RIEDC Partners in Regional Defense Industry Partnership
April 9, 2008 | Print this page | Share This | Email this page
The Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation (RIEDC) today announced the agency’s participation in the Defense Technology Initiative (DTI), a new six-state network that will work to grow the region’s premier defense technology cluster. DTI’s mission is to create jobs, strengthen the regional workforce and increase the New England-area defense community’s political presence with the Pentagon and on Capitol Hill.
Along with RIEDC, the New Hampshire High Technology Council, TechMaine and the Connecticut Technology Council have partnered with DTI to create a regional defense technology agenda. DTI was founded as a military base preservation group in 2003 by the Massachusetts High Technology Council.
“Building on its reputation as a national leader in defense and marine technology, New England has a strong opportunity to drive the next generation of defense industry growth,” said Saul Kaplan, Executive Director of the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation. “DTI will help partner states rally around a regional vision for the sector that creates new connections across traditional boundaries and positions the region for a level of growth that is only possible through collaboration. We are pleased to be a part of this important initiative.”
Comprised of more than 100 organizations, Rhode Island’s industry employed more than 16,000 people in 2006 and generated $2 billion in revenue. In the same year, more than $115 million in Homeland security spending was invested in Rhode Island defense organizations. The state’s participation in the DTI ensures that the state and regional defense industry will have a strong voice in Washington.
“Recent political, economic and workforce trends have highlighted the need to create strategic alliances throughout New England and design a strategy to grow the broader regional defense sector,” said Steve Jamison, DTI Chairman and BAE Systems VP & General Manager. “We believe that a unified New England defense community is stronger than the sum of its parts.”
DTI, based in Waltham, MA, will be run by its executive director, Brigadier General Donald Quenneville, USAF (Ret.). In January, Quenneville was named executive director of DTI’s previous incarnation as a Massachusetts-focused group (MassDTI). Since that time he has been working to build a network of defense technology leaders across New England to make DTI a viable regional organization.
“With a strong technology base, skilled workforce and world class universities, New England has the resources to expand our defense technology leadership position,” said Quenneville. “But to achieve our potential and deliver maximum value to the Pentagon, we must commit to enhanced collaboration among industry, higher education and government.”
Quenneville noted that the broader geographic focus would allow the organization to fully engage the region’s Congressional Delegation and help support a more cohesive and formidable New England voting bloc for defense-related issues on Capitol Hill. Increased regional collaboration could also lead to more competitive bids for research and operational investment in New England by the Department of Defense and individual military branches, said Quenneville.
“Taking a regional approach to addressing defense industry needs makes sense for our member companies and the DOD,” said Matt Pierson, Chairman of the New Hampshire High Technology Council. “Many of our member companies collaborate on a daily basis with other defense related businesses located in the region. New England companies have a proven track record of developing unique and innovative products not found elsewhere in the nation. This area is a catalyst in delivering technology driven solutions to the DOD community.”
DTI will be governed by its board of directors, which includes Jamison, Dynamics Research Corp Chairman and CEO James Regan, MITRE Senior Vice President Robert Nesbit and University of Massachusetts President Jack Wilson. A new advisory board is being built to tap the expertise of industry, university and military leaders throughout the region.
“DTI’s new structure is a logical extension of the organization’s work to expand opportunities for the Massachusetts military cluster,” said MHTC President Christopher Anderson, who also serves as DTI’s president. “We look forward to working with our dynamic regional partner organizations to implement a growth strategy for New England.”
In the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) process, DTI highlighted the defense technology strengths of Massachusetts and the region in successful efforts to save Hanscom Air Force Base and the Natick Soldier Systems Center. Anderson noted that a regional DTI would help the region prepare for the next BRAC round, which could be economically devastating to New England. Despite the final positive results of the 2005 BRAC for the region, several of New England’s largest military installations were originally targeted for closure by the Pentagon.
About the Defense Technology Initiative - The Defense Technology Initiative (DTI) was established by the Massachusetts High Technology Council (MHTC) to lead the successful BRAC 2005 outcome for Hanscom Air Force Base and the US Army Soldier Systems Center in Massachusetts.
DTI has evolved into a regional member organization of leading technology employers, research facilities and universities working to make New England the global defense technology leader. With strong working relationships with the region’s top military facilities and an active presence in Washington DC and at New England State Houses, MassDTI is working to create jobs and economic opportunities for its members. For more information visit www.defensetech.net.
