Abstract
Modernising sustainment practices through digital solutions is critical to ensuring the operational readiness, efficiency, and affordability of Australia’s naval fleet. This paper examines how shipbuilding-specific Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) systems can significantly enhance asset management within Australia’s defence industry, highlighting lessons learned from Australian and international naval programs that leverage model-based sustainment and digital twin technologies to improve asset availability.
Integrating engineering, procurement, construction, and In-Service Support (ISS) through a unified digital environment creates an accessible digital thread and accurate digital twins for both new-build programs, such as Australia’s Hunter-class frigates and AUKUS submarines, and legacy vessels like the Anzac-class frigates. This facilitates streamlined Maintenance, Repair, and Operations (MRO) by capturing intelligent data, precisely managing configurations, and improving information sharing across industry stakeholders and the Royal Australian Navy.
Key challenges facing Australia’s shipbuilding and defence sustainment sectors include fragmented data systems, a significant increase in newbuilds, and plans for extensive mid-lifecycle upgrades on upcoming vessels. This paper emphasises establishing a centralised, shipbuilding-focused PLM platform to consolidate and unify disparate data, providing a single authoritative source of truth for asset conditions, configuration changes, and maintenance planning.
We illustrate how model-based design, engineering, and sustainment solutions effectively support a comprehensive digital thread management linking design decisions back to operational requirements. These strategies will position Australian shipbuilders to meet Defence demands.
Authors
Simon Crook, SSI, FRINA
Cory Zachrisson, SSI
Greg Goulanian, SSI
Full Paper
From the proceedings of IMC International Maritime Conference 2025