Welcome
Overview
The last few years have prompted a rapid change in technology, information and capabilities as organisations seek to accelerate their digital transformation efforts to adapt to challenging socio-economic conditions and remain competitive. Digital Engineering (DE) is reshaping the landscape of how capabilities, assets and projects are designed and managed across various industries, including defence, aerospace, cybersecurity, infrastructure, mining, construction, telecommunication and healthcare delivery. These industries are changing, and the rapid pace of the digital world has necessitated a growing need for awareness and a fundamental shift in mindset.
The National Digital Engineering Strategy (2024) paints a holistic vision for transforming how capabilities are designed, assured and delivered across all stages of capability life cycles. This initiative ensures faster innovation, enhanced system integration, and increased resilience in response to complex societal challenges.
Achieving these outcomes requires the adoption of advanced engineering practices that enhance performance, increase affordability and address current and future national security challenges. Digital Engineering (DE) is a key enabler in this transformation, providing the technical capability as well as a critical pathway for shaping the culture and workforce needed to innovate and collaborate effectively, both nationally and with allied partners.
About the Summit
UNSW Canberra proudly presents the 2nd Australian Digital Engineering Summit 2025, a premier two-day event bringing together leaders from industry, defence, national security, government, and academia to drive collaboration, showcase cutting-edge research and share strategic insights to advance Digital Engineering (DE) implementation across Australia.
Summit
Date: Monday 24 November 2025.
Location: National Convention Centre Canberra.
Format: Hybrid, all presentations available to both in person and virtual attendees.
Featuring: Keynote presentations, strategic panels and thought leadership from across the DE ecosystem.
Optional Workshops and Masterclasses
Date: Tuesday 25 November 2025.
Location: UNSW Canberra City Campus and online.
Format: Attendees must select either in-person or online workshops and masterclasses.
Featuring: Two online sessions and two interactive in-person workshops.
The 2nd Australian Digital Engineering Summit 2025 aims to:
- Increase awareness about the critical needs for DE in Australia as a key enabler for future capabilities.
- Spark innovation by exploring current and future efforts that integrate DE practices, data, operational systems, and emerging technologies to accelerate the delivery of new defence and industry capabilities.
- Build shared understanding of current challenges to DE adoption and how they can be addressed collaboratively.
We believe that this Summit is an opportunity to create an inclusive event in which everyone worldwide can contribute.
Don't miss your chance to connect with policymakers, thought leaders and innovators leading the transformation of digital engineering in Australia and beyond.
Summit Highlights
Why You Should Attend This Summit
The Summit will provide a forum for members of the defence, industry, academia, and other relevant stakeholders to discuss their roles in driving positive transformation, improving national and international initiatives, disseminating vital capability requirements to industry and exploring how various sectors support operations, drive innovation, overcome challenges and deliver tangible socio-economic benefits.
Participants representing defence and other industries can benefit from attending the Summit in several ways, including:
Access to industry insights: Summit attendees will have the unique opportunity to gain insights from innovators, engineers and key decision-makers on strategies to drive digital transformation throughout the industries and foster a digitally enabled workforce.
Access to the latest research and trends: Attending the Summit will provide industry participants with access to the latest research and trends in the field. This can help inform decisions and enable better life cycle management and sustainment.
Networking opportunities: The Summit will provide industry participants with the opportunity to network with leading researchers and experts in the field. This can help build relationships with potential partners, customers, or collaborators.
Exposure to new processes and practices: The Summit will explore opportunities to integrate systems engineering practices, models and simulations, technological innovations and data analytics into the integrated collaborative processes to inform decision-making, improve communication and efficiently use data and models to satisfy the stakeholders' requirements.
Participants representing academia can benefit from attending the Summit in several ways, including:
Access to industry insights: Attending the Summit will provide academic participants with insights into the challenges faced by industry professionals, which can inform research and teaching.
Opportunities for collaboration: The Summit will provide academic participants with opportunities to collaborate with industry experts, which can lead to joint research projects or industry partnerships.
Exposure to new research: The Summit will showcase new research in the field, which can help inform future research projects and keep academics up to date with the latest advancements.
Education opportunities: The Summit will provide academics with innovative ideas and materials to incorporate into their teaching, which can enhance the quality of their instruction and improve the educational experience for students.
Who Should Attend
The Summit is an event designed for a wide range of stakeholders, including:
- Directors and managers responsible for the application of state-of-the-art DE practices such as digital twin, digital and technology innovation, digital design and delivery into major projects and programs
- Heads of IT and data management
- Systems engineers
- Decision-makers, regulators and government officials, including leaders in defence and national security agencies, aerospace, infrastructure, construction, manufacturing, health, telecommunications, mining and energy
- Academics working in the field of digital transformation, systems engineering, modelling and simulation, data engineering and analytics and cybersecurity
- … and many more!
Join Us To:
- Stay up to date with the latest developments in the field of DE and enhance your knowledge and skills.
- Obtain valuable insight from senior-level speakers across regions and industries on some of the complex challenges and opportunities facing the DE community.
- Engage with policymakers, authorities, industry leaders and researchers in a unique high-level discussion and networking forum.
- Explore best practices and real-world examples of how to enhance agility and data-driven decision-making through digital transformation.
- Seize the opportunity to contribute your ideas and knowledge and help foster innovation and collaboration among experts and professionals in the cross-industry DE community.
Topics to be Covered at the Summit
- Digital engineering and the next industrial revolution
- Harnessing the digital thread of data to provide end-to-end asset lifecycle
- Shaping the next generation workforce to enable maritime digital transformation
- Changing the workforce and organisational culture through digital engineering
- A digital engineering competency framework
- Dealing with the changing nature of national security in a digital age
- Digital engineering in service of Industry 4.0
- Public sector data analytics for effective decision making
- Embracing a digital approach to nuclear-powered submarines engineering and delivery
- Systems transformation through a digital perspective
Organising Committee
- Professor Sandoss Elsawah - UNSW
- Dr Ismail Ali - UNSW
For any enquiries regarding the Summit and registrations please contact:
Consec - Conference and Event Management
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Summit Managers
Consec - Conference and Event Management
PO Box 3127
Belconnen Delivery Centre
BELCONNEN ACT 2617
Tel: +61 2 6252 1200
Email: adesummit@consec.com.au