u can but not oz....
Aussie Government admits Kockums' propeller details given away to US..===http://www.abc.net.au/pm/stories/s260911.htm
PM Archive - Thursday, 15 March , 2001 00:00:00
Reporter: Camille Funnell
COMPERE: The Federal Court today heard that the Commonwealth Government had admitted handing to the United States top secret design drawings of the propeller for Collins Class Submarines.
KOCKUMS, the propellers' designer, is seeking an injunction in the Federal Court to stop the Government from delivering one of its Collins Class propellers to the US Navy. The Commonwealth had previously given an undertaking not to hand over the propeller pending today's court hearing. But as Camille Funnel reports, in spite of that commitment the court was today told that the propellers' design had been handed over to the US several years' ago.
CAMILLE FUNNEL: The case now before the Federal Court is about intellectual property rights and a submarine propeller, the most vital and secret part of a submarine.
Kockums, the leading designer of non-nuclear submarine technology, maintains the submarine's propeller is highly commercial sensitive information that must be protected. That's why, the company says, propellers are covered up when they're not in water.
Kockums, a Swedish company, has accused the Federal Government of failing to protect its intellectual property rights by sending one of its Collins Class propellers to the US Navy for service. Last month the Commonwealth promised not to release the propeller to the US Navy pending today's court hearing, so the propeller is now being housed in closed storage on a boat two days off the US coast.
Kockums was well pleased it had stopped the delivery of its propeller to the US Navy, that is, until today. This morning, as the Federal Court was about to begin hearing the matter, counsel for Kockums, Brian Rayment [phonetic] QC, was presented with an affidavit which, he said, showed a great deal more material had already been provided by the Commonwealth to the US than was previously suggested.
After a brief adjournment Mr Rayment QC told the court the affidavit handed to him that morning stated copies of the design drawings of the propeller had been made available to the US several years' ago. Mr Rayment told the court the author of the affidavit, a senior public servant, a Mr Stuart [phonetic], had 'been kept in the dark' about the matter by other officers of the Commonwealth until yesterday. The court was later told Mr Stuart was the director of Submarine Platform for the Commonwealth Government.
While one propeller is now in the waters off the US coastline, the Federal Court was today told on two other occasions the Federal Government had sent its Collins Class propellers to the US. Mr Rayment told the court the first had been sent in 1998 and he said no consent had been sought from Kockums. They did the same thing again, he told the court, in 1999, again without the permission of Kockums.
Mr Rayment said Kockums' motivation in taking the Federal Government to court was simply to protect its confidential information. He said it had been proposed that a sub-contractor to the US Navy do work on the propellers and that sub-contractor was a competitor to Kockums, they also made propellers. Mr Rayment said in light of the affidavit stating that designs had been handed over to the US several years' ago, Kockums may well [inaudible] in its court action against the Federal Government.
A decision on that is likely later tonight, when legal counsel for Kockums speak to the company's headquarters in Sweden.
COMPERE: Camille Funnel.
1.u wont be a second time stupid.Right?
2.
would the 180 years sub contractors trust oz again even with
the settlement
Monday, 28 June 2004 123/2004
Joint media release fr Aussie Ministers for Defense and Finance and Administration
NEW ERA FOR AUSTRALIAN SUBMARINES
(Aussie)Defence Minister Robert Hill and Finance Minister Nick Minchin today announced a settlement of all outstanding commercial issues relating to the Collins Class submarines between the Department of Defence, Australian Submarine Corporation and Kockums AB of Sweden.
The key features of the settlement are as follows:
§ Defence and ASC have full access to Kockums’ intellectual property for maintaining, supporting and upgrading the Collins Class submarines throughout the life of the Class.
§ Formal termination of the various contracts between the parties for the design and construction of the submarines, and subsequent settlement of all claims arising from these contracts.
§ Provision of a contract under which Defence and ASC may have access to Kockums’ design services for support of the Collins Class submarines as required.
The settlement provides full access for Defence, ASC and their subcontractors to KockumsÂ’ intellectual property for the Collins Class submarines within a framework that protects KockumsÂ’ proprietary information and also facilitates Australian access to United States submarine technology.
The Ministers said they were pleased with the outcome of the settlement, which will provides an effective and sustainable basis to increase AustraliaÂ’s in-country capability to support its submarine fleet.
The settlement marks the end of long and complex negotiations between Defence, ASC and Kockums, and the subsequent beginning of a new era for ASC as the company strengthens its role as designer and provider of through-life support of the Collins Class submarines.
All future work by ASC in maintaining, supporting and upgrading the submarines will be carried out through a long term strategic relationship with Defence under the $3.5 billion Through-Life Support Contract signed in December last year.
“The superb capabilities of the Collins Class submarines will now be further enhanced, as will their valuable contribution to the nation’s defence and their strategic support of our allies,” the Ministers said.
“This settlement will ensure the submarines remain at the forefront of technological advances and continue to maintain their world-class capability.”
The Ministers noted that the settlement with Kockums brings to an end the ongoing legal negotiations and proceedings and expressed their appreciation to Kockums for their assistance in resolving these issues.
ENDS
