Prominence delivers Lean process improvement, upskilling and certified coaching to provide organisations and their teams with efficiencies that translate into tangible waste reduction and real savings.
Our certified Lean and Six Sigma consultants are experienced in working collaboratively with Defence stakeholders to review and enhance existing processes and ensure that implementation locks in the enhanced processes.
The larger and more complex an organisation, the greater the need for time, cost and productivity improvement. The Capability Acquisition and Sustainment Group (CASG) is a uniquely complex division of Australia’s Department of Defence, with wide-ranging responsibilities affecting assets, personnel, process and performance.
Prominence was engaged over a period of two years to initially review and enhance the organisation’s Plan, Do, Review (PDR) improvement methodology and then provide hands-on support to the delivery of a major program of process improvement projects including:
Each PDR project reaped significant benefits, ranging from optimised personnel capability and reduced financial cost (for example in reduced security and workplace health and safety risk, increased morale and improvements to personnel productivity), substantial reduction in disposal of holding stocks and subsequent increased in realised savings, and significantly improved contractor relationships (transforming feedback from negative to excellent).
Prominence later returned to CASG to facilitate Lean Six Sigma Yellow and Green belt coursework, also providing a review of existing activities to ensure CASG were successfully delivering their Lean Program.
Prominence is a proud member of the Australian Industry Defence Network (AIDN) and has been supporting both prime contractors and SMEs for over 10 years.
Our services have included supporting Defence industry suppliers in a range of areas including:
We understand that the domestic defence industry plays a key role in supporting Defence and building a domestic capability is critical to protecting the security, interests and livelihoods of Australians.
Within our consulting team we have veterans (including ex-Special Forces), ex-Defence and Defence industry experts and consultants who have direct experience in nuclear submarine manufacture, dealing with the spent nuclear fuel from submarine reactors and nuclear reactor operations and decommissioning.
Prominence was engaged to provide support to a large prime contractor in undertaking a study to investigate the feasibility of sustaining an overseas defence related system in Australia.
Having to rely on an overseas organisation to sustain the system was causing operational issues and therefore an option for domestic sustainment was developed and evaluated considering issues such as domestic technical capability, availability of domestic facilities, cost, risks, commercial arrangements with the overseas organisation, ITAR/European legislation, schedule and benefits.
This engagement was undertaken using consultants with an NV2 security clearance and further details cannot be provided for security reasons.
Prominence provides strategic procurement and asset management services including in the specialist aviation domain where we have been engaged in the planning, procurement, retrofitting and commissioning of fixed and rotary aircraft imported for Australian use.
These engagements have required us to provide a full spectrum of services including:
Our services extend to strategic asset management planning to provide a clear picture of the whole of life financial and operational management of assets/fleets. This includes undertaking assessment of the current assets/fleet in areas such as:
Our proven ability to provide complex support services over the full asset lifecycle was demonstrated by supporting our client in the planning, procurement, import, fit out, acceptance testing and commissioning into service of two helicopters and one fixed wing plane which were brought into service in 2020.
Prominence was engaged to develop the Defence Estate and Infrastructure Group (E&IG) Counter Unmanned Aerial System (CUAS) cost-benefit analysis report including advice surrounding the ownership, integration and operation of a CUAS leased hybrid system.
The report was also required to include a Fundamental Inputs to Capability (FIC) analysis including the identification of constraints and risk with support from the nominated supplier.
This was a sensitive engagement requiring the use of security cleared consultants and required a detailed review of the CUAS leased hybrid system option including strategic alignment, costs, risks, operations, facilities, workforce and regulatory issues.
Extensive stakeholder consultation was also required to ensure the proposed option was fully considered through the lens of multiple stakeholders and interested parties. The engagement resulted in a detailed report with recommendations supported by an objective analysis of data and input from key stakeholders. Further details of this engagement cannot be shared for security reasons
Defence required the provision of support to optimise the process for the integration of USA products into the Collins Class of submarines to ensure the process was robust, efficient and could be undertaken within a shorter timeframe (i.e. a target of 20 per cent less time).
Prominence provided process optimisation consultants with the appropriate security clearances to co-design an optimised process for the acceptance and integration (including acceptance testing) of the new products into the Collins Class of submarines.
The engagement required the Prominence consultants to work with a complex and diverse range of stakeholder to ensure that the current process was full understood and that the future state process was designed so that it met all regulatory, technical and operational requirements. An assessment at the end of the project showed that a time saving of approximately 50 per cent could be realised once the harmonisation plan was implemented.
Prominence was engaged to provide the Directorate General Technical Airworthiness (DGTA) with assistance to develop a system for collecting and utilising stakeholder feedback to efficiently and effectively assure and continually improve the safety of Defence Aviation.
The project arose from the identification of a need for a coordinated process for planning and managing the requirements, methods of engagement, feedback collection, analysis and response to stakeholder engagement to achieve an increased understanding of the DGTA-ADF stakeholders and improved responsiveness to their current and emerging requirements. The System also needed to provide Agency managers and staff with a consistent means of determining whether their outputs are satisfying stakeholders’ requirements; and support DGTA-ADF compliance with the customer satisfaction clauses required to maintain certification under ISO 9001.
The approach to the project required complex stakeholder engagement and delivered a detailed report inclusive of a detailed description of the elements of a stakeholder engagement system (principles, purpose and scope, stakeholder identification, internal capability requirements, the engagement processes) and two courses of action for DGTA-ADF to purpose build a sustainable, fit for purpose stakeholder engagement system.
The report also provided a description of the agency’s internal and external stakeholder communities and their needs within the construct of the Defence Aviation Community which consists of those individuals, groups and organisations that enable, support and/or conduct Defence aviation operations and therefore have a direct interest in the performance and efficacy of the agency.