If the helmet fits...If the magic works
Cost-effective and speedy defence procurement: let's hope this works.
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Defence Minister Gordon O'Connor said yesterday that it's time for the armed forces to buy more products off the shelf rather than continue an expensive practice of ordering uniquely Canadian equipment.
"We're abandoning, except in some exceptions, abandoning Canadianization," said O'Connor. "It wasn't good enough somebody had a rifle, somebody had a truck, somebody had a helmet, we had to go and Canadianize it. We had a particular head or we had a specific need for a rifle that somebody else didn't have."
O'Connor said the military spent approximately $15 million trying to design a helmet for the "peculiar Canadian head."
"It just adds to cost," he said outside a Senate standing committee. "If an airplane works, or a truck works or a gun works, just buy it."..
But this is rather worrying (full text not online).
"The magic of accountants" will help the Conservatives deliver on their promise to add 13,000 new full-time Canadian Forces personnel, Defence Minister Gordon O'Connor said yesterday during tough questioning before a Senate committee.
Mr. O'Connor also said that as much as half of the $400 million in extra funding for the military in last week's federal budget could be clawed back under a government spending plan the Conservatives inherited from the Liberals...
Liberal Senator Joseph Day pressed Mr. O'Connor on how the military could even begin its ambitious recruiting plan with as little as $200 million in actual new money this year.
"We'll actually spend more money on people this year, above what the original plan was and, uh, the magic of accountants, somehow they can shuffle those dollars around," Mr. O'Connor replied. "I don't get into that sort of stuff, but they can shuffle dollars around and there will be extra money to buy more people this year."..
Mr. O'Connor also reiterated his pledge from last week that he had six to eight major equipment purchases, including transport aircraft and armoured trucks for soldiers in Afghanistan, ready to be launched as soon as federal cabinet gives him the green light.
Cross-posted to Daimnation!
...
Defence Minister Gordon O'Connor said yesterday that it's time for the armed forces to buy more products off the shelf rather than continue an expensive practice of ordering uniquely Canadian equipment.
"We're abandoning, except in some exceptions, abandoning Canadianization," said O'Connor. "It wasn't good enough somebody had a rifle, somebody had a truck, somebody had a helmet, we had to go and Canadianize it. We had a particular head or we had a specific need for a rifle that somebody else didn't have."
O'Connor said the military spent approximately $15 million trying to design a helmet for the "peculiar Canadian head."
"It just adds to cost," he said outside a Senate standing committee. "If an airplane works, or a truck works or a gun works, just buy it."..
But this is rather worrying (full text not online).
"The magic of accountants" will help the Conservatives deliver on their promise to add 13,000 new full-time Canadian Forces personnel, Defence Minister Gordon O'Connor said yesterday during tough questioning before a Senate committee.
Mr. O'Connor also said that as much as half of the $400 million in extra funding for the military in last week's federal budget could be clawed back under a government spending plan the Conservatives inherited from the Liberals...
Liberal Senator Joseph Day pressed Mr. O'Connor on how the military could even begin its ambitious recruiting plan with as little as $200 million in actual new money this year.
"We'll actually spend more money on people this year, above what the original plan was and, uh, the magic of accountants, somehow they can shuffle those dollars around," Mr. O'Connor replied. "I don't get into that sort of stuff, but they can shuffle dollars around and there will be extra money to buy more people this year."..
Mr. O'Connor also reiterated his pledge from last week that he had six to eight major equipment purchases, including transport aircraft and armoured trucks for soldiers in Afghanistan, ready to be launched as soon as federal cabinet gives him the green light.
Cross-posted to Daimnation!
posted by Mark, Ottawa at 8:28 a.m.
3 Comments:
Defence Minister Gordon O'Connor said yesterday that it's time for the armed forces to buy more products off the shelf rather than continue an expensive practice of ordering uniquely Canadian equipment.
The problem with this approach is that if we don't develop our own military contractors it leaves Canada at the mercy of foreign suppliers. And while this might not seem like such a big deal given that our biggest supplier is likely to be the US, consider this scenario. WWIII breaks out and Canada is cut off its supply of armaments because the US can only manage to produce what it needs. Developing this stuff in country may be more expensive, but given that it affects national security it's worth it in most cases.
Robert has a point.
However, while his point may be true for large, complex equipment purchases, a helmet is a helmet. It's made of metal and you put it on your head. Fancy, expensive redesigns are not required.
Also, we have moved away from the assumption that we will ever have to fight another war like WW 2 (large, long mobilizations), so the supply problem Robert mentions is significantly diminished.
In the end, I would say that the very low risk of supply problems is trumped by the tremendous advantages in lowers costs and procurement times of overturning the "made in Canada only" policy.
However, large, complex weapons systems are a different thing. We should focus our efforts in these areas, leveraging our high tech industries by developing systems for the CF
And then selling them.
fred, and big and round for the French Canadians...
but what of people like my son, who is tete ovale?
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