Page 53: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (April 2005)

April 2005 53 further study; and • The government confirmed that government fleets would be continue to be procured, repaired and refitted in

Canada subject to a competitive market place.

The one government response that truly disappointed was "The Senior

Officials Report on Federal

Procurement". The Partnership Report had recommended that the government "eliminate the peaks and valleys of pro- curement for the Navy and Coast Guard through more effective forward planning and thereby keep order books and employment levels more consistent over the long term".

The Senior Officials report concluded hat there was no scope for leveling out procurement. They had completely missed the intent of the recommendation that was to stimulate government to con- sider a more sensible way to do business, one that promised significant benefits for both government and the industry.

In Canada a shipyard cannot live on government contracts alone. It takes government and commercial newbuild- ing in combination with ship repair to run a successful medium to large sized shipyard in Canada. Government new- building is key. For it is from a base of government work that a core workforce of talented designers, engineers and technicians can be maintained and from which their expertise can be leveraged into commercial and offshore work.

The Structured Financing Facility is an important building block in the ship- building policy. While it has its short- comings it has been welcomed by the industry. We are at present working with government to see if there is a way to make better use of the financing facility and the provisions for accelerated depre- ciation.

The present shipbuilding program was put in place for five years. A one-year extension has been granted and it is now due to expire in 2007. A priority short- term task will be to convince the govern- ment that the program must be renewed beyond 2007.

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About the Author

Vice Admiral Peter W. Cairns, C.M.M., C.D. retired in 1994 after 39 years of service in Canada's

Navy. His career has had an operational focus with extensive command experience. He is a qualified submarine officer and his sea commands include a submarine, two frigates, a submarine squadron and a frigate squadron. He has had significant interna- tional experience having completed tours in the

Royal Navy, the United States Navy and on

NATO's maritime staff.

VADM Cairns' senior appointments include: Director General Personnel Careers Officers where he was responsible for the career manage- ment of all officers in the Canadian forces below the rank of General Officer; Assistant Chief of Staff Operations to the Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic (SACLANT) in Norfolk Virginia where he was responsible for the production of

SACLANT's strategic direction, the planning and execution of all SACLANT sponsored major exercises, the employment of the Standing Naval Force Atlantic and the operation of SACLANT's Undersea Research Centre in La Spezia, Italy; Commander of Canada's Maritime Forces Pacific with the responsibility for all areas of operation of the Pacific Fleet; Commander of Maritime Command where he served as the senior officer com- manding Canada's navy.

In 1997 he accepted the position of President of the Shipbuilding Association of

Canada. The Association is devoted to creating a competitive regulatory environ- ment in Canada for shipbuilding, ship repair and the industrial marine sector. In 2001 he served as one of the co-chairs of the National Partnership Project formed to report on the state of shipbuilding and recommend to the Federal Industry

Minister measures to reinvigorate the Shipbuilding Industry.

VADM Cairns also serves as President of the Canadian Institute of Marine

Engineers, as a Director of the Defence Association National Network, and as a member of the Executive Committee of the Conference of Defence Associations, the Defence Industry Advisory Board, the Germanischer Lloyd Canadian

Committee and the Advisory Committee of the Institute of Ocean Technology. In 2003, he was inducted into the Hall of Fame in his hometown of Orillia, Ontario.

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