Airbus announced that leading IT and technology services provider Willyama has joined Team Maier, the teaming arrangement formed by Airbus in its bid to deliver next-generation military satellite communications (satcom) capability to Australia under the JP9102 program.
Willyama is one of the country’s leading Indigenous and veteran-owned professional services companies. It provides services including classified networking planning, end-to-end cyber security, hardware and software procurement. Willyama will provide Secret and Top Secret security accreditation for the bid team, as well as advising on the risk management strategy, system architecture and security controls proposed by the bid team. This will provide greater levels of sovereignty for Australian information within the JP9102 programme.
Kieran Hynes, Director Willyama, said: “We are proud to be partnering with Team Maier as the security accreditation partner for JP9102. It’s a unique opportunity to be part of something that will be integral to the sovereign space landscape for years to come and we’re pleased to use our extensive capabilities to contribute to the success of Team Maier.”
Martin Rowse, Airbus Campaign Lead for the JP9102 programme, said: “Willyama is one of Australia’s leading providers of IT and security services and their arrival in Team Maier will ensure that the partnership has the strongest security accreditation possible. Airbus and Team Maier partners have already spent hundreds of hours collaborating to deliver the best offer to the Australian Defence Force, and we know Willyama will be a key part of building Australia’s sovereign space capabilities for the long term.”
Willyama joins existing Team Maier members UGL, an engineering and facilities provider, satellite technology manufacturer Blacktree Technology, network infrastructure provider Clearbox Systems and Microsoft. Willyama employs 50 staff nationally with a strong focus on indigenous and veteran employment. Willyama formally joins Team Maier during Indigenous Business Month, which runs from 1–31 October, and this year is celebrating the role of Indigenous companies in Australia’s economy.
Team Maier is a unique teaming arrangement that seeks to identify Australian partners in the space, technology and academic sectors to provide innovative and specialised military satcom capabilities as part of a collaborative approach to the JP9102 programme.
As well as delivering a military satcom solution to the Australian Government, the teaming approach is designed to aid the development of a long-term sovereign defence and space ecosystem and capability in Australia. Team Maier is primarily focused on building the capabilities of Australian companies through the JP9102 opportunity, giving them a larger workshare to ensure they are able to meet future customer demands and tenders, both within Australia and internationally.