New Canadian trade association seeks to represent domestic defence industry

The Alliance of Canadian Defence Companies is meant to bring together Canadian-owned and -controlled defence firms to collaborate and advocate for homegrown industry. (Alliance of Canadian Defence Companies)

The Alliance of Canadian Defence Companies (ACDC) launched in late February as a “new trade association representing Canadian-owned and Canadian-controlled defence manufacturers, technology firms, and suppliers”, the organisation said in a statement.

It is “focused on strengthening coordination among Canadian defence firms and providing a unified Canadian industry voice on policy, procurement reform, and industrial development”, according to the 24 February statement.

“Membership is open to Canadian-owned and Canadian-controlled companies committed to building sovereign capability and export-ready platforms,” the statement added.

The ACDC is co-chaired by Eliot Pence, founder and CEO of Dominion Dynamics, and Paul Ziadé, co-founder and CEO of North Vector Dynamics. Both companies provided the “initial organisational support to establish the Alliance”, the statement said.

Building IP

The initiative was driven by three things, Pence told Janes in a 13 March interview. The first is to provide a “trade association for Canadian-owned and Canadian-controlled defence companies”, he said, noting that existing trade associations, such as the Canadian Association of Defence and Security Industries (CADSI) and the Aerospace Industries Association of Canada (AIAC), broadly represent defence companies in Canada.

“What is clear from the Defence Industrial Strategy (DIS) is that there needs to be a focus on Canadian content, so Canadian-owned, Canadian-controlled and headquartered, and [Canadian] IP [intellectual property] generation,” Pence said. The ACDC is intended to collectively express the needs and requirements of those companies, he added.

“We saw that there wasn't an industry voice that advocates for Canadian-controlled, Canadian-owned companies,” Ziadé told Janes on 7 April.