RPK
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Canadian defence companies seek new markets in India - thestar.com
NEW DELHICanadas MC Countermeasures Inc. makes some of the worlds most sophisticated radar jamming equipment.
Even in a place like the English Channel, where there are a ton of boats, you can use our technology to isolate one particular bad guy, says John Bednarz, an executive with the Ottawa company. You jam his signal and he doesnt have any idea youre coming.
While 15-year-old MC Countermeasures electronics may be state-of-the-art, Bednarz said the Canadian government isnt interested.
So this week hes in search of a contract that could more than make up for the snub at home. Bednarz is exploring whether Indias government is interested in made-in-Canada military technology.
MC Countermeasures is among seven Canadian defence contractors taking part in a landmark trade mission to India. The companies arrive Tuesday in New Delhi for a four-day visit to formally introduce themselves to the Indian military establishment.
The trade mission comes with Indias military at a crossroad. While the government here has historically spurned foreign contracts in an effort to develop domestic defence-sector investment, the requirements to meet the needs of a 1.2 million-member army are vast.
You need tremendous patience and perseverance when you try to sell here because it can seem like youre in a game of snakes and ladders, but the payoff can be huge, said Rahul Bedi, a New Delhi journalist who writes for Janes Defence Weekly, a trade publication.
India has recently bought 650 battle tanks from Russia and will build 1,000 more under local licensing contracts, Bedi said, while the Indian Air Force has ordered 57 training jet aircraft from the U.K. to supplement a previous purchase of 66.
No one else is buying like India, he said.
By 2015, India may spend as much as $80 billion (U.S.) on defence-sector contracts, the consulting company Deloitte India reported recently. Of that, the army will spend $42 billion, while the air force plans to buy $24 billion worth of equipment.
But before Bednarz and others get dollar signs in their eyes, Bedi offers this warning: Indias arcane procurement system can be maddening.
There have been instances when it has taken 45 years from the time a tender was floated to the time it was filled, Bedi said. Contracts have to go through 18 departments at various industries.
Also, a new law on outsourcing requires that any military contract worth more than $60 million include provisions to subcontract 30 per cent of the work to India-based companies.
Still, foreign companies are finding ways to get contracts done. Last year, Indian Defence Minister A.K. Antony said that just 30 per cent of this countrys military contracts are domestic.
The Canadian companies are hardly household names. Quebecs Adventure Lights makes ultra lightweight, water-activated light beacons that can be seen for more than a mile in the open sea. Marport Deep Sea Technologies, from Newfoundland, will be pitching unmanned underwater vehicles that can be used in anti-submarine warfare and for mine detection. Tulmar Safety Systems, from Hawkesbury, is hoping to stoke interest in its constant-wear life vests designed for maritime tactical assault teams.
Tim Page, president of the Canadian Association of Defence and Securities Industries, an 850-member trade association, said the India mission comes after previous trips to the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. Next year, the association plans a mission to Brazil, another developing country with a surging economy.
Theres definitely a learning curve with India, said Page. The Canadian defence sector is currently a $50 billion-a-year business, Page said. International business accounts for about half, or $25 billion. U.S. contracts are worth about $20 billion a year for Canadian companies.
NEW DELHICanadas MC Countermeasures Inc. makes some of the worlds most sophisticated radar jamming equipment.
Even in a place like the English Channel, where there are a ton of boats, you can use our technology to isolate one particular bad guy, says John Bednarz, an executive with the Ottawa company. You jam his signal and he doesnt have any idea youre coming.
While 15-year-old MC Countermeasures electronics may be state-of-the-art, Bednarz said the Canadian government isnt interested.
So this week hes in search of a contract that could more than make up for the snub at home. Bednarz is exploring whether Indias government is interested in made-in-Canada military technology.
MC Countermeasures is among seven Canadian defence contractors taking part in a landmark trade mission to India. The companies arrive Tuesday in New Delhi for a four-day visit to formally introduce themselves to the Indian military establishment.
The trade mission comes with Indias military at a crossroad. While the government here has historically spurned foreign contracts in an effort to develop domestic defence-sector investment, the requirements to meet the needs of a 1.2 million-member army are vast.
You need tremendous patience and perseverance when you try to sell here because it can seem like youre in a game of snakes and ladders, but the payoff can be huge, said Rahul Bedi, a New Delhi journalist who writes for Janes Defence Weekly, a trade publication.
India has recently bought 650 battle tanks from Russia and will build 1,000 more under local licensing contracts, Bedi said, while the Indian Air Force has ordered 57 training jet aircraft from the U.K. to supplement a previous purchase of 66.
No one else is buying like India, he said.
By 2015, India may spend as much as $80 billion (U.S.) on defence-sector contracts, the consulting company Deloitte India reported recently. Of that, the army will spend $42 billion, while the air force plans to buy $24 billion worth of equipment.
But before Bednarz and others get dollar signs in their eyes, Bedi offers this warning: Indias arcane procurement system can be maddening.
There have been instances when it has taken 45 years from the time a tender was floated to the time it was filled, Bedi said. Contracts have to go through 18 departments at various industries.
Also, a new law on outsourcing requires that any military contract worth more than $60 million include provisions to subcontract 30 per cent of the work to India-based companies.
Still, foreign companies are finding ways to get contracts done. Last year, Indian Defence Minister A.K. Antony said that just 30 per cent of this countrys military contracts are domestic.
The Canadian companies are hardly household names. Quebecs Adventure Lights makes ultra lightweight, water-activated light beacons that can be seen for more than a mile in the open sea. Marport Deep Sea Technologies, from Newfoundland, will be pitching unmanned underwater vehicles that can be used in anti-submarine warfare and for mine detection. Tulmar Safety Systems, from Hawkesbury, is hoping to stoke interest in its constant-wear life vests designed for maritime tactical assault teams.
Tim Page, president of the Canadian Association of Defence and Securities Industries, an 850-member trade association, said the India mission comes after previous trips to the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. Next year, the association plans a mission to Brazil, another developing country with a surging economy.
Theres definitely a learning curve with India, said Page. The Canadian defence sector is currently a $50 billion-a-year business, Page said. International business accounts for about half, or $25 billion. U.S. contracts are worth about $20 billion a year for Canadian companies.
