HII names new head for Australian business

HII’s Mission Technologies division announced that Michael Lempke will lead HII Australia business efforts. Lempke will direct HII’s business in-country and specifically in support of the Australia-United Kingdom-United States (AUKUS) trilateral partnership. Lempke also serves as president of Mission Technologies’ Nuclear and Environmental Services business group. Michael Lempke Since 2017, as the president of the Nuclear and Environmental Services business group, Lempke has led HII’s work maintaining a nuclear stewardship culture for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) on complex projects crucial to U.S. national security, the advancement of science and technology, and the protection of people and the environment. Lempke also supervised the implementation of programs to build and maintain the education and training of a future nuclear workforce in local communities that prioritises attracting, training, and retaining top talent. For HII in Australia, Lempke will be responsible for leveraging HII expertise in unmanned systems, C5ISR operations, the application of AI and machine learning, and nuclear shipbuilding expertise in support of AUKUS. “This is an important next step in our international growth initiative, enhancing coordination between AUKUS Pillar 1 and Pillar 2 efforts, enabling an efficient in-country operating model, and providing a unified business approach in Australia,” Mission Technologies President Andy Green said. “2024 will be a pivotal year for the AUKUS program, for the Commonwealth of Australia, and for HII, and I am proud of our team and the commitment we have shown in supporting this important global strategic initiative.” Lempke added, “I look forward to working with the Australian, U.S., and United Kingdom governments, and HII’s Australian business and academic partners to use HII expertise to make AUKUS Pillar 1 and Pillar 2 a success and to strengthen the security alliance between our nations.” This announcement follows three strategic partnerships announced in 2023: In September, HII and Babcock International Group combined forces in Australia to support critical capability requirements for the AUKUS nuclear submarine program. In November, HII and Babcock Australasia announced formation of the AUKUS Workforce Alliance (AWA) with the University of Adelaide, Curtin University, and the University of New South Wales. The AWA is a partnership committed to preparing a skilled workforce in support of the AUKUS nuclear submarine program. In December, HII, Babcock Australasia, and Bechtel Australia signed a memorandum of understanding to work together to identify opportunities to leverage their complementary sets of skills and experience to establish and support Australia’s conventionally armed nuclear-powered submarine program. For Editorial Inquiries Contact: Editor Kym Bergmann at [email protected] For Advertising Inquiries Contact: Director of Sales Graham Joss at [email protected]