By Skies Magazine | June 2, 2016 Estimated reading time 5 minutes, 3 seconds.
As a former soldier, Harjit Sajjan knows all too well that “having the right equipment on the ground makes all the difference.” But as Minister of National Defence, he’s learning quickly just how challenging it can be to acquire that equipment.
In a keynote address to CANSEC 2016 in Ottawa on May 26, Sajjan said he has been working with Judy Foote, Minister of Public Services and Procurement, and Navdeep Singh Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, to reform the defence procurement system.
“All procurement projects are problematic,” he acknowledged. “Getting the best resources to troops is a complex process.”
Sajjan said the growing complexity of military systems and the nature of large projects create inevitable problems with scheduling and costing. But he said there were signs of improvement, especially around the procurement of in-service support. Through an inter-departmental review of procurement practices, the government is learning from allies how it might better collaborate among departments and “apply best practices to our sustainment programs.”
To encourage more innovative and modern procurement practices to get best value, “that may mean making better use of performance-based contracts, where the cost of the program is tied directly into performance, ensuring equipment is mission-ready when needed,” he explained.
While rebuilding the Royal Canadian Navy has garnered much of the government’s attention since it took office and new ideas for ships and the best way to buy them continue to flow in—Irving Shipbuilding released a proposal for a supply ship just prior to CANSEC—replacement of the CF-188 Hornet fighter jet remains on the radar.
Sajjan acknowledged that the fighters, acquired in 1982, have far exceeded their intended 20-year service life and need to be replaced now. “It needs to be dealt with quickly. Older planes are more costly and difficult to maintain. They must be taken offline to be refurbished and serviced….The fact that they have not been replaced means we are facing a capability gap in the years ahead.”
The Royal Canadian Air Force has managed to meet all of the government’s operational requests and its NORAD commitment, but “we are risk managing a gap between our NORAD and NATO commitments and the number of fighters available for operations,” Sajjan said. “In the 2020s we can foresee a capability gap. And this I find unacceptable and I do plan to fix.”
Speaking briefly with reporters following his presentation, however, Sajjan refused to put a specific timeline on when a competition might be announced to replace the 77 remaining Hornets.
As part of the government’s defence policy review currently underway, Sajjan has asked for a separate roundtable with the defence industry to gather input on future capabilities and processes. “I urge you to take part in this discussion and put forward innovative policy proposals,” he told industry executives.
In a later address to the same audience, Foote described some of the initial steps Public Services and Procurement has begun to deliver on her mandate to modernize procurement.
“We are simplifying government purchasing, and cutting red tape for both clients and suppliers, to make it easier to do business,” she said. “That is why we are moving to a web-based e-procurement model that brings information and services online, allows suppliers and buyers to complete transactions electronically, and supports green practices. And we are not wasting time. A contract for this tool is expected to be awarded later this year.”
Newer practices such as “the two-step process for evaluating bids” that allows bidders to correct minor errors or omissions without being immediately disqualified “represents a win-win, an open dialogue with bidders and a more transparent and competitive process with positive results for both government and industry.”
She used the event to lay out plans to enhance the National Shipbuilding Strategy, steps that will likely apply to future aerospace projects. They included stronger expert oversight of projects; improved capacity within the departments to manage the projects; more accurate approaches to costing to avoid the current practice of having early estimates become fixed budgets; enhanced monitoring and measurement to track project performance; and increased accountability and communication with the public and parliamentarians.
