Advanced Navigation is expanding its Australian manufacturing capability into the United States with a new Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT) Centre of Excellence in Huntsville, Alabama, according to the company.
In a news release, the company said its existing manufacturing and research and development operations across NSW, WA and the ACT will remain its core technology and manufacturing hub, while the Huntsville facility will provide additional US-based production capacity.
Advanced Navigation said the new centre will produce selected components, systems and builds where US-based manufacturing is required for security, classified programs or customer requirements.
“Advanced Navigation was built in Australia, and remains at the heart of our technology, engineering and manufacturing capability,” said Chris Shaw, CEO and co-founder of Advanced Navigation.
“Expanding into the United States allows us to take that capability directly into one of the world’s largest defence and heavy industry markets,” Shaw said. “It gives us additional capacity to support U.S. programs while continuing to invest in the advanced manufacturing and R&D capability we have built here in Australia.”
The company manufactures fibre-optic gyroscope (FOG) sensors and laser velocity sensors used in navigation systems for vehicles and autonomous platforms, including in environments where GPS may be spoofed, jammed or unavailable.
Advanced Navigation said manufacturing these technologies requires precise engineering, with the production techniques forming part of the underlying intellectual property.
“With technology this precise, you can’t separate engineering from manufacturing,” said Chuck Matheny, Vice President of U.S. Operations at Advanced Navigation America.
“Production, calibration and validation all have to work together. The capability developed in Australia gives us a strong foundation to build from as we establish dedicated manufacturing in Huntsville and respond to the specific requirements of U.S. defence programs,” Matheny said.
The Huntsville facility will focus on advanced manufacturing across fibre optics, microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) and photonics. The company said the location will also support US-based production for sensitive and classified defence programs.
Shaw said the US expansion is intended to complement rather than replace the company’s Australian operations.
“Our investment in Huntsville is an extension of what we have built in Australia, not a replacement for it,” he said. “This is about an Aussie deep-tech company taking its technology and manufacturing capability into one of the world’s largest defence and heavy industry markets, while continuing to invest, innovate and manufacture here at home.”
Advanced Navigation said the Huntsville facility will add a US manufacturing node to its Australian and UK operations, which it said will expand production capacity and provide greater supply-chain redundancy across the three AUKUS nations.
