Navy continues to maintain an intense schedule for the acquisition of new capability. With the burgeoning range of projects large and small, a number of stakeholders are engaged, ensuring a reliable nexus between technical elements and training support. Often, negotiations are complicated by the increasing focus on interoperability, which in turn leads to an even greater engagement of a variety of stakeholders.
Overall, it is the responsibility of the NPT Projects Section to ensure that Navy's future capability is provided with the required personnel and training support. This support is a vital element to the ongoing excellence of the Navy and directly contributes to the RAN's ability to 'fight and win at sea'.
