Interview with: Rachel Braun, Vice President, Paramount Group. Braun is a speaker at the marcus evans Aerospace & Defense Manufacturing & R&D Summit 2018, in California, March 1-2.

1. Interview with: Rachel Braun, Vice
President, Paramount Group
“Over recent decades, threats have
become increasingly asymmetrical, both
in form and occurrence. For nations
across the world, this challenging
environment is increasing the need for
versatile aerospace and defense
technology that can support their efforts
in efficiently building security, supporting
economic growth, and providing stability
to their citizens, core industries and
institutions,” according to Rachel Braun,
Vice President, Paramount Group.
Braun is a speaker at the marcus evans
Aerospace & Defense Manufacturing
& R&D Summit 2018, in California,
March 1-2.
What aerospace and defense
technology is needed today?
Ongoing security challenges in the Middle
East and sub-Saharan Africa, for
example, have highlighted a growing
need for state-of-the-art aerospace
systems and aircraft that can perform
multiple mission-types with greater
reliability and technological efficiency in
challenging environments. This presents
two questions: How do we better equip
governments with the aerospace
capabilities needed to tackle such threats
when the world is changing so rapidly?
How do we ensure that today’s R&D will
meet the challenges of tomorrow which
we cannot yet predict?
R&D and engineering programs
conducted by the aerospace sector have
traditionally orientated towards large
national defense procurement programs.
The critical importance of such projects
cannot be overstated, but the reality is
that technology is advancing so fast that
a 20-year development cycle for an
aircraft essentially guarantees it will be
out of date by the time it first flies. The
F-35 jet program, which is costing more
growth of digitized R&D and
manufacturing is that new centers of
engineering excellence can develop
rapidly around the world. We are proudly
African, and we believe this gives us a
unique insight into the defense
challenges facing some of the most
unpredictable regions of the world.
Traditionally, being based in Africa would
have been a hindrance in terms of
developing the major R&D or
manufacturing facilities. With bespoke
digital design and manufacturing
capabilities it is possible for us to design
and manufacture our products anywhere
in the world. It is no longer just about
what we are building, but about how we
are building it.
This type of engineering excellence is key
to creating equipment that is built for
purpose and equipping militaries with
advanced equipment designed to meet
today’s threats. However, for this to
happen, we must see development in two
ways. Firstly, robust global partnerships
between the industry’s traditional leaders
and smaller firms. Secondly, we must
acknowledge that the challenge to work
differently and more flexibly does not
rest solely on the shoulders of our
industry, as governments must also
recognize that the changing security
landscape, coupled with long-term
pressure on budgets, requires a new
approach to procurement and
purchasing. Governments need to shift
away from a sole reliance on the
traditional “one-size-fits-all” procurement
programs to an outlook that
acknowledges the need for purpose-built
equipment to meet well-defined, real-
time needs, and this may come from new
niche entrants—domestically and
internationally—rather than traditional
OEMs. The world is changing, and so too
must approaches to design and
engineering.
than USD 406 billion, started in 1992 and
will only commence full production in
2018. As a consequence, it will fail to
meet the requirements of reactive
innovation, efficiency and quick
turnaround times that are needed to help
governments keep pace with the more
nuanced and evolving security threats
that are becoming more prevalent.
What would shorten R&D time?
There is a simple answer to this
paradoxical question. Increasing the role
for nimble and more innovative
aerospace and defense companies in the
development and supply of defense
capabilities. Nimble and customer-
focused companies in the aerospace
sector are inherently built upon the
foundations of rapid innovation. They are
often established to deliver, or have
grown in response to, a specific
requirement or niche, enabling them to
produce innovative technologies far more
rapidly than larger organizations that
have to manage multiple technology
programs on an often epic scale.
But smaller does not necessarily mean
nimble. It is the increasing availability
and uptake of digital design, simulation
and manufacturing processes that allows
smaller, more innovative suppliers, from
anywhere in the world to carve out a
niche in the market.
At Paramount Group, we eradicate the
inefficient sub-supply chains and place
emphasis on close-coupling the
engineering and manufacturing
processes; primarily by adopting ground-
breaking approaches to prototyping and
manufacturing through advanced
Kinematics, CFD analysis, and advanced
3D printing. This philosophy, which we
adopted in the creation of our new Mwari
aircraft, a militarized multipurpose
variant of our AHRLAC aircraft, allows for
a quicker turnaround time from design to
factory floor and an ability to make rapid
adjustments to specifications. We can
constantly modify aircrafts to keep pace
with external technological and security
advancements - without having to re-
engineer a complex manufacturing
system or rebuild a supply chain. It is an
agile manufacturing approach that allows
us to stay current—and ahead—of
changing threat environments.
What business opportunities could
this approach open up for
manufacturers?
One of the interesting by-products of this
The world is
changing, and
so too must
approaches to
design and
engineering
Reinventing the Global
Defense and Aerospace Industry

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About the Aerospace & Defense Manufacturing & R&D
Summit 2018
The 13th Aerospace & Defense Manufacturing & R&D Summit is the premium forum
bringing leading manufacturing, engineering and R&D executives from global
aerospace and defense manufacturers and solution providers together. The Summit
offers an intimate environment for focused discussion on cutting edge technology,
strategy and implementation of solutions to forward thinking aerospace and defense
companies interested in staying ahead of the market. Taking place at the Four
Seasons Hotel, Westlake Village, California, March 1-2, the Summit includes
presentations on advanced manufacturing, emerging technologies, additive
manufacturing and data analytics.
www.aerospacedefensesummit.com
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