DroneShield has announced a $13 million investment in a new research and development (R&D) facility in Adelaide, South Australia.
This $13 million investment is a direct contribution to South Australia’s economy, covering three years of operational and capital expenditure. It will initially create around 20 high-skilled engineering roles in Adelaide, focused on radio frequency (RF) electronics, EW, and systems integration, to directly support DroneShield’s mission to deliver cutting-edge defence technologies.
The South Australian expansion complements DroneShield’s existing engineering operations in Sydney and supports the Company’s continued growth in advanced RF electronics and EW capabilities. Adelaide has been chosen due to its proximity to leading global defence and aerospace organisations, a highly skilled engineering workforce, and established infrastructure supporting advanced technology development, particularly in EW and RF systems.
The announcement comes as DroneShield reaches a significant company milestone, this week surpassing 400 employees globally, nearly doubling its team in the past year and more than quadrupling it over the last two years. Approximately 300 of these employees are software and hardware engineers, reinforcing DroneShield’s position as a world-leading technology company focused on delivering advanced defence capabilities. The Company also has around 100 open roles, reflecting its commitment to delivering on its technology roadmap and supporting customers and allies with speed and scale.
Premier of South Australia, The Hon Peter Malinauskas, said, “South Australia is the Defence State, and has been recognised by the Business Council as the best place in the country to do business. We welcome DroneShield making the choice to conduct research and development here in Adelaide, creating 20 highly skilled engineering roles. As a Government, we have a strong focus on growing our Research and Development ecosystem, which has the capacity to build our economic complexity and our state’s prosperity.”
DroneShield Chief Executive, Oleg Vornik, said, “South Australia is recognised as a national leader in defence and space industries, with Adelaide home to a highly skilled and experienced workforce. Establishing our first R&D office in Australia outside of our Sydney Headquarters – in Adelaide – is a strategic move that supports DroneShield’s mission to deliver world-leading counter-drone and EW solutions.
“DroneShield’s growth to 400 employees globally – with the majority of our team being engineers – reflects our commitment to deep technical capability and delivery.”
DroneShield Chief Product and Technology Officer, Angus Bean, said, “DroneShield’s new R&D facility in Adelaide marks a significant step forward in our commitment to ensuring our technology roadmap is being supported by the best engineering minds nationally. Our new facility is critical to accelerating the development of our next-generation counter-drone and EW technologies, while expanding our engineering footprint and supporting critical project development for global customers.”
DroneShield’s South Australian R&D facility will be led by Jeff Wojtiuk, a leading Australian engineer who specialises in radio frequency technologies. Jeff brings over two decades of experience in defence and aerospace systems engineering, with a strong background in RF design, EW, and complex systems integration. He has held senior engineering roles across major defence programs – including over a decade of experience at Lockheed Martin Australia – and has contributed to the development of advanced radar and communications technologies. His expertise will be instrumental in shaping the technical direction of DroneShield’s new Adelaide facility.
The new site is expected to be fully up and running by March 2026.
The South Australia R&D expansion comes as DroneShield is going through expansion of its annual production capacity from $500m to $2.4bn by end of 2026, including setting up European and US manufacturing; as well as R&D expansion in the US.
