Release date: 08/04/2025

Local jobs boost as JFD Australia's East Coast expansion continues

• Second state-of-the-art New South Wales defence manufacturing hub opens

• Centre of excellence offering highly-skilled defence jobs

• New facility will support major underwater life support contract extension

JFD Australia, an established partner of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), has opened a second advanced manufacturing and production facility in New South Wales, this time at Caringbah in Sydney’s southern suburbs.

The new centre of excellence replaces a smaller premises at nearby Kirrawee and is believed to be the biggest purpose-built advanced manufacturing hub of its type in the southern hemisphere.

“Nothing is more important to us than keeping Australia’s defence force personnel safe under water and so we’ve invested the capital needed into a fit-for-purpose facility here that allows us to continue this commitment well into the future,” said Ms Cathy Falkiner, Managing Director, JFD Australia.

“We have specialist defence industry skills here and we will be adding to this by boosting our local workforce from 44 to 57 with new employment opportunities for highly-skilled tradespeople, engineers and specialised hyperbaric technicians.

“We are a proud member of Australia’s defence industry, creating local jobs, engaging with local supply chains and supporting local manufacturing.”

The Caringbah launch follows the recent opening of an advanced manufacturing centre at Beresfield near Newcastle from which JFD Australia produces, maintains and exports recompression chambers to navies around the world.

The two state-of-the art centres cement JFD Australia’s presence on the east coast (its national headquarters is in Perth Western Australia) and will support several domestic and international contracts including the ongoing maintenance of underwater life support equipment such as rebreathers and hyperbaric chambers to the Australian Defence Force (ADF) for at least the next five years after JFD secured a major extension to its existing contract with the RAN.

“Our mission every day is to keep Australia’s and the world’s defence force personnel safe underwater,” said Ms Falkiner.