Australian navy leases Survitec life rafts
Survitec has been awarded a five-year contract by the Royal Australian Navy to replace the existing fleet of inflatable life rafts with its leased commercial off-the-shelf ones, it was announced on 11 May.
Under the terms of the deal, which leads to over $2.2 million in savings for the navy, the servicing interval has been increased to 30 months, which is 2.5 times the current requirement.
Cdre Stephanie Moles, director general maritime support, Royal Australian Navy, said: ‘This contract is the way of the future for Maritime Cross-Platform Systems Program Office managed assets and items of supply.
‘The contracts being developed will deliver more effective and efficient sustainment through incentivised relationships with our industry partners.’
The contract marks a shift in the Program Office from transactions to performance-based in-service support contracts focused on systems instead of inventory. According to Moles, leasing the life rafts provides flexibility for the navy to select better products in the market to maintain its capability.
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