Preserving capacity, General Tom Lawson, Chief of the Defence Staff, Keys to Canadian SAR
Issue link: http://vanguardcanada.uberflip.com/i/139409
INSIDE INDUSTRY The reported noted that while steps have been taken to increase the aircraft's availability, "corrosion from salt water is increasing maintenance needs, with at least two helicopters always in maintenance. Therefore, the number of aircraft available for the coming years will be reduced." That prompted Defence Minister Peter MacKay to ask DND to assess whether some of nine VH-71s the government acquired in 2011 could be made fully operational. Canada bought the VH-71s, an updated variant of the Cormorant, when the United States cancelled its presidential helicopter program. The bargain price of $163 million also included much needed spare parts. panacis: powering tomorrow's soldiers I While the Air Force has been burning through the spares to maintain its fleet of 14 Cormorants, apparently the helicopters are still relatively intact. MacKay's request fits with a 2011 proposal by AgustaWestland, manufacturer of the CH-149 and VH-71. In a briefing to Canadian media at the time, the company suggested it could reconfigured seven of the nine VH-71s to SAR specifications and perform a midlife upgrade on the current 14 Cormorants that would then provide the CF with 21 SAR-specific helicopters. That would also allow the RCAF to restore Cormorants to the air wing at Trenton, which is currently using the less SAR-capable Griffon for the role. THE MARKETPLACE: Think durable, think Canadian, think Rousseau. Batteries have long been the bane of soldiers. Every piece of technology requires them, so you can never carry enough. And since you never want a battery-powered piece of kit to fail during an operation, you replace old ones with fresh ones long before the battery life has been exhausted. After years of talking with Canadian soldiers and U.S. Marines about the problem, Ottawa-based Panacis thinks it has a solution and it's hoping to revolutionize the way soldiers harvest, store and deliver power on the battlefield. The Soldier SharePack is a multi-port, two-pound power management system that offers more flexibility than current technologies. The connections are bi-directional, allowing it to capture energy from sources like solar panels, batteries, chargers, and even vehicles. It can also be used to power multiple devices at the same time. The key to its success, though, may be its ability to pull power from discarded batteries. "The average Canadian deployed in Afghanistan or U.S. forces in Iraq were carrying in excess of 17 pounds of batteries, and they were using a range of several different types of batteries to power their equipment," says Matt Fisher, Panacis' director of business development. "We are trying to reduce that weight and consolidate the number of different power sources that they have to carry." Fisher hopes the SharePack will help reduce the amount of waste produced by the military, and cut down on the expense involved in battery disposal. Panacis is aiming to begin volume production in 2014, and is also exploring non-military applications for the SharePack. Since 1950, Rousseau has been a leader in offering high quality products. Our heavyduty "R" cabinets are entirely designed and made in Canada and will surely meet your needs and specifications. With a lifetime warranty on the drawer's rolling mechanism, you will quickly understand why Rousseau is recognized as offering the most durable cabinet in the industry. To have more information about our extremely robust cabinets, visit www.rousseaumetal.com. — Anan Rahman www.vanguardcanada.com JUNE/JULY 2013 9