Lead Story
Issue No. 7 - October/November 2002
South Australia's Secret Jewel
by Professor Richard Blandy
The Defence Science and Technology Organisation (DSTO) at Edinburgh in South Australia may well be South Australia’s premier R&D establishment. It is undoubtedly world class in its electronics and surveillance research activities. This jewel in South Australia’s R&D crown is already of substantial economic significance to South Australia. Potentially, DSTO could make a truly huge difference to South Australia’s economic performance.
A Brief History of DSTO
The origins of today’s Defence Science and Technology Organisation (DSTO) go back to 1910 with the start of explosives research at Victoria Barracks in Melbourne. It was not until 1946 that a Defence Research Laboratory was established in Finsbury (Woodville North), followed a year later by the establishment of the Long Range Weapons Establishment (LRWE) at Salisbury to support the rocket range at Woomera.
In 1949, three new laboratories were formed in Salisbury – the High Speed Aerodynamics Laboratory, the Propulsion Research Laboratory and the Electronics Research Laboratory. In 1955, the Salisbury establishments were amalgamated to form the Weapons Research Establishment (WRE).
In 1974, the Defence Science & Technology Organisation (DSTO) was created, including WRE.
In 2002, DSTO reorganised its laboratory structure around three core businesses - military platforms, electronic systems and information sciences.
Platforms Sciences Laboratory provides science and technology support to Australia’s major military air and maritime platforms. It is headquartered at Fishermans Bend in Melbourne.
Systems Sciences Laboratory supports the acquisition and operation of the major electronic systems on military platforms. It is headquartered in Edinburgh.
Information Sciences Laboratory will focus on the exploitation of communication and information technologies. It, too, is headquartered in Edinburgh.
DSTO now employs ab...
